Madonna’s Truth or Dare Shoe Line: Our First Look
Following her success with Material Girl, a young women’s fashion and accessories collection co-designed by daughter Lourdes, Madonna is now aiming to conquer a more sophisticated group of women with the launch of her new shoe line, Truth or Dare by Madonna.
Her brand, which also includes a signature fragrance exclusively at Macy’s, will debut the footwear on August 1st at Macy’s and Nordstrom, with some of the collection at Zappos.com by mid-August. Retail price points will range from $89-$349.
Rolling Stone attended the preview of the Truth or Dare footwear line (which is produced by Aldo) at the Iconix Brand offices in New York. Though we expected Madonna’s “Vogue” to be blaring from the speakers and ginormous photos of the Material Girl to line the walls, it was a pretty demure and professional setting. We were expecting to see what you’d expect from Madonna’s career: provocation, and we got it somewhat in the line; there were such pieces for vixen risk-takers as stiletto black leather and suede boots and her iconic over-the-knee boots that tie at the top. There were also wearable everyday shoes like brown leather flat boots, one of our personal favorites that’s only available at Macy’s, and black ankle boots.
The collection spins off Madonna’s most legendary looks onstage, although some of these styles were modified for her latest tour, as well as inspired by her personal style throughout the years. Arianne Phillips, the pop star’s longtime stylist and an Academy Award nominee for her work on Madonna’s film W.E., serves as the creative director behind Truth and Dare.
“They really worked together and revisited Madonna’s styles that have come up over the years – for instance, the T-strap heel,” Ali Tyrangel of Iconix Brand told Rolling Stone. This T-strap look in particular is an obvious preferred look of Madonna’s; the line carries several different variations with detailing, such as black suede/white snake heel and a midnight suede with gold mirror piping heel.
“This one with the studs is also one of Madonna’s favorite styles,” Tyrangel said, pointing to a black leather stiletto with a mirror tip and studs along the side. “This line has a lot of black. Madonna wears a lot of black but there’s also something for the regular girl.”
For the ladies who can’t pull off the vamp look at their 9-to-5s, the line also features a chic black leather/white patent flat that we adored. It comes in various styles like pink suede, gold suede and black and tan pump. The only miss we could spot from the entire collection was a purple suede/purple leather open-toe stiletto that seems a bit hooker-esque, but maybe we’re just not exploring our wild side.
“There’s always the dichotomy that Madonna has, like the yin and yang,” Tyrangel said. “There are things that are sweet but not too sweet, like masculine mixed with feminine. Nothing is ever too girly.”
It’s that contradiction of roles that works extremely well with this shoe line. It’s not just catering to one particular type of woman, but all of us who want to be taken seriously and yet also garner a second (and third) look.
So, after Material Girl, can we expect a Truth or Dare fashion line next?
“There’s definitely going to be a fashion line,” said Tyrangel. “They started this brand and began their foray with the fragrance line, and now shoes. It’s all about finding the right partners so they can develop the line.”