Red Carpet Reviews: American Music Awards
Let’s be honest… Måneskin saved this red carpet.
Written by Jessica Katz, Online Editor, Zack Zens, Fashion Staff Writer, and Rachel Reingold and Rian Evans, Contributing Writers
Photo compiled by Jessica Katz
The American Music Awards (AMAs) are back, celebrating a plethora of artists and hit music from this year, and the carpet was… well… alright. It seems like everyone tried to stand out in cutouts, bold colors, and funky fabrics, but the majority of celebrities on the carpet missed the mark. Here is Moda’s review of the best, worst and questionable looks of the evening.
Best dressed:
Madelyn Cline raised the temperature at least 10 degrees when she stepped out on the carpet. She turned heads in a flirty black Monet gown, with a halter style top and diamond-shaped cutouts down the torso (Gill, 2021). Our favorite part was the over-the-elbow leather black gloves. Overall, Cline looked sleek and sexy in this smashing look.
Model Winnie Harlow stunned the cameras stepping out in a daring, sheer mini dress by Zuhair Murad (Roberts, 2021). This jeweled tight-fitting look left her glowing on the carpet. Her matching accessories were simple but served a valuable purpose to let her dress’ vibrancy fully shine. With a matching gold headband and colorful yet subtle array of beads hanging down every inch of her dress, she confidently owned the carpet.
TikTok influencer Larray combined many of the largest trends in men’s fashion into one striking yet cohesive ensemble. His well-tailored floral print Gucci suit is reminiscent of 1970s cuts with a twist of baroque Italian floral prints to boot (Hills, 2021). The ensemble is dashingly composed with flared pants depicting a garden in shades of creme, sage green, dandelion and crimson. Larry stands out in this cohesive, well-tailored and balanced look.
Marsai Martin was a shining light on the carpet in a high-neck Missoni gown with a shimmery zig-zag design (Hills, 2021). She accessorized the look with gold teardrop earrings, a purple smokey eye and a bright, beautiful smile. The look was colorful yet sophisticated and Martin was glowing.
The AMAs were a major showing for BTS with a coordinated and avant-garde ensemble of Louis Vuitton suits in subtle shades of grey, charcoal and black (Hills, 2021). Belts have been a major trend in women’s suits for a long time but only recently have designers begun to incorporate belts into men’s suits as a means of adding more shape to the silhouette. These suits are very well-tailored and generously styled to lay just right over each of the singer's silhouettes. Double-breasted suits with peaked lapels are also all the rage this season lending even more positives to these ensembles.
Biggest flops:
Billy Porter walked the carpet in a Botter bright blue suit with a keyhole cutout, accessorized with a matching umbrella and platform leather black boots (Lee, 2021). It is hard to criticize Billy Porter’s fashion loins both because he is an accomplished actor and fashion icon; nevertheless, this was a less than stellar performance landing somewhere between cartoonishly excessive and unequivocally unflattering. The whole umbrella headpiece looks cheap, flimsy and poorly made; only adding insult to injury, the suit does not seem well-tailored leading the pants to bunch up around the ankle like a teenager heading to their first prom.
Youtuber Liza Koshy stood out in an ‘80s-style black dress designed by Annakiki (Kallon, 2021), paired with leather over-the-knee boots and simple silver hoops. And she did not stand out in a good way. Every year, Koshy tries to bring her bubbly personality to her red carpet looks, but they always end up being a disappointment.
Cutout dresses were a popular choice for the AMAs, but Becky G’s purple Raise Vanessa dress missed the mark (Rushford, 2021). The dress featured shoulder pads and black trimming outlining the cutouts. Adding to the ensemble were suede black pumps, large hoop earrings and diamond rings. Overall, the look felt outdated and did not flatter her body in any way.
As usual, a lot of men bored us on the carpet, including Markell Washington, Diplo, Anthony Ramos, Walker Hayes and Jesse Collins. Do better!
Bad Bunny seemed to experiment with a wintery look this year. Although an Entire Studios mint puffer coat fits right in with a November event, it seemed a little basic and underwhelming (Hills, 2021). The coziness of the look came together in a thoughtful manner but lacked originality, which is what we want to see more of at a highly popular award ceremony. While we applaud his experimentation, we want something more out of his comfort zone, literally, to wow the cameras and viewers with.
JoJo made an appearance on the red carpet after hosting the preshow for TikTok wearing an Usama Ishtay dress with Christian Louboutin shoes (JoJo Wows With Gorgeous Red Carpet Look at American Music Awards 2021!, 2021). The metallic bustier gown was detailed with hip cutouts and a front slit revealing her bedazzled thong. In our opinion, the poorly crafted front slit and cutouts took away from the whole dress.
Questionable ensembles:
Olivia Rodrigo could wear a trash bag and still look stunning, but unfortunately, we weren’t in love with her ensemble on the carpet. We adored her David Koma sheer gown covered in periwinkle sequins, with a plunging neckline and feathered trim (Grindell, 2021). However, her warm-toned neutral makeup downplayed the mermaid-like feel of her gown.
Hosting the 2021 AMAs, Cardi B showed up wowing the red carpet cameras. Barely recognizable with a gold mask and black veil hiding her face, she strutted in a classic Schiaparelli black and gold look (Southwick, 2021). However, was this typical Schiparelli color combo able to top past looks, such as Bella Hadid’s iconic look at the 2021 Canne’s Film Festival (Léger, 2021)? Regardless, Cardi showed up with an unexpected and faceless look that will be unforgettable.
Up-and-coming artist Tate McRae stayed true to her edgy style wearing an Annakiki white blazer with oversized puffy sleeves and black chunky boots (Kallon, 2021). The proportions were all wrong as the sleeves looked like toilet paper draping over her arms. At this point, the ill-fitted blazer is overdone, and we wish she had chosen different attire. The only things saving her look were her hair and makeup.
Machine Gun Kelly’s look was nothing new for the rapper—an edgy tunic designed by Ashton Michael embellished in metal eyelets and chains (Hills, 2021). His special guest of the evening, his 12-year-old daughter Casie Colson Baker, wore a simple black gown and gold accessories. While we enjoyed this daddy-daughter moment and thought she looked beautiful, the look seemed too mature for her young age.
Special shoutout:
Ethan Torchio, Damiano David, Thomas Raggi and Victoria De Angelis, popularly known as Måneskin, suited up for the AMAs red carpet. The Italian rock group ditched their usual glam rock attire for sumptuously tailored Gucci tuxedos sporting a classic wide peaked lapel (Allaire, 2021). The foursome continues to push the boundaries of gender norms, embracing androgyny and celebrating sexuality in their music, fashion and live appearances. In a sort of punk eclecticism, Måneskin’s members never shy away from exploring every avenue fashionably possible, while all together seemingly looking just as comfortable in fishnets as bowties. The look may be simple, but that’s what makes it so outstanding.
Sources:
Allaire, C. (2021, November 22). I Måneskin in Gucci sul red carpet degli American Music Awards 2021 (e tutti gli altri migliori look della serata). Vogue Italy.
Gill, C. (2021, November 21). ‘Outer Banks’ Star Madelyn Cline TurnsHeads In Halter, Cutout Dress At The AMAs. Hollywood Life.
Grindell, S. (2021, November 22). Olivia Rodrigo wore a sheer, sparkly dress with a plunging neckline for one of her boldest looks to date. Yahoo News.
Kallon, C. (2021, November 22). 2021 American Music Awards Red Carpet Roundup. RCFA.
Roberts, J. (2021, November 22). 'Olivia Rodrigo and Winnie Harlow Lead the Way in Stunning Outfits at AMAS 2021.' Mirror.