Go Behind-the-Scenes at Vogue’s Forces of Fashion Conference

Welcome to Forces of Fashion.

Forces brings together some of the most creative

and exciting talents from the worlds of fashion

and from music and from film and culture.

And we're honored that they've come from all over the world

to be here today.

Oh hey, if anybody's seen that Hilary Duff movie?

[laughing]

Every single time that I go to a event

that I always wanted to go to, I always play it in my head.

It goes like,

♪ Hey now, hey now ♪

♪ This is what dreams are made of ♪

Never ever wear anything that makes you uncomfortable.

If you put it on and it's not right for you, don't wear it.

And then Anna walks in and I'm like, mom,

that's Anna Wintour from Vogue.

And you know my mom's like really not fashion at all.

She's like who?

The thing I love about working within houses

and you have the pillars of what the house is

and it's like the place, things you can work with

and the teams, you have the best people in the world

to create and make beautiful things for me

and it's a real joy.

I know it might could frivolous and silly but,

a pink dress or a smile can really have little impacts

on yourself and other people throughout the day.

This conversation of diversity and inclusion,

a lot of people are doing their best

to try to like understand and figure out

where their place is, how they can help,

and I, for all of that, I'm grateful.

It's never gonna be perfect, it's never gonna clean,

but I love that there's a deliberate intent to

right a wrong and try to understand and listen.

I think especially when people tell me

that I act like her, that to me is the biggest compliment

I can receive.

It was Raul Martinez, the creative director

of the magazine who called me first about the opportunity

and when he offered me the commission, he also told me

I would be the first African American photographer

to shoot the cover of Vogue.

I mean the first thing I mainly asked him

was am I being punk'd? [laughing]

My mom was such a feminist and she taught me

to always be financially independent

and when I started the company, it was hard for women.

I decided years after years to push for diversity

and to remind people that maybe today I'm the only one

to be creative director of a luxury French brand,

but tomorrow we have to change and to have to step up

and fight against it.

That's my other favorite quote was that we were

on this dude ranch which was quite difficult to get to

and you had to take quite a small plane

and Donatella took one look at it and she said,

Anna, this is not a plane.

This is a hairdryer. [laughing]

It was fun.

I mean the most touching experience to see

another part of America that I didn't know.

I love it.

[Anna] Wyoming.

Wyoming, yeah.

I thank her for this, you know, the experience.

[gentle upbeat music]