Celebrity perfumes are officially cool again thanks to Billie, Ariana and Rihanna
Celebrity perfumes have had a bit of a naff reputation. It started fairly well. When JLo’s Glow launched in 2004 it shook up the industry and offered fans an unusually intimate way to connect with the singer. The scent, a crowd-pleasing white floral with delicate citrus notes, broke sales records and the accessible price point meant that teens could bag themselves a signature scent for under 20 quid.
But then, it caught on and every celeb and their cat (quite literally) jumped on the trend. Who can forget Katy Perry’s Purr and Meow fragrances inspired by her tabby, Kitty Purry. The shelves of Boots became laden with sweet, identikit, cheap-smelling concoctions that we doubt had much to do with their celeb ambassadors. And we’re even more skeptical that they ever made it to their A-list bathroom cabinets. Do we think Beyonce mists herself in Heat, her £11 fragrance, before heading out for dinner? Possible, but unlikely. Likewise, we can't imagine One Direction wore their own bubblegum pink scent, That Moment.
They served us well while we navigated high school, but those noughties celeb scents haven’t entirely aged well, and they haven’t been able to grow up with us and our changing tastes.
In an age where customers are demanding more from their purchases – radical transparency, thoughtful innovation, sustainable formulas – slapping a celeb’s name on a scent they may (or may not) have sniffed on the set of the ad campaign just doesn’t wash these days. It’s why celeb beauty died out, along with Ugg boots as we headed into the 2010’s.
But, like Ugg boots (which have officially been signed off by the street style set for another round), we're ready to give celebrity perfumes another go. Rihanna changed the game in 2017. The launch of Fenty Beauty refreshed the industry, re-wrote the rules and re-set the standards of what we expect from a new generation of celebrity beauty. Namely, inclusivity, but also, involvement. As multi-hyphenate brand founders, we expect the celebs we align with to be leading decisions, running the board meetings and creating products they truly, genuinely love and use before letting us in on it, too.
RiRi has entered the room.
That’s why we were excited for RiRi’s first Fenty Perfume to make its way over to the UK from the states in 2021. Created to be unisex, the consensus is that the scent is unexpected. It doesn’t have the punchy presence people associate with Rihanna. Nor does it smell like her skincare, or her notorious (and well documented) favourite scent, Love Don’t Be Shy, from By Killian (a marshmallowy gourmand). Nor does it smell remotely like her previous perfumes, Reb’l Fleur, Kiss and Rogue – created before she was calling the shots at her own brand.
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Created by perfumer Jacques Cavallier Belletrud, the nose behind some of Louis Vuitton’s fragrances, instead Fenty Eau de Parfum is an elegant, soft, warm scent that smells quietly expensive and creates a beautiful base to wear alone or layer with others.
And Billie Eilish continued the trend, unveiling an eponymous scent that she confessed was deeply personal to her. "This is a scent that I’ve been chasing for years and years. This is my favorite smell in the WORLD,” she said around the time of the launch in 2021. With notes of amber, cocoa, vanilla, and warm spices, Billie declared the fragrance nostalgic and sentimental. "It reminds me of when I was 14. I had this shirt, and it was like a mesh black turtleneck. I don’t know why it reminds me of that shirt, but it does," Billie told ELLE.com. "I think about the closet I had that shirt in. I had it in a big wooden closet in my room, and it kind of smells like that. So that is what comes to mind."
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"This is my favourite smell in the WORLD,' Billie told followers
Then there’s Ariana Grande. The hit-maker launched her own beauty brand, R.E.M Beauty, in 2021 and has been meticulously involved in the formulas ever since. And, while she's yet to release a fragrance under the R.E.M umbrella, she's vocal about her existing line of fragrances and has teamed up with some of the best perfumers in the world for them. Jerome Epinette, who created Ariana's God Is A Woman fragrance, is the nose behind famous high-end scents like Byredo’s Gypsy Water and Bal d’Afrique. It’s not the typical celeb-pong perfume that’s tarred previous celebrity scents. It’s pretty, but it’s also complex, with a bit of edge – much like Ari herself. Likewise, Cloud, gave our fragrance connoisseur and columnist, Alice Du Parcq a “major perfume boner” – high praise indeed.
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Just recently, Ariana released her first double fragrance drop. MOD Vanilla, a sweet, youthful creamy vanilla and MOD Blush, a fruity-fun mood booster with notes of passionfruit, dark raspberry, rose, magnolia, dreamwood and musk.
Explaining the launch, Ari said: “When we started working on this duo over a year ago, I fell absolutely in love with both of these fragrances and with the creative that Stefan and I collaborated on. I really wanted to do something different and exciting for my fans by launching two new fragrances at once and I so hope they love them the way my team and friends and I do. We have gone through many, many tester bottles over here. MOD Vanilla and MOD Blush have quickly become two of my favourites in our beautiful fragrance family.”
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Even some old-school celeb perfumes are making a considered comeback, but as with our changed priorities as consumers, it’s not just about the scent, it’s about the substance. Britney Spears’ perfumes have seen a 310% uptick over the past year, according to Fragrance Direct, as fans show support for the singer who’s personal life has been hitting headlines. It’s a political statement in a spritz, with a side-dish of nostalgia. Her best-selling Private Show EDP sold out.
So, is this a new era for the celebrity perfume? We reckon so. Here are the best celebrity scents to consider if you’re back on board.
Fenty Eau de Parfum, £140, Fenty Beauty
Ri-Ri is infamous for having the best taste in perfume and for being the best-smelling celeb. Hence, we're all pretty hysterical that she's launched her first perfume from Fenty. The blend of magnolia, musk, tangerine, blueberry, Bulgarian rose absolute, geranium and patchouli is a magnetic skin scent that comes alive differently depending on the wearer. It's a personal offering, since Rihanna admitted, “I made a fragrance for myself and am now sharing it with you.” The catch? It's not available here in the UK yet (weeps). So for now, we'll have to console ourselves with another of Rihanna's famously documented favourite scents, By Killian's Love Don't Be Shy.
Eilish Eau de Parfum, $68, billieeilishfragrances.com
Billie delighted fans by announcing she'll be releasing her own perfume in November, exclusively available at her new website billieelishfragrances.com. The scent which she described as “nostalgic” and her “favourite smell in the world,” is a mix of amber, cocoa, vanilla, and warm spices and is priced at $68 (around £48.90).
Ariana Grande MOD Vanilla Eau de Parfum, £33 for 30ml, Boots
MOD Vanilla, a sweet, youthful creamy vanilla with notes of praline, orris, plum, musk, vanilla and coconut.
Save when you shop for the best celebrity perfumes with these Boots discount codes.
Ariana Grande MOD Blush Eau de Parfum, £33 for 30ml Boots
MOD Blush, a fruity-fun mood booster with notes of passionfruit, dark raspberry, rose, magnolia, dreamwood and musk.
Save when you shop for the best celebrity perfumes with these Boots discount codes.
Britney Spears Private Show Eau de Parfum, £13.64, Amazon
Britney's back, bitch, and her perfume is making a major comeback, too. Fans are putting their money where their mouth is and showing support through their choice of signature spritz. This one, incidentally, incorporates some of Brit's favourite scents: whipped crème coffee, dulce de leche and amber for a silky sweet gourmand.
Save when you shop for the best celebrity perfumes with these Amazon discount codes.
Ariana Grande God Is A Woman Eau de Parfum, £36 for 50ml, Boots
Composed of 91% naturally derived ingredients and blended by the master perfumer behind some of Byredo's best-selling scents, God Is A Woman is changing the game for celebrity perfumes. The scent itself blends juicy pear and Turkish rose with earthy orris, ambrette, Madagascan vanilla and creamy cedarwood.
Save when you shop for celebrity perfumes with these Boots discount codes.
A spritz of this and suddenly you were Sasha Fierce... or at least trying to be by watching Youtube tutorials of Beyoncé dance routines and practising in your bedroom until you were a sweaty mess.
Save when you shop for the best celebrity perfumes with these Amazon discount codes.
Pink Friday by Nicki Minaj, £29.28, Amazon
Named after her first ever album, Nicki's pink hair and silver-boobed bottle will always stand out in our memories.
Save when you shop for the best celebrity perfumes with these Amazon discount codes.
Fantasy by Britney Spears, £9.99, Boots
Why do boys love the smell of this so much? What did Britney put in it? Her definite front-runner of fragrances, Fantasy has been released in many shapes and forms but nothing beats the original.
Save when you shop for the best celebrity perfumes with these Amazon promo codes.
Wonderstruck by Taylor Swift, Amazon
The old Taylor might be dead, but her first fragrance will live on forever. Let's be honest, most of us bought it for the charm bracelet so we could match country Tay and pretend it was the parting gift of Romeo in our own private Love Story.
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Paris Hilton by Paris Hilton, £22.18, Amazon
Back when the Simple Life was the greatest show on TV and Paris Hilton gave us something to embrace our inner sass Queen.
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Gaga made fragrance history by being the first to release a truly black eau de parfum. She also claimed each bottle contained a bit of her blood, which was probably meant metaphorically, but her Little Monsters were hoping it was literal.
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Girlfriend by Justin Bieber, £11.39, Amazon
If you didn't douse yourself in this scent cocktail with the hopes Justin would sniff you down the street and immediately dump Selena for you, were you even a belieber?
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Crush by Rihanna, £20, Superdrug
This just smells like summer '16. Light, sweet, and citrusy with a hint of vanilla. Riri did good.
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Killer Queen by Katy Perry, £12.99, The Perfume Shop
Katy had two other fragrances before Killer Queen, but the regal red bottle crushed them all with its pointy edges and fruity flavours.
Ari by Arianna, £22, Superdrug
This one is more for the 00s kids but Ari's pom pom adorned first fragrance will always stick out in our minds.
Save when you shop for celebrity perfumes with these Superdrug discount codes.
Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker, £29.99, The Perfume Shop
Iconic. And still worn today, not necessarily for the fandom of SJP, but because it truly is a lovely scent.
Not going to lie, the main thing we remember about this fragrance is the magazine ad that ran with it. Featuring a starkers JLo covered in steam, it graced many back covers and resulted in many gym memberships.
