Aramis and Designer Fragrances has unveiled MYNY, a new feminine fragrance from DKNY, fronted by singer and actress Rita Ora. It is available in the UK exclusively at London Heathrow Airport from today (16 July) until the end of the month, before being launched into travel retail worldwide from August.
As the name suggests, MYNY is described as a fragrance “inspired by the collective, created for the individual”. The juice – an urban blend of fruit, florals and spice – is said to be bold, playful and sophisticated.
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The irrepressible Rita Ora is perfectly cast as the face of DKNY MYNY | |
Ora was chosen as the face of the fragrance, as she is “as fiercely unique as New York itself”, the brand maintains. Born in Kosovo and raised in the UK, DKNY hailed the powerfully modern individuality of her work and style.
“I feel like DKNY is family,” Ora tells The Moodie Report, when asked about her initial reaction following the invitation to be the face. “We have worked a lot together. I even went to the Met Ball with Donna [Karan].”
She adds: “We have had many great times and many great shoots so when I was asked I didn’t have to think twice.”
Ora gets straight to the point about the qualities she brings to the project. “I bring my love of fragrance – and my love of this fragrance!” she exclaims. “[The juice] excited me. The smell of patchouli flowers has always evoked positive memories. The fragrance is fresh and has energy. I like to think I do too!”
The DKNY MYNY juice opens on top notes of raspberries, galbanum and pink pepper, building to a heart of jasmine, freesia and orris. The base blends patchouli, vanilla absolute, musk and ambergris.
“This is my personal fragrance now,” Ora reveals. “I didn’t tell my friends I was working with DKNY on MYNY and just started wearing it. They all commented, ‘you smell good’ and ‘what is it?’ I was so proud to be able to tell them it was DKNY MYNY.”
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DKNY MYNY is available exclusively in the UK at Heathrow Airport from 16-31 July |
But Ora’s affinity with the brand goes way back, to the first fragrance she ever used. “It sounds like I am making this up, but it was DKNY Woman, and boy, did I feel like a woman [wearing it],” she recalls, with a smile. “I was 14 and had saved the money to buy it. I felt like I had made it. I still get a little rush every time I open new fragrance packaging.”
The striking presentation for DKNY MYNY will doubtless be no exception. A heart-shaped bottle reveals the pink juice within, and is topped with a metallic skyline cap. The packaging is the perfect follow-up to the best-selling Be Delicious Apple (a symbol of DKNY and NYC throughout the world), according to the brand.
The ad campaign was directed and shot by Francesco Carrozzini, and depicts the city as seen through the eyes of Ora. In a black leather jacket, sky-high heels and a bright red lip, Ora forges through Times Square. “I love my New York,” she says, in the ad. “Be a Part of it.”
That exhortation is genuine. On 19 July the interactive aspect of the myny.dkny.com website will go live, allowing consumers to join the campaign and “Be a Part of it” for real.
The shoot, says Ora, was hugely enjoyable. “My favourite part was that it didn’t feel like work,” she explains. “We had fun on set – I was with friends. It was a collaboration, not a dictation. We all work well together.”
Ora clearly feels very much at home in the city, which adds an important element of authenticity to the campaign. “NYC is SO important to me,” she underlines. “It’s where I met Jay Z and signed my record deal, when I was 17. Every year since then I have spent months there. I love Soho – great jerk chicken – and Williamsburg for gigs and one-off shops.”
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Ora cites her mother and her grandmother as her beauty/style inspirations. “They are both fearless,” she notes. “Beautiful. Brave. Classy. I try to copy them. They are funny too, as they are also the first to tell me if I get it wrong”¦And sometimes I do – but I have fun with it. I love fashion.”
Something Ora always gets right, however, is her signature red lip. “I cannot live without red lipstick,” she declares. “I have worn it for SO long. It makes me feel ME. I am lucky with my regime as so often I am working with make-up artists and hairdressers to sort me out. Emma Osborne does my make-up and Chris Appleton does my hair. We are travelling family.”
And Ora loves to travel, with New York City – unsurprisingly – at the top of the list. “For pleasure, I love going to Albania where my cousins are,” she confirms. “For work, NYC. But it doesn’t feel like work when you are in the city; it’s such a buzzing place.”
And when Ora travels, Ora shops. “I love shopping at airports!” she exclaims. “Duty free! Make-up, creams, candles, fragrances. I’m not sure why but somehow I feel I don’t have a credit card limit when I’m shopping in an airport.”
Ora’s career to date has spanned singing, modelling, and soon acting, in the forthcoming Fifty Shades of Grey film. What have been the highlights to date?
“Oh, so many,” she replies. “My four number one records and number one UK album exploded my expectations, but I have great things happen every day, from meeting a fan to playing Glastonbury.”
Ora continues: “[Looking ahead] I want to continue working on films with talented actors and directors. And of course I will never stop making music and performing.”
She concludes: “I want it all. Global stadium tours, massive films. Bring it on.”
