Pekela Riley quotes originally captured by India Espy Jones for Essence Magazine article: What Does The Met Gala's Black Dandyism Theme Mean For Beauty? Celebrity Hairstylists Weigh In - Essence | Essence
Met Gala weekend is unfolding right now in New York, and the celebration of Black Dandyism is front and center-both on the red carpet and in the beauty suites. As the world tunes in to see how the theme “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” comes alive, celebrity hairstylist Pekela Riley and her premium brand True + Pure Texture Extensions are making a powerful statement about the legacy and future of Black beauty, via the textured curly hair extensions innovation.
At the center of this cultural moment stood Pekela Riley, visionary founder of True + Pure Texture Extensions, who partnered as a guest stylist and the exclusive textured curly hair extensions provider for the “Echelon Noir Presents: Black Hair Reimagined” event, held Friday, May 2nd, 2025. This showcase hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross, brought together the industry’s most renowned celebrity stylists-including Jawara Wauchope, Yusef, Cyndia Harvey, and Vernon François—to reimagine high-glam textured looks on Black models, all styled exclusively with the best textured curly hair extensions on the planet, True + Pure Texture extensions.
Black Dandyism: A Legacy of Sophisticated Rebellion
Black Dandyism is more than fashion—it’s a dynamic legacy of self-expression and sophisticated rebellion through style. As Pekela Riley shares, “Black Dandyism is a powerful legacy of self-expression and sophisticated rebellion through style. As someone who's dedicated my hairstylist career to the mission of self-love liberation through texture innovation, I deeply connect with how Blacks across the diaspora have always intuitively and creatively used style and personal presentation to proclaim our own declaration of independence.”
Drawing from Monica L. Miller’s Slaves to Fashion, Black Dandyism is defined as a performative and cultural practice where Black individuals use sartorial style, gesture, and wit to deconstruct racial stereotypes and assert agency. It is, as Miller writes, an “interpretation and materialization of the complexity of cosmopolitanism,” blending self-fashioning with resistance to oppressive identity markers. Miller also frames it as “sartorial revenge”—a political act of self-definition that negotiates race, gender, class, and sexuality, transforming fashion into a tool for transcending systemic limitations.
Riley further distills Black Dandyism as a cultural emergence pathway for reclaiming narrative through five “R’s”: Regality (presence), Refinement (aesthetics), Redefinition (self-identity versus societal norms), Reimagination (limitless possibilities), and Rebellion (resistance against limitations).
The Power of Beauty and Texture
For Riley and True + Pure Texture, hair is an extension of the soul’s expression. “For us, hair has always been political. Always poetic. These looks are rooted in legacy-shaped by our ancestors who had to use their appearance as armor and artistry in the face of colonialism, erasure, and stereotypes. Every coil, wave, and part is saying: I know who I am, and I’m choosing to be seen.” The Echelon Noir Black Hair Reimagined event was a living testament to this philosophy, with every model’s look serving as a visible statement of freedom, pride, and individuality.
As Riley echoes musician Jon Batiste, “A Black Dandy is someone who celebrates living in a one of a kind Black body and tailors everything to that body.” This affirmation resonates deeply at events like Black Hair Reimagined, where True + Pure Texture was the exclusive hair used to create showstopping, innovative styles that honor the full spectrum of Black beauty.
“For us, hair has always been political. Always poetic,” Riley tells Essence Magazine, capturing the spirit of the moment. This year’s Met Gala draws direct inspiration from the Harlem Renaissance, when icons like Langston Hughes, Josephine Baker, and Zora Neale Hurston embodied emancipated beauty and used style as a form of resistance and self-expression. Riley adds, “These looks are rooted in legacy-shaped by our ancestors who had to use their appearance as armor and artistry in the face of colonialism, erasure, and stereotypes”.
The Black Hair Reimagined event set the Black Dandyism texture elevation tone for the Met Gala and Black hairstyles, where our legacy will be visible in every detail. “At the Met Gala you’re going to see Black hairstyles as a full-on statement piece—a reclamation, a tribute, and a future-forward art form,” Riley says. Expect to see stretched and laid textures, sculpted soft French rolls, cropped pin curls, and styles inspired by the elegance and defiance of Black dandyism. High glamour meets gum-glued curls, sculpted afros, and bold textures that refuse to be ignored.
As the Met Gala red carpet unfolds along with the Black hairstyles that will be amazing, Riley’s vision is clear: textured hair and beauty is not just adornment, but a living declaration of presence, pride, and the ongoing journey toward self-love and liberation. This weekend, every look is a testament to the artistry, resilience, and unapologetic individuality that define Black Dandyism—past, present, and future.
With the influence of Black-centered events like Echelon Noir: Black Hair Reimagined and the Met Gala’s embrace of Black Dandyism, the world is witnessing a new era where the richness of Black beauty, culture, and texture innovation, including the textured curly hair extensions beauty breakthrough with True + Pure Texture Extensions, is impossible to ignore or diminish.
SHOP TRUE + PURE TEXTURE NOW FOR YOUR MOST GORGEOUS TEXTURED STYLE EVER!
Essence Magazine article: What Does The Met Gala's Black Dandyism Theme Mean For Beauty? Celebrity Hairstylists Weigh In - Essence | Essence
Vogue Magazine article: It Was a Black Creative Family Reunion at Echelon Noir’s ‘Black Hair Reimagined’ Hair Show | Vogue
Teen Vogue article: Julez Smith Walks "Black Hair Reimagined" Show as Solange Cheers Him On | Teen Vogue
21Ninety article: The Inaugural Black Hair Reimagined Show Was the Definition of Black Excellence - 21Ninety