The best and worst of the Grammys red carpet

A mere week after the Oscars, The Slap that reverberated around the world and all the usual attendant glamour that accompanies awards shows, we’re back on the red carpet — this time for the 2022 Grammy Awards.

Unlike the Oscars, attendees at this awards show aren’t known for their elegance or sophistication — they're more the trendy sort. It is, however, a red carpet event known to push the boundaries of fashion, trends and taste.

The Grammys red carpet has consistently given the world some of the most iconic fashion moments in history. Who could forget Ariana Grande’s elaborate Giambattista Valli gown? Or J-Lo’s infamous plunging Versace dress? This is where Lady Gaga saw one of her most memorable red carpet moments when she arrived in a pod carried by “humanoid-like” creatures. The Grammys red carpets in years gone by have truly been memorable .

Did this year’s fashion at the event stand the test of time? Take a look at our best and worst dressed.

Best dressed

Doja Cat

Doja Cat served every single aspect of this look on a silver platter for us to enjoy. From the shimmery dress to the exquisite up-styled hairdo and flawless makeup, this look is a lesson in fashion curation. This kind of attention to detail is usually lost on a red carpet look, but that didn't stop stylist Brett Alan Nelson from giving us one of Doja Cat’s most iconic looks of all time. This is how you do the Grammy red carpet, full of fashion, style and personality.

Chrissy Teigen

Say what you want about Teigen, one thing that is for sure is she knows how to work a red carpet. She truly brightened up the Grammys with this Nicole & Felicia Couture taffeta gown. The bright colour, voluminous silhouette and arm candy, hus-babe John Legend, is what it takes to serve a winning red carpet look. We love that her stylist let the gown do all the talking and kept his styling simple and elegant. The big earrings, semi-messy bun and hardly-there makeup is how a true stylist signs off a winning look. 

Dua Lipa

Pop princess Dua Lipa seems to have taken some serious inspiration from Pop Queen Madonna. This “retro” Versace gown gives us serious Madonna vibes from back in her Vogue days. The harnessed corset with all the gold bling one dress can handle is proof black dresses are anything but boring when done right. We’re also loving Dua’s makeup. Her rich red lipstick, perfectly groomed brows and sleek long hair will be the next big thing at every matric dance to come, and we completely get why. 

Halsey

Yet another black dress to prove the point that black can be timeless and interesting. Halsey serves a 1940s-spy look in this Pressiat gown. The entire look brought much-needed sophistication to the Grammys. The beauty of this silhouette lies in its simplicity, allowing for the meshing together of different fabrics to be seamless. As they say, “minimalism is not the lack of anything but the perfect amount of everything”. This dress is the perfect example. Thanks to the hat and her perfectly matched makeup, this is an utterly flawless red carpet look.

Worst dressed

Olivia Rodrigo

One of the night’s biggest winners, Rodrigo sadly didn't win this year’s red carpet look. This black and pink-sequinned dress is all sorts of wrong. The silhouette is a 1990s throwback no-one asked for. The sequinned detailing is as kitsch as it gets and the makeup, well, there are no words. It’s what my 10-year-old-self would have dreamed my wedding makeup to be. This is one of the worst red carpet looks we’ve seen in years. Not every 1990s trend needs to be recycled, and this mess of a look is proof. Those bedazzled chokers may be the biggest crime of the entire look.

Megan Thee Stallion

Megan Thee Stallion’s stylist saw this extremely loud Roberto Cavalli dress and thought it needed even more of everything. It’s proof you don’t need to be the sharpest tool in the shed to make it in Hollywood. This gauche, leopard-printed dress is all sorts of wrong. The look is the fashion equivalent of the term “clash”. There’s not a single element of harmony to be found. Her heavy-handed makeup doesn’t help matters. The truth is there really is no way to save a dress like this. No matter how simple the styling may have been, this dress is all sorts of ugly.

Billie Eilish

By now we get Eilish’s shtick but that doesn’t mean we have to like it. We’re unsure what we’re looking at. At first we thought it was a tent, but it seems as if she is wearing an over-sized trench-coat in a way we’ve never seen before. We know that doesn’t make sense, but neither does this look. We’re not asking for more skin, we’re not even asking for streamlining. We’re just asking for someone to make sense of it all. In all its strangeness, this dress is totally forgettable.

Avril Lavigne

Punk princess Lavigne tried to live up to her moniker without any style or grace. This tulle-layered dress is trying too hard to push her outdated persona. It’s as ageing for her as her sickly yellow extensions. The trick to dressing for a red carpet, or even a day out, is knowing what works for you. What silhouette best suits your shape, what colours work best with your skin tone and what hairstyle works best for your face and age. Whoever styled Avril certainly didn’t ask any of these questions. There’s no saving grace in this look. Here’s hoping Lavigne stops using her persona as a costume.