Tailoring Black Style’ Met Gala Theme, Explained

The 2025 Met Gala will stray from the norm of the past 20 years as the fashion event is set to focus exclusively on menswear in honor of its theme: “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”

Celebrities who score an invite to the star-studded gala haven’t been encouraged to sport menswear since 2003, when the theme was “Men in Skirts,” according to Vogue. This year, the theme and the dress code — “Tailored For You” — were inspired by Barnard professor and author Monica L. Miller’s 2009 book, “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity.” Her novel examines the importance and influence of a fashion icon: the Black dandy. 

Miller will also serve as guest curator for the spring 2025 exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, opening May 10 and running until Oct. 26. The exhibit, like the upcoming Met Gala on Monday, May 5, will pay homage to Black dandyism, an elevated style of dress and elegance redefined by Black aesthetes after dandyism was imposed upon them, and how it has evolved for over 300 years. 

“What makes it possible to translate Monica’s book ‘Slaves to Fashion’ into an exhibition,” Costume Institute Curator in Charge Andrew Bolton said in a press release, “is our collection of high-style menswear, which serves as a foundation for imagining and realizing a sartorial history of Black dandyism.”

Co-chairs Colman Domingo, Lewis Hamilton, A$AP Rocky and Pharrell Williams, as well as honorary chair LeBron James, are expected to have all eyes on them when they arrive at the gala and pose on The Met’s grand steps. Celebrities like André 3000, Simone Biles, Doechii, Ayo Edebiri, Spike Lee, Usher and more have been named members of the Met Gala host committee and are also expected to attend. 

Read on to learn more about the theme, Black dandyism and some looks A-listers might sport on the red carpet, below. 

What is ‘Superfine: Tailoring Black Style’?

“Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” is described on The Met’s website as examining the “importance of style to the formation of Black identities in the Atlantic diaspora, particularly in the United States and Europe.”

The museum explains how Black style has evolved for over 300 years and is rooted in the idea of Black dandyism, which was birthed by “the intersection of African and European style traditions.” During the style’s origins in the 18th century, there was more access to clothing and goods as a result of the transatlantic slave trade, which began in 16th century, in addition to colonialism and imperialism.

The Met Gala 2025 theme of “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” will also be showcased in the museum’s corresponding exhibit. 

The Met previously announced that the theme will be represented in the exhibition through 12 different sections that encompass the Black dandy: Ownership, Presence, Distinction, Disguise, Freedom, Champion, Respectability, Jook, Heritage, Beauty, Cool, and Cosmopolitanism.

The museum also revealed that the exhibit will feature photos of civil rights activist W.E.B. DuBois, writings by authors Zora Neale Hurston and Nikki Giovanni — who died in December 2024 — and archival pieces from leaders in Black media, like Jet magazine. Clothing worn by pioneers in Black history like Frederick Douglass and the late André Leon Talley, will be on display, too. 

What is Black dandyism?

Miller details the rise and significance of Black dandyism in her book “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity.” The novel tracks the early days of Black dandyism to Enlightenment England — a period between the 17th and 18th centuries that emphasized logic and freedom of thought — and touches on historical figures, like the formerly enslaved Julius Soubise, a musician who became involved in London’s 18th century social scene, and more modern artists such as Yinka Shonibare, a British scholar whose work discusses the relationship between Africa and Europe.

In February, the Council of Fashion Designers of America published a story about Black dandyism that highlighted some current day examples, including co-chair Colman Domingo and Met Gala host committee member André 3000.

The not-for-profit association, which includes over 450 American fashion and accessory designers as members, spoke to Darnell-Jamal Lisby, fashion historian and assistant curator of The Cleveland Museum of Art, about how Black dandyism separates itself from dandyism. 

“Black dandyism aligns with traditional dandyism but carries an organic self-expression that transcends societal norms,” he said. “In the African American context, it began with respectability in politics before evolving into a revolutionary statement. Figures like Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Du Bois used refined imagery to challenge racist narratives. By the 1920s, Black men reinterpreted Eurocentric fashion through their own lens, blending respectability with rebellion, a dynamic that continues to shape Black menswear today.” 

Lisby mentioned zoot suits in particular, which feature high-waisted, billowy pants. 

“Initially, they were not a political act, but became one when mainstream society criminalized the look. Black men’s bodies have long been policed, and deviating from white norms only heightened that scrutiny. Yet, they embraced the style as their own,” he said. 

What are some examples of Black dandyism?

In 2017, Paper Magazine spoke to author Shantrelle P. Lewis about her book “Dandy Lion: The Black Dandy and Street Style,” which shines a light on designers, tailors and events that have shaped contemporary Black dandyism. 

After referencing how Miller’s book chronicled the trajectory of Black dandyism, Lewis noted in the interview how Frederick Douglass and W.E.B. Du Bois were early examples of Black dandyism. 

“I think in an earlier era, it was deeply rooted in respectability,” she explained. “It then reflected scholastic rigor and self- respect — think Malcolm X and his sharp suits or James Baldwin.”

She continued, “Today, dandyism is a more recent manifestation of hip hop culture. Black dandies are using hip hop methods of sampling to mix styles and articles of clothing from different eras and cultures to articulate statements of Black masculinity and individuality.”

What might some celebs wear at the 2025 Met Gala? 

Fashion fans should expect this year’s 2025 Met Gala red carpet to be decorated with colorful menswear.

As Lewis explained to Paper Magazine, color is reflected in dandy culture all over the world. 

“Within the Black community, color serves as a continuum of expressiveness and meaning present in the African aesthetic. You see pops of color that reflects the vibrancy of African Diasporan people internationally,” she said. “It’s loud, it’s disruptive, it’s flamboyant and filled with self respect and pride. It takes a lot of confidence to strut down the street dressed in a bright sky blue ankara fabric jacket. That color is often pleasurable for the wearer as it is for the observer.” 

Many celebrities will likely arrive in black tie and white tie, a hat, which is very common in Black dandyism, and statement jewelry. 

Our eyes will be on the co-chairs, who regularly sport outfits inspired by Black dandyism at Hollywood events, to see how they take it to another level for the 2025 Met Gala.