Vogue's Usher cover sparks backlash: He deserves 'his own cover,' fans argue

Jay Stahl, USA TODAY
Updated ·4 min read
17

Usher is on the cover of Vogue for the first time, but the fashion magazine is coming under fire.

The R&B superstar is gracing Vogue's pages ahead of his much-anticipated performance at the Super Bowl 58 halftime show, presented by Apple Music. Usher will take the stage on Feb. 11 at Allegiant Stadium near Las Vegas.

But now, the famed publication is facing criticism for a cover that features a youth football team flanked by the "Confessions" hitmaker and '90s supermodel Carolyn Murphy. The Vogue cover story, which details Usher's upcoming album and run-up to the halftime show, heavily features Murphy in the photos.

There is one solo picture of Usher in the digital piece. On Instagram and Twitter, social media users decried Vogue's editorial decisions.

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"So… lemme get this right.. Vogue didn’t think Usher was a big enough star for HIS OWN SOLO cover … so they called in a random white lady to accompany him???" one social media user posted on X.

One social media user contrasted the "Vogue" cover of Harry Styles, who is white, with Usher.

"Yes, I know U.S. Vogue pairs men with with women for covers and the other country Vogues do solos. But Harry Styles got a solo cover so it’s def possible. But even in that context why was the model not Black?" another social media user wrote on X.

Harry Styles made history in 2020 when he became the first man to grace the cover of American Vogue solo. Now, in 2023, social media users are criticizing the fashion magazine for their choice to feature Usher with supermodel Carolyn Murphy.
Harry Styles made history in 2020 when he became the first man to grace the cover of American Vogue solo. Now, in 2023, social media users are criticizing the fashion magazine for their choice to feature Usher with supermodel Carolyn Murphy.

"I don't understand the cover," an Instagram user replied to Vogue's post of the cover photo.

"What does Carolyn Murphy have to do with Usher? Why does Usher, who's had such a long and and expansive career need to have a model (to) share his cover with?" one commenter said on the post.

Usher's Vogue cover was shot by photographer Campbell Addy, who is Black.

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Vogue has faced previous backlash for covers featuring Black stars, athletes

This is not the first time Vogue has sparked discourse for their covers featuring Black celebrities.

In the spring of 2008, the fashion magazine stirred up controversy when it released a cover of NBA legend LeBron James alongside supermodel Gisele Bündchen. James was the first Black man to land on the cover of Vogue.

On the cover, the basketball legend was hunched over, dribbling a basketball, with his mouth open wide. But according to reports by Time and Today, some said the depiction conjured up harmful racial undertones about Black male aggression, the "angry Black man" and King Kong stereotypes.

Some critics also compared the photo, which included James with his arms around Bündchen, to racist imagery of a gorilla carrying a white damsel that was displayed on a World War I enlistment poster.

The February 2021 "Vogue" cover depicting then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in pearls and Converse Chuck Taylors drew backlash and widespread controversy from social media users.
The February 2021 "Vogue" cover depicting then-Vice President-elect Kamala Harris in pearls and Converse Chuck Taylors drew backlash and widespread controversy from social media users.

Vogue controversy: Kamala Harris' team says they were blindsided by cover; Anna Wintour responds

After she won the 2020 presidential election with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris was featured on two covers of Vogue. Both covers were shot by Tyler Mitchell, a Black photographer. One displayed Harris in a powder-blue Michael Kors suit while another featured the former California senator wearing a more casual outfit.

The latter ignited internet backlash when social media skeptics speculated that the image was washed out to lighten the skin of Harris, who has a multiracial identity. Harris' team criticized the editorial choice in comments to the Associated Press.

"Obviously we have heard and understood the reaction to the print cover and I just want to reiterate that it was absolutely not our intention to, in any way, diminish the importance of the vice president-elect’s incredible victory," Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour told The New York Times in a statement published at the time.

Who is Carolyn Murphy, the model featured with Usher in Vogue?

Murphy is an actress and one of the world's leading supermodels, who rose to fame in magazine spreads and on the catwalk during the 1990s. She was first discovered at 16, according to IMDb.

Carolyn Murphy at the 2023 Met Gala in New York City.
Carolyn Murphy at the 2023 Met Gala in New York City.

The Florida native was featured on the cover of Vogue in November 1999 as one in a select group of supermodels celebrating the millennium. The working model still graces fashion magazines including recent snaps on Marie Claire France and Vanity Fair France and Vanity Fair Italia.

Contributing: Kim Willis

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Usher's Vogue cover: Backlash of Super Bowl performer photos explained