Teddy Swims‘ stylist has issued a public apology to Chinese designer Windowsen for copying one of its designs for the 2025 Grammys.
Earlier this week, Teddy Swims turned heads on the Grammys red carpet for his unique pearl-centric look, which was put together by his stylist Christian Stroble. Shortly after the ceremony came to an end, Swims and Stroble were accused of ripping off the designs of one of Windowsen’s outfits.
Windowsen – founded by Chinese designer Sensen Lii in Antwerp in 2019 – claimed that Swims had plagiarised one of its designs for his Grammys outfit, after the clothing company turned down a collaboration with the artist.
“NOT A WINDOWSEN. We would like an explanation,” Windowsen’s message began. The statement was accompanied by two side-by-side images, showing the similarities between Swims’ Grammys look and Windowsen’s pearl suit.
Windowsen then revealed that Stroble had reached out to the designer in hopes of recreating the look, but was shot down as the outfit was commissioned for a particular client.
At the time, Windowsen demanded an explanation and wrote that it “reserves the right to seek further action”, pointing at a potential lawsuit.
Now, Stroble has issued a public apology to Windowsen on social media. He wrote: “It was never my intention to cause harm, disrespect or diminish the hard work and creativity that goes into each and every piece.
“Upon reflection, I understand the weight and significance of the design process – how every stitch, fabric choice and detail is imbued with emotion, dedication and artistic vision. In overseeing the production of the jacket with a local artist here in Los Angeles, I failed to triple-check the design in a manner that ensure it was distinct enough against all the references I supplied, which in the end mirrored too closely to your work. I realise now that I should have been more diligent in protecting the integrity of you brand and the art that you create.”
Stroble: “This has been a difficult lesson for me and I deeply regret not being more thorough in my process. I want to assure you and the community that I have learned from this experience.”
Stroble collaborated with companies Embroidery Studio and Meshika for Swims’ look. In a statement to Rolling Stone, a rep for Embroidery Studio said: “On our behalf, we want to apologize to Windowsen for any part and misinterpretation. Design is a deeply iterative process, and sometimes creative paths converge in unexpected ways. We deeply respect a designer’s creativity and unique vision. Our intention was always to craft something that aligns with our clients inspirations and goals.”
At the Grammys, Swims was up for the Best New Artist award but lost out to Chappell Roan. Swims also took to the stage to perform ‘Lose Control’ from his debut album ‘I’ve Tried Everything But Therapy (Part 1)’.
In other news, Teddy Swims is set to perform at the BRIT Awards 2025 next month. He is also nominated in the International Song Of The Year category for ‘Lose Control’.
Speaking to NME about the breakthrough single last summer, Swims explained: “The thing was, after we got it done, we knew it was going to change my life. I didn’t know it was going to change it like this. I didn’t know it was going to be this, but I knew it was going to work.
“But I think it was the first time that I felt honest. I was in a relationship at the time with somebody that I was running away from to be at that camp for a week. I was talking to [my collaborators] about stuff and they were trying to tell me to get out of this situation that was really rough for me.”
Teddy Swims is due to embark on a UK and Ireland arena tour next month, following a run of European headline shows. He’ll tour in North America this year too. You can find any remaining tickets here (UK/Ireland) and here (North America).