Frank Ocean is the latest musician to pay tribute to Virgil Abloh, the former Louis Vuitton and Off-White designer, who passed away on Sunday (Nov. 29) at age 41 after a secret battle with a rare cancer. The Blonde singer took to his Instagram Stories and shared special moments from the times he interacted with the designer in a heartfelt statement.
“In 2018 I believe it was I called V and asked him how it was possible to play hundreds of shows a year and do numerous fashion collections a year and be a father and a husband and return EVERYONE’s texts with enthusiasm and emojis and encouragement and seemingly.. with ease,” the singer wrote.
“I cannot remember how he responded verbatim but I’m sure it was quotable whatever he said,” Ocean continued. “He was always quotable. But the gist of his response was that he was interested in living and living to the maximum extent of his level… which proved to be Impossible today because he was BEYOND.”
Ocean also took a moment in his statement to highlight the connection that Abloh had with his younger brother, Ryan, who died in a fatal car crash last year at 18. “When Ryan went to his prom you got him some pieces from your new collection at LV and he was GEEKed. Couldn’t get him to take it off,” he shared, later adding that his brother was inspired by Abloh. “When my brother passed I never said anything because it was way too much but he loved you and really looked up to you. He was going to fashion school and everything. He wanted to be a designer.”
Before concluding his tribute post, Ocean briefly touched on playing new music or sharing his own fashion plans with the late designer. “When I went to Miami and you played a set on the beach in 2016 you played ‘White Ferrari’ – a song with no drums or bars anywhere to be found lol – and started a sing-along,” he wrote. “When I played demos of s–t I was working on or showed you Homer way before it was ready you put the battery in my back.”
The 34-year-old closed his statement by writing, “My fam was proud of you like you were our family. I know grief is love that you don’t get to express so is an attempt at expressing it. Love you V. You’re a hero.”