Janelle Monáe appeared to have kept the party going after the highly anticipated 2023 Met Gala came to an end.
The Grammy-nominated artist, who identifies her gender as non-binary, teamed up with The Standard, High Line Hotel in New York, and hosted what looked like an electrifying event. Some of the biggest stars, such as Lizzo, Quinta Brunson, and Keke Palmer, were in attendance.
According to Vogue, Monáe gathered up her hundreds of guests for an intriguing toast of champagne.
“She does so in a booming, sing-song voice,” the outlet wrote, “and the crowd quickly descends back into celebratory chaos.”
Related: Janelle Monae Admits Beneath Her Uniform is a ‘Ghetto Girl’
A video from the after-party began circulating on social media and showed Monáe standing on top of a bar wearing a black-and-pearl bikini with sequins while performing new music.
“I like lipstick on my neck,” Monáe said as the chorus played in the background.
During the clip, the “Antebellum” actress shakes her backside and shows off her Megan Thee Stallion knees while body rolling to the ground.
The Neighborhood Talk re-shared Monáe’s performance on its Instagram page. However, a few fans expressed their shock at how little clothing the musician had on.
“Remember, she used to always be covered up from the neck to the toes in those tuxedos BUT NOWWWW”
“Who turned her out? Because she used to cover everything lmao”
“Remember when she used to only wear those pants suits”
When Monáe first came on the scene, she was known for rocking minimalistic tuxedos and suits. In a 2013 interview with The Huffington Post, the 37-year-old admitted that her love for pantsuits came from “wanting to have a uniform.”
“It’s a dedication to uniformity and I’m a minimalist by heart,” she said, “but a lot of it had to do with me wanting to have a uniform like the working class, like my mom and my grandmother.”
Growing up, Monáe’s mother worked as a janitor, her father as a trashman, and her stepfather was employed at the post office.
While speaking to the outlet, the “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” star also revealed that her grandmother worked as a sharecropper and then later worked at a jailhouse until she passed away.
Though she is always linked to funky suits, in an interview that same year, Monáe revealed that there was more to her than just the covered clothes on her body.
“There is a lot of life underneath this tuxedo,” she shared. “I like to have fun. I enjoy practical jokes. I enjoy rolling around the mall in wheelchairs.”
As the years have gone by, Monáe’s style has evolved. She continues to push the barriers of fashion while testing the waters of unique ensembles.
