Monday, Feb. 03, 2003

You Heard the Album, Now Buy the Jeans

By Rebecca Winters

It's not a night with Ben Affleck or a most-requested video, but for plenty of J. Lo wannabes, zipping on one of the star's $130 velour track suits is as close as they get to wearing celebrity skin. After a bumpy start in 2001, Jennifer Lopez's flirty, teen-oriented clothing line rebounded last year, topping $65 million in sales. Now her perfume, GLOW by J. Lo, is the best-selling fragrance at Macy's. Lopez wasn't the first music star to lure her fans to retail--her ex-boyfriend, hip-hop artist and producer P. Diddy, is behind the high-end Sean John menswear line. But soon a horde of other entertainers will start angling for a spot on the racks:

--COTY plans to introduce a Celine Dion perfume this spring. The company says it "will reflect the singer's romantic image."

--Latin songstress Thalia will launch a lacy, rhinestone-studded clothing line at KMART in July.

--Expect teenage boys to embrace Eminem's sportswear label, SHADY, due in time for back-to-school shopping.

--Rapper-actor Ice-T's ICEWEAR will go on sale in the fall. With knit tops starting at $40, it's street-credible menswear at a lower price tag than Sean John.

--The brash blond rapper Eve is at work on a clothing line called FETISH, due later this year.

--Tomboyish No Doubt vocalist Gwen Stefani--muse to designer John Galliano--will launch a denim-heavy line called LAMB in 2004.

For more stories on the stars, see time.com/entertainment