15 Celebrities’ Outfits That Have A Fascinating Story Behind

Usually stylists and fashion designers take care of celebrities’ looks. And these artists try to create something totally new, something no one has even seen or worn before. Sometimes these outfits have a fascinating story of their creation so that you’d probably want to have a closer look at them.

At CHEERY, we decided to have a look at celebrities’ iconic outfits, and would like to tell you about the curious details of their creation.

Madonna’s cone bra

Throughout her career, which has lasted for more than 4 decades, Madonna has repeatedly challenged society and fashion. One of the most striking examples is her cone bra, in which she performed on stage in 1990. This bra was designed by Jean-Paul Gaultier.

The combination of old-fashioned femininity of the corset and Madonna’s muscular body created the effect of women’s power and authority. Later, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry used similar outfits.

Michael Jackson’s white glove

The single white glove was Michael Jackson’s trademark. One day Michael was taken on a tour at the company Robert Abel & Associates that produced TV commercials.

In one of the rooms, Jackson saw a film editor who was wearing a white glove on his left hand — he needed it to run the film through his fingers, looking for color marks. The singer seemed transfixed by the glove and then asked for a spare one. Later, the King of Pop covered the glove in silver sequins and appeared on stage wearing it in 1983.

Light bulbs by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Those who attended the Woodstock music festival in 1994 are unlikely to forget huge light bulbs on the heads of the RHCP members. The musicians wanted to stand out on stage and came up with this extravagant idea. They drew sketches on a napkin and handed it to the guys who were supposed to produce them. And they saw their props for the first time when they were 10 minutes away from going onstage.

Reality turned out to be more complicated than they thought it would when they’d got that idea. Each bulb weighed about 60 pounds and it also obscured vision. The musicians simply couldn’t move in them properly. Besides, some of the bulbs didn’t light up. Needless to say, the guys from the Red Hot Chili Peppers never wore these concert costumes again.

Beyoncé’s gold corset

According to the rules of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, artists become eligible for induction 25 years after the release of their first record. However, Beyoncé still managed to get there, though in a very unusual way.

The singer was dressed in Thierry Mugler’s gold corset from the 1995 collection in her music video for the song Sweet Dreams. And this costume was so loved by the public that it was exhibited in the Rock Hall as part of the exhibition dedicated to the singer’s work.

Kanye West’s crystal masks

Kanye West often performs on stage with a mask on his face. Since 2013, the rapper has been collaborating with Maison Martin Margiela and wearing bizarre facial masks that completely hide his face during his performances. In an interview, Kanye explained that this was his way to show what a dream could be like. And he wears them not because he wants to “save his face.”

Kylie Minogue’s white jumpsuit

Kylie Minogue’s white jumpsuit from the Can’t Get You Out of My Head music video has become iconic in the fashion world. Jean Paul Gaultier once wrote, “Who could forget the white jumpsuit with the openings so deep that anyone could feel her pale, delicate skin.”

It’s funny that Minogue took the jumpsuit on the hanger for a white sheet at first. Only after trying it on, she understood its trick — it stayed in all the right places. By the way, this jumpsuit is in her top 3 of iconic outfits. And she donated it to the Performing Arts Museum in Melbourne.

Daft Punk’s robot helmets

The helmets of the Daft Punk music duo symbolize their freedom. Thanks to them, the musicians can remain unrecognizable while drinking coffee right in the street or using subway. The band’s members have been hiding their faces from the very beginning. At first, they used to wear black bags or creepy Halloween masks on their heads. And eventually they ended up with robot helmets.

The musicians like the idea that their robot costumes have a clear reference to science fiction because they want to merge fiction and reality in their life. By the way, the French duo has several versions of the helmets. Some helmets are for live shows, with built-in air conditioning and microphones, others made of special materials that look better in photos are for photo shoots.

Lady Gaga’s oversize suit

Among the hundreds of extravagant outfits Lady Gaga has worn in public, this one deserves special attention. The oversize pantsuit was the singer’s way of saying that women should have their power back.

The celebrity revealed that she had tried on a bunch of dresses, tight corsets and uncomfortable heels while preparing for the event. And at that moment she thought, “We are not just objects to entertain the world.” In this oversize pantsuit, Gaga felt like herself today — a woman who doesn’t want anyone to tell her what she has to be.

David Bowie’s eye patch

David Bowie was such a versatile performer that he created a few stage personas which he used onstage. When acting like one of these personas, he would wear an eye patch. It’s worth mentioning that this look was not inspired by pirates. The eye patch became the part of this persona for a very prosaic reason.

The singer had a bout of conjunctivitis once, and in order not to show his sore eye to the public, he covered it with an eye patch. Eventually it just stuck around.

Marilyn Monroe’s dress

The dress in which Marilyn Monroe performed the song Happy Birthday in 1962 immediately became iconic. Made of sheer fabric and adorned with 2,500 rhinestones, the dress was created by young designer, Bob Mackie, who was just out of college.

Marilyn had to pay almost $1,500 for it which was quite pricey for those times. However, after her performance, its value skyrocketed. In 2016, this dress was acquired by Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. And this purchase made it one of the most expensive pieces of pop-culture memorabilia of all time.

Britney Spears’s red jumpsuit

In 2000, Britney Spears released her second studio album, Oops!...I Did It Again. The music video for the title song immediately became a hit, and the singer’s outfit became iconic. The costume was supposed to show the public that Britney was no longer a girl but an attractive adult woman. The red latex jumpsuit was designed by Michael Bush.

The singer’s producers turned to Michael because they knew he was capable of creating something incredible on a short notice. And he didn’t let them down. He created this jumpsuit literally overnight, but there was one problem. He used latex which is infamous for its poor breathability. And Britney would have to dance in it all day. She could even faint in it. Eventually, when the video director unzipped her between the takes, and it looked like a bucket of water poured out of this jumpsuit.

Ariana Grande’s dress

Sometimes you can tell from a celebrity’s outfit what movie they love the most. In 2021, Ariana Grande appeared on the show The Voice in the legendary Versace dress from the spring 2003 collection. This dress became internationally famous thanks to the movie 13 Going on 30 where Jennifer Garner had it on while dancing at a party.

The singer decided to pay homage to this movie, and her efforts didn’t go unnoticed. Jennifer Garner and Donatella Versace praised her look on Instagram. By the way, this is not the first time that Ariana uses this movie as inspiration. In the music video “thank u, next,” she recreated one of the movie scenes.

Freddie Mercury’s yellow jacket

The yellow jacket has become the symbol of Freddie Mercury’s extraordinary talent and fame which he demonstrated on stage when he directed tens of thousands of fans to sing along during his performance at Wembley in 1986.

By the way, the yellow jacket was created by Mercury’s friend and designer, Diana Moseley. One day, Freddie decided to change his style and abandon his signature low-cut leotards. They were replaced by the military-style clothing, and this yellow jacket represented this style.

Cher’s iconic 1986 Oscars dress

At the 1986 Oscars, Cher appeared wearing a very controversial outfit. She was dressed in a crop top, sequin skirt and huge headdress in the shape of a mohawk. The singer decided to look like this to spite the Academy because they didn’t take her seriously there. So, Cher deliberately chose the outfit the Academy would consider inappropriate.

By the way, it seems that she still did something right because she won an Oscar for the Best Actress in 1988.

Princess Diana’s “mermaid dress”

Princess Diana is often called a style icon of the 20th century. Each of her public appearances attracted a lot of attention, so she prepared for them carefully. And her outfits, for example, her legendary “revenge dress,” spoke louder than words. Another “speaking outfit” was the dress designed by Jakob Schlaepfer. With this dress, she announced to the entire world that she was having an affair.

In 1986, Diana appeared in public in a shimmering dress decorated with sequins from top to bottom. She called it her “mermaid dress.” The press wrote that she looked beautiful and self-confident in it. A bit later, everyone found out the reason of this confident look — the princess had an affair with her Cavalry riding instructor, James Hewitt. This was Diana’s answer to her husband who had reignited his long-term relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles.

Do you have a clothing item that has a story behind? Tell us in the comments below.