Even after a decade, the Demp Week Fashion Show held Saturday at The Moon showed no signs of slowing down.
The annual fashion show showcased several independent designers and modeling troupes in the Leon County area.
Organizers of this year’s show wanted to add a high-fashion ambiance to the showcase.
“My vision for this show was just ‘chic originality,” said Larry “Prada” Crumbie, 22, a senior public relations student from Tallahassee and executive director of the show.
“It was on a more couture showcasing then a hip hop showcasing like 2007. 2008 show[s] you haute high fashion.”
The showcase was presented by Florida A&M University student Leon Curry, 21, a junior political science student from Key West. From animalistic bathing suits to exotic dresses, Curry added to the show’s overall diversity.
Patricia Lee, the fashion show hostess, said the event was well thought out.
“This year they have been fair,” Lee said. “There were more troupes that (were) just from FAMU. There was a theme and it seemed as though it was more organized and prepared than the last year.”
For other attendees, the show did not seem to be executed well.
Preparation and organization are keys to planning a successful fashion show, said Jon Tucker, 20, a sophomore business administration student from Atlanta.
“You could tell it was last minute,” Tucker said. “People were running into each other on the runway. It looks like it was just thrown together.”
Crumbie said models had only “three to four months to prepare for the show.”
Whether preparation was questionable or not, the show continued to be a crowd-pleaser. Phabby Girls, the only plus-sized modeling troupe in the show, ignited most of the crowd with excitement.
Rapper Ja Rule made a special guest appearance and entertained the crowd as models fill the runway with latest fashions.
DJ Demp, who is a tour disc jockey and a Tallahassee native himself, said the show was a success.
“Models stepped it up this year,” DJ Demp said. “I just wanted to make this show a little hotter.”
DJ Demp has appeared on “Showtime at the Apollo,” MTV’s “TRL,” BET’s “106 & Park,” BET’s “Rap City” and more. Demp Week has been celebrated since 1997 in honor of Demp’s birthday.
For more information about Demp Week, please go to http://www.myspace.com/dempweek.