Rihanna Arrives Very Fashionably Late to Met Gala 2023

Rihanna‘s arrival at the Met Gala is always highly anticipated, her over-the-top looks solidifying her status as fashion icon. Her Met Gala 2023 look is no exception in her string of fashion wins: Rihanna and partner A$AP Rocky were the very last arrivals to walk the Met steps, but even showing up well after the official close of the red carpet didn’t stop her from nailing the evening’s theme.

Rihanna arrived at the annual celebration wearing a dramatic white Valentino gown festooned with giant white sculptural flowers that swathed her torso, arms, and head, while A$AP wore a Gucci ensemble including a plaid kilt and a stack of belts around his waist. Rihanna kept up the Big Train Energy she’s demonstrated in the past: It’s a good thing she walked the steps solo, because there was so much skirt floating over the stairs that there may not have been room for the other A-listers. She capped off the look with white fingerless gloves—a favorite accessory of Lagerfeld’s—, white cateye sunglasses with mega-long false lashes attached, and, of course, the boldest, mattest, reddest lip you’ve ever seen. 

Earlier in the evening, she was spotted ducking into her hotel to get ready when most stars were already leaving for the red carpet, and the Twittersphere waited with bated breath as shots of her approaching the event while wrapped in a long fur coat began emerging ahead of her official outfit reveal.

This year’s Costume Institute exhibit honored the work of late designer Karl Lagerfeld, who left an indelible mark on the fashion world. In his long career, Lagerfeld designed for Chanel, Chloé, Fendi, and more, including his eponymous line. For this year, guests were instructed to outfit themselves to a dress code defined as “in honor of Karl.” 

While Rihanna showed up to the party itself fashionably late, she also celebrated early, in a way: On Saturday, two days before the Met Gala, she stepped out in an ensemble featuring heaps of vintage Chanel designed by Lagerfeld himself. “Not even Monday,” she captioned the photos on her Instagram. 

Rihanna first attended the Met Gala in 2007, shortly after her song “Umbrella” topped the pop charts. It was her appearance in 2015 in a canary yellow ballgown by Guo Pei that cemented her status as a must-see at the annual event, even though she once admitted that she felt like a “clown,” and worried before getting out of the car that everyone would laugh at her. Of course, that wasn’t the case, as she topped the year’s best-dressed lists. Since then, she’s continued to crush the carpet: She wore a bedazzled Pope hat in 2018 and an absolute architectural wonder in 2017, to name just two. 

Make sure to follow along with Vanity Fair for all the red carpet looks from the Met Gala 2023.