Cropped takes male wardrobes out of the sameness and conquers fans among the famous

Last week, Rodrigo Faro, 49, published a photo that divided opinions on his social networks. In the image, he appears in black pants and a T-shirt with a Gucci print, sunglasses and a few more accessories. Only one detail differed from any other photo showing the look of the day that he had already posted before: the bare belly.

The presenter of Record is one more of the celebrities who joined the trend of male cropped, the shorter length piece that leaves part of the abdomen on display. Some followers thought the model looked good on him, but others questioned whether the look was a joke. “I bet it’s a joke,” said Internet user Jana Pacheco.

There were even those who reminded him that he was a “family man” (Rodrigo has three daughters with Vera Viel, with whom he has been married since 2003), implying that that would not be an adequate combination for a man with his sexual orientation and with his age. But the fact is that cropped has been gaining more and more fans among men.

At BBB 23 (Globo), actor Gabriel Santana, 23, used this model so much that it ended up becoming a joke after its elimination. On the Big Therapy board, the comedian Paulo Vieira said that sending so many pieces in that style to the participant was an external tip, referring to the meme “react, woman, put on a cropped top”, which spread last year when an internet user reported that her sister tried to cheer her up with that phrase after a heartbreak.

It is a fact that the cropped (which in English literally means “cut”) arrived much earlier in women’s wardrobes. Since 2015, the trend has already been spreading among them when some men decided to join in the fun, helped by a fashion that has been increasingly challenging gender standards and taboos with nudity, which has led to increasingly uncovered bodies.

But anyone who thinks that male cropped is something new is wrong. Like the low-waisted pants, the piece is undergoing a rediscovery, sponsored by style icons of the younger generations, such as actor and singer João Guilherme, 21, and American rapper Jaden Smith, 24.

The latter is the son of Will Smith, 54, who could already be seen with his belly out in “Um Maluco no Pedaço” (1990-1996). The Hollywood star probably isn’t thinking about how cyclical fashion is, but he might crack a smile when the scion says it’s a “modern” look.

It’s just that, in the 1980s and 1990s, this fashion had already been successful. Otávio Lima, professor of the fashion design course at the Universidade Belas Artes, explains that, during this period, cropped clothing was used to highlight the body and appear healthy. The play was related to sports practices and freedom of movement, especially after the Moscow Olympics (1980).

“In the 1980s, valuing a defined and fit body was a sign of quality of life and health, which was heavily explored by the film industry”, he says. To prove it, just review some movies from the time (how about “A Nightmare on Elm Street”, from 1984, with a Johnny Depp in his film debut as an athletic student and whose flat stomach made many people sigh at the time?).

The gay community also strongly adhered to the trend, but the movement lost traction in the second half of the 1990s. Over the years, the cropped fell into disuse and ended up spending some years in ostracism —until the current wave took shape, in in the midst of a larger debate on topics such as agender fashion and non-binaryism.

According to the professor, the return of the cropped is now much less linked to the idea of ​​physical vigor in the past, which would be a consequence of a revision of society’s concepts. “We are in a very interesting time, which aims at the inclusion and understanding of each one’s identity, as well as their values ​​and interests”, he says.

For him, the fact that public figures are embracing the garment is an important step towards its dissemination among other parts of the public. That is, the cropped is likely to spread even further around. And you, would you use it?