Katy Perry’s tastes may be eclectic, but when it comes time for a big event, she always focuses on fashion that makes a statement. As the final interpreter at Celebrating America concert in honor of President Joe Biden, Perry knew he had to do his best. Her minimalist separates from Thom Browne raised the style coefficient of the evening, while presenting a new side of her look. Browne’s all-white cashmere dress, satin bodice, and floor-length skirt were cooler than the traditional dress, yet just as elegant. As she performed the hit “Firework” with pyrotechnics illuminating the chapter, she looked exactly like a modern pop diva should.
In the past, Perry has shown patriotism through American-inspired pieces – no musician has worn more Stars and Stripes flag dresses or skirts than she has, and yet 2021 has called for a new verve. The look designed by Browne was played with the American iconography that Perry loves, but in an underestimated way. Detailed with blue satin-covered buttons along the sleeves of the shirt and red versions at the hem of the corset and at the side seams of the skirt, the outfit alluded to the colors of the nation without entering Uncle Sam’s territory.
It’s not the first time Perry has been looking for Browne for an important moment. At the launch party of the second perfume, Killer Queen, in 2013, arrived at the James Duke mansion in New York in a golden dress on Browne’s fall runway in 2013. Voluminous and covered with roses, look offered a literal sign to the star’s foray into the world of perfumes and tied the camp wardrobe she once favored.
It’s been almost a decade, and Browne makes Perry look his best, but in a way that feels high. Simple, regal and unexpected, Perry’s inaugural night look highlighted her current perspective on style, while paying homage to the overall theme of the evening.