What Rihanna, Zendaya & More Stars Wore to Their First Met Gala

Going a similar vintage route for her first Met last year, Chappell Roan tapped Wicked costume designer Paul Tazewell to source a patchwork suit and complementary feathered cape from eBay that had her looking very much like a pink pony girl. 

But having told Vogue that “beauty isn’t everything—it’s the only thing,” she asked makeup pro Pat McGrath to ensure she was hot to go.

To channel “the glamour and freedom of the disco era,” McGrath explained, “We layered shimmering metallics with illustrated wings, chrome lashes, and rhinestone accents. It’s maximalist, metallic, and made to move.”

While stars’ Met Gala debuts run the gamut, there’s one throughline: Scoring an invite to the first Monday in May’s legendary fundraiser is a big frickin’ deal. 

She might be a veteran at the Metropolitan Museum of Art now, but in 2015, a Fausto Puglisi-clad Zendaya—styled by Law Roach—was “very nervous,” she admitted to Vogue of having no place to put her cell phone, “being like, ‘How am I going to call Law or call my dad or call someone to pick me up when I’m done? How am I going to get out of here?'” 

Fortunately, it turns out there was, in fact, a way home for the Spider-Man star. As for her journey to those famed steps, we’re looking back at her and other stars’ first times.