Rihanna, Ricky Martin and more come out for emotional tribute to ‘visionary’ designer Virgil Abloh

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Musicians, fashion stars and celebrities came together to honour Virgil Abloh after the late designer died from a rare form of cancer on Sunday (28 November).

Rihanna, Ricky Martin and Jeremy Pope were among the famous names spotted in the crowd on Tuesday (30 November) as the designer’s final Louis Vuitton collection was revealed at Miami Marine Stadium.

Abloh’s spring-summer 2022 runway collection was showcased during a moving tribute presentation titled “VIRGIL WAS HERE”, which also saw a statue made in Abloh’s image tower over guests as they entered the venue.

The event ended with Abloh’s initials written in white lights in the sky about the runway before another display wrote out the show’s title in red lights.

Other celebrities at the show included Kim Kardashian, Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, Bella Hadid, ASAP Rocky, Kid Cudi and more as they gathered to celebrate Abloh’s contributions to the fashion industry.

The Off-White founder became the first Black man to serve as men’s artistic director for Louis Vuitton in 2018 and remained in the role until his death.

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Abloh’s work also spanned visual arts, furniture design – including collaborations with IKEA, and music – he was a DJ and a close collaborator of Kanye West.

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It was announced on Sunday (28 November) that the pioneering fashion designer died at the age of 41 after a private battle with cardiac angiosarcoma.

Abloh is survived by his wife Shannon and his children, Lowe and Grey.

Following the news of his death, celebrities across the globe paid tribute to the polymath and shared their memories of the designer.

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Frank Ocean was among the first to speak publicly as he wrote on Instagram: “In 2018, I believe it was, I called V and asked him how it was possible to play hundreds of shows a year and do numerous fashion collections a year and be a father and a husband and return EVERYONE’s texts with enthusiasm and emojis and encouragement and seemingly… with ease.

“I cannot remember how he responded verbatim but I’m sure it was quotable whatever he said. He was always quotable.”

He continued: “The gist of his response was that he was interested in living and living to the maximum extent of his level… which proved to be impossible today because he was BEYOND.”