The Met Gala Showed Us the End of Celebrity Culture As We Know It

The Met Gala used to be an exclusive event filled with only A-listers and incredibly iconic high-fashion moments. But the events of 2020 threw a wrench in everyone's plans--especially the plans of the famous and elite, who were used to going wherever they wanted whenever they wanted. Their parties were canceled, their trips to St. Barts barred off, and they were bored and stuck in their mansions with no place to get attention except social media.

Once we began realizing that the world might be ending, we didn't care so much about Kim K's newest selfie or that celebs were becoming "California sober." We started thinking about ourselves and what we valued most in life and stopped paying attention to people who had completely different lifestyles than us and didn't offer us the right distractions or any personal support or comfort. As movies have started coming back into theaters, awards shows in full swing (with record low viewership) and film festivals in session, celebrities seem to think everything has gone back to normal in terms of their fame and relevancy. But the problem is, celebrity culture and interest from us normal people has waned so severely that I don't think it will ever be the same.

The Met Gala was canceled last year, but once it was announced it would be back for 2021, rumors of who would be attending circulated all throughout the Internet. A ton of TikTok stars and YouTubers were rumored to be on the list, which in a lot of people's opinions downgraded the whole event and its level of exclusivity. This wasn't to say these influencers aren't celebrities--because they are--but it made the Gala seem like they gave out invites to anyone, not just dramatic artists or actors like they had in the past.

Take a look at New York Fashion Week; several influencers were invited in exchange for them documenting their experience or promoting the Designer's clothes. What used to feel like only people working in high-fashion got a coveted seat now looked like the person at your local pilates class in Malibu got an invite "just because". Not even Bella Hadid walked in any of the shows, a model who in my opinion is the definition of a hardworking and always present supermodel. The Met Gala made sure to have a guest list filled with diverse people, with a theme based on American Fashion which very few followed in the most literal sense. While people expected to see lots of denim, homages to icons like Dolly Parton or stars and stripes, what we saw were loose interpretations of the theme with little creativity or meaning behind any gown or tux.

The Met Gala fashion, to be frank, was awful. But too many publications wouldn't dare to say this. To find what the public really thinks about such an event, you have to dig through the comments of an Instagram post or go to the gossip page, Deumoi's subreddit. There was deep criticism of the usual A-listers not attending such as Beyonce, Lady Gaga, Ariana Grande, or even Prince Harry and Meghan Markle (who were rumored to attend last year's Gala as a kind of debut into the high-society of celebrities). People felt a lot of these celebrities were being hypocritical and tone-deaf by attending such a large gathering, which leads into one of the most controversial topics of the past year.

Ah, Covid. It has made a lingering impression on our society, and now the issue of being vaccinated/masked has divided even celebrities. Nicki Minaj stated that she was invited to the Met Gala but since you had to be vaccinated to attend, Nicki didn't go. Some have criticized the event for happening in the first place, since most of these celebrities and high-profile people in attendance (including politicians) have been so staunchly pro-mask and vaccine yet they were only required to wear a mask once inside the building. It was a Gala that in the past has had over 500 people in attendance, though there were reports on less people being there due to Covid but that specific number hasn't been released.

We saw celebrities laughing and posing for photos without a mask, hugging and chatting intimately with each other in their expensive gowns and costumes. Though they were technically taking these pictures outside, people couldn't help but notice the staff and photographers in the background who had to have masks on at all times. In reality the whole situation doesn't look very fair to the general public. It looks as if the attendees felt they were so important that they could bypass any rules regarding Covid safety because they paid $30,000 for a ticket. This isn't to fault the rich and famous for having the success they have, but I wonder why more of their publicists didn't consider every aspect of how their attendance looked.

Perhaps the A-listers who did not attend this year declined the invite because they were either unvaccinated, had other obligations, or just didn't want to go and had wanted to keep enjoying being out of the spotlight for the first time in 15 years. No one will ever truly know, but what it showed was that this event ushered in a new wave of famous people who got popular from places like YouTube and TikTok. What is a foreign medium for most people who are not Gen-Z is now taking over businesses who want to capture this generation's attention and stay relevant. Anna Wintour's decision to invite people like Addison Rae or Emma Chamberlain could have been to stir controversy or to just keep up with the times.

There is still a vibrant interest in famous people, but there is a change in the wind. The old Hollywood standards and interest in celebrities has become more selective and only time will tell what the next big thing to stay relevant and in good graces of your fans will be.