Law Roach Just Revealed the Reasoning Behind His Cryptic Retirement Post

Law Roach is getting really real about his retirement from styling some of Hollywood's biggest names. On Friday, The Cut dropped an interview with the fashion legend about his shocking announcement (which came via Instagram) earlier this week. Editor-in-Chief Lindsay Peoples point blank asked Roach if he was indeed retiring.

“I am definitely, 100,000 percent retiring," he responded, before adding that while he's done with styling celebrities, he isn't leaving the industry entirely. "Nobody can say what’s forever and what will happen, but at this moment, and in my mind, I’m definitely retiring from celebrity styling. I’m not retiring from fashion, because I love it so much. But styling, in the way that I've been of service to other people, I'm retiring from that.”

When Peoples asked him "why now?" — after all he dressed a group of A-listers for the Vanity Fair Oscar after-party just earlier this week — Roach admitted that he hasn't been happy in a while. “The culmination of everything that’s been happening in my career these last few days kind of just pushed me over the edge," he said. "And it’s just like, You know what? I’ve done everything. I’m very grateful that I’ve been able to move and climb in this industry the way I have. But I can’t say that I didn’t do that without suffering. And I think as Black people in this country, it’s embedded in us to suffer, right? We feel like to be successful, we have to suffer. You suffer through things to get to the other side. You know, you suffer through Earth to get to heaven. You know what I mean?”

He continued, “I made that post because I felt like I couldn’t breathe and me releasing that and letting the world know that I’m done with this was the first time that whole week that I really felt like I took a breath, a deep breath.”

The stylist, who is best known for his work on longtime client and friend Zendaya, opened up about the impact their relationship has had on the industry, as well as his future with the actress. “Well, I think I was able to do it my own way, and I also had someone that we had a made a promise to each other that we would do everything in our power to elevate each other, and that's Zendaya. The way that we came into the industry, nobody wanted to touch either one of us. Like nobody wanted to lend me clothes. Nobody wanted to dress her 'cause at that time, Disney girls wasn't considered real actresses. So, we pinky swore to each other that I would do my part. She would do her part. And we would do it together. And I think that allowed me to circumvent all the other ways that people become successful, the nepotism.”

“And people will say, 'Oh, you not gonna leave Zendaya.' But I don’t have to style Zendaya to be a part of her team and her creativity team, right? So maybe if I choose, you know, not to be her stylist, I can still be her creative director and I can still, you know, manage a stylist or however I choose to do it. I haven’t made a decision," he explained. "She’s giving me the grace to be able to make that decision because we really have a kinship. Like, you know, we’ve grown up together. And that’s all I ever asked, was for people who I worked so hard for to just give me grace when I need it.”

He also gave a preview of what'll happen at this year's Met Gala. Let's just say not to expect any of his signature magic (remember his Fairy Godfather moment with Zendaya?).

“No Met Gala … canceled," he said.