It’s the Renaissance baby! Addison Rae(naissance), that is, with how she’s engaging in a pretty impressive image relaunch.
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If you, like a large chunk of the world, became active on TikTok circa 2020 because the lockdown boredom got to you, you are probably familiar with the name Addison Rae. In those times, our girl Addison was known for hopping on TikTok dances like the Renegade and for being a member of the now-defunct group, “Hype House” (remember that?) which also included other TikTok personalities like the d’Amelio sisters, Vinnie Hacker, and Nikita Dragun.
And while Addison had her tens of millions of followers, like with many TikTok creators of that era, she had her fair share of detractors who did not like her. This showed up in several ugly ways, as the internet tends to do. Comments calling Addison “cringe” would haunt the Gen Z personality, and by extension, her branding and image, for the next several years, with dedicated accounts posting clips of then-20-year-old Addison to make fun of her.
@addisonre ♬ watch me throw it back – goalsounds
While one of the funniest things to come out of the internet is people calling each other out, the internet’s dislike for Addison was unequivocal during the early 2020s. It was yet another sign that social media loves to put a target on young girls and women for a variety of reasons, which has seen a rise in recent years (think Rachel Zegler, Renee Rapp, Halle Bailey), but that’s a discussion for another day.
The trend of hating on Addison peaked when the Netflix movie, He’s All That came out in 2021. A gender-swapped version of the 1999 film She’s All That, the romantic comedy sees Addison playing one of the lead characters, Padgett Sawyer, along with Cobra Kai’s Tanner Buchanan as Cameron Kweller. The movie received immediate backlash, particularly for Addison and her acting skills, and had a poor response from both critics and the audience.
It seemed at the time that nothing was going to save Addison’s image and branding, that she was going to be seen always as a TikTok personality who bombed her chances at a shot for Hollywood fame. That is, until, the Rae(naissance).
YEAH, 360
Something in the air has changed, and it’s not just pollution and climate change.
When people once saw Addison as a TikToker and nothing more has now changed to being seen as a new It Girl on the scene. The cringe compilations have dissipated (though they’re still there if you look for them), and Padgett Sawyer was no more than a fever dream. The Addison of 2021 is no longer the Addison of 2024.
So, what has helped her in this narrative and discourse shift? It starts, like with most things, fashion and style. Photos of her walking down Los Angeles wearing casual but on-point fits made rounds on TikTok. She has TikToks dedicated to appreciating and analyzing her street style and being complimented for her fire fits left and right. A new era was upon her.
Most recently, a Vogue article described Addison’s street style as a “Pop Diva Wardrobe,” a far cry from the “cringe” comments that were made about her just two to three years ago. “Even Rae’s off-duty looks radiate pop-star energy. Her Instagram is filled with callbacks to the 2000s, from pink zip-up hoodies to sheer slips. And what can be said about her hodgepodge Pilates looks (hello, leg warmers and rhinestone-encrusted Dior headband!)? With her high-concept touches to even the most basic of outfits, Rae is always putting in the effort,” wrote writer Hannah Jackson.
According to the same article, Addison’s fashion rebrand traces its beginnings with the help of the image maker himself, Hollywood stylist Law Roach, who just so happens to be Zendaya’s stylist as well. But since Law has retired, her current stylist Ryan Hastings has been keeping up her Gen Z Pop Diva style. This transition has even extended to Fashion Week invites, where she was recently spotted at the Miu Miu show serving office siren vibes.
THE RISE OF A POP STAR
Addison’s 180 transformation from “cringe” Netflix movies and TikTok videos to being a pop girlie who joined Charli xcx, Lorde, and Troye Sivan at a sold-out show at Madison Square Garden wouldn’t be possible if it also weren’t for her growing roster of pop bops.
While her single, Obsessed had its fair share of criticisms when it was first released, the track has found somewhat of a cult following since. Her 2023 EP, AR, which includes a feature with mother brat Charli xcx and a cover of an unreleased Lady Gaga track called Nothing On (But The Radio), has its fans on stan Twitter. But it’s her recent release, Diet Pepsi, that really brought her to the it-list. It’s unironically catchy after a couple of listens and has been a consistent riser on the charts.
She currently has 12 monthly listeners on Spotify, with Diet Pepsi as her number one track with more than 85 million listens. At number two is Obsessed, with 56 million listens, and last but not least, a remix of Charli’s BRAT track Von Dutch, featuring her now iconic scream (another stan fave).
Addison’s “cringe” to pop diva pipeline is definitely something to watch out for. Few in modern pop culture have managed a so far successful rebrand like Addison has. It just goes to show that if you put the work into it, and have a PR and styling team at your disposal, anything is possible and being an it girl isn’t defined by your past, but by how you carry yourself today.
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