Reggaeton and Latin trap singer Eladio Carrión released a song on March 17 featuring Latin music superstar Bad Bunny titled “Coco Chanel,” an obvious homage to the founder of the world-famous luxury fashion brand. “Quiere Coco Chanel, Louis V, Bottega (Coco), yeah,” Bad Bunny says on the track (“Quiere” is Spanish for “wants”).
The video garnered more than 7.4 million views within five days of its release, and search interest in Coco Chanel herself has surged.
Coco Chanel founded her acclaimed fashion house in 1910, opening a shop on Rue Cambon in Paris selling hats. She grew the brand into a couture, ready-to-wear, accessories and fragrance business. Upon Chanel’s death in 1971, the brand struggled to find a creative director to fill the void, until Karl Lagerfeld came along. He reinterpreted and modernized the house design codes and eventually turned Chanel into a multibillion-dollar brand. Lagerfeld, who died in 2019, was succeeded by Chanel’s studio manager Virginie Viard, who is the current design lead for the brand.
References to Chanel in songs are not a novelty. During Lagerfeld’s tenure at Chanel, the brand became a fan favorite among supermodels and celebrities alike. Hip-hop artists have been making references to fashion brand since the ‘90s. Here, WWD looks at songs that have referenced Chanel.
“Get Money” by Junior M.A.F.I.A.
Junior M.A.F.I.A. was a rap group that included The Notorious B.I.G., aka Biggie Smalls, and Lil’ Kim. The group’s 1996 song “Get Money” made many allusions to luxury fashion including Lil’ Kim’s lyrics when she says, “Now you wanna buy me diamonds and Armani suits, Adrienne Vittadini and Chanel 9 boots.” The song debuted at number eight on the Billboard 200.
“Right Thurr (Remix)” by Chingy featuring Jermaine Dupri and Trina
In 2003, Chingy brought rappers Trina and Jermaine Dupri to remix his hit hip-hop single “Right Thurr.” On the remix, Trina’s lyrics include the line “Lil’ mama rockin’ strings and Chanel pearls.”
“Soap Opera” by Cam’ron
Cam’ron’s “Purple Haze” album debuted at number 20 on the Billboard 200 in December 2004. One of the album’s songs “Soap Opera” features the lyrics “breathe Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld acting like Gargamel” referencing Chanel’s then artistic director and “Smurfs” character villain Gargamel.
“Jumpman” by Drake and Future
Drake and Future’s song “Jumpman” peaked at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 when it was released in November 2015. The song referenced Chanel’s fragrances with the lyric “Chanel No.9, Chanel No.5, well, you got ‘em both.”
“Labels or Love” by Fergie
“Labels or Love” by Fergie was a hit among “Sex and the City” fans as it samples the theme song from the show and was featured on the 2006 “Sex and the City: The Movie” soundtrack. In the bridge of the song, Fergie sings “I’m into a lot of bling, Cadillac, Chanel and Coach.”
“Coco Chanel” by Nicki Minaj and Foxy Brown
Eladio Carrión and Bad Bunny weren’t the first rappers with a song titled “Coco Chanel.” In 2018, Nicki Minaj released her album “Queen,” which peaked at number two on the Billboard 200, with track 18 on the song named after the legendary designer.
“Chanel” Rae Sremmurd, Swae Lee, Slim Jxmmi and Pharrell
Pharrell was a known collaborator with Chanel and their former creative director Karl Lagerfeld. In 2018, he paid homage to his beloved luxury brand alongside Rae Sremmurd, Slim Jxmmi and Swae Lee. The chorus opens with the lyric “Take her to Chanel ‘cause she fine.”