When Chappell Roan walked the red carpet at the Grammy Awards 2026, it wasn’t her nominations that immediately set social media on fire. Instead, fans and critics zeroed in on her daring sheer maroon Mugler gown, one that many online bluntly dismissed as “low class.”
Roan, who was nominated for Record of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for The Subway, had already made headlines last year after winning Best New Artist. This time, however, the award went to Olivia Dean, leaving Roan’s red carpet appearance to dominate the conversation.
While critics questioned whether shock had overtaken style, a body language expert offered a very different interpretation, one that focused less on the dress and more on how confidently Roan wore it.
A body language expert said Roan’s posture showed “off the scale” confidence despite the backlash
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According to body language expert Darren Stanton, Roan didn’t look remotely uncomfortable in the controversial outfit. Speaking to UNILAD on behalf of Covers, Stanton described her presence as unusually commanding.
“Off the scale confidence from Chappell Roan,” he said.
“She puts her hands behind her back, which shows a clear confidence, and someone who feels comfortable in their body and not afraid to be photographed.”
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Stanton also pointed out that Roan repeatedly lifted her chin while posing, explaining, “She flashes a chin thrust gesture, which is a clear sign of strength.”
In his assessment, the cameras didn’t intimidate her, they energized her.
“Being pictured and in the limelight appears to act as a confidence boost,” he added, calling her “outgoing and very brash.”
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Chappell roan 4k#grammys
https://t.co/p9meckvhKk— pop_insider 🤍🖤 (@PInsider_) February 2, 2026
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Not everyone bought into the analysis.
“Thank God we have body language experts to decipher… whatever it is they decipher,” one commenter mocked, while another argued that red carpet behavior is always a performance.
Still, others admitted Roan looked unfazed. “She certainly looked a lot more comfortable and confident than Heidi Klum did,” a viewer noted.
The Grammys dress traced back to a 1998 Mugler runway moment that once shocked fashion
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Much of the outrage stemmed from confusion over the dress itself. Roan’s gown was a custom creation by Miguel Castro Freitas for Mugler, inspired by Manfred Thierry Mugler’s 1998 Jeu de Paume collection.
While the chiffon slip appeared to hang from nipple rings, those were prosthetics, echoing Mugler’s original runway show, where models wore versions suspended from real piercings.
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The look caused an uproar then, too. When a similar design resurfaced on the runway last year, The New York Times called it “out of touch,” and critics labeled it dated and male gaze–driven in a post-#MeToo era.
For some viewers, Roan’s Grammys appearance was simply the latest example of a growing trend of sheer, skin-baring red carpet fashion.
“Award shows need a dress code,” one person wrote. “We don’t need to see your b**bs.”
Roan’s theatrical fashion history showed this moment wasn’t accidental, but deliberate
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Roan’s Grammys look didn’t come out of nowhere. She has steadily built a reputation for red carpet moments that blur fashion, performance, and homage.
At the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, she paid tribute to Cyndi Lauper with a look referencing True Colors, complete with a newspaper skirt and sculptural headpiece.
@hollywoodreporter #ChappellRoan goes topless at the 2026 #Grammys ♬ original sound – Speedy Songsz
She has also been outspoken about red carpet treatment. After snapping back at a photographer who told her to “shut the f**k up,” Roan later explained, “The carpet is horrifying… You don’t get to yell at me like that.”
Whether critics saw the Grammys gown as attention-seeking or art, Roan appeared unbothered.
And as one harsh comment ironically summed it up, “If ‘cry for attention’ was an outfit”.
“We need to start introducing dress codes to these things,” wrote one netizen
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