The 2025 Mess Gala — Part Two!
In the immortal words of Daft Punk, one more time.
Hello!
I’m back in your inbox once again. My sincerest apologies for the onslaught of letters this week, but you know I had to do it to ‘em. And by “it,” I clearly mean churning out content at a relentless pace and complaining at length about some of the most boring and excellent outfits I’ve seen all year. Thanks to the gala and this rainy weather, I’ve had absolutely no personal life to speak of. All of my free time and spare brain space has been completely devoted to this Super Bowl of Style and entertaining you all with my half-baked musings, so I’m not going to beat around the bush up top here with my usual little updates. Instead, let’s pick up right where we left off and finish unpacking the night’s biggest fits and flops.
On y va!
I’d like to begin today by issuing a formal apology to French ballet dancer Guillaume Diop whose Met Gala look I only discovered yesterday (thank god for reddit) and so I did not see it in time to place it upon my best dressed list despite it certainly being one of the best. Are you starting to see a pattern in my most successful dandy ensembles of the night yet? Must have: vividly patterned robe, colorful suiting featuring unusual hue pairings, lace scattered throughout, and the froofiest tie money can buy. Valentino and Diop executed all of that exceptionally here. Now where was this same energy for Lana Del Rey…
Moving right along to a perennial crowd pleaser — Zendaya. It’s so nice to have at least one celebrity in your life who you can always rely on to do it right. The custom Louis Vuitton suit is an homage to Bianca Jagger and Diana Ross in Mahogany. But it wasn’t just what she was wearing, but how she was wearing it, posing with the gesture and wit Monica L. Miller cited as being so important to this subculture.
As for Shogun’s Anna Sawai arriving in the “same outfit” as Zendaya, it’s a non controversy to me. If anything, it feels like it’s been so long since two famous people have genuinely shown up at the same place wearing the same thing that the public is just starving for a who wore it better moment even if the stars aren’t actually wearing the same thing. After all, Zendaya’s is custom LV and Sawai’s is custom Dior and the details of each are actually quite different, they just both happen to be white suits. And there were a LOT of white suits that night! I think it’s interesting that no one is mentioning model Jasmine Tookes in this conversation considering her suit also bore a striking resemblance to both Z and Anna’s.
Anyway, I really just wanted to bring all of this up as an excuse to talk about my favorite white suit of the night which was Imaan Hammam’s Magda Butrym number which she paired with rhinestone-encrusted Margiela Tabi Louboutins and a very Hitchcock’s The Birds Pierre Cardin Fall 1990 fascinator. This outfit did not get nearly enough love!!
The most incredible thing to me about the 2025 Met Gala though was not only that Anna Wintour somehow convinced Lauryn Hill to leave her house for this, but that she somehow convinced her to show up to it on time. Truly historical stuff. I also learned that this was Lauryn’s first time ever attending the Met Gala which seems insane to me?? What an oversight! She absolutely crushed her debut. Another shining star of the evening, and perhaps even my pick for best-dressed woman of the night as she not only considered the ensemble but the fanfare that went into its presentation.
Lauryn wore a sculptural Cheney Chan Couture butter yellow suit with this dramatic, stiff shoulder ruffle and long train. The styling is perfect with this deep burgundy tie punctuated with a gold brooch, the afro, the dark shades, and the bright blue Kelly bag just to make sure you know this isn’t a costume, she’s really living that rich bitch lifestyle. The singer also arrived with her own parasol toting assistant following her every step of the way, and you all know how I feel about a tiny umbrella.
But most importantly, for anyone whose read Miller’s book or listened to her talk about the Black dandy, by bringing her own escort, I think Lauryn touched on a really salient historical element of this subculture that, much like Doechii’s scarrified LV monogram, perfectly encapsulates the fraught nature of this figure. Because as I mentioned on the livestream, the origins of the Black dandy begin in slavery when it was trendy for white Europeans to dress up their slaves in the finest foppery and have them do no labor as a symbol of their own immense wealth. One of the most famous Black dandies Julius Soubise (who Doechii modeled her outfit after), a slave to the Duchess of Queensberry, was known to often walk around with his own white servants in tow waiting on him hand and foot, subverting the typical class and race hierarchies of the period. While Lauryn’s footman isn’t white, I think it still underscores that same tension inherent in this mode of dress that is rooted in oppression and a racist prank, yet evolved into this powerful form of Black sartorial expression.
This is 1000% what Tyla should’ve worn to the Met Gala instead of the striped Jacquemus gown she ended up wearing — another supposed homage to André Leon Talley that night that I think did the late fashion deity more disrespect than honor. This, however, nailed the theme to a T and also set my expectations way too high for what else Tyla had in store for us this year. This look is from British-Nigerian designer Tolu Coker’s Fall 2025 collection and I love absolutely everything about it. The color, the contrasting, layered stripes, the gorgeous construction of the collar, the sleeves, and this built-in corset cinching the waist. And, of course, the Pharrell-esque hat with the gold hoops just ups the dandy factor into another stratosphere.
Actually, after writing that I suddenly find myself furious at Pharrell anew for not bringing back that iconic Vivienne Westwood chapeau for the gala.
Chappell Roan and Janelle Monáe both worked with Paul Tazewell, the first Black man to win a Costume Design Oscar for his work on Wicked, on their Met Gala looks and I just think that’s such a smart, cool choice in collaborator. And Chappell’s Pink Pony Club x Saturday Night Fever suit is proof that it seriously paid off. I love the touch of tinsel embedded in the fur trim and the sequins, beading, and metallic fabrics woven throughout these patchwork pieces. The suit is simple and straightforward by Chappell’s usual red carpet standards, but I think it perfectly encapsulates the theme while still staying faithful to her aesthetic. It is truly “Tailored For You.” The only thing I think it’s missing is one of those oversized 70s newsboy caps.
Ok, that’s been the free portion of today’s email. Thanks for stopping by! Beyond the paywall, you’ll learn all about the “Rosa Parks panties” seen round the world, Sabrina Carpenter eating a cherry from betwixt Usher’s fingers, two guests who tragically did not understand the dress code whatsoever, the latest in Gap Atelier attire, and — believe it or not — the harrowing return of Dior’s New Look.
Let’s get into it!
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