“Just Be Loud, Girl!”: Yseult Reviews Dior SS25

TUESDAY 2:11 PM SEPTEMBER 21, 2024 PARIS

Yesterday, Dior showed their SS25 collection beneath an arched tent at the Musée Rodin gardens as rain brewed outside, enveloping the crowd in their own Olympic village fashion fantasy. This season, as Paris still reels from the high of the Olympic Games, Maria Grazia Chiuri enlisted the keen eye of artist and archer SAGG Napoli, who kicked off the show by shooting an arrow through the room, piercing its target. The show was a message of strength and athleticism: “May the building of a strong mind and a strong body be the greatest work I have ever made,” read one of the quotes plastered on the wall. As arrows continued to fly past, models entered looking flushed in head-to-toe sportswear, marking a gear switch for the French fashion house. Shimmering cutout swimwear, one-shouldered swishy suiting, and checkered moto jackets met sporty accessories like knee-high cleats, sweatbands, and fingerless gloves, all in practical black and white. Yet the show softened at the end with gladiator sandals and toga-like gowns in happier golden hues, a nod to the Grecian beginnings of the Olympics and Maria Grazia Chiuri’s classic tulle dresses. After the show, we tracked down the French hitmaker and certified Dior doll Yseult to see if she had any tips for front row first-timers. Her response? “Just be loud, girl.”

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MEL OTTENBERG: Hey Yseult, how are you?

YSEULT: I’m good, I’m blessed and I am grateful. I’m just so happy about everything right now and I’m proud of my team. Look at them, they’re working, she’s working, everyone’s working.

OTTENBERG: I’m sure. It’s hard to look that good. You need a good team for that.

YSEULT: Always.

OTTENBERG: I was mesmerized watching you dance in your seat to “Guess” at the Dior show yesterday because I feel like that’s what I’m giving in my brain at a show when a good song comes on. You’re just living it out loud and I like that about you.

YSEULT: Well, I’m a pop artist. So when I heard Charli XCX at Dior, I was kind of surprised because I was like, “What? They’re on Brat at Dior.” I really, really love Charli XCX. I love her vibe. It’s my gem for sure.

OTTENBERG: What’s your favorite song on Brat?

YSEULT: “Everything is Romantic.” I love it. It reminds me of Sophie. RIP to Sophie.

OTTENBERG: Yes.

YSEULT: Everything is very sad and nostalgic. I love it.

OTTENBERG: It’s really good. Are there any other pop girlies that you’re impressed by right now?

YSEULT: Chappel Roan. I love her. I love her persona.

OTTENBERG: I love her too. At the beginning of the summer I was like, “This Pink Pony song—make it stop.” And then I was like, “Wait, this is the best song.”

YSEULT: And “Good Luck, Babe.” I just love her.

OTTENBERG: You’re having the best year, no?

YSEULT: It’s kind of crazy. Like, the Alibi song, and then the Olympics, and then Rock in Rio, and then [Jimmy] Fallon, and then Fashion Week, and then the release of my new project. And now, an interview with Interview.

OTTENBERG: [Laughs] And now an interview. You’ve really worked fashion hard this year, and you and Dior is such a winning combination. You at Cannes in Dior was one of the best looks of the year. 

YSEULT: Woah. Thank you, Mel. Thank you.

OTTENBERG: Did you feel great?

YSEULT: For me, it was magical. For me to be at Cannes, with L’Oreal as a spokesperson, surrounded by strong women like Viola Davis, it was amazing. I was so, so, so happy and honored to wear this beautiful iconic Dior look. I really loved the silhouette. This silhouette is iconic. I mean, it’s the new look. I talked to my stylist, Jonathan Huguet, and he was like, “What do you want to wear?” And I was like, “You know what? It’s not what I want to wear. It’s more about the House. It’s about creating a sense of magic and surprise.” I’ve always said that one day my dream is to put my ass in a beautiful Dior dress, and then boom. And they were so happy to collab with me.

OTTENBERG: You really did that. That was done with real taste and intelligence. Message received around the world, Yseult.

YSEULT: Thank you.

OTTENBERG: Let’s say we were going to do an Interview shoot. Which Dior spring-summer 2025 look should me and Jonathan be talking about with the house?

YSEULT: I would like to take risks and I would like to be a character. My life project is very punk and rock and bold, so I want to do bold, masculine, sweaty and weird as fuck. I don’t know, maybe an homage to Madonna so I can be crucified somewhere. I don’t know. I don’t know, but it could be so cool to, I don’t know, to create something very weird and iconic. My favorite book is Madonna’s SEX. I have the CDs, I have the book, all of it.

OTTENBERG: I see it and I love it. Going back to Dior, the show yesterday was sporty or glittery or gauzy, so I’m curious which Dior girl you want to embody? Or which one do you see on the runway that you’re like, that’s cool, I’d want to be her. Or, I could be her if I felt like it.

YSEULT: Maybe the archery girl, because I like the message. I like the fact that she’s very strong and fierce. I’m that girl. I’m that girl because, first of all, I’m Leo, I’m Capricorn. I’m very like, “My career and nothing else.”

OTTENBERG: What were you and Isabelle Adjani talking about? I think she’s the coolest French actress of my lifetime.

YSEULT: Ever. Ever.

OTTENBERG: I mean, besides Catherine Deneuve.

YSEULT: Of course. And Isabelle Huppert.

OTTENBERG: That’s the trinity.

YSEULT: When I sat there, she was like, “Oh my god, are you Yseult?” And I was like, “Yes.” And she was like, “I love your music, I love your persona, I love your aura.” And I was like, “Girl, can we just talk about you, because you’re Isabelle Adjani?” And she was like, “Yes, but I’m just a woman.” And I’m like, “No, you’re not just a woman, you are that woman. You’re the goat.” I was in shock.

OTTENBERG: What a moment. That’s a real star.

YSEULT: I swear, like… star.

OTTENBERG: Let’s talk about the white suit. Do you know the Celine Dion white suit that she wore to the Oscars in 1999? This was when the world would really talk about nothing but making fun of Celine Dion’s white John Galliano couture Oscar’s suit for months. It was all anyone could talk about. Nowadays, if someone hates an outfit, they talk about it for 25 seconds and then everyone forgets. But I think that look is great. Do you have any other Dior moments that have fed you? Because that one fed me. You were giving me some Celine swag.

YSEULT: Oh, thank you. I don’t know if it was at the Met Gala, but it was Zendaya, she wore a vintage Christian Dior by Galliano I guess. For me, that was major.

OTTENBERG: Yes. Hot. My last question is, do you have any advice for people on how to stay looking good when you’re going to the show, when you’re going to be shot a lot?

YSEULT: Be yourself. If you’re loud, stay loud. If you are a little bit low-key, be louder. Just be loud, girl. Stay who you are. I know that fashion can be intimidating, but I like when people show their character. Be a fucking rock star and just be yourself, ‘cause we don’t give a fuck about what people think. The ones who are going to receive it with joy—they know.

OTTENBERG: I love that. We’ll leave it at that. Well, we’ll leave it at that. I love talking to you.

YSEULT: Man, I want to be crucified in Interview Magazine. Mel, let’s fucking go.

OTTENBERG: I’m fucking ready.