As the days drag by, so does MET Gala 2025 draw close. The theme for this year is “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” and is scheduled to take place on the first Monday in May, as is customary. As you all know, MET Gala is the charity event and fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute and is popularly known as fashion’s biggest night.
It’s a fashion show down where we see the best of the best in the fashion industry display their best work. This is the night most of your favorite celebrities get dressed in what seems to be their best and biggest costume of the year, in line with the annual theme, and bring out their check books to support charity. Over the years, this charity event has seen eight figure sums in donations.
This year, the theme draws its inspiration from Monica L. Miller’s book, ‘Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity, which she released in 2009, with the exhibition being split up into 12 sections, Ownership, Presence, Distinction, Disguise, Freedom, Champion, Respectability, Jook, Heritage, Beauty, Cool, and Cosmopolitan, each a representation of the characteristics that defines dandy style.
As always, the MET Gala has a host committee and chairs and this year is no different. LeBron James will be serving as honorary chair while Coleman Domingo, Anna Wintour, Lewis Hamilton, ASAP Rocky, and Pharrel Williams will serve as co-chairs. On the host committee this year, we have Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Jeremy O. Harris, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Rashid Johnson, Andre 3000, Jordan Casteel, Dapper Dan, Edward Enninful, Spike Lee, Janelle Monae, Jeremy Pope, Tyla, Audra McDonald, Sha ‘Carri Richardson, Karra Walker, Usher, Angel Reese, Ayo Edebiri, Doechii, and Tonya Lewis Lee.
The tradition at the MET Gala keeps guest from entering with their phones and so all the action we get is on the red carpet, and with this year’s dress code being, “Tailored for You”, I can’t wait to see what our fave celebrities would be hitting the red carpet with.
But let’s look at some of the looks from past MET Galas that are still a hit today.
Let me just say this upfront, I don’t think anyone understands the Met Gala quite like Rihanna does. Year after year, when she shows up (and even when she doesn’t), I find myself holding my breath, waiting for that moment. Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned as a lifelong fashion lover, it’s that Rihanna’s MET Gala looks are always a banger, back to back.
From her earliest appearances to her most recent show-stoppers, Rihanna has transformed the Met steps into her own personal runway-slash-stage-slash-cathedral. Her understanding of couture, her reverence for craftsmanship, her fearlessness in interpreting the theme, these are the things that make her fashion royalty in my eyes.
Rihanna’s 2018 look to the MET Gala has to be my fave of her looks. Ah, Heavenly Bodies. Rihanna came as the literal Pope. In a Maison Margiela beaded mini dress, a matching cape, and a custom mitre (yes, a couture mitre), she looked like the high priestess of fashion. This look was a statement on religious symbolism, Catholic iconography, and the female body as sacred space. I was obsessed with how the pearls and crystals caught the light, turning her into a walking cathedral. It was so bold, so unapologetic. She didn’t just interpret the theme, she embodied it, again.
Rihanna’s 2018 look to the MET Gala has to be my fave of her looks. Ah, Heavenly Bodies. Rihanna came as the literal Pope. In a Maison Margiela beaded mini dress, a matching cape, and a custom mitre (yes, a couture mitre), she looked like the high priestess of fashion. This look was a statement on religious symbolism, Catholic iconography, and the female body as sacred space. I was obsessed with how the pearls and crystals caught the light, turning her into a walking cathedral. It was so bold, so unapologetic. She didn’t just interpret the theme, she embodied it, again.
Never forgetting the moment, Zendaya styled by the style god, Law Roach, showed up in a Cinderella gown that lit up and literally roasted the red carpet. It was a perfect fairytale moment, complete with a ‘Fairy Godstylist’. I think this was one of the most literal interpretations of the theme, Zendaya looked magical.
Another fave of mine has to be Blake Lively in Versace in 2022. Blake understood the assignment. She arrived in a copper gown with an oversized bow, and halfway through the carpet, the bow unraveled and transformed into a turquoise-green train, a tribute to the oxidized Statue of Liberty. It was architectural, referential, and stunningly executed. I think Blake knows how to be on-theme without ever losing her sense of red carpet glamour.
In 2015 Beyonce arrived late to the MET Gala but when she arrived in that sheer, jewel-dotted Givenchy gown, the carpet may as well have exploded. The silhouette was perfection, high ponytail, strategic sparkle, curves-for-days. I think she redefined “naked dress” that year. It was so bold, so confident, and yet so refined. The walk alone? Worthy of slow motion.
When I tell you Cardi B ate, trust and believe. In 2019, Cardi B wore a burgundy Thom Browne gown with a massive feathered train that circled her like a halo of blood-red petals. The headpiece, the gloves, the couture drama—it was camp in its richest, most indulgent form. I think people still sleep on how intricate and avant-garde this look really was. Cardi came to serve.
Hear me out. I love, love, this look Kim did in 2021. Kim showed up in a full black body suit and face covering by Balenciaga, literally faceless, nameless, just silhouette and shape. It made people talk, it confused the crowd, but that’s exactly why it worked. I think it was a commentary on identity, celebrity, and America’s obsession with fame. Plus, the outline was unmistakably Kim. You didn’t even need to see her face. That’s power.
