Addison Rae has transformed from the realm of TikTok fame to bona fide pop stardom. We break down her It-girl impact for brands.
In a year dominated by ‘cores’, one is set to stay the course: Addisoncore.
2024 was a big year for Addison Rae. She released her single ‘Diet Pepsi’ in August, almost a year after dropping her first EP. This was closely followed by ‘Aquamarine’, a poppy, sensual follow-up that solidified Rae’s new musical and aesthetic era. Both music videos were rife with high fashion references, from vintage pulls to fresh-off-the-runway pieces including SS25 Di Petsa and AW24 The Attico.
She’s come a long way since her late 2019 ascent to TikTok fame. Rae, who was studying at Louisiana State University at the time, was one of the app’s early success stories, rising to fame with quick-hit lip syncs and dances alongside influencers like Charli D’Amelio. As the pandemic hit and the world turned to TikTok, Rae reached the mainstream. In the years since, she’s shifted from all-American influencer to bona fide pop star.
It’s the right time for fashion to get on board. “Brands are now catching on because she knows the direction she is going in, as her two new singles embody the aesthetics she wants to put out to the world,” says fashion and culture writer Hunter Shires, who has written about — and spent time with — Rae. This year, Rae started working with stylist (and Interview fashion director) Dara Allen, who helped the star hone her sartorial messaging.
Brands are playing ball. Petra Collins sowed the seed in July when she tapped Rae to feature in the campaign for her Ssense-exclusive brand I’m Sorry. Rae sat on the floor in a silver bikini, smoking a cigarette she held between her toes with a tiara on her head. “She really is this collection,” Collins said of Rae at the time.
Now, luxury’s interest is piqued. In November, Saint Laurent featured Rae in the cast of its latest ‘As Time Goes By’ campaign, lensed by Nadia Lee Cohen, alongside stars including Chloë Sevigny and Charlotte Gainsbourg.
Rae’s work with the likes of Collins and Cohen harken back to the Tumblr days. Even Rae’s website looks like a “niche, obscure” Tumblr blog, says Rukiat Ashawe, editorial executive at creative agency The Digital Fairy. “Addison has established herself as a ‘cool girl’ through experimenting with fashion, especially with the indie sleaze aesthetic,” she says. It’s timely in a year when indie sleaze returned to the fore and Brat summer captured the zeitgeist (Charli XCX is a friend and collaborator of Rae). Rae’s ability to bridge this messy-chic Tumblr with more ‘normcore’ style elements (thanks, in part, to her Louisiana roots and early TikTok dance fame) enables her to click with a wide audience, experts agree.
When she guest appeared at Charli XCX and Troye Sivan’s Sweat tour concert in New York’s Madison Square Garden wearing Mirror Palais and New York designer Miss Claire Sullivan, people took note. “Many people who recognised the dress she wore reached out and were just as gagged as we were,” says Mirror Palais designer Marcelo Gaia.
Sullivan — of Miss Claire Sullivan — also dressed Rae for this year’s MTV VMAs, after stylist Allen reached out via Instagram DM, to much chatter online. Sullivan recalls an editor friend running up to her at a fellow designer’s presentation after the look went live to ask if she had designed Rae’s ceremony fit. “I sort of knew in that moment that it was going to blow up way more than I had anticipated,” she says. The look generated $927,000 in media impact value (or MIV, which calculates the monetary value of posts, article mentions and social media interactions) in the first week, per Launchmetrics — Rae’s highest weekly MIV to date.
“My phone was blowing up for two days,” says Sullivan, who also saw her followers jump. “I was steadily climbing already, but she put me over the 10,000 mark for sure,” she says. “The best bit was seeing people dress up as her in the look for Halloween.”
Clearly, Rae has the star power to generate followers — and sales. (Sullivan helms a custom couture house, but will make iterations if someone is inspired to buy it, she says.) It’s not just emerging and independent designers basking in Rae’s shine. She also does numbers for the luxury labels she dons. Her Thom Browne look at October’s CFDA Awards generated $875,000 in MIV, while her vintage Alberta Ferretti gown at the 2024 Academy Museum Gala generated $276,000, according to Launchmetrics. As Rae cements her place in pop stardom, these numbers are only set to climb.
Bridging aesthetics — and audiences
What Shires calls “normal-hot” is trending, which bodes well for Rae’s ascent. Normal-hot is the essence of a crush you would have in real life, he explains. And it’s a look that’s replicable; Rae is papped as often in Lululemon zip-ups and Alo shorts as she is in vintage designer pieces. “As normal-hot becomes a new infatuation, with Abercrombie and prep looks back on the runway, she couldn’t have come at a better time,” he says. “Addison delivers fashion looks that are aspirational to the normal girl.”
Rae’s ability to toe the line between normalcy and stardom is what hits. For designers, it makes her fun to work with. “She has this relatability but she still provides a fantasy,” Sullivan says. “I love that she’s so willing to just take it all the way there. That energy is my dream client to work with honestly.”
And for audiences, this level of relatability makes them feel like they can buy into the fantasy she toggles. It’s also refreshing, amid a sea of stars who often don’t look thrilled to be where they are. “There is a sense of genuine, childlike excitement and joy when she puts on these pieces and attends these events,” Shires says. “You can see her beaming every time she hits a carpet because she is actually happy to be there.”
Industry figures recognise this, too. In his interview with Vogue (alongside Rae), Mel Ottenberg (who creative directed Rae’s ‘Diet Pepsi’ music video) pulled out a tweet that he felt encapsulated the star’s ability to make the over-the-top relatable: “One way to tell if someone has joie de vivre is if they like Addison Rae.”
This balance makes Rae appealing to a wider audience, which is a win for brands. “With this range comes the ability to tap into multiple audiences, from the everyday suburban girl all the way to coverage from high fashion enthusiasts on X,” Shires says.
Time for luxury
Luxury brands are slowly catching on. As well as her latest Saint Laurent feature, Rae appeared in the Marc Jacobs x Vaquera collaboration campaign. Both generated hefty MIVs in their first weeks of release: $297,000 for Saint Laurent and $225,000 for Marc Jacobs x Vaquera.
Rae also attended the Miu Miu SS25 show, alongside Collins. This was a major stamp of approval, Shires says. “An invite from the Prada team is the true marker of being seen in fashion.”
For brands looking to reach younger consumers, Rae makes a smart partner. “There is something about her that really humanises everything she touches,” Shires says. “She is an ambassador that so many brands are looking for right now to help them tap into a younger audience.” Rae’s earnestness means she’s a good bedfellow for luxury brands that don’t want to look try-hard in connecting with Gen Z, The Digital Fairy’s Ashawe says. “There’s an element of cool that Addison possesses, which could be passed over to brands.”
As luxury brands vie for the attention — and dollars — of younger consumers, it’s a dose of cool they’d do well to latch on to, especially while Rae remains on the rise. Plus, if there’s an album on the way — as Rae semi let slip to Vogue back in August — 2025 will be her year.
Cre: VOGUE Business
