Celebrity stylist Law Roach has sensationally ‘retired’, taking to his Instagram to share the news, and the tea.
Known for creating some of the most iconic looks of all time—from Zendaya’s four dresses over the NAACP awards and SAG Awards, to Hunter Schafer’s feather look at the Vanity Fair Oscars After Party—he has been working, and hard.
However, it appears it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for the stylist.
He posted a photo of the word ‘Retired’ slashed in red across a white background, with a caption that suggests there has been a lot going on behind the scenes.
“My cup is empty,” he began. “Thank you to everyone who’ve supported me and my career over the years.”
“Every person that trusted me with their image, I’m so grateful for you all. If this business was just about the clothes I would do it for the rest of my life but unfortunately it’s not!”
This is where the tea escalates.
“The politics, the lies and false narratives finally got me! You win … I’m out.”
While it’s not clear exactly what lies Roach is referencing, the fashion set rushed to the comments to share their complete shock and sadness at the news.
“Law I won’t let you !!!! We don’t quit .. strived [too] hard,” supermodel Naomi Campbell shared.
Lauded fashion commentator @stylenotcom posted, “DO. NOT. QUIT.”
While Roach has styled for countless celebrities, it was his work with Zendaya that catapulted the celebrity stylist’s name into the lexicon of many fashion lovers. In fact, Roach even attended the 2019 Met Gala with Zendaya, she was dressed as Cinderella and he was dressed as her fairy godmother.
When Zendaya won the 2021 CFDA Fashion Icon Award she thanked Roach for his work. “Thankfully, when I was 14, I found my co-director of sorts. One who saw what I did and sometimes, more than I ever could have imagined on my own, that being Law Roach,” she said.
“My fashion soulmate, historian, and constant inspiration—thank you for pushing me to see all of myself and teaching me how to do so fearlessly.”
While the cause of Roach’s distress is not yet clear, there have been some early reports, including one on The Cut, that his message could be due to Zendaya having signed a contract with Louis Vuitton, which would naturally restrict Roach’s creative license with her sartorial choices.
Of course, given the mystique surrounding Roach’s departure, the rumour mill has been constantly churning out potential possibilities for why he’s actually retiring. Was it the contract? Was it a front row shade?
Well, Roach has finally provided answers, sitting down with Emily Ratajkowski on her podcast, High Low with EmRata, to divulge for the first time what actually happened and how Zendaya found out he was leaving the celebrity styling industry.
According to Roach, Zendaya heard the news at the same time at the rest of the world, seeing his Instagram post with the word “retired” emblazoned across the screen.
“She called and said, ‘Girl, I thought we’d make big decisions together,'” Roach told the model.
Roach also revealed that Zendaya wondered if he was in need of a break rather than stepping back completely.
“She’s like, ‘do you need me to send you on a vacation? Like, tell me what, tell me what you’re going through.’ And I you know, talk to her about, you know, just being unhappy and being unhappy for a really long time and still grieving the death of my nephew,” he revealed.
“We had that talk. And she was like, ‘whatever you need, whatever you need.’ But the internet is cruel. It’s really cruel.”
Zendaya herself hasn’t publicly disclosed her feelings about his departure, nor taken to social media to share support for her former stylist, but it’s clear there’s no bad blood here.
