After facing backlash, Cardi B is explaining why she referred to the designer of her voluminous Met Gala dress as “Asian and everything” instead of by name.
The “I Like It” rapper — who wore a huge tulle dress by Windowsen’s Sensen Lii — said she was very scared when she arrived at the event in New York and felt rushed, unable to remember his name during a high-profile interview. level on Monday. .
“First of all, when I was on the red carpet, I was really scared,” the Grammy-winning “Bodak Yellow” emcee said in a Instagram Story Video. “The dress was supposed to be on a little podium, and I’ve been practicing how to pose on the podium. But on the carpet I wasn’t allowed to use the podium. So I had a lot of things on my mind and I was being rushed to the front of the line.”
Cardi said she forgot how to pronounce Lii’s name because “his name is a little complicated.”
“I was like, ‘Damn.’ How do I pronounce his name? My mind was racing,” she added. Noting that she “didn’t want to be offensive,” she explained that she said “Asian designer” because “I knew the designer was Asian, but I wasn’t sure what the designer’s nationality was.”
Cardi B, who also wore an imposing black turban, misnamed her stylist on Monday in an interview with Vogue. The dress was so huge that it took at least seven handlers to keep up with the rapper, who said the dress was heavier than her and so big that it gave her a headache and nausea.
“It’s work,” she told Vogue’s Emma Chamberlain, adding, “I feel amazing. It’s this incredible designer. They’re Asian and everything.”
Lii was born in China, has studios in Shanghai and Paris and is now based in Antwerp, Belgium. The designer is known for his clubwear aesthetic and theatrical flair, and his work has been worn by Madonna, Rihanna, Katy Perry, Blackpink, Doja Cat, FKA Twigs and Grimes, as well as prominent Chinese actor Fan Bingbing, who was an early supporter . , according to Business of Fashion.
Former managing director of Vogue, Gilberto Cheah, who is Peranakan (Chinese and Malaysian-Indonesian heritage), was among those who cited the “Hustlers” star online, writing on Instagram: “For the record and recognition, and no thanks to Cardi B, the designer of her dress is Sensen Lii , which is Chinese. The dress took two months to make. I personally think it’s boring and doesn’t even have the theme, but she chose it and should have at least remembered his name and not just that he’s ‘Asian’.”
Cardi B continued her mea culpa in a separate Instagram Story post, giving another shoutout to design house Windowsen, which she said she chose because of their “incredible talent.”
“You truly made this Met Gala a night to remember Sensen Lii,” the “WAP” and “Up” lyricist wrote. Lii reposted her story on Wednesday, thanking her in return.
In a post on Windowsen’s Instagram grid, the designer wrote that he created Cardi’s couture gown based on this year’s “Garden of Time” theme for the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s annual fundraiser.
“I associated the Vast Fertile Black Soil with the theme – All kinds of beautiful flowers grow in the Vast Black Soil, rich land used for planting crops and flowers. A single black rose grows in this Vast Black Soil,” said Lii. “The entire dress uses around 3,000 meters of organza. It symbolizes the vastness of the earth.”
The comments against Cardi B took root in the comments section of Lii’s post, although some turned the debacle into a fruitful public relations moment.
“Why did you dress this idiot she didn’t even know who you were!!!!!” one user wrote in the comments section.
“AND NOT KNOWING YOUR NAME IS CRAZY,” wrote another.
“Her mistake turned out to be a blessing. Look how many people know her name now!!! Silver lining, folks…. Silver lining!!!” wrote a third.
“The fact that she forgot, honestly, probably got her more publicity than if she had just said the name in the first place. Angry comments drive views, visits and engagement… she knew what she was doing,” another user added.
