Behind the Music
“In my early 20s, I really wanted to be seen for who I was, and not this blonde girl with big boobs and a family legacy,” says the musician Caroline Vreeland, the great-granddaughter of the fashion editor Diana Vreeland. Now 27 and all the wiser, Caroline, who only met Diana once, when she was a toddler, has come to embrace her famous surname. “I’m lucky to have that as part of my story,” she concedes.
A native of California’s Bay Area, Vreeland moved to Los Angeles at 18 to be a singer-songwriter. After releasing three moody tracks online in 2014—and performing at afterparties for Vionnet and Barbara Bui during the fall 2015 shows—she dropped an EP, Glasshouse; she will debut a full-length album in October. Describing her sound as “doomed magic,” Vreeland has found a kinship with her great-grandmother through her work. “She stood for being yourself and embracing your flaws, making them what’s sexy and interesting about you,” Vreeland says. “My music is an expression of everything that makes me me—not just the pretty parts.”
Photos: Behind the Music
Vreeland wears Max Mara coat; The Row sweater; Tabitha Simmons booties.
Altuzarra coat, $3,995, barneys.com
Chet Baker, an inspiration for Vreeland. Photo by Tim Hout.
Tom Ford top, $1,490, Tom Ford, New York, 212.359.0300.
Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, a classic Vreeland loves. Courtesy of Everett Collection.
Bottega Veneta bag, $3,200, Bottega Veneta, 800.845.6790.
Vreeland performing at Acabar, in West Hollywood, 2014. Courtesy of subject.
Massimo Dutti skirt, $250, massimodutti.com
Vintage snake bracelets wrapped around Vreeland’s fragrance of choice: Diana Vreeland Perfumes Daringly Different Eau de Parfum, $185, net-a-porter.com.
Vreeland’s favorite singer, Fiona Apple. Courtesy of Fredric Reshew/Contour by Getty Images.
Vreeland wears Etro coat and sweater; Derek Lam trousers; Fendi sunglasses; Mannin Fine Jewelry earrings; Jennifer Fisher cuff and ring; Thalé Blanc bag.
Vreeland wears Nina Ricci coat; Bally bag; (from top) Jennifer Fisher bracelet, Jennifer Fisher x Stop It Right Now cuff; (from top) Mannin Fine Jewelry ring, Jennifer Fisher x Stop It Right Now ring.
A still from Blue Is the Warmest Color, 2013, a recent fave film. Photo by Sundance Selects/Courtesy Everett Collection.
Taffin jade and rose gold ring, price upon request, taffin.com
Vreeland wears Max Mara coat; (from left) Lisa Freede ring, Aurate New York ring; Jennifer Fisher cuff.
Miu Miu shoes, $890, miumiu.com.
Hair by Caile Noble for Serge Normant at Jed Root; Makeup by Debra Ferullo for LancOme at Tracey Mattingly. Photography assistant: Adam Torgerson. Fashion assistant: Fiona Park.
