Janelle Monáe embraced Black dandyism’s elegance at the Met Gala in an all-star collaboration with Oscar winner Paul Tazewell and designer Thom Browne, completing her look with a sparkling ethical diamond brooch from 1800 Tequila for a finishing touch.

For her Met Gala look, Monáe hoped to play a character she conceived, as she does every year for the event, she said. This year, it was “the time-traveling dandy,” a visual representation of how she is informed by her past while considering herself a staunch Afro-futurist.