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Though red carpet events have basically been non-existent for the past year and a half, Zendaya isn’t letting a pandemic get in the way of an OG fashion moment.
The Euphoria star and Emmy winner attended the 2021 BET Awards on Sunday night, breaking Instagram in the process by posting a coordinated photoshoot of her outfit to her almost 100 million followers.
It wasn’t just the stunning vintage Versace gown or Zendaya’s perfect pose to show off the look—exhibit A below—that sent fans crazy, but the very clear homage to Beyoncé. Captioning her first photo, ‘Crazy in Love’, Zendaya made clear she was channelling Queen Bey, who wore the same look to the same awards ceremony 17 years ago.
Wearing an archival Versace look in rich purple hue with lime green accents, cutouts around the torso and a flowing maxi skirt, Zendaya paid tribute to the dress Beyoncé wore to the 2003 ceremony for her iconic performance of ‘Crazy in Love’.
While Beyonce’s version was a mini dress with a pleated, ultra-high hem, Zendaya went for a slightly less skin-baring version with a flowing, maxi-length skirt with a leg slit.
At first glance, it looks like Zendaya called in a favour from Donatella Versace to create the look, but in actual fact the dress has been around for close to two decades, and Zendaya’s longtime stylist Law Roach—along with his archival knowledge—is to thank for it being revived.
Roach found the gown by going through Versace’s early aughts collections, landing on Spring/Summer 2003.
To go alongside her tribute to pop’s biggest star, Zendaya pulled her hair back into a sleek low ponytail with a middle part and kept her makeup minimal. She wore matching purple Stuart Weitzman heels.
Though Beyoncé herself hasn’t yet publicly responded to the tribute, her mother Tina Lawson commented on Zendaya’s post, revealing she was the one who cut Beyonce’s dress short for her performance. “Love you In This vintage Versace dress !!! Beyonce wore one just like it on her first solo performance on the Bet Awards I cut it short 🔥🔥🔥❤️❤️❤️❤️,” she wrote.
