Fashion

Janelle Monae's CFDA Cape is Everything

by Jessica Willingham

Conventional red carpet rules have gone out the window at this year's CFDA Fashion Awards. Flats, glasses, and sheer pants have all made an appearance, and now Janelle Monae CFDA red carpet outfit turned out to be an embroidered cape! She ditched her usual slick suit, but that doesn't make the ensemble any less fierce.

The singer, 29, is known for her go-to suits and high collars. Unfortunately, it's garnered some critics in the past. After one man criticized her "soulful" look for not being "sexy" enough, she shut him down real quick in a tweet, saying she's “not for male consumption.” Get it, girl.

While I fully support her signature style, this new look is decidedly regal. Monae looked like a queen in a high-collared white and embroidered gold cape. Such a voluminous silhouette could easily overwhelm a small frame like Monae's, but that above-the-knee length demolishes any possibility of that happening in this case.

Her makeup was equally commanding: a bronze eye and gold brow highlight, and her always on-point, retro red lip. Her faux mohawk complimented the cape's killer detail.

Best of all? Probably that ear cuff. She seriously looks like a rock-n-roll queen.

Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

Images: Getty Images