Is This A Trillion-Dollar Look?

There's a new tech titan in town and he's preparing to enter the pantheon. How do we know?

Well, Jensen Huang, the chief executive of Nvidia, has the company: He co-founded Nvidia in 1993, and the market cap is now about $950 billion, though at the end of May it was briefly in the $1 trillion club, putting it in a similar league to Apple, Alphabet and Amazon.

He has the product: a data processing chip that is key to A.I. Development, which is to say, the life of ChatGPT and Bard, which is to say, the current paradigm shift.

And he has the look: a black leather jacket he wears every time he is in the public eye, most often with a black T-shirt and black jeans.

Mr. Huang wore a black leather jacket when he was on the cover of Time as one of its men of the year in 2021. A black leather jacket during his keynote speeches at multiple GTC developer conferences since 2018. To deliver the 2023 World ITF keynote and the 2023 Computex 2023 keynote. He even identified himself, back in a Reddit AMA in 2016, as "the guy in the leather jacket."

Sometimes his leather jackets have collars, sometimes they look more like motorcycle jackets; sometime a lot of zips are involved, sometimes not. But the jackets are always black. He has been wearing them, a spokesman said, "for at least 20 years." The point is that he always looks the same.

There hasn't been a popularly identifiable face of A.I. Yet. ChatGPT and Bard are anonymous brains. That's part of what makes A.I. So eerie — its disembodied nature. Sam Altman, the chief executive of OpenAI, is ubiquitous, but looks kind of generic. Mr. Huang and his leather jacket are poised to step neatly into that gap.

The jacket is an object that has become a signifier — of a person but also the great leap forward that person represents. And that association puts Mr. Huang in the same club as Steve "black turtleneck" Jobs, Mark "gray T-shirt" Zuckerberg and Jeff "Pitbull" Bezos as a chief executive who understands that the difference between a company that is a world-changing success and a company that is a world-changing success that becomes a part of pop culture may be the image of its figurehead. One that's just enough of a caricature to work its way into the public imagination and become the avatar of a movement.

"It makes a person instantly recognizable, sort of like a cartoon character or superhero," said Richard Thompson Ford, the author of "Dress Codes: How the Laws of Fashion Made History" and a professor at Stanford Law School. It signals "a down-to-earth rejection of fashionable artifice, while still using the power of fashion."

Not that the people involved would put it that way exactly.

Power Uniforms (or the Power of Uniforms)

When asked why they wear the same thing day in and day out, most powerful people who are willing to address the question say it saves time, allowing them to think about whatever pressing issue is at hand, not about what they are going to wear that day.

This is what Barack Obama, who copped to wearing only gray or dark blue suits as president, aside from that one unfortunate tan suit moment, said, as did Mr. Zuckerberg. According to Mr. Huang's spokesman, "he's said before that he dresses in the same style of black pants and shirt because it presents one fewer set of decisions to be made each day." (Mr. Huang himself was "taking a break from speaking to the media," the spokesman said. )

That's unquestionably true. Wearing the same uniform every day also communicates discipline (no flights of fashion here), focus and, Mr. Ford said, "reliability" — all qualities that are desirable in any chief executive.

But to think that's all that this is about is to miss part of the picture. Anyone with aspirations to global domination, especially in the era of visual communication, would know enough about history to know that.

After all, wearing the same thing every day is a shortcut to crafting a Pavlovian identity in the hive mind — not just in Silicon Valley but in pretty much any arena. When you think of magazine editors, for example, who comes to mind? Anna Wintour, with her severe bob and dark glasses. When you think of the Supreme Court? Black robes (and maybe Ruth Bader Ginsburg's lace collar).

History is littered with figures who understood the power of a consistent visual signature — so much so that they often had garment styles named after them. Nelson Mandela had the Madiba shirt; Narendra Modi, the Modi Kurta; Jawaharlal Nehru, the Nehru jacket. These associations become impossible to forget, embedded deep in our cerebral cortex, shaping assumptions and opinions. See Elizabeth Holmes and her black turtleneck, which, with its direct link to Steve Jobs, implied brilliance to the watching world, whether we were aware of it or not.

And when it comes to cultural associations, there are few garments as rich in adjectives as a black leather jacket. It is effectively a personality ready-made — as Mr. Huang is clearly aware.

According to one observer, when the Nvidia chief was walking around Computex in Taipei last month in his leather jacket, he was asked how he could stand the heat. (The temperature on the day of his keynote was between 79 and 90 degrees.)

"I'm always cool," Mr. Huang responded.

The Man in Black

The black leather jacket "connects 1950s Hollywood to a sense of independence, the open road, rebellion and sex appeal," said Joseph Rosenfeld, an image consultant and stylist in Silicon Valley.

It is the uniform of Marlon Brando in "The Wild One" and James Dean in photos almost everywhere. Of the Beats and the Beatles; Elvis and David Bowie (in his Berlin period). It is the opposite of what we think of when we think of a tech nerd, which is why the fact that Mr. Huang chose it as his uniform was so smart. It stands out. It causes a reassessment.

Especially on a 60-year-old man like Mr. Huang. Imagine "if Huang were wearing a suit or even a polo shirt and khakis," Mr. Ford said. "He would look like a boring, conventional middle manager." Instead, he said, the leather jacket "signals that he's a creative type and a high status person who can wear whatever he wants."

When I asked ChatGPT, "Why does Jensen Huang wear the same black leather jacket all the time?" it responded with four options, including the suggestion that "Leather jackets, particularly black ones, are often associated with a sense of confidence, authority and professionalism." Also motorcycles, which are about speed.

The jacket also connects to a founding myth of Silicon Valley and Mr. Jobs, the man who was the antithesis of the men in gray suits at IBM, and "almost a spiritual leader for some," as Mr. Ford said. Someone, he said, "who represents a sort of golden age, when everything seemed possible and people still thought tech would be a force for good in the world" — a particularly salient reminder at a time when the public conversation is centered in part on the potential threat of A.I.

And the jacket strategy is adding up. According to Mr. Rosenfeld, "Clients have asked me about the leather jacket, wanting to know if they can wear the same." (He said he told them Mr. Huang already owned the look and advised that they develop another signature.)

For those who want to know what brand Mr. Huang wears, his spokesman said he did not know. Unlike Mr. Jobs, who owned many versions of the same Issey Miyake turtleneck (or Mr. Zuckerberg, who wears Brunello Cucinelli T-shirts), Mr. Huang appears to vary his jackets. But Mr. Rosenfeld guessed that "they don't appear to be Tom Ford level, which we know he could well afford. At least some that I've seen look to be Theory."

For those who want to get the look, however, at least seven different e-tailers currently offer "Jensen Huang leather jackets" at prices from $109 (Jacketpop) to $149.99 (the Genuine Leather).

To put this in context, Superstar Jacket sells two versions of a "Jensen Huang leather jacket," alongside a "Fast & Furious 10 Vin Diesel jacket," a "Snoop Dogg leather jacket" and an "Indiana Jones leather jacket."

But Mr. Huang is the only C.E.O. To have a jacket named after him.

Black Jacket Symphony, Guest Vocalist Martel Will Team To Present Classic Queen Album

The Black Jacket Symphony is returning to the Sand Mountain Park and Amphitheater in Albertville with a special treat for fans of the rock group Queen.

The Birmingham-based outfit, which specializes in recreating classic rock albums on stage, in note-perfect fashion, will present Queen's "A Night at the Opera" on Aug. 11, with Marc Martel handling the vocal duties — as he did throughout "Bohemian Rhapsody," the 2018 film biography of the group's legendary front man, Freddie Mercury.

Martel, a native of Montreal who now lives in Nashville, Tennessee, gained attention as the front man for the Christian band downhere, but has gained renown for his vocal similarity to Mercury, who died in 1991.

In 2011, he entered a competition to join the Queen Extravaganza, the group's official tribute band developed by drummer Roger Taylor, by submitting a cover of "Somebody to Love."

The video gained a million views on YouTube in a matter of days and earned Martel a slot on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" and a victory in the contest. He toured off and on with the Queen Extravaganza for four years. He also has fronted the Black Jacket Symphony in previous presentations of "A Night at the Opera," including a 2017 concert in Montgomery.

The "Bohemian Rhapsody" soundtrack included new recordings by Martel, combined with original Queen recordings and contributions from Rami Malek, who earned the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance as Mercury.

The film's producer, Graham King, said of Martel to Rolling Stone, "Literally, you could close your eyes and it's Freddie."

Released in 1975, "A Night at the Opera" was Queen's fourth studio album and is considered by many observers to be the group's best. AllMusic, which gives it a 5-star rating, calls it "a self-consciously ridiculous and overblown hard rock masterpiece" that "broke down all the barricades."

It includes the group's signature song, the 6-minute opus "Bohemian Rhapsody," the Top 20 single "You're My Best Friend" and the often-covered "Love of My Life."

Story continues

The Black Jacket Symphony will follow the album's 12 tracks with a selection of Queen's greatest hits.

Reserved tickets go on sale at 10 a.M. Friday and range in cost from $35 to $75. They will be available at https://bit.Ly/3Cb6jcH. Gates will open at 6 p.M. On show night.

The group covered Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours" at the amphitheater last September.

This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Black Jacket Symphony, guest vocalist team to present Queen classic

Throwback Varsity Jackets Are Having A Fashion Renaissance (No Football Games Required)

© Te9l/Shutterstock Woman wearing letterman sweater

Varsity jackets (which you may also know better as Letterman jackets) are having a bit of a resurgence right now, so you should probably get used to seeing them everywhere. The sporty aesthetic is all over social media, with influencers all over the world sporting the trend and showing us some of the best ways to style them. "Varsity jackets have come in and out of style at various points over the years, but brands like Ralph Lauren, Kith, and Aimé Leon Dore are making them popular again among people who are evolving the classic streetwear touchstones into a prep hybrid style," brand director at Depop, Steve Dool, explained to TZR. "We're seeing the Depop community lean into a 'retrosport' aesthetic, sourcing unique, vintage sportswear for elevated, athletic looks," Dool added. No wonder the jackets have been spotted all over the high-fashion streets of Paris!

But how the heck do you wear the classic look without looking like you got lost on the way to a football game? Well, never fear, because we've got the very best ways to style the trend laid out below (even if, like us, your school game days are long behind you).

Go Cropped © Instagram Woman in cropped varsity jacket

We already know that crop tops aren't just for Gen Z-ers, so why not combine that trend with the varsity jacket movement? You can either get your hands on a cropped version of the jacket or you could create the look of a crop by folding your longer version up. Pair it with low-rise jeans to give it an instant throwback vibe (shout out to the naughty-aughties). To complete the retro look, just add a pair of casual Chuck Taylors.

Style That Varsity Jacket With A Skirt © Instagram Varsity jacket and skirt

If you want to go the more traditionally feminine route with your varsity jacket look, the perfect way to do so is to pair it with a skirt. A pleated, tennis-esque skirt like this is perfect, as it taps further into the sporty fashion trend we're seeing right now. It's also a great way to bring your jacket with you into the summer while still keeping cool in the heat.

Get Dressed © TikTok Varsity jacket over dress with boots

Varsity jackets don't only go with pants, nay nay! Proving how versatile this trend can really be, as you can see here, the classic varsity jacket looks just as natural over a fancier satin dress as it does with your favorite pair of jeans. The casual black jacket offers juxtaposition against the silky white mini dress, and rocking it with knee-high heeled black boots ties the two together, creating a fashion-forward black and white look that anyone can rock. All you need to do is bring the confidence.

The Varsity Classic © TikTok Varsity jacket over black top

It's the one we've seen in all those movies and TV shows. The classic varsity jacket and jeans combo. Of course, it goes without saying that the classic pairing for a varsity jacket is the old faithful blue jean, which is arguably one of the most Americana looks out there. To put a slightly different twist on the classic (and to make it suitable for transitional dressing while you rock your jacket between seasons), you can wear it with a black turtleneck and black boots, ensuring cute comfort all day long.

Look Good In Leather © TikTok Leather pants and letterman jacket

Another way to rock the varsity trend while maintaining and edgier and cool vibe is to leave it unbuttoned over a crop top along with high-waisted black leather-look pants. You can rock either a regular-length version of the jacket or a cropped one here, and we'd recommend keeping your top black to let the jacket have its moment to shine. If you wanted to dress it up a little, you could swap out the sneakers for strappy, heeled sandals so you're ready to head out on the town.

Go Cool In Cargo Pants © TikTok Varsity jacket and cargo pants

Love 'em or hate 'em, cargo pants are all the rage right now. There are countless ways to style them though, and pairing them with a varsity jacket provides you with a trendy yet casual outfit with lots of storage. We love the light blue color of this one against the traditional green of the cargo pants, while the classic cropped white tee keeps the look casual and simple for those who don't want to spend hours planning out their outfit.

Turn Your Varsity Jacket Into A Dress © Instagram Varsity jacket dress

If you're looking to put your own spin on the varsity jacket trend, and want to achieve the look while staying cooler in those hot summer months (in every sense of the word), then why not rock a varsity jacket-inspired dress? Just throw on some sneakers with this look and you're good to go. What we really love about this garment though is it can be dressed up or down depending on your mood.

Prep It Up In Denim Shorts © TikTok Varsity jacket with denim shorts

Another garment the varsity jacket goes great with? Shorts! And they don't have to be super short shorts, either. If you're a fan of a longer pair, then this look is for you. We'd recommend putting them under an open jacket and a baggier sporty jersey. Adding socks gives this outfit a preppy edge without drifting too far into the sporty lane, and rocking it with loafers instead of the default sneaker does the same.

Winning White © TikTok Varsity jacket and white clothes

A super chic way to style a darker varsity jacket is to go monochromatic underneath to give the outerwear its moment. White is an ideal shade to rock underneath, as it's a neutral color that allows you to match pieces together with ease. Even after Labor Day, you can stun in this all-white number (because white pants are having a total moment right now). In this outfit, we've got a white crop top, white linen pants, and matching sneakers, providing the perfect foundation for a navy and white varsity jacket on top, shouting out the New York Yankees.

Play Up A Varsity Jacket With Plaid © TikTok Plaid shirt with varsity jacket

If you haven't done so yet, have some fun experimenting with pattern and color by layering a plaid shirt under a varsity jacket. TikToker @lovebstyle showed us how to combine the two pieces, adding a little edge by turning the shirt into a crop top by tying it up at the waist. She then opted for cropped blue jeans and neutral brown heels, which made the whole look a little less casual while yet vibrant.

Grab A Leather Skirt © TikTok Leather skirt and varsity jacket

Why should leather-look pants have all the fun? We know that varsity jackets compliment leather-look material. Why not put a spin on a chic evening look by rocking your jacket with a leather mini skirt and black top? This combination will put a youthful yet refined spin on your outfit. We love that this one was still paired with heels for a night out, but the outerwear will keep you warm and comfy at the same time.

Go Casual © TikTok Varsity jacket over hoodie

Looking to keep your look super casual? Then this could be your new go-to. To stay uber comfy for those days you're just hanging out or running errands, a varsity jacket can be a great addition to a super simple hoodie-sweatpants combo. A matching set proves you've put a little extra thought into what you're wearing, but you'll still be cozy and warm all day long.

Camo Shorts Will Keep Your Varsity Look Dressy Yet Casual © TikTok Varsity jacket and camo shorts

Another way you can bring shorts into your varsity-style look is to sport some camo shorts. Bringing a print into your outfit keeps things interesting, and the bold white boots in this look prove this one is for those who aren't afraid to stand out. Matching the top to the shoes keeps the look tied together, and the jacket creates the aura of a more casual night out while still putting thought into your look.

Go Long! © TikTok Woman in long skirt varsity jacket

It's not just shorter skirts that you can throw on with your varsity jacket, as this proves it looks just as good with a longer skirt. TikToker @hidayahgan proved you don't have to show a lot of skin to make this trend work, as she wowed in an all-black ensemble with black high-top sneakers, keeping the sporty aesthetic alive with a dressier, more demure twist.

Awesome Athleisure © TikTok Varsity jacket dress

We know that the varsity jacket is all about bringing back a sportier style, which is why pairing it with some athleisure gear is a solid choice. In a look we've seen Kim Kardashian rock oh so many times, an oversized jacket like this makes the perfect addition to a more skintight outfit underneath, and keeping it matching creates a modern aesthetic to juxtapose the old-school bagginess of the jacket. For this, there are limitless options for your athleisure gear, from a bodycon long sleeve t-shirt and leggings to a crop top and shorts.

Read this next: How To Get The Most Mileage Out Of Every Piece In Your Wardrobe

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