The West encapsulates a feeling of untamed freedom; it is a beautiful escape into a world of possibilities fueled by the rugged ideals of the West.

– Isha Nicole, SVP Marketing & Creative

With its illustrious history of cowboys, outlaws, and gunslingers, the West is a longstanding symbol for the relentless pursuit of freedom. Inspired by the iconic legacy of the West, the Boot Barn fashion shows are a celebration of the Western landscape, its heroes, and ideals. In the 2024 fashion show, our team took these themes further to present a space where the unseen and unheard are empowered through the mantras of the West. Senior Vice President of Marketing and Creative Director Isha Nicole shares, “There’s this narrative within Voiceless of reclaiming one’s power. Our faceless cowgirls are emblematic of the original outlaw. The whole piece is a story on empowerment.” In order to bring the ambitious themes of the 2024 fashion show to life, Nicole needed to go beyond the realms of anything the Boot Barn fashion show had put together before. Voiceless is a multimedia event. It fuses our celebrity partnerships, philanthropic efforts, a live fashion show, and a prerecorded fashion film. It’s by far the biggest thing we’ve ever done.

Translating the important themes of Voiceless into the fashion show film required new levels of creativity to be achieved. Nicole and her team needed to find a way to represent the voiceless through art and fashion. A solution was an army of models wearing identical wigs—faceless cowgirls who are symbolic of erased individuality. “The reason they’re in blonde wigs doesn’t matter much as the idea that they’re unidentifiable, unseen,” says Nicole.

As the show continues, the voiceless reclaim their power through the growing number of models—exemplifying strength in numbers—and the way they break away from the traditional runway form of walking single file in a line. The models walk in from different angles, face off towards one another on a chess board, and even sit side-by-side in unison. In several scenes, the faceless cowgirls stare down the camera through the shadows of flashing lights, commanding the viewer to acknowledge their individuality. Nicole explains, I liked this idea of strength in numbers. As the piece continues, [the models] grow and accumulate. So, on the runway, the numbers are growing. It gives this sensation of an unstoppable force. By the end of the show, all the models stand together as the camera pans out to a multitude of faceless cowgirls. Their blonde wigs arrest the viewer with a pop of brightness against the Western landscape in the background, subverting their anonymity and claiming a prevailing presence.

With the creative concepts of Voiceless locked in, Nicole’s team styled the show with pieces that were a match for its rebellious energy and theme of reclaiming one’s identity. From rhinestone studded cowboy boots to fringe leather dresses, each piece was thoughtfully selected by our team of in-house stylists.

When considering how to best convey the themes of Voiceless through the fashion pieces, Nicole and lead stylist Daniel Villegas focused on every detail from structure and fabrication to color and embellishments. I selected pieces that were naturally bold: furs, sequins, and liquid-like fabrications, shares Villegas. For pieces that felt soft, we wanted to juxtapose them with accents that felt loud. For example, leather harnesses, studs, and big earrings. We wanted to create a collection that not only looks beautiful but also reflects a deeper message of strength, resilience, and inclusion.

Pops of red and materials with sheen are displayed prominently throughout Voiceless. Red is often associated with themes of passion and power, explains Villegas. It’s bold and commanding, mirroring the strength of the voiceless who are now taking center stage. The use of metallics were meant to convey a sense of futurism and resilience, representing the idea that these voices are not just present in the here and now, but they are shaping what’s to come.

The show also incorporated pieces that paid homage to the original outlaw—the infamous cowboy—and Western culture by design: embroidered western shirts, neck scarves, and leather coats. Like the voiceless, while some of the individual pieces were muted in tone and unassuming, when brought together in an ensemble, they become a vision of confidence and defiance against the forces desiring them to remain unseen. Villegas adds, The styling isn’t just about the clothes—it’s a mindset.

The final piece of the Boot Barn 2024 Fashion Show was to incorporate a live fashion show and charity event to fully bring the concept of Giving a Voice to the Voiceless to life. Typically, we film a fashion show all around the world and that’s how we show our collection. This year, we merged a prerecorded fashion film and a live fashion show in Nashville, says Isha Nicole. With the themes of Voiceless being as significant as they are, Nicole saw the opportunity to give a voice to the cause for wild mustang welfare through a celebrity-sponsored charity event to raise money for different mustang advocacy programs. Nicole explains, The Boot Barn brand illustrates visions of the iconic American cowboy. No cowboy can do what he or she needs to do without their horse. The horse is so embedded in Western culture. But there is a wild horse crisis in America today. There is a polarizing issue within our country of how to manage our wild mustang populations, explains Nicole. So, we had an opportunity to present to the world something that was so much bigger than just selling the next pair of boots.

Nicole emphasizes that the Voiceless fashion show is all about sharing the stories of the unseen and the unheard. While the fashion show film gave a face to the unseen through the army of faceless cowgirls, the live fashion show and charity event sought to give a voice to the unheard through highlighting three charities that are uplifting wild mustangs across America: Lucky Break Rescue in partnership with Miranda Lambert, Mustangs of America Foundation in partnership with Jelly Roll, and Heroes and Horses in partnership with Riley Green.

Miranda Lambert, a lifelong animal advocate, co-founded the animal rescue organization MuttNation with her mother to use her platform to help animals in need. In 2024, MuttNation started a new chapter with a focus on horse rescue facilities. They launched the annual Idyllwind Grant, named after Lambert’s first horse, and awarded it to Lucky Break Rescue for their incredible contributions to saving horses. Lucky Break Rescue is a woman owned and operated nonprofit organization dedicated to rescuing at-risk equines, specifically slaughterhouse horses. Founded by Caitlin Oponski who has dedicated her life to rescuing animals, Lucky Break Rescue rescues, rehabilitates, and re-homes at-risk horses.

A man who embraces new beginnings and reinforces the notion that change and growth are within reach, former prison inmate turned musician superstar, impassioned advocate, and inspirational public figure Jelly Roll partnered with Mustangs of America Foundation, a volunteer-led nonprofit organization dedicated to changing lives and inspiring hope. Mustangs of America Foundation is committed to informing the public about mustang and burro adoption and training programs while providing the support and resources necessary to ensure the long-term betterment of the animals. With a community of animal advocates—from professional horse trainers and clinicians to the Bureau of Land Management—Mustangs of America Foundation actively supports inmate training programs, pairing inmates with mustangs for mutual rehabilitation, promoting relationship building, patience, trust, the value of life, self-love, overcoming fears, empathy, and hope for the future.

Country music singer-songwriter Riley Green is a patriot, hunter, avid outdoorsman, and founder of Buford Bonds Charitable Fund, a resource for charities benefitting veterans. Green partnered with Heroes and Horses, a nonprofit organization founded by Navy SEAL veteran Micah Fink that offers combat veterans an alternative solution for defining and approaching their physical and mental scars—a solution that does not include prescription medications or traditional psychotherapy, but rather the opportunity to use tools to redefine their purpose, rediscover their inner strength, and maximize their potential by taking ownership of their lives for the first time since leaving service. Over 41 days, they use a 360-degree whole human approach that combines breathing techniques, meditation, remote wilderness, and wild horses. Their goal is to break the addiction cycle of outsourcing the decisions that impact their lives.

Held at the Parthenon in Nashville, Tennessee, November 18, 2024, the Voiceless Fashion Show & Charity Event brought together celebrities within the Western community to learn about the mustang welfare cause and raise money for the charities all while celebrating the resilience of the Western lifestyle and culture through fashion and art.

Though the beauty of the fashion show is unmistakable in the glimmer of every sequin, the movement of fringe, and the swish of blonde hair in the flashing lights—the message of empowerment is the true force of nature behind the Boot Barn 2024 Fashion Show. Like the strength of the Western community that inspired its story, Voiceless is all about overcoming the impossible together and using the strength of partnership to uplift those who need it most. If you want to go fast, go alone, says Nicole. But if you want to go far, go as a team.