I hope Tate McRae knows fashion girls apprecite her jeans outfits just as much as her red carpet gowns. For instance, when McRae attended Valentino’s April 28 book launch party in the cigarette jeans trend, my jaw dropped just like it did after her 2025 MTV VMAs performance.
The pop star stood out in a sea of slip dresses, skirt suits, and mod minis while celebrating Maison Valentino and Alessandro Michele’s new coffee table book, Specula Mundi. The limited-edition collector’s item spotlights the creative director’s Spring 2026 Couture line, but McRae did a sartorial 180 in light-wash cigarette jeans.
Tate McRae posed during the Valentino event in the cigarette jeans trend.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
It’s unclear whether McRae’s jeans were a Valentino pull, though similar silhouettes dominated the Spring 2026 show. Cigarette-thin denim also shined on Dior, Khaite, and Balenciaga’s catwalks, before It girls in McRae’s circle boarded the bandwagon. This year, Kendall Jenner, Hailey Bieber, Katie Holmes, and more have crossed over to the slim side.
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Few have doubled-up on spring trends like McRae, though. She wore her cigarette jeans with a deer-print jacket crafted from pony hair, spring’s winning substitute for winter fur. Then, the $2,200 Valentino DeVain—one of fashion’s most compact, east-west bags—jumped from Selena Gomez, Anne Hathaway, and Dakota Johnson’s shoulders to McRae’s.
Oversize sunglasses worthy of a ride in her “Sports car” finished the book launch look in true pop star form.
See similar jeans on the Valentino Spring 2026 runway.
(Image credit: Launchmetrics)
Valentino Garavani
DeVain Small Nappa Shoulder Bag
McRae has always been my denim muse, but recently, I’ve noticed a major shift in her preferred silhouettes. Last year, baggy, wide-leg jeans were her preferred pick. She wasn’t loyal to a specific wash, but as long as they appeared as baggy as Rihanna’s circa-2025 jeans—she was happy.
Last March, McRae switched gears in surprisingly baggy jeans.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
On April 10, 2026, McRae was spotted in significantly shrunken jeans. She re-wore her signature 2026 style—Lucky’s Ultra Low Rise Addison Flare—in her lightest shade yet. (Yes, the flared jeans were co-designed by fellow Gen Z’er Addison Rae.) Extra points for her graphic tee and Repetto ballet flats, both of which felt just as nostalgic as her Britney Spears-worthy denim.
More recently, McRae tested cigarette jeans in an almost-white wash.
(Image credit: Backgrid)
LUCKY
Ultra Low Rise Addison Flare
McRae’s cigarette jeans might be her most wearable so far. They’re not too low-rise; the wash can be worn all year long; and the legs are just slim enough without entering skinny territory. If they’re anything like her Lucky denim, she’ll style them into the ground—even at Hollywood affairs.
Shop the Cigarette Jeans Trend Inspired by Tate McRae
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