Met Gala 2021: Kim Kardashian’s ‘Outrageous’ Outfit, Let’s Talk About It

Kim Kardashian appeared at the 2021 Met Gala in a custom Balenciaga that’s meant to turn heads, but also hide faces

Kim Kardashian found herself on the steps of the Met Gala earlier today in a form-fitting custom Balenciaga. Designed by the brand’s creative director, Demna Gvasalia, her black ensemble was a daring take on an otherwise conservative look. The reality star and business mogul donned a black t-shirt dress paired with boots; her outfit also had two separate trains. However, the most controversial aspect of it all was her face covering and 75-inch ponytail. It's a look that truly paid homage to the Met Gala theme of “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion”.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 13: Kim Kardashian West (R) attends The 2021 Met Gala Celebrating In America: A Lexicon Of Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on September 13, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue )

Above NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 13: Kim Kardashian West (R) attends The 2021 Met Gala Celebrating In America: A Lexicon Of Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on September 13, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue )

Kardashian’s date, which some sources have claimed to be Gvasalia (and not Kanye West), also wore a similarly mysterious outfit in a black hoodie and black face covering.

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Whether her outfit was a commentary on face coverings—ever popular thanks to the pandemic—or inspired by BDSM, it seems as though the reality star has been hinting at her Met Gala look for quite some time now. For New York Fashion Week, Kim Kardashian made headlines after wearing an all-leather getup that had a similar face covering; that time with zippers. Earlier on, she also wore a similar getup for the Donda listening party, in a black bodysuit with a face covering that showed only her eyes and mouth.

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 07: Kim Kardashian attends the Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 7, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

Above NEW YORK, NY - MAY 06: Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West arrive to The 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 06: Kanye West and Kim Kardashian West arrive to The 2019 Met Gala Celebrating Camp: Notes on Fashion at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 6, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by James Devaney/GC Images)

It must be said that Kardashian’s 2021 Met Gala look is completely unlike anything she’s ever worn before on the red carpet. Her previous Internet-breaking ensembles included dresses that were bright and shiny, notably the 2019 Thierry Mugler “wet” dress and the 2018 gold-sequinned Versace dress.

Whether or not you’re a fan of Kim herself or her polemical outfit at this year’s Met Gala, one thing's for sure: she definitely knows how to hold the spotlight and turn heads. A feat, one might say, that is at the very core “American Fashion”.

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Met Gala 2021: Kim Kardashian’s ‘Outrageous’ Outfit, Let’s Talk About It