“It’s going to be a lot of energy, almost like when the queen is put into a beehive—the sound of it—all the bees flapping their wings in excitement,” says Queen Latifah ahead of joining what she called “the tribe of Thom Browne” for her Met Gala debut.

The designer, known for his austere yet whimsical tailoring, first dressed Queen Latifah in 2021, when she received her BET Lifetime Achievement Award, but the queen says Browne’s work recalls a much earlier time in her life.

“I went to Catholic school from third to ninth grade, so I was always in uniform,” the hip-hop and entertainment legend tells VF. “When you wear a uniform a lot, you’re always looking for interesting ways to make your look special, and some of his looks really remind me of those days. He specializes in these fine details and really interesting ways of presenting an outfit.”

“You know Thom Browne when you see it, but it always seems to feel special on each person who wears it in their own way,” she adds.

When the Equalizer star first saw the initial sketch for her black peau de soie gathered coat and black sequined dress she immediately thought, “This feels like me. It doesn’t feel like it’s contrived, it feels beautiful, and I feel like I’m going to feel gorgeous in it,” she says. The look came alive in an arduous process she calls “indescribable,” attributing the designer’s ability to mesh his own aesthetic with the identity of the wearer to his deep understanding of both craft and muse.

Calling her ensemble a “work of art,” Queen Latifah describes the various ways in which it connected to the evening’s theme, “The Garden of Time.” “If you continue to look at it, you’ll discover more and more and more and more,” she tells VF. “It’s the beading, it’s the broad, straight shoulders…the birds-of-paradise are a connection to my family—my mother loved birds-of-paradise, and I grow them on my own property.”

In her eyes, the greatest thing any look can do is help you feel powerful. “It gives you an extra charisma, an extra aura when you walk into a room. People are drawn to you because they feel that confidence exuding from you because you look like you feel good,” she says.

Getting lots of rest is also key to looking queenly. “I have a nice hot bath, get some personal attention—a massage or some reflexology or a beautiful facial, something that feels really soothing,” she says.“Those things are important because you prep, prep, prep, and everything is so intense and you’re feeling such anticipation that you need to find a way to just relax and calm down.”

Long may the queen reign!