by By: Camryn Ramseyer
In 2021, fashion fans saw more influencers attending one of the most prestigious events, with Tik Toker Addison Rae among the attendees. For fans around the world, it was interesting to see someone who was just like any one of us watching the red carpet looks from their couch a year earlier. If anything, this transition of internet celebs attending the Met Gala has society talking more than usual about the event than before.
Emma Chamberlain, who is one of Youtube’s most famous influencers, has not only landed an invite the past two years but was Vogue’s correspondent on the red carpet. Chamberlain has started to evolve her brand in more ways than one by stopping on Youtube and focusing on more significant projects. She has a highly successful podcast, and she is one of Louis Vuitton’s ambassadors, which allows her to connect with an entirely new audience. Having Emma Chamberlain as a correspondent enables them to cater to multiple audiences, which is a genius move on Vogue’s part! With Vogue choosing someone relatable, funny, and talkative to capture all the best looks on the carpet, they get the content everyone wants.
Among the Tik Tokers invited was Avani Gregg, known as an influencer and make-up artist and as Charli D’Amelio’s best friend. Gregg walked the carpet in a Bach Mai red gown and gloves. Many were confused as to how she got the invite. Yes, she is incredibly famous on Tik Tok and has a great sense of unique style, but what made her in the cut over others?
Watching the various internet celebs on the red carpet got me thinking, how does one get invited to the Met Gala? After looking online, I was surprised to see the ten ways one can get invited. The obvious way is being an “It” celebrity, but what categorizes one as just that? After looking online, I was surprised to see the ten ways one can get invited.
With social media changing the way we live our lives in some cases, it is fascinating to see the transition to more influencers being considered “it” celebrities. Some of these influencers have a more significant social media following and presence than some of the most well-known celebs.
Speaking of well-known celebrities and influencers, I can’t help myself not talk about Kim Kardashian. Not only did Kim wear one of the most ICONIC dresses, but she made an appearance with new beau, Pete Davidson, on the red carpet. This relationship is one that no one saw coming, but after watching her divorce unfold in the public eye, I was happy to see her smiling with her new man, who clearly makes her laugh all the time.
Overall, it was great to walk everyone on the red carpet, talk about what designer they were wearing, and see how all the celebrities translated the theme of this year’s Met Gala.
Hi Camryn! I watched the Met Gala live this year and had similar emotions towards the once exclusive event. It was interesting for me to see the lack of celebrities that followed the theme, and the wide range of people that were invited. Blake Lively stood out, as usual, but seeing people like Addison Rae and Hillary Clinton really confused me, as they are not fashion-forward celebrities. It seems as though the Met Gala is becoming an event that almost anyone can be invited to.
Thanks for sharing!
I personally look forward to the Met Gala every year as it has always been one of my favorite events due to the elaborate fashion and months of planning that go into it. I always get excited to see who and who doesn’t make the invite list. I think that it is a bit of a waste to invite people like Addison Rae and Avani Gregg who have no history with fashion but only rose to fame by learning simple fifteen second dance videos. However, I love seeing stars like Emma Chamberlain gain recocgnition and appear at the event as she has spent years on her style/fashion evolution. I will say that although many of the Tik Tok stars invited had no previous experience with fashion, no one looked worse than miss Kylie Jenner.
I was upset to see influencers at the Met Gala (both from this year and last year). While I understand that influence is very subjective and all the influencers that attended the Met Gala obviously deserve respect for their massive platforms, I feel that those attending the Met Gala shouldn’t necessarily be invited due to them being influential, rather the individual’s respect and contributions to fashion, art and culture. It’s like if Blake Lively showed up to VidCon: she’s obviously famous enough to be recognized by the people at that event but she’s the wrong type of influencer for that event. Overall, I guess that those who attend the Met Gala should have natural influence instead of crafted influence in my opinion.
This is such a great blog topic! I remember during last year’s Met Gala I was so surprised to see Addison Rae on the red carpet. I always assumed the Met Gala was only for the most well-respected, talented artists and actors of the year and I don’t necessarily group social media influencers in that category. At the same time, social media stars are becomings some of the most influential faces of our generation and their impact on the fashion industry is undeniable. Emma Chamberlain is a fashion icon and has inspired so many trends.
I saw way more influencers this year at the Met Gala than last year. I was expecting more but it seems overdone. The Met Gala is celebrated as the celebrity party of the year and inviting influencers seems to through it off. I appreciate the Gala changing with the times but they seem more concerned with staying relevant rather than true to the Gala. I wish that fewer influencers were invited to the Met this year but I understand the strategic intentions behind it.
The Met Gala is always an interesting event to see not only who is there, but quite famous for the judgement of celebrities attire. However, the more social platforms that are established makes it easier for anyone to become viral and build on that platform toward becoming a celebrity. I was also shocked at seeing some of the attendees and curious as to why some were invited over others.
Great post Camryn! I love the Mat Gala and I am so happy someone talked about its attendees. Honestly, it makes me a bit upset that now just about anyone with a big TikTok or Instagram following can go to something that I have grown up knowing was very prestigious and only for the best of the best. It makes sense why these influencers would be invited, however, considering they are a major part of our society. I hope that this changes in the upcoming years since I believe the Met Gala is losing it’s appeal with these influencer invites. We’ll see how next year goes!
I don’t know a ton about the Met Gala, but it always fascinates me. Its transformation from inviting mainly politicians to celebrities and now social media stars is interesting. Inviting more social media stars, specifically TikTokers, demonstrates the power the app has on society currently. A few years ago, social media stars would never be invited. The evolution of people invited represents a change in our culture.
Hey Camryn,
I didn´t have the chance to watch the Met Gala this year so thank you so much for your insights. I loved to see all the outfits on social media though (Blake Lively´s dress was my favorite). I also think it is a very smart move from Vogue to hire Emma Chamberlain as a correspondent and I love seeing someone relatable on the red carpet.
Great post Camryn. This is also something that I think is so fascinating. The Met Gala has felt like such a coveted event representing the highest levels of stardom and glamor to me that influencers feel so out of place. The Met Gala is about celebrating and raising money for art and has been around for over 70 years. It is an image of high society with historical attendees like Elizabeth Taylor and Andy Warhol. Addison Rae? Well that just doesn’t seem to fit the image. People have begun to question the Met Gala’s place now with many upset at those invited not participating in the theme and missing what the gala is supposed to be about and represent. To me, the inclusion of influencers certainly seems to cheapen the event in some way by tarnishing the integrity of what is meant by star culture. While it may signify a shift towards the event being more inclusive towards “celebrities,” I can’t help but wonder what it is doing to the actual event’s brand image.
Hi!
This post is definitely relevant due to the fact that it was so recent and became a popular point of discussion. I would also like to learn what I have to do in order to get invited to the met haha. I find it really interesting how people get selected to go especially because there are so many people and celebrities to choose from. I also that its interesting that it changes every year.