Doja Cat in Schiaparelli
It is hard to deny that she looks fabulous in this, just as it's hard to deny that it's essentially a boob vase. I wish she had clipped the tulle -- I think it pouring out the back there kind of ruins the sleekness of the rest of the look.
Apparently I decided you needed a side view of the spikes. And if you're curious, no, the model on the runway did not cover her nipples, so Doja probably had those whipped up special. The model also wore a gold metal nose, though, and Doja gave that a miss, so I suppose that's the trade.
Respect to the planet purse. She also went very completist with the Schiaparelli toe shoes, which creep me out.
Mary J. Blige in Julien Macdonald
She picked up an Icon award, which is much deserved, although I feel that this outfit does not meet her there.
Chloe Bailey in Valdrin Shahiti
This is another one where, objectively, I am not into the dress -- underpants as a style feature are not my thing -- and yet she looks excellent because she's carrying it with real authority.
I don't even think they're really underpants; they look built-in, or like a fake-out feature.
Teyana Taylor
The boots are Balenciaga, the pants are Givenchy, the top is Skims, and the sum of its parts is nothing in particular. She looks like a personal trainer up top and a very badass astronaut on the bottom.
Liza Koshy in Area
Well, I guess you WOULD put a giant belt down around your butt, if your waist is busy in a cage.
Jack Harlow
On TV this looked navy; here, it could almost be dark grey? Either way, the overall feeling is "black-based," so here he is. He looks very nice, honestly.
Latto in Zigman
This is Darth Vader's prom date.
Miranda Lambert, Elle King
These two sang their stompy banger "Drunk and I Don't Wanna Go Home," and it sounded just raw enough -- Elle said on the red carpet that she was a little drunk -- which is rare at these things and which I really liked. They both look good! Miranda is giving off Adult In The Room vibes.
AleXa
She apparently won the American Song Contest, which I completely forgot to watch. Her repurposed Hefty bag looks very sassy on her.
Pusha T
Diddy ended up wearing something similar to open the show, if I remember correctly. I hope they had a catfight backstage.
Rauw Alejandro
You don't often see a midriff outfit on a dude, so... points for variety?
Marcus EX
Long shirt + short pants is not a math equation that solves neatly, but his kicks are fun. Misplaced, maybe? But fun.
Morgan Wallen
He looks fine, I guess. Diddy said he was here on this night to forgive and end cancel culture on behalf of Morgan and Travis Scott, which... I can't tell Diddy how to live his life, and I won't, but for me personally... nobody cancelled either of those guys. They both still have lively platforms. They both still work. In fact, Wallen's album sales went up after he used the n-word and I am not aware of any particular sincere learning or regret on his part. (Rolling Stone has a rundown of that.) And as for Travis, the Astroworld situation was extremely bad and he was not the victim there... So I'm going to pass.
Diddy
Diddy is the only person in white, which feels right -- for a long time, he famously hosted a White Party in the Hamptons -- and carried a bottle of his own brand of tequila like a purse. He dispensed shots on the red carpet. Like, he was so prepared that the shot glasses had slices of orange with them, I think. I'm not sure why orange and not lime, but I saw him do one on E! and there was definitely an orange in there. Hey, whatever helps you host, pal.