Topline
Vogue unveiled a new cover featuring Usher on Wednesday, quickly drawing backlash for relegating the singer—who is set to perform at the Super Bowl halftime show in February—to the corner behind a youth football team and supermodel, another instance in the magazine’s history of controversial covers of Black stars.
Usher’s Vogue cover was criticized for relegating him to the corner, behind a youth football team … [+] and supermodel Carolyn Murphy. (Photo by Leon Bennett/FilmMagic)
FilmMagic
Key Facts
Vogue published its cover story profiling Usher, the singer set to take the stage at next month’s Super Bowl halftime show, which features him standing behind a children’s football team and supermodel Carolyn Murphy.
Fans were quick to note Usher, a record-breaking R&B artist, was barely visible on his own magazine cover, criticizing Vogue for not giving him a solo cover and making him share the spotlight with seemingly random people.
Murphy is also photographed alongside Usher in many of the images included in the online Vogue cover story.
Though Usher has not responded directly to the backlash, he thanked Vogue in a post on X, to which he attached several images from the photoshoot.
Usher will perform at the Super Bowl LVIII halftime show on Feb. 11 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Forbes has reached out to Vogue for comment.
Chief Critics
Podcaster and former radio host Scottie Beam criticized Vogue for making Usher share the cover in an X post: “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???” Another user criticized the publication for hiding a Black celebrity behind children and a white model, stating: “Who made the casting decision to put Usher w/ a white model & not a Black one on his Vogue Superbowl cover?” Singer Jade Novah said the Vogue cover looks like a “Where’s Waldo” image and argued Usher deserved a better photoshoot. The replies to Vogue’s post unveiling the cover were quickly filled with critical reactions, including one stating Usher looks like a kids’ football coach, and another that argued a Black publication should have handled the photoshoot.
Key Background
Vogue has previously come under fire for controversial magazine covers featuring Black celebrities. In 2008, the magazine put LeBron James on the cover, making him the first Black man to cover Vogue—but he shared the cover with model Gisele Bundchen in an image that critics said reinforced racial stereotypes and disrespected the athlete. In the cover image, James holds Bundchen in his left arm and bares his teeth toward the camera, leading critics to liken the image to King Kong. Magazine analyst Samir Husni told the Today Show he believes the image was deliberately provocative, though James said he was pleased with the cover and was “just showing a little emotion.” Amid the controversy over Usher’s cover, Beam posted the James cover to X, calling the image “crazy.” Vogue also came under fire in 2020 for its cover featuring Simone Biles, shot by Annie Leibovitz, which critics said was badly lit and left her skin looking washed out and muted. The photoshoot sparked calls for Vogue to hire more Black photographers. The magazine also faced controversy for its January 2021 cover featuring Kamala Harris, who had just been inaugurated as the first Black woman vice president. The cover was criticized as too casual and unflattering amid Harris’ history-making inauguration: The image was a full-body shot featuring her in a casual outfit in front of green and pink drapes, and critics said her stance and facial expression looked awkward and unnatural. The magazine released a second digital cover featuring Harris with her arms crossed in a waist-up shot, wearing a pantsuit and smiling confidently, an image many felt was an improvement. Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour defended the magazine’s less formal cover as “approachable and real,” adding it “reflected the moment that we were living in.”
Tangent
Usher teased details about his upcoming Super Bowl performance to Vogue, telling the magazine it was “specifically curated in my mind to have R&B take the main stage.” The performance will also feature surprise guests, whom Usher said represent “not just R&B music, but R&B performance, R&B connection, R&B spirit.” Vogue also teased Usher’s upcoming album “Coming Home,” set to be released two days before his halftime show performance, as “20 tracks of absolute bangers.”
Further Reading
Usher: Gentleman, Comeback King, Super Bowl MVP (Vogue)
Representation is deeper than putting Black icons on magazine covers (Vox)
Anna Wintour defends Vogue’s controversial Kamala Harris cover (The Guardian)
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