Award show season has changed substantially since the start of the pandemic with no live audiences, celebrities walking the red carpet at home, and presenters and performers all giving each other a generous six-foot-wide berth. But Kelly Clarkson did revive one pre-COVID tradition of the whole affair, changing her outfit eight times while hosting the Billboard Music Awards on Wednesday night.
The singer turned talk show host served as the emcee for the evening at the Dolby Auditorium in Los Angeles, arriving in a silver, fully-sequined $4,150 Balmain dress with fringe at the wrists and hem paired with Roberto Cavalli sandals secured with a jeweled panther head. Inside, she changed into another glittering Balmain gown, this time opting for a black kaftan with high neck and bell sleeves accented with lines of silver sequins. To perform with Pentatonix, she switched things up in a $5,143 gold Alexandre Vauthier jersey dress featuring a plunging neckline, ruching throughout the body, a large ruffle down the center, and all-over gold studs.
Once she was done performing, Clarkson changed into yet another, even more dramatic look from Balmain—a $8.195 gold, draped silk gown with a faux cape and cutout neckline. This was followed by yet another gold look, Retrofete’s “Wayne” Dress featuring wrap detailing, a matching belt, and slightly ruffled hem which she paired with the same Roberto Cavalli sandals and a big snake choker.
She capped off the evening in three black ensembles, which included a glittering, long sleeve column dress with a keyhole neckline, one with tiered ruffles, a mock turtleneck, and huge pouf sleeves, and a final simple sheath with rhinestone detailing at the cuff and empire waist accessorized with a rhinestone fringe headpiece pulled back into a bun. In other words, more than enough high-fashion looks to make up for a full year of sweatpants.
More Great Stories From Vanity Fair
— Monica Lewinsky on the Pandemic’s Forgotten F-Word
— Why Harry and Meghan Won’t Spend Christmas With the Queen
— What One Book Critic Learned by Reading 150 Trump Books
— How Ghislaine Maxwell Recruited Young Girls for Jeffrey Epstein
— More Details Emerge on Prince Harry and Prince William’s “Bitter Explosion”
— Tracing Photographer Richard Avedon’s Bohemian Coming of Age
— From the Archive: The Mysteries of Princess Diana’s Fatal Car Crash
— Not a subscriber? Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now.