The BET Awards is still one of the biggest nights for Black film, television, music, literature, and philanthropy. This past Saturday night, June 26th, was the 2022 BET Awards. And the red carpet looks… let’s just say there have been even worse years. A fair share of at-home viewers asked if the celebrity stylists took the night off. I won’t say I’m shocked by the ample amount of questionable fashion choices since it has been the hallmark of the 2022 red carpet season.
Fashion lovers–both in and out of the industry–and lay viewers alike have had one question this red carpet season, “what the hell is going on!?” Things have gotten so bad that people have jokingly speculated that stylists have gone on strike or taken the night of the events off. The vast majority of the celebrities who walk the carpet do, in fact, have a stylist and glam team– so what then is going on?
Wrong, Wrong, & More Wrong
Just to quickly list off some of the problems that have plagued red carpets this season:
Extremely off-theme outfits, avoidable wardrobe malfunctions, outfits that do not complement the venue or event, terrible tailoring, the use of the color black as a crutch, that shade of Valentino pink absolutely everywhere.
Just horrid.
It was clear that this red carpet season would be a certified mess while watching the 2022 Met Gala. This year’s dress code was the most uncomplicated and straightforward in recent history, yet almost everyone missed the mark. The dress code–Gilded Glamour–was an homage to the fashion of New York City’s upper crust between 1870-1890. A well-defined fashion period, with many surviving paintings and illustrations to serve as a reference. Yet some folks heard “gilded” and wore head-to-toe gold or black. Some folks missed the mark by about 50 years. People seriously walked the red carpet in 1920s flappers, and Old Hollywood looks. It’s craziness, really.
The Suggested Solution
Things have gotten so bad that people have jokingly speculated that stylists have gone on strike or taken the night of the events off.
There have been recent rumblings of wanting to “make fashion bitchy again.” The idea is to uphold a standard of style–not necessarily a specific look but a certain caliber of intention and execution that is sorely missing. Fashion influencers/commentators are not in short supply. But the level of impact, expertise, and influence one needs to wield to make the celebrities and stylists step it up on the carpet isn’t there.
There’s a chasm in fashion media.
I am personally on the fence about making fashion bitchy again. Yes, I believe these red carpet looks need to be elevated across the board. I would begin with an event where anybody wearing the color black is barred entry, but I digress.
Honestly, the online fashion community can be catty enough. Some people don’t know the line. There is a notable difference between constructive criticism of a garment and malicious tearing of one’s overall appearance and character.
There has also been a call for fashion to be “fun again.” Giving the power of damnation to a person or group commentating on style can be counterproductive. We’ll get into the “make fashion fun again” sentiment another day because the mainstream reemergence of dance music will undoubtedly help that tide.
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