Fashion’s most highly anticipated evening is months away, but there is still much hype surrounding the 2025 Met Gala. The evening, which brings everyone from designers to entertainers, takes place on the first Monday in May, meaning it will fall on May 5 2025 this year. Each year, it takes place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where custom and archival pieces are on full display.
What makes the Met Gala so exciting is the annual theme. Last year, the exhibition was titled “Sleeping Beauty: Reawakening Fashion.” Guests showed up in their best wear that embodied “The Garden of Time,” inspired by the J.G. Ballard short story of the same title. Many of the guests incorporated themes of flowers into their looks. Next year’s evening promises countless stunning carpet moments. Here is what we know so far.
What is the 2025 Met Gala Theme?
Despite the popular belief that Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour chooses the yearly Met Gala theme. However, the Costume Institute’s chief curator, Andrew Bolton, is the actual mastermind behind what will be depicted at the star-studded function. Afterward, his team presents it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York for final approval, which takes about a full year to finalize. For 2025, they’ve settled on “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” after the Costume Institute’s spring 2025 exhibition.
This theme is based on Monica L. Miller’s 2009 book “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity.” Along with other things, this piece examines how slaves reworked their uniforms, especially those who served the wealthy. Throughout the years, African Americans, especially males, have revamped dandyism, which is what was seen with the distinct tailored suits of the Harlem Renaissance and Blaxploitation film era.
Historically, a ‘dandy’ is a person whose devotion to style boarders on being a personal discipline. In 18th-century Europe, dandyism offered Black people the chance to transform their identities and embody sociopolitical possibilities through clothing, gesture, wit, and a healthy touch of irony. The Met Gala 2025 wants to tell the story of the Black dandy in a manner akin to a mixed-media portrait, through physical art prints and drawings, film excerpts, and of course the thing we all look forward to from the Met Gala: the outfits.
The Met Gala’s 2025 theme of Superfine: Tailoring Black Style will, in the words of the Met Museum itself: “[…] offer a history and description of Black dandyism as a discrete phenomenon that reflects broader issues of power and race in the Black diaspora.”
Who are the 2025 Met Gala Co-Chairs?
With the exception of Anna Wintour herself, the 2025 showcase is being led by all-male co-chairs. Wintour selected some of the best men in entertainment, whose fashion choices are often widely recognized. This includes producer and Louis Vuitton’s Menswear creative director Pharrell Williams, actor Colman Domingo, race car star Lewis Hamilton, rapper and designer A$AP Rocky, and NBA icon LeBron James serving as an honorary co-chair.
Andrew Bolton praised the co-chair selection, pointing out that each man takes “advantage of classic forms, but they also remix them and break them down in really new ways.” Pharrell has exhibited this in his contributions to Louis Vuitton, which often blends the brand’s classic monogram with innovative twists.
Who is On The Met Gala 2025 Guestlist?
It’s evident that the co-chairs will be in attendance. However, it’s often unknown who will attend until the actual night. While such fixtures as Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, and Kim Kardashian are regulars at the Met, stars like Beyoncé have been anticipated to have pulled no-shows in recent years. Queen Bey has not graced the carpet since 2016, though many expected her to mark her return at last year’s gala, partly due to her seemingly entering a new Texas-inspired fashion era thanks to her “Cowboy Carter” album. Unfortunately, she did not arrive, though fans can hope to see her embody the “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” theme.
One adored attendee is Rihanna. She has not attended the Met Gala since 2023, though she has confirmed she will be at the 2025 function, partially in support of her partner, A$AP Rocky. With many of her past looks going down in history, including the iconic 2015 Guo Pei-created yellow fur-trimmed cape, Rih has remained tightlipped on what she plans to deliver for the forthcoming ceremony.
“He didn’t tell me anything. All we have planned is to be there,” Rihanna told Entertainment Tonight in October 2024, adding, “I’m not worried about him. I’m worried about what I’m gonna do.”
As for the other guests, spectators will simply have to wait and see.
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