Among the new trends in menswear, the flat cap is reclaiming the spotlight thanks to a kind of aesthetic short circuit that crosses distant stories and imaginaries. This revival stems from an overlap of visual references: on one side the outfits of the shadowy 1930s criminal portrayed by Cillian Murphy in Peaky Blinders, on the other the nostalgic return of the nineties and the appeal of backwards caps worn by John F. Kennedy Jr, whose images are saturating social media after the success of the series Love Story. Today this “flattened” hat, reintroduced through historical citations and contemporary reinterpretations, seems to be increasingly present on runways and among the fit checks of fashiontok cool kids. But where does it come from?
The origin of the flat cap
Introduced as a mandatory headwear for English men at the end of the 16th century, the flat cap soon became a symbol of the British working class. During the Industrial Revolution, the models we still know today emerged: on one side the classic flat cap, made from a single piece of fabric and intended for workers, chimney sweeps and farmers; on the other the newsboy cap, constructed with panels and a central button. But within a few years this latter model also became popular among the upper classes who, during their holidays between Campania and Sicily, brought back across the Channel the hat that today all southern Italians recognise as the coppola. Depending on the tilt of the brim, the hat could identify either a criminal or a gentleman. An old Neapolitan saying goes: “A coppola storta fa l’ommo ‘e malavita, ma ‘a coppola dritta fa l’ommo ‘e garbo.”
In the years that followed, the flat cap became a symbol of rebellion and subcultures. If in the 1960s it was the fetish item of the British Mods, in the following decade it took on a political and poetic meaning, becoming the uniform of engaged intellectuals and activists, appearing on influential jazz musicians such as Miles Davis and Donny Hathaway. Later, in the 1990s, the flat hat returned to fashion thanks to several singers and musicians who made it the “crown” of R&B and hip hop artists: from Notorious B.I.G and Tupac to Lauryn Hill and Missy Elliot with her oversized denim caps, through the entire neo-soul scene of the Soulquarians with D’Angelo and Erykah Badu, until it became a signature element of the funky style of Jay Kay, frontman of Jamiroquai.
The most famous model of that era is the Kangol 504, worn strictly backwards on red carpets and in everyday life by actors such as Samuel L. Jackson, Adrien Brody and often Michael Jordan. No one, however, has interpreted the bold elegance of the flat cap with the same magnetism as John F. Kennedy Jr. whose style has become popular again thanks to Love Story and is now imitated by many creators on TikTok. Referring to the R&B world, Jack Harlow also wore one on the cover of his latest album Monica, leading some to accuse him of adopting an identity that does not culturally belong to him.
The flat cap in fashion
The fashion system was quick to intercept this renewed interest in the flat cap. For example, in the latest menswear collection by Prada, the newsboy cap was reinterpreted through a noir and spectral lens, tilted over the forehead or hanging from trench coats, crushed and aged under the weight of time. For Emporio Armani and Dolce & Gabbana, the coppola is an accessory that permanently inhabits the brands’ heritage. In the first co-ed show signed by Leo dell’Orco and Silvana Armani, the cap is endlessly reinterpreted: from looks echoing the sartorial rigor of Peaky Blinders to denim versions. On the contrary, the Sicilian duo elevates the headwear into a symbol of a Mediterranean identity, evoking a nostalgic idea of Sicily.
While at Ralph Lauren the flat cap returns in full old money style with explicit references to John-John America looks, MSGM proposes a tweed version that nods to bouclé caps worn by Anne Hathaway in The Devil Wears Prada and to the evil gay stylist trend of the 2000s revived by creator Samuel Lejon. Zadig & Voltaire and Public School instead presented a hybrid between a flat cap and a beret, while Officine Générale makes the piece more sophisticated, pairing it with duffle coats and Prince of Wales patterns.
The British designer and stylist Betsy Johnson Shatters, in the debut show of her brand Uniform, made flat caps a clear homage to the English working class, inserting them into a broader reflection on the concept of “uniform”: a sociocultural device that expresses a constant tension between collective belonging and individual self-assertion. 3.Paradis instead seems to draw from the hip hop attitude of the cap paired with long detective trench coats, while Kamiya, Junya Watanabe and Yohji Yamamoto push the coppola to the extreme, transforming it into an architectural structure that frames and shields the face. One only needs to rummage through a vintage market or simply look in a father’s or grandfather’s wardrobe to find a perfect archival flat cap. Choose freely which side to tilt the brim toward, aware that the coolness of this object feeds on both rigor and unruliness.