There had already been whispers of it. At some point earlier in the year, the Blackpink megastar—who had all along been recognised in the fashion circuit as a longtime Celine girl—was starting to be seen with an increasingly varied array of arm candy from one other very prominent luxury brand. Whilst most fans were just glad to be on the receiving end of her occasional fit checks on Instagram, there was an observant number who had suspected she was hinting at new associations. Today, they were proven right. Lisa Manoban—better known by her stage name Lisa—has just been announced as Louis Vuitton’s latest global ambassador.
”I am very excited to welcome Lisa as a House Ambassador. She has a daring spirit and charisma that I find incredibly compelling. She is as bold and creative with her music as she is with her fashion, and it is a privilege to accompany her on this journey,” offers artistic director Nicolas Ghesquière as he welcomes her into the ever-growing Louis Vuitton family. Indeed, there’s no denying that the K-pop star’s solo career has always leaned audacious—and her recent ‘Rockstar’ comeback stands as crystal clear proof on its own. But her boldest move this time around was hidden in plain sight. In ‘Rockstar’, her rap verse goes: ‘Tight dress, LV sent it. Oh shit, Lisa reppin’’. Loud and clear, for everyone to hear.
Her lyrics for ‘Rockstar’ can be seen as the final cherry on top, after months of teasing her blossoming relationship with the house. Beyond swirling rumours of that other relationship Lisa’s been very careful not to confirm nor deny, the superstar has been dropping well-laced hints through her style cards. A Nano Speedy bag here and there, the Pumpkin from last year’s Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama collab, and then an archival pull from that Stephen Sprouse collab from the early aughts? Surely this was all going somewhere.
As for what truly cemented Lisa’s growing partnership with the brand? Her surprise front row appearance at the maison’s fall/winter 2024 show in Paris earlier this year, just a month after her solo career took off with her company, LLOUD. Change was most definitely afoot, and now the puzzle pieces are finally clicking into place. Below, a chronicle of all the times we knew Lisa already had this ambassadorship in the bag.
1 / 10
Lisa with the LV Remix Sunset bag at Taylor Swift's concert in Singapore
Seemingly innocuous, one of her very first few posts where she was seen carrying anything from the house was during her time in Singapore for Taylor Swift’s concert. The K-pop idol shot a couple of snaps backstage with Swift, and had a chance to show off her concert-approved sensibilities, with her LV Remix Sunset bag being a statement-maker on its own.
2 / 10
Lisa in archival Louis Vuitton for the house's fall/winter 2024 show in Paris
When the first seeds were properly planted. In a turn of events that surprised many, Lisa strutted confidently into the house’s fall/winter 2024 show in Paris–looking like she was meant to be there all along. That embellished archival coat from spring/summer 2018, paired with the eye-catching Pic Trunk in hand.
3 / 10
Lisa in Louis Vuitton's resort 2017 collection
In Paris, the afterparty look matters just as much. Leave it to Lisa to bring out a sporty colour-blocked dress from one of Ghesquière’s most memorable resort collections for the night, teaming it with no less than the chic and sculptural Around Me PM bag.
4 / 10
Lisa with a gold Nano Speedy bag for her birthday in Thailand
For her 27th birthday, the Thai K-pop star made sure to return home to celebrate it in style. To accompany her glittering frock for the evening? An equally splashy Nano Speedy in a delicious gold hue.
5 / 10
Lisa with the Louis Vuitton x Yayoi Kusama Pumpkin bag
Then came the photo dump series that seemed as if Lisa was on her way to collecting every possible Louis Vuitton handbag if possible. For starters? The adorable Pumpkin bag from Louis Vuitton’s collaboration with Yayoi Kusama in 2023.
6 / 10
Lisa with the GO-14 MM bag
Every girl needs an easy flap tote in her life, and Lisa knows this just as well. For a casual night out, she wears the brand’s pillowy GO-14 MM in a neat black, with gold hardware.
7 / 10
Lisa with an archival pull from the Stephen Sprouse collaboration
For her (supposed) date night out in Paris, Lisa certainly demonstrated that she wasn’t just any other Louis Vuitton girl. Instead, she’d managed to secure herself a respectable top handle find from the maison’s collaboration with Stephen Sprouse from all the way back in 2001, adorned with his signature graffiti detail.
8 / 10
Lisa with a Capucines bag at Coachella
Returning to Coachella—this time as an enthused festival attendee—Lisa showed off her off-duty style with practiced ease. Of course, her choice of arm candy was a monochromatic and handy Capucines East-West MM top handle that seamlessly blended into her black-white ensemble for her day in the festival fields.
9 / 10
Lisa with a Low Key Shoulder bag at F1 in Monaco
It’s one thing to make a full-blown statement with one’s appearance at a fashion show, but it’s another to be able to simply have a multitude of trusty alternatives you can wear on any given day out. Case in point? Lisa’s choice to bring out the Low Key Shoulder bag for her F1 hours, a noticeably more subdued offering from her previous captures.
10 / 10
Lisa with a Nano Speedy bag at F1 in Monaco
But of course, everyone always has to have a favourite. We’ll go as far as to suspect that the Nano Speedy silhouette is definitely up Lisa’s alley, considering her chosen accessory for F1 is already the second one (that we know of) she owns. Another thing Lisa seems to prefer cashing in on? The house’s multitude of playful collabs, which is just how she might have landed on this exclusive edition from LV’s tie-up with Chinese artist Sun Yitian—which sees an irresistible black and white dog splashed on its canvas.
