This year’s Met Gala did not just celebrate fashion, it celebrated Black fashion, and more specifically, Black men. For the first time ever, the style, elegance, creativity, and cultural weight of Black masculinity took center stage on fashion’s biggest night. The theme for this year was “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style”, inspired by Monica L. Miller’s book. It promotes Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity.

Think Harlem Renaissance swagger, think global influence, think Black joy dressed to the nines.

Miller, who also curated the Costume Institute’s spring exhibit, explained that Black style has always been about more than clothes. “Black style is really related to thinking about how fashion and power connect,” Miller said in a YouTube video about making Vogue’s Met Gala issue. “The way that people are styled or fashioned themselves in response to the degree of agency that they feel…”

The Met was about making a statement in spaces that haven’t always made space for us. And this year, the Met rolled out the blue carpet for that statement to be made loud and clear.

African designers had their flowers too with standout pieces from Torlowei (Nigeria), Ozwald Boateng (Ghana), Agbobly (Togo), Paradis (Cameroon), and Ike Ude (Nigeria) turning the carpet into a continent-wide celebration.

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The Black Moments We Could Not Miss

Diana Ross in Full Diva Glory

Twenty-two years since her last Met Gala, The Boss returned. Diana Ross floated up the steps in a self-designed, white crystal-covered gown, feather-trimmed cape, and dramatic hat.

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Rihanna’s Surprise Reveal

Another baby! Rihanna stole the night (again) by debuting her third pregnancy in a suit-inspired corset dress by Marc Jacobs. Only RiRi could turn a bump reveal into a runway moment.

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Athletes Brought the Heat

It was a Black girl magic parade on the carpet: Sha’Carri Richardson, the fastest woman in the world, joined forces with Olympic legend Simone Biles and WNBA stars Angel Reese. They wore gowns, but carried medals in their energy.

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Honouring Legends: Virgil Abloh and André Leon Talley

From Pharrell Williams to La La Anthony, several attendees wore pieces by the late Virgil Abloh, keeping his vision alive on fashion’s grandest stage. And though he’s no longer with us, the spirit of André Leon Talley, the original larger-than-life Vogue editor, lingered in every bold silhouette and boundary-pushing ensemble.

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Janelle Monáe Did Double Duty

Trust Janelle Monáe to not just show up but show out. She hit the carpet in two jaw-dropping looks, one by Thom Browne, the other by Oscar-winner Paul Tazewell, who made history for his work on Wicked. With a monocle, a clock-face, and a bowler hat, Monáe was part time traveler, part dandy, all star.

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Keke Palmer Channeled Dorothy Dandridge

Dressed in a dreamy Vera Wang number, Keke Palmer paid homage to screen legend Dorothy Dandridge, the first Black woman nominated for a Best Actress Oscar. “I just wanted to inhabit the tailoring and the history,” she told Vogue. And she did with power, grace, and flair.

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The night’s suggested dress code, “Tailored for You,” pushed guests to think about what it means to be dressed up and Black. It was about fitting into spaces while making them your own and that spirit defined every thread on display.

The gala raised a record $31 million for the Met’s Costume Institute,  proof that style and substance go hand in hand.

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