RBD fans pay homage to group's telenovela roots with concert outfits
RBD fans are reliving their days at Elite Way School at the group’s “Soy Rebelde” reunion tour — and they wouldn't want it any other way.
The streets were filled with people in school uniforms, consisting of red blazers, white button-ups, denim mini-skirts or pants and red ties, as they made their way inside BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.
After 15 years, RBD — consisting of Dulce Maria, Christopher von Uckermann, Anahí, Christian Chávez and Maite Perroni — reunited for 30 concerts in the U.S., concluding with four consecutive sold-out shows in Los Angeles.
It was a nostalgic event for fans of the Mexican pop group, which first debuted in the 2004 telenovela “Rebelde.” (Alfonso Herrera was an original member of the group but declined to participate in the tour.) It was also an excuse to go all out and dress up as the group's soap opera characters and favorite music video moments.
“I’m so excited to be able to see their performance after not being able to see it when I was little,” Araceli, a concertergoer, tells TODAY.com at the Oct. 22 show. “It brings back childhood memories of just growing up, coming home after school and running to the TV to watch the novela.”
Whether it’s wearing a Roberta-inspired red wig, a Mia-approved star sticker on your forehead or her “Sálvame” pink cowboy hat, every piece of clothing represents the band.
The significance of the school uniforms go back to their roots
“Rebelde” followed a group of six students — Mia Colucci (Anahí), Roberta Pardo Rey ( Dulce María), Lupita Fernandez (Maite Perroni), Miguel Arango (Alfonso Herrera), Diego Bustamante (Christopher von Uckermann) and Giovanni Méndez Lopez (Christian Chávez) — from different economic backgrounds who attended the prestigious private academy Elite Way School.
Throughout the telenovela, they would go on to have three different school uniforms, with the first one being the iconic red, white and denim look. There's also an all-black suit with a blue button-up and red tie. One version also includes the girls wearing plaid mini-skirts, black blazers, white button-up shirts and burgundy ties.
Interested in music, the six of them formed the musical group RBD. While “Rebelde” concluded in 2006, RBD would go on to become a real-life sensation, releasing five studio albums, selling over 15 million records worldwide and earning two Latin Grammy nominations. They disbanded in March 2009.
Dressing up as RBD has fans reliving their childhood
For one fan known as @3nrique_slays on Instagram, who attended the Oct. 22 show with his cousins and best friends, seeing RBD for the first time was an unforgettable moment. Wearing the iconic Elite Way School uniform, he tells TODAY.com, “‘Rebelde’ was our favorite thing to watch as kids.”
“My favorite memory of RBD is the friendships and bonds that I made with people who liked the same band,” he said. “Even today, 15 years later, it’s awesome to still see us children all grown up and still have love and passion for RBD.”
Friends Sayuri Barbosa and Hector del Rio are native Colombians but currently live in Australia. They planned a trip to the U.S. specifically for RBD's show in Los Angeles. Barbosa gave a nod to the band's "Sálvame" music video, where Anahí wears her now-iconic pink cowgirl look.
The pair have been friends for 20 years and grew up watching the show together. They danced and recorded videos of themselves singing the songs throughout the night.
An opportunity to be your true, authentic self
Apart from getting to wear their favorite RBD-inspired outfit, the concerts were also an opportunity for fans, and the stars, to be their true, authentic selves. After attending RBD's show in El Paso, Texas, in August, Gloria and Elmo decided to re-create the group's denim looks that they wear during the concert.
Elmo describes his look as "Christian vibes" and he nailed it to a tee. During various concerts, Chávez wears an array of corsets and proudly speaks out about his coming out journey.
At the final Los Angeles show and end of the U.S. leg of their tour, Chávez shouted in Spanish how happy he was to be on stage, adding, “Estos 30 conciertos he sido yo,” which translates to, “These past 30 concerts, I have been able to be me!”
Chávez was forced to come out in 2007 after he was blackmailed by a tabloid who had photos of his wedding to his ex-partner. He rarely spoke of his sexual orientation when RBD first broke out. During the recent concerts, he displays the pride flag on his microphone and wardrobe.
“I tried for many years to be someone that I wasn’t,” Chávez told fans during a September show. “Sometimes it’s hard to accept myself as I am... But I want to tell you something, even those who appear to be perfect, they’re not always happy. Love yourself... You are perfect.”
Fans go the extra mile with DIY costumes
Kimberly Bueno began working on her pink outfit in March. She tells TODAY.com she made everything except the bralette and it took three months to complete because of the rhinestone detail.
“My inspiration was based on their looks from before they became mainstream and hit it big,” Bueno shares. “I called it their ‘Vaquera era’. They wore cowboy hats and sparkly outfits so I wanted to give tribute to that era. I wanted to wear something different than the usual uniform they are known for.”
RBD's Los Angeles show was the highest-grossing show in BMO Stadium history, with the highest attendance in a multi-night concert. They also broke the record for highest attendance for a Latin show at the venue.
The group will now head to Latin America before wrapping their "Soy Rebelde" tour in Mexico.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com