Chappell Roan is accustomed to creating a social-media frenzy with her red carpet looks, as her appearances at the Grammy Awards and elsewhere typically garner plenty of media attention. At the 2025 Grammys, she wore a Jean Paul Gaultier dress that took its inspiration from Edgar Degas’ ballerina paintings, while at the Jan. 29 premiere of the Charli XCX film The Moment, the 2025 Grammy best new artist winner channeled the idea of a modern-meets-retro nurse in a mint-green design by Paris-based label ILONA.
Roan pushed the envelope a little further at Sunday’s 2026 Grammys at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, wearing a design by Mugler creative director Miguel Castro Freitas. Her custom negligee dress and matching cape were crafted in silk georgette in a deep red garnet. But once Roan removed the cape, the result was a naked dress that seemingly exposed her breasts, with the silk georgette suspended by nipple rings.
But unlike, say, Bianca Censori’s shock-value naked ensemble at the 2025 Grammys, Roan appears to be wearing pasties under her Mugler dress to cover her nipples. The Paris-based label describes the look as inspired by the spring/summer 1998 collection by Manfred Thierry Mugler — also featuring a controversial design suspended by nipple rings — which was reinterpreted for spring/summer 2026 by Castro Freitas.
Live coverage of the red carpet needed to adjust quickly to the controversial look. When E! red carpet hosts interviewed Roan on the red carpet, it was clear she was wearing the cape to provide coverage from her shoulders to her waist, while the cape was not present while she walked the red carpet for photographers.
While the Mugler design had been widely reported by media outlets before the Grammys broadcast began, as of Sunday evening Roan had not shared any details about her look to her Instagram account with 7.6 million followers. Roan also changed her dress by the time she appeared onstage to present the best new artist award — the Grammy she captured in 2025 — to Olivia Dean.
Chappell Roan at the 2026 Grammys.
Amy Sussman/Getty Images