It’s a Saturday afternoon in December and Paris Hilton is in New York City, walking along a huge lineup of fans, taking selfies with them in the freezing cold.
Hilton, one of the world’s most influential celebrities in the world, is here at the Times Square T-Mobile flagship store to unveil the new T‑Mobile and Baby Three limited-edition plush collaboration, the No Filter Series. There are eight different collectibles, and a cute vending machine in the T-Mobile store in Times Square, with exclusive drops at Alderwood Mall in the greater Seattle area, as well.
Her fan base is real. Hundreds lined up in freezing weather from the crack of dawn to get a photo with the star, who is widely recognized as the original influencer, but that is not where her accolades end. The entrepreneur brings her creative sparkle to every business she creates, from her line of 30 perfumes, to her own skincare line Parivie, to her media company, 11:11 Media, and much more.
“I am an OG T-Mobile lover; I have been doing things with them since I launched the Sidekick for them,” she said. In 2004, T-Mobile released an advertisement featuring Hilton alongside other celebrities promoting the Sidekick phone model.
Last month, she attended a T-Mobile event at the ARIA Resort & Casino in Las Vegas posing by a T-Mobile branded Formula 1 race car at the Las Vegas Grand Prix. “It was so much fun to be with them in Las Vegas for Formula One, and now this collaboration is so cute,” said Hilton. “I love collectibles. I think it’s so fun. This collaboration with Baby Three and the blind boxes are something myself and my kids are in love with.” She attached one to her rhinestone-clad purse.
According to Vogue, Y2K maximalism is back and there’s something nostalgic about Y2K bag charms, like with this collaboration. With Hilton as a Y2K fashion trailblazer—just look at her wearing Juicy Couture track suits, she’s excited to see its resurgence.
“I love it because I feel like I’ve always been so ahead of my time, especially with my fashion,” she said. “It’s so much fun to see so many of my looks I’ve worn, my style and aesthetic recreated all over the runway and social media. This collab reminds me of Y2K fashion because I used to have so many collectible, cute bag charms.”
Pink was a huge color in Y2K fashion, and nobody has worn pink quite like Hilton. “Pink is a lifestyle,” she said. “I just feel like I’ve loved pink ever since I was a little girl. I was Barbiecore before anyone was. And it’s so fun just to see so many people embracing it. I think it’s just a color that just uplifts your mood and makes everyone happy and everything looks better in pink.”
Next up, Hilton will release her new documentary film, Infinite Icon: A Visual Memoir, in theaters on January 30. The music-focused film follows the release of her second album, “Infinite Icon,” gearing up to her performance at the Hollywood Palladium, and her DJ career. Hilton said music “saved my life” following her abuse in troubled teen treatment facilities in the early 2000s.
“It’s such a powerful film, and I’m so proud of it,” she said. “While I was shooting it, I realized how much music has saved my life in so many ways. I was going through so many things in my life, and the one thing that would make me escape and feel so much love and energy is music.”
“Especially now,” she adds, “performing music is part of the film. Just reflecting on my life, I really see this film as a third part of a trilogy; the first being my first documentary This Is Paris, then going even deeper with my memoir, and now through this film, where it’s really through the lens of music. I’ve done a lot of projects in my life, but this one is one of the ones I’m most proud of.”
Hilton began DJing in 2012 with her first live set at the Pop Music Festival in São Paulo, Brazil, and has performed at major clubs around the world ever since. She was first met with skepticism when she started to DJ over a decade ago but has since proved herself otherwise.
“I’ve dealt with that so much of my career, where I created this character with The Simple Life, and people would just think, ‘she’s just a blonde airhead,’ just thinking that that was who I really was,” said Hilton. “But now I love that I’ve shown the world who I truly am, and I’ve proved so many people wrong, and one thing I love is being underestimated and proving people wrong, always.”
She recognizes that certain industries, like the DJ industry, is a boy’s club. “To be able to open the lane for other women and now seeing that there’s so many other girl DJs who are just slaying it, I think it’s great when you can take risks and do what you love,” said Hilton.
When she isn’t DJing or recording albums or documentaries (lets not forget her Peacock series, Paris in Love, from 2021), she is running 11:11 Media in Los Angeles, a media content company valued at $1 billion with 30 employees, which she co-founded with Emmy Award-winning media executive, Bruce Gersh.
“I’m involved in every sector; film, television, audio, building IP, licensing products, metaverse, we do it all,” said Hilton. “Just to use my platform to uplift and empower women and stories that need to be told and really shine a light on so many important things that are happening in the world.”
It’s what she calls “bringing that sparkle” to moments in life. “I feel like the world needs more of that kindness, authenticity, and standing up for what’s right,” she explains.
“Shining a spotlight on people, artists, children and issues that are happening around the world that matter, make the world a better, sparkly place,” said Hilton.
She runs a nonprofit called 11:11 Media Impact which is focused on making a change in the world and inspiring others to do the same. The nonprofit helped raise $1.2 million to support displaced families from Los Angeles fires, launched $1 million in grants for female owned small businesses impacted by the wildfires, has partnered with UNICEF for a mission in Romania, launched a campaign for ADHD Awareness month in October, and more.
Her 2024 autobiography Paris: A Memoir is a New York Times bestseller and will be turned into a scripted series with A24. “I can’t wait,” said Hilton. It will star the Fanning sisters, Elle and Dakota Fanning.
Next up, she is in the music studio finishing up her third album and she will be going on tour in 2026. Hilton just shot her 32nd fragrance campaign. “That one is going to be coming out in a few months,” she notes. Her skincare line, Parivie, will launch new products next year.
Both her memoir, Paris: A Memoir and her 2020 documentary This is Paris detail her abuse allegations while in a youth treatment facility she stayed in for 11 months when she was 17. She wasn’t alone, and launched the Breaking Code Silence movement, calling for accountability in the troubled teen industry, starting with protests in 2020, leading to legislative change.
“My advocacy work is ongoing; I just passed 15 state laws and passed two federal bills to protect children,” she said. “This is a global issue, so not just in the States. I want children all over the world to be protected. So, I’m going to continue using my voice to help them because they don’t have anyone to speak for them.”
She didn’t plan to speak about her traumatic experiences as a teen. “It wasn’t even the original premise of the film,” she recalls. “I became close with the director, and I started opening up to her. And I said, this is something that happened to me. It’s so traumatic. And she’s like, well, it’s happening still. And now it’s a $28 billion a year industry with hundreds of thousands of children going into these places, and so many horrible things are happening. If you say something, you could help change that.”
“I thought about it, and I realized that in life things happen, and maybe I was always meant to be the hero I needed when I was a little girl,” said Hilton. “It’s just been the most meaningful work of my life, and I’m so proud that it started a whole movement. It really is going to affect millions of children’s lives and help save them.”
Source: forbes.com