Terri King

Certificate Award Winner – Outstanding Fashion Designer at 9th annual LA Music Awards

Nominee at the 10th annual LA Music Awards

Hailing originally from Charleston, West Virginia, King moved to Los Angeles, CA in
the mid-1980′s to pursue her career in fashion, and her ability to help music artists
(and video directors) express the sexy excess and escapism of rock n’ roll, made her
an overnight success. It was the height of the MTV-era, when music video conjured
a hedonist lifestyle that we all wished to lead. As bands like Motley Crue, KISS, and
Guns n’ Roses became more successful, they sought style statements beyond the t-
shirt and jeans staple, and King gave it to them, via her signature bad-boy couture
looks: lace-up leather pants, multi-buckled jackets and vests and Goth-luxe pieces
including brocade jackets, velvet pants, and Edwardian-inspired shirts.

Though she was queen of rock n’ roll fashion in the 80’s, her work evolved in the 90’s,
and her experimentation with an array of materials including rubber, denim, feathers
and spandex, yielded countless costuming and styling jobs for the industrial music world
(Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy), pop world (Gloria Estephan. The OUTKAST) and for
icons such as Grace Jones. Around this time, her first Melrose Ave. boutique, KING,
opened and became a hub for celebrity fittings and custom work, and it provided the
public with an opportunity to purchase the embellished and edgy style of their favorite
stars.

While her work has been seen in countless music videos and a myriad of magazines
(including several “Rolling Stone” covers), King’s ability to create durable pieces soon
saw her focus turn to stage-wear. Her designs became musts for the biggest and best-
known touring arena acts (Metallica, Marilyn Manson, The Rolling Stones), all in need
of pieces that withstood the wear, tear, sweat and blood of the road. Leather with re-
enforced seams, hidden padding for comfort and construction with removable pieces
became another King signature.

King’s best known clients may be male rock stars, but her work with women’s wear is
equally lauded and loved. With an ornate design sensibility that utilizes lacing, corsetry
and fanciful fabrics (silks, brocades, lace and leather), King’s looks for women are
known for their flattering shapes and glamorous, rich-looking feel, as well as their ability
to reflect the vision and flair of the women who wear them. Perfect examples include
the much-buzzed about “No H8” dress she made for actress Pauley Perrette (“NCIS”)

when she presented at the 2011 People’s Choice Awards and Perrette’s attention-
getting music notes dress for the 2011 Grammys, the latter of which saw King featured
in CBS.com’s “Behind the Scenes at The Grammy’s” web-series.

Steady custom work for the entertainment world’s most beloved artists and performers,
a design collaboration with lifestyle brand V-Moda and the opening of a new retail space
on Melrose last year has seen King continue to influence the fashion world with her
provocative mix of rock n’ roll basics and embellished glam-wear. And there is much,
much more to come…

Partial Client List

Artists:
Paula Abdul – Aerosmith/Joe Perry – Alice Cooper – BB King – Billy Idol – Billy Sheehan – Black Eyed Peas (Will.i.am, APL) – Black Lite Burn – Bon Jovi – Cherie Currie -Chicago – Coal Chamber – Collide – Concrete Blonde – Cranberries – The Cult – David Bowie – Dead Can Dance – Def Leppard – Die My Darling – Enya – Faster Pussycat – Filter – Four Non Blondes – Gloria Estefan – Goodie Mob – Grace Jones – Guns ‘n’ Roses – Ice T – Iggy Pop – INXS – Limp Biscuit – Marilyn Manson – Metallica – The Monkees – Motley Crue – My Ruin- Natalie Imbruglia – Nicki Minaj – Nine Inch Nails – Ozzy Osbourne – Sharon Osbourne – Placebo – Peter Gabriel – Richard Marx – Ringo Starr – Rob Zombie – Rolling Stones – Save Ferris/Monique Powell – Steve Vai – Scorpions – Skinny Puppy – Smithereens – StabbingWestward – Stone Temple Pilots – Tequila Mockingbird – Terrance Trent D’Arby – The OUTKAST – The WallFlowers – White Zombie – Will Smith

Film, television and museum:
Black Scorpion – The Crow – CBS.com “Behind the Scenes at The Grammy’s” – The Doors – E Channel – Fabulous Baker Bros. – Forty Deuce (Bravo) – Front Line – The Killing Club – Jaw Breaker – Johnny Skidmarks – Madame Tussauds – Truth or Dare – Ripley’s Believe it Or Not – Rock of Ages