Janelle Monáe embraces dandyism at the Met Gala with help from an Oscar winner and tequila diamond

Janelle Monáe will embrace Black dandyism’s elegance at the Met Gala with an all-star collaboration with Oscar winner Paul Tazewell and designer Thom Browne, and a sparkling ethical diamond brooch from 1800 Tequila for a finishing touch.

Known for turning heads with her gala looks, Monáe said the ensemble she’ll reveal on the red carpet Monday will honor her ancestors and dandy-dressing family members while celebrating a more conscious approach to fashion jewelry.

“It felt like the right statement to make in fashion,” the Grammy-nominated performer told The Associated Press in a recent interview before the gala. She felt like she was back in art school to do a group project with Tazewell and Browne, calling the collaboration “one of a kind.”

In March, Tazewell made history at the Oscars, becoming the first Black man to win best costume design. Browne gave Monáe her first suit when, she says, “nobody else would,” and designed her 2023 Met Gala red carpet ensemble: an oversized half-black, half-white tweed suit worn over a hoop skirt that earned rave reviews.

“Just having all three of our minds together around this theme, it’s honestly the most exciting thing,” Monáe said. “The experience of us creating this look together, putting our heads together, getting excited and dreaming up whatever we wanted to dream has been the best part of it all.”

With Black dandyism carving its place in Met Gala history, Monáe found sentimental value in wearing the 1800 Tequila ethical diamond, a gem not mined from the earth, but crafted from the brand’s Cristalino tequila, with the brooch design inspired by the crystalline bottle.

“Knowing the impact that traditional diamond mining has had on African nations, it felt important to me that this piece reflected a more conscious and considered approach to jewelry wearing,” said Monáe, who is a part of the host committee alongside the likes of Simone Biles, Spike Lee, Ayo Edebiri and André 3000.

Monáe is one of the many cultural powerhouses leading Black dandyism into the fashion spotlight at the Met Gala, as the Metropolitan Museum of Art unveils its new costume exhibit, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.” It marks the Met’s first show centered exclusively on Black designers and the first in more than two decades to spotlight menswear. It’s also a tribute to the rich legacy of dandyism, a style that has long carved space for radical self-expression, especially for those overlooked or misunderstood.

Monáe said she was in awe of the technology used to craft the diamond from tequila. The tequila was aged for 16 months in both new American and French oak barrels before being finished in port wine casks for an additional six months.

“It gives a rare brilliance and shine,” she said. “I’m future focused, and I feel like this should be the future of diamond making. Something that’s more ethical. Something that’s safe to wear.”