Lifestyle
Black dandyism etches place into Met Gala history — and global visibility
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Black dandyism is taking center stage at the Met Gala, with cultural powerhouses leading this subversive, sharply tailored style into the global fashion spotlight.
As a gala host committee member, Janelle Monáe and other trendsetters are helping shape the conversation, framing Black dandyism as a proud tradition — rather than a mere trend — claiming its long-overdue moment of visibility.
“It’s always important to educate and reeducate to the world as much as we possibly can through art and through our greatness,” said Monáe, the Grammy-nominated performer who had made dandy style a signature of her fashion.
Monáe, inspired by family members who proudly sported the look throughout her upbringing, views the spotlight as an opportunity to pay homage to the past and inspire the future.
“Dandyism is pretty much a part of my fashion DNA through tailoring and suiting,” the singer-actor said. “I’ve honored my ancestors and my family who wore their uniforms, wore their suits to serve our community. It fell right in line with who I am, and the people I want to bring with me that helped build this country.”
On Monday, with the world watching, a wave of fashion disruptors and stylists will usher Black dandyism from the margins to 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.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Kyle Smith, the NFL’s first-ever fashion editor, who has styled the league’s top players, including Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, Los Angeles Rams wideout Puka Nacua and receiver Kenny Stills.
“It’s great to see the recognition that Black culture is having or has in fashion for years,” Smith said. “It’s been there and very subtle, or just not recognized. I think this year’s theme is long overdue. I’m excited to see everybody’s outfits and how they interact with the idea of Black dandyism.”
Pillars of Black dandyism
This year’s Met Gala co-chairs include Pharrell Williams, Lewis Hamilton, Colman Domingo, A$AP Rocky and honorary chair LeBron James, with Monáe joining the host committee alongside the likes of Simone Biles, Spike Lee, Ayo Edebiri and André 3000.
“I think honoring minorities, honoring Black and brown people in these spaces and outside every day, is important,” said Monáe, who plans to use the red carpet to debut an exclusive collaboration with 1800 Tequila. “The ones who have dedicated their lives to this country to serve, build and give us art to sustain us for a lifetime. We should continue to honor them and push forward and stand on their shoulders.”
Several trailblazers helped popularize Black dandyism, a style whose roots trace back to the trans-Atlantic slave trade. From the beginning, dandyism served as a sartorial declaration, reclaiming elegance and luxury as tools of empowerment, challenging stereotypes and honoring Black legacy.
This Met Gala moment stands on the shoulders of icons like Frederick Douglass, who wielded sharp dress as a form of power, and Duke Ellington, who transformed suiting into cultural brilliance.
Host committee member Dapper Dan reimagined Harlem fashion, remixing luxury into bold statements of Black pride, while the late André Leon Talley — with his capes and commanding presence — redefined fashion authority.
Today’s Black dandies carry that legacy forward, blending tradition and rebellion in every lapel for a style that speaks volumes before a word is ever spoken.
“We are the walking versions that they imagined,” said El Lewis, an Atlanta-based stylist, who has worked with several entertainers including Usher, Young Thug, Chloe and Halle Bailey, and Justin Skye. “A lot of these people died not being able to have these realities come to fruition. We have a lot of autonomy to ourselves, and I think that’s what they were probably seeking. They wanted to be able to do anything at any moment at any time. And I think that’s what they get to see us do.”
Met Gala pushes dandyism forward
Stylist Brian Robinson said that if Talley were alive, he would have left an unforgettable mark on the gala’s defining looks.
“He would definitely be behind conversation pieces underneath the restraint to educate,” Robinson said of Talley, the influential former creative director and editor at large at Vogue magazine. He died at the age of 73 in 2022.
“He would have been able to put dandyism in a positive light for people to understand the importance of being able to celebrate and highlight our culture,” said Robinson, who has worked with Keyshia Cole and Naturi Naughton. “He would push for the understanding of the agricultural aesthetic of style, being able to understand how it highlights not only your personality, but how it can also make you feel good as a person.”
Smith hopes the Met Gala inspires people to embrace the joy of dressing up, because that’s the heart of dandyism. He’s eager to see that spirit reflected both on the streets and in the player tunnels at professional games.
“I want to see it more in our tunnel fits in the NFL,” he said. “Take some fashion tips from the Met. Look at what everybody’s wearing and how they’re exploring fashion. I want to see how everybody expresses themselves and how they leave their mark in the fashion world.”
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For more coverage of the Met Gala, visit https://apnews.com/hub/met-gala.
It didn’t begin a long time ago or in a galaxy far far away, but every May 4 it feels like images, memes and promotional deals involving “Star Wars” have an inescapable gravity.
May 4 — or May the 4th, as fans say — has evolved over the years into Star Wars Day, an informal holiday celebrating the space epic and its surrounding franchise.
What is Star Wars Day?
Star Wars Day was created by fans as a sly nod to one of the films’ most popular catchphrases, “May the force be with you.” Get it? Good, now May the 4th be with you too.
It’s not an official holiday but has become so well-known that even former President Joe Biden marked it last year when “Star Wars” actor Mark Hamill dropped by the White House a day beforehand.
“I think it’s a very clever way for fans to celebrate their passion and love for ‘Star Wars’ once a year,” said Steve Sansweet, founder and executive chairman of Rancho Obi-Wan, a nonprofit museum in California that has the world’s largest collection of “Star Wars” memorabilia.
How did it begin?
The phrase “May the 4th be with you” was used by fans in the years after the first film was released in 1977, and even appeared in a British political ad in 1979 celebrating Margaret Thatcher’s victory as prime minister on May 4 that year.
For some fans, the official Star Wars Day comes on May 25, the date of the first film’s release. The Los Angeles City Council even declared the date to be Star Wars Day in 2007, although the California Legislature voted in 2019 to designate May 4 as Star Wars Day.
How has it spread?
May the 4th caught on informally among fans through inside jokes shared on social media and viewings of the films to mark the occasion. Businesses eventually joined in on the fun, with brands ranging from Nissan to Jameson Whiskey running ads or posting on social media about it.
Disney, which acquired Lucasfilm in 2012, embraced the day as a way to further promote the franchise with merchandise, special screenings and other events surrounding the brand.
Not all “Star Wars” fans are enthused about how ubiquitous the once-underground joke has become. Chris Taylor, a senior editor at Mashable and author of “How Star Wars Conquered the Universe,” labels himself a “May the 4th grinch” in part because of its commercialization.
“I love a good dad joke as much as anyone, but my God you can take it too far,” Taylor said.
How is it being celebrated this year?
The day is being celebrated on a large and small scale this year. Disney+ is launching the new series “Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld” on the date, and it comes as the second season gets underway for another franchise series, “Andor.”
It also follows the announcement that a new stand-alone “Star Wars” film installment starring Ryan Gosling will be released in 2027.
Disney marks the day with the launch of new “Star Wars” merchandise, ranging from lightsaber sets to jewelry.
Most Major League Baseball teams have marked the day in recent years with special events incorporating “Star Wars” characters. For example, the San Francisco Giants sold special tickets for Saturday’s game that included a bobblehead portraying pitcher Logan Webb as “Obi-Webb Kenobi.”
It’s hard to find a place where May the 4th celebrations aren’t occurring, from bakeries serving cookies with a “Star Wars” theme to concerts featuring the memorable scores of the films.
It’s a town-wide celebration in New Hope, Pennsylvania, which shares its name with the subtitle of the first “Star Wars” film. The town of about 2,600 people, located 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Philadelphia, plans to have costumed characters throughout town with restaurants serving themed items like a “YodaRita.”
“I would always joke around and wish people ‘May the 4th’ — but taking it to this level, I’ve definitely upped my ‘Star Wars’ nerdiness,” said Michael Sklar, president of the Greater New Hope Chamber of Commerce.
Despite the chance of rain in the forecast, colorful plumed hats are again a fashion staple at Churchill Downs for the 151st running of the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Kentucky.
The tradition of wearing hats to the Derby began with its first running in 1875. They began taking on a life of their own in the 1960s, growing larger and more ornate so the people wearing them could be spotted on television.
The hats are just one of the features among the 150,000 fans jammed under the Twin Spires for a fashion show mixed with an all-day party that is heavy on traditions like mint juleps, singing “My Old Kentucky Home” while they wait for the 2-minute drama to see the winning horse get a garland of red roses draped on its back.
A race fan stands in a tunnel at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
A photo gallery of the event, curated by AP photo editors. For more AP horse racing coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing
Race fans walk through the stands at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A jockey walks past flowers at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A fan looks out at the paddock at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
Fans look over racing programs at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A person walks past hats for sale at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A sign warns of approaching sever weather at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A race fan walks through the stands at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
A race fan watches from the stands at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Race fans sit among flowers at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
People look over racing programs at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race, Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jon Cherry)
A race fan smiles at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
A race fan walk through the stands at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
A race fan watches from the stands at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
A race fan walk through a tunnel at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Race fans walk though the grounds at Churchill Downs before the 151st running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race Friday, May 2, 2025, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
LONDON (AP) — For Ethel Caterham, the trick to a long life — and in her case, it really has been — is not to argue.
Caterham, who is 115, became the world’s oldest living person, according to the Gerontology Research Group, after Sister Inah Canabarro, a Brazilian nun and teacher, died on Wednesday at the tender age of 116.
“Never arguing with anyone, I listen and I do what I like,” she said from her nursing home in Surrey, southwest of London, on the secret to her longevity.
She was born on Aug. 21, 1909, in the village of Shipton Bellinger in the south of England, five years before the outbreak of World War I. She was the second youngest of eight siblings.
Travel has been in her blood, it’s clear. In 1927, at the age of 18, Caterham embarked on a journey to India, working as a nanny for a British family, where she stayed for three years before returning to England, according to the GRG.
This undated handout provided by Hallmark Care Homes shows Ethel Caterham, who on Friday, May 2, 2025 is now the world’s oldest woman according to LongeviQuest. (Hallmark Care Homes via AP)
She met her husband Norman, who was a major in the British army, at a dinner party in 1931, and they were stationed in Hong Kong and Gibraltar, the GRG said. They had two daughters whom they raised in the U.K. Norman died in 1976.
Hallmark Lakeview Luxury Care Home in Camberley, where Caterham is a resident, posted pictures of her cutting a cake and wearing a “115” tiara in a Facebook post on Thursday.
“Huge congratulations to Lakeview resident, Ethel on becoming the oldest person in the world! What an incredible milestone and a true testament to a life well-lived,” it said in an accompanying statement. “Your strength, spirit, and wisdom are an inspiration to us all. Here’s to celebrating your remarkable journey!”
The title of the oldest person ever is held by French woman Jeanne Calment, who lived to 122 years 164 days, according to Guinness World Records.
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