The Soundtrack to the Future of Elegance

The Soundtrack to the Future of Elegance

Elegance today isn’t just visual, it’s sonic, emotional, and deeply immersive.

We’re witnessing a cultural renaissance, one where Afro-diasporic soundscapes aren’t just influencing taste, they’re redefining luxury. Artists like Tems, Rema, Ayra Starr, Asake and Burna Boy are no longer background noise to opulence, they are the pulse. Their music, deeply rooted in West African rhythms and diasporic fusion, shapes how we move through refined spaces. These sounds are now part of the global language of high fashion, lifestyle campaigns, and elevated moments.

From the velvet-backed booths of fashion week after-parties to candle-lit runways in Milan, Afro-swing, afro-house, afro-jazz, and afrobeat echo through spaces once reserved for classical strings and ambient minimalism. But make no mistake: this isn’t a replacement, it’s resonance. A new sonic elegance that blends heritage with innovation, tradition with global shifts. Where classical symphonies once scored the world of couture, you’ll now find orchestral influences and choral vocals layered under tracks by Ayra Starr or Tems. This is not dilution, it’s dialogue. Coexistence.

From infancy, my parents instilled a deep love of music in our home. My siblings and I would drift to sleep to the sounds of Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Debussy, and Chopin - classical tapes were part of our bedtime ritual. I even began formal piano training at the age of four, reluctantly at first, but in hindsight, it was formative. Our poor neighbours likely questioned their life choices every time I pounded out a clumsy rendition furthest removed from the original Beethoven with all the grace of a baby elephant. Nonetheless, it shaped the way I hear, feel, and select music today.

Equally significant were the sounds that filled our living room: Motown and soul classics from my parents' vinyl collection, Latin American music from my father's love of salsa, and early Afrobeat from the likes of, Fela Kuti, Salif Keita and Oumou Sangaré. Even the stirring melodies of South African freedom songs of legends like Mariam Makeba found their way into my rhythm. These sounds sit side-by-side in my musical memory, and in many ways, they’ve laid the soundtrack for how I approach style and storytelling.

Afro-diasporic music has always had its place in resilience, celebration and social mobility. What we’re seeing now is a mainstream recognition of that power. These artists are bridging continents with collaboration: Wizkid and Drake, Rema and Selena Gomez, Davido and J. Cole, Ayra Starr and Bad Bunny, Fireboy DML and Ed Sheeran., Mr Eazi and Beyoncé.

Across these bridges come new audiences. Diverse, emotionally attuned, and ready to experience luxury in every sense of the word. Brands are beginning to tune in. From soundtracking major fashion campaigns to curating playlists for in-store experiences, the Afrobeat influence is undeniable. The likes of Louis Vuitton, Balmain, and Savage x Fenty are taking note, recognising not only cultural capital, but cultural continuity.

More data is needed on audience retention, influence, and spending power. But the presence is already here. Afrobeat now charts globally. Spotify’s Afro-focused playlists have seen exponential year-on-year growth. Apple Music's "Africa Now" is a flagship curation. The demand isn’t looming; it’s living.

For the influencer and luxury brand landscape, this signals a shift, no longer a trend. Collaborations can no longer be cosmetic, they must be symphonic. Choosing the right voice for the right campaign is no longer about trend forecasting; it’s about grasping cultural fluency. Afro-diasporic voices hold not only sonic richness but narrative depth. They represent a global identity that is rhythmically complex, emotionally aware, and visually compelling.

To soundtrack the future of elegance is to embrace the cadence of change. It means recognising that sound is not separate from style. It is style. From the baselines that anchor our moodboards to the lyrical prose that underscores our campaigns, music is the thread. And right now, that thread is woven in afro-rhythms, classical strings, diasporic inflexions, and a globally recognisable beat.

With love,
Terena