The 2025 Met Gala theme is Black men’s fashion — with Pharrell, A$AP Rocky and Colman Domingo among the celebrity co-chairs
The Met Gala will make history with all-Black male co-chairs and an exhibition celebrating Black men's style.
The 2025 Met Gala will be a celebration of Black men in fashion. On Wednesday, the Metropolitan Museum of Art announced next year’s theme and co-chairs for the first Monday in May, also known as the biggest night in fashion.
For the first time in its history, the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute exhibition will solely be dedicated to race with a rare focus on men under the theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.” Inspired by Monica L. Miller’s book “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity,” the exhibit will spotlight paintings, photography, and garments celebrating Black style from the 18th century to the present.
“It’s a big moment for the country. For acknowledging where we are and where we want to be. … We’re at a crossroads as we think through what it means for all of us to be here together,” Miller, who will serve as the exhibit’s guest curator, told the Washington Post. “I’m happy that we can talk about complicated history, about slavery, and revolution.”
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The 2025 Met Gala exhibition will dive into the world of Black dandies, a term used to describe Black men who put an emphasis on their appearance and take a rebellious approach to fashion, according to experts. In honor of Black dandyism, Anna Wintour, who has led the Met Gala for decades, tapped Black male celebrities to join her as co-chairs for the iconic fashion event. Pharrell Williams, A$AP Rocky, Lewis Hamilton and Colman Domingo were each chosen for their unique sartorial visions. For Williams, Louis Vuitton menswear’s current creative director, this will be his second time serving as Met Gala co-chair. Additionally, this year, LeBron James will join as the gala’s honorary chair, making his first appearance on the Met Gala steps.
Beyond the celebrity co-chairs, Black designers — and especially Black menswear designers — are expected to take center stage during the exhibition. Beyond their cultural connection to the theme, these designers will be celebrated for the various ways they address the question of identity in their craft. Highlighting work from designers like the late Virgil Abloh, Martine Rose and Grace Wales Bonner, Andrew Bolton, the Costume Institute’s curator, says 2025 “marks a really important step in diversifying our exhibitions and collections.”
“The main reason to focus on Black designers is they were so historically minded,” he added. “They do design with the history of Black representation in mind. It’s about heritage. It’s often about their own heritage.”
The official dress code for the 2025 Met Gala will be released early next year.
