By Oscar Holland, Kristen Rogers, Nick Remsen, Stephy Chung; Photo editor: Jennifer Arnow, CNN
Rihanna arrives at the Met Gala in New York on May 5. John Shearer/WireImage/Getty Images
(CNN)_ New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art came alive with tributes to Black history, culture and style as the annual Met Gala got underway Monday evening.
The rain did little to dampen spirits on fashion’s big night out, where designers, models and stylists ascended the Met’s iconic — and for the night, blue-carpeted — stairs alongside A-list names from sports, arts and entertainment.
This year’s hotly anticipated dress code, “Tailored for You,” was inspired by the Costume Institute’s accompanying exhibition “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” which explores the history of Black dandyism. The Met says its annual theme is designed to “provide guidance and invite creative interpretation.”
It did both, with many attendees putting a contemporary spin on zoot suits, the wide-shouldered, high-waisted suits popularized by African American men in the 1940s. Speaking to CNN ahead of his arrival at the gala, fashion designer Dapper Dan said “real dandyism” began with zoot suits, jazz and the Harlem Renaissance movement. “It’s when Black artists and creatives began to dress the way they felt,” he added.
This year marked the first Met Gala dress code centered on menswear, challenging designers to reinterpret tailoring traditions for their female clients. The red carpet was awash with exaggerated suiting, from the broad shoulders of Doja Cat’s 1980s-inspired Marc Jacobs blazer to the wide-lapeled jackets sported by everyone from actor Tessa Thompson to rapper Doechii.
Janelle Monáe wowed with a suit-within a suit — an outerwear jacket, printed with a blazer and necktie, that she removed to reveal an actual suit (she completed the look with a bowler hat and a clock monocle with spinning hands). Other standout tailored looks included Zendaya’s Louis Vuitton three-piece and Lupita Nyong’o’s all-aquamarine Chanel look with a matching chiffon cape and hat.
Janelle Monáe arrived in a long jacket printed to resemble a suit and necktie, as well as a bowler hat and monocle. Michael Buckner/Penske Media/Getty Images
The singer and actor then removed the jacket to reveal a time-traveler-inspired black-and-red Thom Browne outfit. Christopher Polk/Shutterstock
The evening’s men also embraced colorful, theatrical suiting: “Bridgerton” actor Regé-Jean Page in all red, Henry Golding in — fittingly — gold and musician Bad Bunny in a loose-fitting brown two-piece paired with a Puerto Rican pava hat.
Elsewhere, attendees used the theme to pay homage to individual Black icons. In the first of two red-carpet looks, Oscar-nominated actor Colman Domingo, one of the Met Gala’s co-chairs, arrived in a blue Valentino cape that evoked Vogue’s former editor-at-large André Leon Talley. Formula 1 driver (and fellow co-chair) Lewis Hamilton said his patent leather shoes were also a reference to the late fashion journalist — as was Anne Hathaway’s white-button down shirt and Carolina Herrera column dress.
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 04: Rihanna attends the "China: Through The Looking Glass" Costume Institute Benefit Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 4, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)
Others looked closer to home, with “The Bear” star Ayo Edebiri telling Vogue that her Ferragamo look nodded to the dandy men in her life, including her father. Supermodel Gigi Hadid’s Miu Miu dress was inspired by Zelda Wynn Valdes, a pioneering Black fashion designer who dressed the likes of Josephine Baker and Ella Fitzgerald, while Jodie Turner-Smith channeled equestrian Selina Lazevski.
And then there were the Black icons themselves: Diana Ross, making her first appearance at the gala since 2003, arrived in a 60-pound, 18-foot-long train embroidered with the names of all her children and grandchildren.
Scroll down to see some of the evening’s best looks.
Lauryn Hill made her first Met Gala appearance in a sculptural pale-yellow suit and matching train. Her jewelry, created by jeweler and curator Emefa Cole, paid homage to Ghanaian royalty. Savion Washington/Getty Images
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Halle Berry graced the blue carpet in a sheer mermaid gown with a plunging neckline and strategically placed stripes. John Shearer/WireImage/Getty Images |
Cardi B in a lush green velvet Burberry suit with wide-legged pants. Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
The very last to arrive, Rihanna delivered on the "Superfine" theme with a custom Marc Jacobs look featuring a wool jacket, bustier bodysuit and V-tailored skirt. The star also used the red carpet to reveal her third pregnancy. Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Usher and his wife Jennifer Goicoechea arrived in Ralph Lauren and sharply tailored Sergio Hudson, respectively. Michael Buckner/Penske Media/Getty Images
With her Met Gala look, Tessa Thompson aimed to signify “the way fashion illustrates our dignity,” she told Billboard. Her old-school church fan featured the face of Vogue’s former editor-at-large André Leon Talley, whom many Met Gala guests honored tonight. Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
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