With award season and winter fashion week coming to an end, celebrity fashion has been a hot topic so far this year. I have seen many online discussions about the recent showcases of celebrity styles, yet many of these discussions feel very white. Black artists are often left out of fashion conversions, despite always being well-dressed. I would love to shine light on Black celebrities that I believe should be included in these conversations.
Grammy-winning rapper, Megan Thee Stallion has definitely solidified her spot in pop culture as a phenomenal artist and a fashion it-girl. Megan’s versatility shines not only through her music but also her fashion. She often pulls off elegant, formal looks, like the orange Giambattista Valli gown she wore to Paris Fashion Week in January; flirty performance outfits, like the custom butterfly-inspired dress by Julian Mendez Couture that she sported during her “Hot Girl Summer” Tour; and chic causal outfits, like the Frankies Bikinis dress she wore in South Korea.
Actress and singer Ryan Destiny has been delivering gorgeous looks for the promotion of her new movie, The Fire Inside (2024). She recently wore a beautifully fitted brown YSL suit to Essence Black Women in Hollywood Ceremony that I cannot stop thinking about. Even prior to her new film, Destiny would give non-stop simple, yet elegant looks, like the red The Attico dress she wore for her birthday.
Men’s fashion often gets criticized for being too boring, however Emmy-winning actor Colman Domingo puts a spin on traditional menswear by wearing fun, outside-the-box suits. Rather than a plain black and white tuxedo, Domingo shows up to red carpets wearing bold, stylish suits that utilize a variety of colors and/or textures. For the 2024 Met Gala, Domingo showed up in a custom Willy Chavarria suit featuring wide black dress pants and a sharp white jacket with a long cape.
FLO is a British pop trio that evokes classic 90s and 2000s girl groups in their music and in the style. They often go to events and performances wearing matching outfits, following the footsteps of the pop groups that inspired them. FLO left zero crumbs at the Wicked (2024) movie premiere in their matching dark green Ellie Misner corset gowns. Lately, the singers have been popping out in bright red outfits to match their debut album Access All Areas, exemplified by the Cathy Meyong pieces that they wore on Late Night with Stephen Colbert.
Emmy-winning actress and comedian Ayo Edebiri always brings her playful personality to her red carpet looks. Her looks often feature a fun hairstyle with a chic, minimalist outfit. Edebiri wore a classic Hollywood-inspired peach orange Bottega Veneta gown to the 2024 BAFTA Awards. She also often wears preppy-style clothing, like when she was styled in a Thom Browne skirt suit for her Vanity Fair photoshoot with her co-star Jeremey Allen White.
Grammy-winning singer Victoria Monet captivates her fans with not her music but also her style. She wears classy and elevated outfits, often in neutral colors. For the 2024 Grammys, Monet and her daughter, Hazel, wore matching Versace gowns in a bronze brown, a color that would become her signature. She also loves to pay homage to vintage fashion styles. The promotion for her single Smoke is clearly inspired by 70s fashion trends, while her On My Mama music video is straight-up Y2K.
Temple alum and Emmy-winning actress and writer, Qunita Brunson is always a red-carpet highlight. Shorter women, like Brunson, are often overlooked by designers and are left wearing clothes that do not fit their proportions. However, Brunson and her stylist, Jessica Paster, always make sure that Brunson’s outfits fit like a glove. The stunning custom bejeweled Roberto Cavalli gown she wore to the Golden Globes this year and the luxurious black YSL dress she wore to the 2024 SAG Awards perfectly show off the importance of good tailoring.