Tonight Teyana Taylor’s 2018 song “Rose in Harlem” is taking on new meaning at the 2025 Met Gala, which has the theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”
“I’m already not a big dress girl,” she tells Vogue, adding that she prefers a tailored look no matter the event. “I’m in suits even without it being a suit theme.” No wonder Taylor feels wholly at home with the 2025 dress code, Tailored for You.
For the big night, Taylor tapped two-time Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth E. Carter to design her historically based outfit. The result is a burgundy zoot-suit-inspired outfit with the kind of Easter eggs that any fashion buff or historian will delight in. There are feathers, lace, and many crystals, all combining into one look. On the edge of her cape, embroidered in tonal string, are the words “Rose in Harlem”; beneath her feather-adorned hat, a matching durag.
“As we embarked on our journey in this country, we were stripped of everything,” Carter reflects. “A lot of times the only thing you had was to show it on your body.”
It’s both a pun and a story that the singer has been waiting to tell. “When The Met is Teyana Taylor’d to you,” Taylor shares with a smile, “it’s the moment we were waiting on.”
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