The MTV Video Music Awards are a night when celebrities and audiences gather to celebrate the music industry's best talent. This year, Sabrina Carpenter leaned into that concept, channeling not one but two pop legends through her costuming.
The "Espresso" singer first arrived to the 2024 awards show wearing an archival sequin gown from celeb-favorite Bob Mackie, styled by Jared Ellner. The designer has been responsible for some of music's most iconic looks in history, having dressed stars like Tina Turner, Diana Ross, and, most famously, Cher. Carpenter's dress, specifically, is a relic from Madonna—the singer wore the glimmering gown on her 1991 Vanity Fair cover and again to the Academy Awards that year.
Sabrina Carpenter wears vintage Bob Mackie on the 2024 VMAs red carpet.
After channeling Madonna on the red carpet, Carpenter moved on to another iconic VMAs look, courtesy of Britney Spears. She showed up to the after-party at Electric Lady Studios wearing a white lace mini dress with '70s-style bell sleeves tied with a bow. The see-through confection was from Gucci's 1996 runway. It was totally unlined, giving fans a peak at Carpenter's coordinating bra and undies.
Sabrina Carpenter referenced Britney Spears at the 2024 VMAs after party.
Carpenter's playful style came out in full force, in the form of a lunchbox-style Balmain handbag covered in lipstick prints. The cheeky motif is a nod to yet another pop star: her. Carpenter's new Short n' Sweet album features the design on its cover art.
Additional details included Messika chandelier earrings and a pair of dizzyingly-high platform pumps from Giuseppe Zanotti.
Though the outfit came in Carpenter's signature all-white colorway (she's worn the hue to nearly every VMAs she's attended), her look called to mind a Spears moment from years past. The "Baby One More Time" singer wore a nearly-identical dress to the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards—hers, however, was made of sultry black lace.
Britney Spears attends the 2001 VMAs wearing a black lace dress.
Carpenter understood the assignment, three times over.
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