Rihanna Shut Down the Met Gala Red Carpet In Over-the-Top Balenciaga Couture
Shannon Adducci
Style Director
It was the date night to end them all. After a red carpet that spanned hours and countless celebs at the 2021 Met Gala, Rihanna and ASAP Rocky made a fashionably-late arrival to close out the ever-expanding party celebrating the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute and its return to the an in-person soiree, feting the museum’s new exhibition, “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion.”
As was rumored earlier in the day, the music artist, entrepreneur and unofficial Met Gala deity arrived in a look from Balenciaga’s fall ’21 couture collection, a voluminous taffeta frock in black with a ruffled hood that the star wore as a queen would, with the collar propped up around her neck. The dress was part of the French fashion house’s return to haute couture after 53 years, led by creative director Demna Gvasalia.
Never one to shy away from jewelry, Rihanna paired the dramatic floor-length hooded gown with an elaborate diamond bib necklace by designer Thelma West, which complemented the crystal-studded caged mesh head wrap that peeked out of a black beanie cap. The star and her stylist Jahleel Weaver added a Tyler Ellis bag decorated with Swarovski crystals for even more punctuation to the Balenciaga gown.
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The dark gown contrasted with ASAP Rocky’s colorful ensemble, though his look was was equally avant-garde. The music artist and Rihanna beau wore a patchwork-like quilted cape crafted by Venice Beach-based brand ERL. The garment resembled a duvet blanket, though the artist paired it with sneakers and black trousers. Later on, ASAP also shrugged off the cape to reveal a double-breasted tuxedo jacket with a ruffled white shirt, which he left untucked and finished with gold floral cufflinks.
While the star (and past FNAA winner) certainly brought drama to her look, what was noticeably missing from Rihanna’s ensemble was a peek at the notorious shoe-lover’s kicks — or any of her Savage x Fenty lingerie. One can only guess what was underneath.
