The 2025 Met Gala: According to a Non-Fashion Major

Written by Edith Manfred. Graphic by Laura Garcia Gomez.

As all true fashion fans know, the first Monday in May signals the Super Bowl of the fashion world: the Met Gala. As an amateur observer I was glued to my Instagram feed to see the best and worst of this year’s looks. 

This year’s theme was Superfine: Tailoring Black Style, which highlighted the history of dandyism in relation to Black style. The annual exhibition in the Costume Institute was organized into twelve sections that each represented a characteristic of dandy style. According to the institute, this is the first exhibition in over 20 years to focus exclusively on menswear. Much of the exhibition and theme was inspired by “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity,” a book written by Monica L. Miller in 2009. The history of dandyism goes back to Black servants in the 18th century and has evolved into a symbol of power and change from then, through the Harlem Renaissance and into the modern day usage of Black style as an artistic symbol of heritage. According to Vogue, this year’s gala raised the most money for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in the event’s 77 year history: $31 million. 

Observing as the average civilian, I noticed that this year’s overall look was clean, classy and chic. Black suites and pinstripes dominated the carpet. I’m a sucker for a tailored blazer and looks like Doechii’s and Zendaya’s fulfilled my wildest dreams. I’m no fashion major, but even I knew that looks like Rihanna’s (shoutout baby bump) and Jon Batiste’s killed. After briefly interviewing him on the red carpet of the Savannah Film Festival, I’m a forever fan (and imaginary best friend) of Colman Domingo, so I was thrilled to see his regal Valentino look lived up to his co-chair status. I firmly believe that this was the first of many stunning Tramell Tillman Met Gala outfits we’ll have the pleasure of viewing. As usual, Sam Smith wins ‘happiest on the carpet’ with his Christian Cowan rose-shaped look. I’m past the point of being surprised to see everyone’s favorite middle school YouTuber-turned supermodel, Emma Chamberlain, on the red carpet as she wore a Nicolas di Felice suit-turned-dress. 

As a fan of both smart blazers and cocktail dresses, one of my favorite recurring themes was the suit-dress combos such as Emma’s and Suki Waterhouse’s looks. Andre 3000 quite literally carried the Met Gala with his grand piano backpack. Sorry man, you could’ve checked that at the coat rack, but I respect the effort. Personally, I really enjoyed the other recurrence of full coverage for some of the women like Pamela Anderson (hello microbang?) and Joey King. It was refreshing for women to not need dramatically exposing cut-outs to be noticed, as it helped the focus to be on the outfit itself, not the flashiness of the model. One of my personal favorites had to be Maya Hawke, whose custom Prada gown had me in awe.

Onto everyone’s favorite pastime: critiquing the outfits of the most famous people on the planet. Hot take: no sunglasses on the red carpet, please. It gives the impression of the student falling asleep in the back of class. Are you awake under those expensive shades, Tom Ford? I enjoyed the pops of color mixed into the overall black and white theme, such as Chappell Roan, but some bright looks, like Cole Escola’s pink floral suit, were not quite as tasteful in my eyes. 

And last, but definitely not least, Anthony Pratt as the Hoka-adorned recycling leprechaun — what was that?

This year’s Met Gala truly perfected the art of the tailored suit. I thoroughly enjoyed putting on my Anna Wintour cap and spectating my favorite fashion competition once again. What were your favorite looks?