Scottish singer-turned-activist Annie Lennox made a fashion statement at the Green Carpet Fashion Awards, wearing a shirt which read “Global feminist” as she led a host of Hollywood arrivals including Zendaya, Helen Hunt and John Legend.
Dune star Zendaya wore a plunging fringe open-back gown from the 2011 Roberto Cavalli spring/summer collection with her hair in natural curls, as she arrived to honour sustainability in fashion, posing alongside US stylist Law Roach on the pink carpet.
The US actress co-chaired the event alongside Oscar-winning star Hunt, who was sporting a white long-sleeved number.
All Of Me singer Legend – who posed alongside his model wife Chrissy Teigen – was honoured at the event with Italian fashion designer Donatella Versace, who wore a pink strappy sparkling number.
Speaking about her choice of outfit, Lennox told the PA news agency: “From my perspective, global feminism is a way forward because there is inter-sectionalism.
“If we fight among each other, if we’re too singular in what we do, then we don’t have a solidarity – and we need it.”
She continued: “Global feminism is an umbrella term that is inclusive of all the different kinds of feminism, we need that place, we need a safe space where we can all come together, all shapes, sizes, colours – everyone to say we are working for the globe.
“We are working for the betterment of young girls that are coming up into a planet that it’s not guaranteed what the future is going to look like. We must support each other, that’s the best solution, I honestly think.”
Walking On Broken Glass singer Lennox, who honoured activist Kalpona Atkar during the awards, described the event as “gold for activists”.
“We can’t just shout into an echo chamber, although often we do. If you’re an activist, it is sometimes quite a challenge to try to have eyes on your situation,” the 69-year-old said.
“Here we have an opportunity to speak, and that is like gold for activists. These events are very important, bring the activists in and people can see they are real people, they are not just abstraction.”
Lennox added that she would do anything for Green Carpet Fashion Awards founder Livia Firth, who is “positivity on steroids” and has a “deep understanding and passion about climate justice, the fashion industry, and ecology”.
Other stars who arrived at the Hotel West Hollywood in Los Angeles included model and actress Amber Valletta, British star Trudie Styler – wife of singer Sting – and former president of Ireland Mary Robinson.
“There is a lot of power here and, under the Green Carpet Fashion Awards, the power is being used for good,” Ms Robinson, who was honoured during the awards, told PA.
“It’s to signal the need for sustainability, to tackle the climate and nature crisis using the platforms of influencers with huge social media following who don’t use their platform properly, so I want to try and make that case – because we need everybody now.
“The world is suffering from a lack of political leadership, we need to get everybody to step up and with a big following comes responsibility.”
The annual Green Carpet Fashion Awards “unites the power of fashion and entertainment for positive transformation” as well as championing “interconnected cultural change”.
The awards come in the lead-up to the biggest event in the showbiz calendar, the Academy Awards on Sunday.
