Fashion Notes: The 10 Best and Worst Dressed from the 2023 Grammys

This year’s Grammys red carpet, for the most part, was a total clown show. Thankfully, I’ve ranked the best and worst dressed so you didn’t have to bother to watch.

A little note before I start: You’ll notice Beyonce and Adele aren’t on this list. Neither walked the red carpet but if they had, they both would have been on my worst list. Beyonce is a try-hard and Adele looked like the curtains in Buckingham Palace.

Okay, now that that’s out of the way, let’s go.

Best: Diplo in Dolce & Gabbana

Diplo was my best look of the night in this black suede-fringe suit by Dolce & Gabbana. There was so much crap all over this particular award show that the subtleness and sharp design of this suit stood out.

With his bleach-blonde cropped hair and slick leather boots, Diplo has that unexplainable cool thing that lacks so much in today’s Hollywood. It doesn’t take a lot to make it to the top of this list, it just takes style.

Worst: Shania Twain in Harris Reed

Shania Twain in this Harris Reed polka dot suit, hat, and red wig is giving mid-life crisis. Now, if only she’d ditched this stupid look for her after-party black leather moto jacket and matching high-waisted pants. What a shame!

Best: Olivia Rodrigo in MiuMiu

In a sea of clowns, Olivia Rodrigo stands out in this barely-there MiuMiu frock with only a black bean necklace, some black polished nails (duh), and glittering rings. It’s a look that shows you don’t have to do a ton to look like a total effing knockout. And it is truly fashion.

I have to note that later in the evening at the Grammy’s after-party, Rodrigo wore and even better number — a YSL-esque black sequined mini dress with platform black heels. Both looks are more evidence that you either have style or you don’t, it can’t be bought or taught.

Worst: Lizzo in Dolce & Gabbana

I keep waiting for Lizzo to drop all the schtick and do gorgeous for once. With this over-the-top Dolce and Gabbana flower cape and poorly designed tangerine dress, I’ll have to keep waiting.

Best: Harry Styles in Gucci

I know Harry Styles in this Gucci one-piece is probably my most controversial take of the night but let me explain.

For years, I’ve complained that Styles is LARPing Elton John. It’s not as sinister as many on the political Right want to think it is (A man trying to normalize men wearing women’s clothing!) And it’s not as groundbreaking as the political Left would have you believe (A man normalizing womenswear for men! Cue the drag queens!)

In general, Styles’s style often delves too much into the likes of David Bowie, the New York Dolls, and yes, Elton John. But they all did it wayyyyy better and with more sass.

Here, though, I must give Styles credit for taking his playful, sometimes goofy style and making it lux with impeccable beadwork from Gucci in a color palette and diamond pattern that really fits his music. Most of all, there’s an effortlessness to this onesie that he often lacked in the past.

Definitely most improved!

Worst: Taylor Swift in Roberto Cavalli

Taylor Swift has a corny problem, then again, she always sort of has. In this Roberto Cavalli crop top gown, Swift does what she does best: Cliché.

See, Swift’s latest album is titled Midnight. Her dress is midnight blue with skyline stars sprinkled throughout the shoulders and skirt. Her lips are red because she’s a serious singer and her earrings are gigantic because … actually I don’t know why she’s wearing door-knockers fit for Elizabeth Taylor. Why her dress is a crop top is the only question left.

It’s all so obvious and, dare I say, corny.

Best: Doja Cat in Atelier Versace

Doja Cat is among only a handful of pop stars today who have a vision and perspective of what they want to look like. Doja has a weirdness factor that really pays off because she has a real commitment to it.

In this Atelier Versace black dominatrix number, Doja mixes a classic silhouette with a surprise element in the gown’s fabric. Is it trash bag? Rubber? Latex? Leather? There’s also a Janet Jackson Scream circa 1995 quality to this ensemble, a reference point without feeling derivative.

Worst: Kacey Musgraves in Valentino

Kacey Musgraves’s Valentino candy-colored body suit and feathered cape is probably my most disappointing look of the evening. Here is a beautiful woman with a great figure able to wear effectively anything she wants and she chooses … dime store Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream.

Most disappointing, though, is that Kacey had a gorgeous red dress that she wore onstage to memorialize Loretta Lynn — a woman with a recognizable LOOK — that harked back to Lynn’s iconic poof sleeves. That is what Kacey should have worn all evening, scratch the outfit change!

Best: Brandi Carlile in Versace

While the boys on the red carpet seem to be dabbling into womenswear (hardly groundbreaking), I appreciate even more the menswear, subtle androgyny that women like Brandi Carlile lean heavily into.

This Versace ensemble has all the right elements of a red carpet look. It photographs beautifully, captures the person wearing it, and delivers fashion without taking itself too seriously. The deeply skinny tie, beaded sleeves, and stacked rings are all the edge necessary.

Total perfection.

Worst: Maren Morris in Off White

This is the look of a girl who is chronically online — the trendy wet hair that Kim K did years ago, the bleached eyebrows that the hottest runway models can’t even pull off, the clear heels from H&M, and the plunging space-age Off White dress with little-to-no design.

Here, Maren Morris seems to be doing her best Julia Fox impersonation.

John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.