This year, Black culture didn’t just take center stage at the 2025 Met Gala — it made history. The gala, also known as the biggest night in fashion, always serves as a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, specifically for The Costume Institute which preserves more than thirty-three thousand objects that “represent seven centuries of fashionable dress and accessories for men, women, and children, from the fifteenth century to the present” according to the Met.
Though the institute always sees a profit, with tickets generally costing $75K, this year’s gala raised a groundbreaking $31 million, compared to the $26 million raised last year. Now, as the most successful fundraiser in the gala’s 77-year history, the question is who this money will actually support.
“The level of support, enthusiasm, and importance of what we do is significant, especially this show, which is not only a celebration of Black designers, but it’s also a statement,” said Met’s director and chief executive officer Max Hollein, per WWD. “It’s an important exhibition about history. That all comes to the fore. That’s what a lot of our supporters felt — that it is meaningful and important.”
The 2025 Met Gala made history on Monday, May 5, as the first gala and exhibit themed around Black fashion, culture, and dandyism. With a historic class of all-Black male co-chairs, the iconic Met Gala steps were exceptionally diverse this year. With surprise appearances from Black stars like Diana Ross, Lauryn Hill, Rihanna and her baby bump, this year’s red (really, blue) carpet felt like a family reunion.
