As the 2025 Met Gala approaches, all eyes will focus on its A-list attendees and their interpretation of its “Superfine” Black style theme.
As fashion’s biggest night, celebrities from all sectors will grace the wide red carpet with their looks of the evening. However, attending the Met Gala comes at a lofty sum. With $75,000 per ticket, an invitation speaks more to one’s status and pockets than most.
Held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Met Gala has always served as a fundraiser for the museum’s Costume Institute. According to NBC News, this year will bring Black culture to the forefront on May 5.
Its theme, titled “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” pays tribute to the influence of Black men’s dress since the early 20th century. Moreover, it will explore the impact of Black Dandyism, with the Dandy being an “impeccably” groomed and stylish man, on fashion.
“So, what exactly is Black dandyism? At its core, it’s a fashion revolution, a movement steeped in history, resistance, and pride,” detailed Vogue. “But its impact stretches far beyond the sartorial. It’s a cultural statement, an act of protest, and, above all, an enduring celebration of individuality.”
Monica L. Miller, a guest curator of the exhibit and author of 2009 book “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity,” detailed the nuanced development of Black style.
“Black style is really related to thinking about how fashion and power connect,” explained Miller in the video for Vogue. “The way that people are styled, are fashioned or fashion themselves, in response to the degree of agency that they feel — silhouettes change, use of pattern, color — all of those things change in relation to time, and relationship to history.”
According to Miller, “Superfine” has 12 signature traits, including ownership, presence, distinction, disguise, freedom, champion, respectability, jook, heritage, beauty, cool and cosmopolitanism. The exhibit itself will take place in the Anna Wintour Costume Center at the MET, with Wintour also a decades-long chair of the gala.
However, Wintour will not lead the festivities alone. The Vogue editor-in-chief will be accompanied by co-chairs Colman Domingo, Pharrell Williams, A$AP Rocky, and Formula One competitor Lewis Hamilton. LeBron James will also serve as honorary co-chair.
Its host committee includes André 3000, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Dapper Dan, Doechii, and Usher, among others. Moreover, its spotlight on Black fashion amid a national push against DEI efforts hopes to combat sentiments that diverse representation does not matter.
“It is something that comes to mind, because the Met Gala has these themes that emphasizes all three of those touch points of DEI,” explained celebrity stylist Avon Dorsey, who is launching Brother, a Black men’s fashion magazine, next month. “To highlight the importance of Black culture, specifically Black men, is something that’s needed in the world to stand up against the stereotypes and misinformation and push forward our reality.”
By encapsulating Black expression and excellence, the 2025 Met Gala hopes to spread awareness on Black Dandyism through its tribute.
Dorsey added, “We know that Black men throughout history have always come and shown up and shown out, whether it was a church suit or whether it’s with a top hat or fashion like how our uncles and grandfathers used to wear. So, knowing that this exhibit focuses on Black men specifically and the style of Black men, is an amazing thing, especially with the way that the world is right now.”
Interested watchers can catch all the Met Gala’s red-carpet looks on platforms like Vogue.com and E! News.
