10 of the biggest moments in Met Gala history

• The Met Gala is home to some of history's biggest fashion and pop-culture moments.

• Taylor Swift's 2016 appearance was a key source of material for her 2017 album, "Reputation."

• Zendaya's Joan of Arc-inspired look from 2018's Gala remains one of her most iconic fashion moments.

What's now known as a spectacular display of haute-couture fashion on the first Monday in May was once a midnight dinner in the fall.

Spearheaded by prominent public relations expert Eleanor Lambert (who's also responsible for New York Fashion Week and the CFDA), the first fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute was held in 1948 and cost $50 to attend, Vogue reported.

Dubbed the "Party of the Year," the Met Gala passed through the hands of famously stylish women like Diana Vreeland and Pat Buckley before ultimately landing under the stewardship of Anna Wintour, global chief content officer of Condé Nast and Vogue editor in chief, in 1995. Wintour still oversees the event and decides everything from the theme to the guest list.

Throughout the years, the Met Gala has transformed into a multimillion-dollar fundraiser — last year's event reportedly raised $22 million — filled with unforgettable fashion, controversies, and canon-level pop-culture moments.

As the world awaits all that this year's party has to offer on May 6, here's a look back at 10 memorable moments in Met Gala history.

Anna Wintour co-chaired her first Met Gala in 1995 and infused the event with Vogue's youthfulness.

Simply themed "Haute Couture," Wintour co-chaired her first Met Gala (then known as the Costume Institute Gala) alongside Annette de la Renta and Clarissa Bronfman in 1995 and has co-chaired every Met since, with the exception of the 1996 and 1998 events, Vogue reported.

As editor in chief of Vogue, Wintour infused the event with the magazine's sensibilities, transforming the guest list with the inclusion of popular actors, musicians, and supermodels like Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, and Kate Moss.

Her leadership has helped transform the Met Gala into the cultural phenomenon it's known as today. Its set date on the first Monday in May, dress codes, and surprise performances all took shape during her tenure.

Princess Diana attended her first and only Met Gala in December 1996 wearing a full Christian Dior look.

Just months after divorcing Prince Charles, Princess Diana attended her first and only Met Gala.

The theme of the year honored Christian Dior, so Diana chose a dress designed by John Galliano, who'd just become head of the legendary fashion house.

The navy-blue slip dress with black lace detailing quickly became a key moment in fashion history, with Business Insider reporting that the dress was later displayed at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Another key detail of the look was her bag; originally named the Dior Chouchou, it was renamed the Dior Lady Di bag by the fashion house in 1995, per Vogue. Dior still sells the iconic Lady Dior bag, which retails for upwards of $5,500.

In 1999, "Rock Royalty" Liv Tyler and Stella McCartney broke the Met's traditional dress code with their casual looks.

With the theme "Rock Style," it's hard to imagine that Tyler and McCartney, the daughters of famous Aerosmith and Beatles frontmen, created this iconic fashion moment by accident.

And yet, that's exactly what happened. "I didn't come at it intentionally to be rebellious at all. I didn't know what people wore," McCartney told Vogue in a 2020 video interview.

The designer said she "must have found out about the theme the night before," so the morning of the Met, she took a three-pack of white Hanes tank tops to Filth Mart, a vintage rock-and-roll store, and customized them with the owner.

After adding some studs and ribbons to the tops, McCartney took them to Tyler, and they each created their outfits. Tyler chose a black Comme des Garçons slip skirt, and McCartney opted for Chloé trousers she'd designed.

"It was an amazing thing, in a way," Tyler also told Vogue. "We were just being ourselves."

As a result, a moment as authentic as this will likely never happen again.

"In this day and age, people would really plan it and overthink it intentionally to get attention in the media, and like, we really didn't, and that is what is so lovely about it," McCartney said.

In 2009, designer Azzedine Alaïa and model Naomi Campbell dropped out of the Met Gala after his work wasn't included in the exhibit.

When you think about models as muses, Naomi Campbell's relationship with designer Azzedine Alaïa instantly comes to mind. The two shared a close friendship that lasted over three decades, and Campbell even referred to the designer as "Papa" due to his contributions throughout her life.

So, you can imagine the duo's surprise when Alaïa's work was excluded from 2009's Met Gala exhibition, "The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion."

Alaïa had made seven dresses for the occasion but asked models not to wear them after learning of his exclusion. He told The New York Times in 2009, "It would have been silly to have seven girls wearing my dresses at the party and not have anything of mine in the exhibit" and said Wintour had "too much power" over the museum.

Campbell stood by Alaïa and chose not to go entirely.

A spokeswoman for Campbell told The Times, "As Naomi has been a muse of Azzedine Alaïa for 23 years, she feels she doesn't want to attend unless she can represent his work."

Ten years ago, Solange Knowles attacked Jay-Z in the elevator at a Met Gala after-party.

In 2014, TMZ released footage of Solange hitting and kicking Jay-Z in an elevator at a Met Gala after-party before being restrained by security.

The family released a joint statement to the Associated Press 10 days later, acknowledging the "great deal of speculation about what triggered the unfortunate incident," but said "the most important thing is that our family has worked through it."

The incident, though, has reportedly been referenced several times in music released by Beyoncé and Jay-Z in the years since.

For example, in a 2014 remix of "Flawless" featuring Nicki Minaj from Beyoncé's self-titled album, she sings, "Of course, sometimes s—t go down / When it's a billion dollars on the elevator."

Jay-Z also appeared to take responsibility for his actions in the song "Kill Jay-Z" from his 2017 album, "4:44," where he raps, "You egged Solange on / Knowin' it all along / All you had to say you was wrong."

Most recently, People reported that fans have speculated that Beyoncé's lyrics on "Cozy" from her 2022 album "Renaissance" might also be in connection to Solange's actions from 2014, as she sings, "Might I suggest you don't f— with my sis."

Rihanna had to "choreograph" her entrance to the 2015 Met Gala because of her gown's large train, which in turn became a meme.

Rihanna is one of the Met Gala's standout attendees, thanks in large part to her consistent commitment to the theme.

In 2015, she wore a yellow gown designed by Chinese designer Guo Pei to celebrate the Met's "China: Through the Looking Glass" exhibit.

In an appearance on "The Graham Norton Show" in 2018, Rihanna said she had to "choreograph" her arrival on the red carpet because of the size and weight of the garment.

Rather than getting into her limo with the dress on, she said it actually had to be put in the car first. She then got dressed in the limo with the help of six people who also assisted her out of the car and up the Met's stairs.

While some celebrities were criticized for cultural appropriation and insensitivity, Rihanna's look was hailed as one of the best of the night. It even became a memorable meme with fans likening the round train to things like pizzas and omelets.

Taylor Swift fans believe the songs "Getaway Car" and "Dress" were both inspired by her 2016 Met Gala appearance.

The star's strikingly different appearance wasn't the only memorable moment from 2016's Met Gala. Swift, who was in a relationship with DJ Calvin Harris, turned heads with her dance-off with actor Tom Hiddleston.

Swift and Harris broke up the following month and she was seen with Hiddleston in Rhode Island shortly after. What's more, Swift also reportedly met actor Joe Alwyn, whom she later dated for six years, at the same event.

Fans suspect these interactions helped inspire songs like "Dress" and "Getaway Car" from her 2017 album, "Reputation."

On "Getaway Car," Swift appears to reference Hiddleston by singing, "You were drivin' the getaway car/We were flyin', but we'd never get far/Don't pretend it's such a mystery/Think about the place where you first met me."

Zendaya said her Joan of Arc look from 2018 is one of her "all-time favorite Met looks."

Zendaya's Met Gala looks are always memorable, but the metallic Versace dress from 2018 is particularly iconic.

In a 2024 interview for Vogue's "Life in Looks" series, Zendaya said her outfit at the "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination" Met Gala was one of her "all-time favorite Met looks."

"It was so heavy because of the beading, but it was so beautifully constructed, and it's Versace," she said. "And typically, you know, I can handle a night out with my heels and everything — I've been wearing heels for a long time — but I don't know, it was something about a mixture of like wearing these platforms and like the heaviness of my dress, I was struggling."

"But it was all worth it," she added.

In 2019, Lady Gaga performed a 16-minute entrance routine involving four different looks.

The theme that year was "Camp: Notes on Fashion."

In collaboration with designer Brandon Maxwell, Gaga and her team created a 16-minute entrance routine that highlighted four unique looks. The routine ended with the singer wearing a black sparkly bra-and-underwear set inspired by her early days performing.

"Me wearing fishnets and a bra and panty playing piano onstage, this to me was camp because it harkens back to cabaret," Gaga told Vogue in a behind-the-scenes video captured for 2019's Met Gala. "Camp becomes camp over time, so for my last reveal to be something — that is something — that I did 10 years ago or even more, it's campy now," she said.

Maxwell added, "I also love the idea of being at the Met, at this event that's all about the clothes, with, you know, no clothes on."

Blake Lively arguably wore one of the best dresses in Met Gala history to 2022's "In America: An Anthology of Fashion" event.

Blake Lively's 2022 Met Gala look was "an homage to New York City" and its iconic architecture. She told Vogue livestream host La La Anthony that her Versace gown was inspired by the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, and Grand Central Terminal.

"My crown has seven spikes because the Statue of Liberty, she has seven spikes representing the seven seas and the seven continents, which represents inclusivity, welcomeness, and freedom. So, I thought that was sweet," she said.

Determined to leave no detail unaccounted for, the actor also asked jewelry designer Lorraine Schwartz to include 25 stones on the crown to match the statue's 25 windows.

And, of course, for the grand finale, a bronze-colored bow at her waist unraveled to reveal the dress' turquoise-blue train, replicating the oxidation of the New York City landmark.

Read the original article on Business Insider