FASHION Magazine Summer 2016 Cover: Fifth Harmony

This is what you get when you ask Fifth Harmony to pose for your magazine: one grandmother, three mothers, two fathers, two sisters, a tour manager, a day-to-day manager, two publicists, and a Louboutin-sized dog—all watching as the photographer snaps photos. You also get hugs. Lots of them. These young women act like hosts at a party, graciously thanking stylists, editors—pretty much everyone—crushing the stereotype of entitled millennials to a pulp. All five—Ally Brooke Hernandez, Normani Kordei, Dinah Jane Hansen, Camila Cabello and Lauren Jauregui—are immediately on a first-name basis with the crew and take turns snapping selfies from the studio, which overlooks L.A.’s MacArthur Park (the same one that the late Donna Summer made famous). Soon Dinah Jane’s iPhone is hooked up to the studio sound system and blares Rihanna’s Anti; between fittings and photos, notes are casually sung. While posing for the cover shot, the girls’ hips won’t stop moving. And the quintet has every reason to be elated. Their second album, 7/27, is about to be released and, so far, the single “Work From Home” has managed to climb over Rihanna’s most recent “Work” on the iTunes charts. The day before our shoot, the group performed on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, sharing the stage with presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton. It was there that the fivesome went on to sing their top Billboard hits, “Worth It,” “BO$$” and “Sledgehammer,” and left the audience with Camila shouting, “Don’t Vote For Trump!” 5H’s next big performance will be across the border, as one of the headlining acts slated to appear at the 2016 iHeartRadio Much Music Video Awards on June 19 in Toronto.

In many ways, 7/27 signifies a true reflection of Fifth Harmony’s coming out in a post-Beyoncé, post-Lady Gaga, post-Katy Perry world. Those 30-something singers have already put everything on the table in their music: equality, sex, love and career. 5H intends to have fun with all of the above—and it shows in their cheeky lyrics and campy videos (“Work From Home” has the girls cast as construction workers who are ogling shirtless guys on the job). The group might have formed in 2012 on The X Factor’s second season, thanks to Simon Cowell (7/27 was actually the date), but this new album carries no remnants of their reality-show past. Much like Destiny’s Child with their 1999 sophomore album, The Writing’s On The Wall, 7/27 sounds assertive, focused and a lot more hit-driven than the group’s debut. Missy Elliot guests on a track called “Not That Kind of Girl,” which calls out the woman shamers of the world (especially those who don’t approve of 5H’s sexy ensembles). Another should-be-massive hit “That’s My Girl” advises listeners to “get up and get it” and repeatedly urges them to “know their worth.” It’s an egalitarian message that speaks to who 5H wants to be. The self-reliant-yet-sexy vibe they wish to present puts Fifth Harmony in the same vein as the great girl groups of the past. What their heroes and predecessors—acts such as The Supremes, Spice Girls, Bananarama and Destiny’s Child—were able to do in their time was seize the zeitgeist. 5H wants to succeed in the same way, while maintaining each member’s individuality. In keeping with their mission, here is a snapshot of each harmonious woman.

Are you a Fifth Harmony fan? Want the chance to walk the iHeart Radio Much Music Video Awards red carpet and meet the hottest girl group next month? Sign up here.

Ever wonder what’s on Fifth Harmony’s playlist? Our cover girls share their favourite love song below:

On Camila: Top, $895, Stella McCartney at Holt Renfrew. Shorts, $155, Kenneth Cole. Shoes, $475, Loeffler Randall. Earrings, $45, AV Max. On Ally Brooke: Dress, $90, ASOS. Shoes, $95, Topshop. Earrings, $2,395, Dana Rebecca Designs. Ring, $2,175, Nigaam. Cuff, price on request, BaubleBar. On Normani: Dress, $310, BCBGMAXAZRIA. Shoes, $1,370, Marion Ayonote. Earrings, $100, Kendra Scott. Bracelet, $40, BaubleBar. On Dinah Jane: Dress, $200, House of CB. Belt, $100 BCBGMAXAZRIA. Shoes, $415, Carmen Steffens. Earrings, $9, Simons. Ring, $40, BaubleBar. On Lauren: Top, $275, Sandro at Hudson’s Bay. Skirt, $200, BCBGMAXAZRIA. Shoes, $95, Topshop. Choker, $350, Eddie Borgo at Holt Renfrew.

Name: Lauren Jauregui
Age: 19
Background: Cuban-American
Star Sign: Cancer
Style Icons: Lana Del Rey and Kate Moss
Dream Duet: Flume
M.O.: “When men like Justin Trudeau talk about how important it is to be a feminist, it inspires more people to be that way. When the non-oppressed speak out on behalf of the oppressed, that’s when change happens.”
Celebrity Hero: Education activist Malala Yousafzai
Work Tip: “Stop the name-calling and stop telling people what to wear or how to act. I wish I could just ban using ‘slut’ anywhere. I hate that fucking word.”

Name: Camila Cabello
Age: 19
Background: Cuban-Mexican
Star Sign: Pisces
Style Icon: Audrey Hepburn
Dream Duet: Ed Sheeran
M.O.: “Confidence comes with experience and growth. I used to be insecure, so I stopped reading hateful comments on Twitter. I cut that out of my life. That’s when I grew into a person I was proud of.”
Celebrity Hero: Taylor Swift
Work Tip: “There’s this excerpt from Bossypants by Tina Fey: ‘The most important lesson you’ll learn in your career is that people will teach you to scope out the women in an audition or a job interview. The reality is that it’s not just women, everybody is your competition.’”

Name: Ally Brooke Hernandez
Age: 22
Background: Mexican-American
Star Sign: Cancer
Style Icon: Jennifer Lopez
Dream Duet: Justin Timberlake
M.O.: “When you start this young [in pop music], people expect you to be at your full potential by 15 or 19 or 22. That’s impossible. You’ve gotta work on it. That’s what we are doing.”
Celebrity Hero: Jennifer Lopez
Work Tip: “As women, we’ve got to root for each other more—this means on the internet, in the office or wherever life takes us.”

Name: Normani Kordei
Age: 19
Background: African-American, Native American, French
Star Sign: Gemini
Style Icons: Sarah Jessica Parker and Ciara
Dream Duet: Kendrick Lamar
M.O.: “Fifth Harmony are all feminists. It’s our duty to reach out to people and let them know a woman can be just as powerful as a man can be.”
Celebrity Hero: Michelle Obama
Work Tip: “Nobody is less than anybody else.”

Name: Dinah Jane Hansen
Age: 18
Background: Tongan, Samoan, Fijian and Danish
Star Sign: Cancer
Style Icons: Rihanna and Kim Kardashian
Dream Duet: Mariah Carey
M.O.: “We’re not perfect. When you look at all of us, some of us have a double chin, somebody’s belly button is out, some of us don’t have perfect skin—but together, we’ve learned to love ourselves as is.”
Celebrity Hero: Rihanna
Work Tip: “We need to be truthful with one another in the workplace. It’s also important to be loyal so we can get rid of the stereotype of girls against girls. It’s the only way we can all excel.”

The post FASHION Magazine Summer 2016 Cover: Fifth Harmony appeared first on FASHION Magazine.