What Exactly Is a Modern Dandy?

Leave it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute to propel dandyism into pop culture.

While historically dandyism can be boiled down to contrasting attitudes of various forms, the museum’s spring exhibition, “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” will use it as an undercurrent in exploring menswear from the 18th century to current times. The show’s guest curator Monica L. Miller’s book “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity” will serve as a starting point.

To get a better read on what defines “a modern dandy,” WWD reached out to a few dozen Black designers and creatives for their perspectives and 19 were game. From using the power of dressing for influence to using it as a social and political statement across culture and gender, dandyism comes in many dimensions. While some designers described the élan and swagger that are synonymous with modern dandyism, others visualized people like sharply tailored relatives and the whimsically dressed sports announcer Monica McNutt.

Jacques Agbobly, founder and creative director of Agbobly

To me, a modern dandy isn’t just about sharp tailoring or an impeccable eye — it’s about intention. It’s someone who dresses with purpose, using fashion to express nuance, history and self-respect. Especially for Black men and queer folks, the modern dandy reclaims space, style and softness in ways that challenge the status quo. It’s not costume — it’s armor, it’s joy, it’s legacy.

Frederick Anderson, designer of Frederick Anderson

A modern dandy is someone who fully understands the power of dressing, not only in aesthetics but in its core message of establishing power and influence. He also needs to have an understanding of personal flair. In my view, the core of the dandy as it refers to Black men was that they took something based in oppression and lifted it up to a sign of power, influence and great style.

Jeffrey Banks, designer and author

I’d like to think the modern dandy is one who cares about his appearance, not in an over-the-top way, but in a carefully measured way, in which all the elements of dress, fit, tailoring and quality of apparel are thought out in a cohesive way.

Brandon Blackwood, designer of Brandon Blackwood

A modern dandy is not simply defined by meticulous tailoring or flamboyant style; it embodies intentionality. This individual expresses their uniqueness through elegance, using fashion as a means to stand out rather than just fit in. With confidence, wit and self-awareness, today’s dandy understands the rules of style, skillfully breaks them, and transforms personal attire into a subtle form of rebellion.

Aaron Christmon and Marquise Miller, stylists

The “Modern Dandy” represents and signifies the evolution of historical dandy figures and celebrates present-day men, who carry the torch of the gentlemen before them through authenticity, freedom and pride.

Brandice Daniel, founder and chief executive officer of Harlem’s Fashion Row

A modern dandy is my cousin Orrin Johnson, my father and my uncles in Memphis. They’re still formal, tailored, sharp, intentional. But more than the look, it’s an attitude. A way of being that exudes confidence. It’s the “I don’t care if you think I’m too dressed up” energy. Even today, most dandies haven’t changed much. The rules are the same: show up sharp, stand out, maybe throw on a hat and a handkerchief. But whatever you do, bring the swag.

Bethann Hardison, model, author and activist

I don’t think of a modern dandy. Dandies are classic. They don’t fit into a modern way of thinking. They are classic because of the way they function and the way they dress. I have a different ideology of what a dandy is and how they adorn themselves. Dandyism is adornment. The word is being thrown around so loosely nowadays, because of the theme of the Costume Institute’s exhibition. A lot of people are trying to decide is this guy a dandy or not? If you have a style or look a certain way, that doesn’t make you a dandy. A dandy is someone who is going to be noticed every time they step out of the house. Dandyism equates to being sharp: s-h-a-r-p.

Rebecca Henry and Akua Shabaka, designers and cofounders of House of Aama 

A modern dandy is a unique individual who channels the sharp, vibrant, suiting traditions of the Congo, Caribbean and the American South — dressing with intention, elegance and flair as a form of self-expression in today’s world. At House of Aama, we honor and expand this legacy through our own Southern-rooted, diasporic lens — reimagining dandyism with storytelling garments that explore the fluid space between masculinity, femininity and androgyny. With original textiles, thoughtful tailoring and motifs drawn from ancient art and memory, our modern dandy doesn’t just dress to impress — they dress to tell a story.

Sergio Hudson, designer of Sergio Hudson

I don’t think the definition of a dandy has changed that much. A modern-day dandy is the personification of personal style, the same as it always was; someone who pays attention to every detail and has an eye for what works and what doesn’t. A dandy has a lot of the same attributes as a designer.

Byron Lars, designer of In Earnest

A modern dandy projects an “unbotheredness” while bearing the same very bothered hallmarks of sartorial self-creation that we think of when pondering the word “dandy.” He makes us wish we had the wherewithal (as in the time, energy, resources, swag and inclination) to participate even if we never actually would.

Ervin Latimer, designer of Latimmier

A modern dandy is someone, who exists in this continuum. It is someone whose existence and style is not rooted in today’s consumerist, reactionary approach to fashion and trends, but rather in the creation of new culture and new expressions. A modern dandy enjoys the liberations of generations past, while building upon it with an unapologetic coolness, confidence and creativity. 

B Michael, designer and author

Modern Dandyism does not belong to any one culture. It’s an expressed individual sense of style. Well-dressed, avant-garde or dandy, in today’s world, is subjective. It can also be seen as a form of social and political statement across culture and gender, a way to express individuality and challenge societal norms. 

Fe Noel, designer of Fe Noel

“A modern dandy is someone who uses fashion not just to be seen in the latest, but to make a visual statement. Purpose comes to mind — with every detail intentional, rooted in identity, history and audacity. It’s not about class or status. It’s about clarity — of self, of story, of pride. A dandy dresses to express who they are, where they come from and what they carry forward.

Kimora Lee Simmons, model and Baby Phat founder

I associate “modern dandy” with a sense of ease. There’s an ease to the aesthetic, no matter how meticulous or layered it appears to be. The modern dandy makes it look effortless. 

Edvin Thompson, founder and designer of Theophilio

The modern dandy embodies cultural fluidity, breaking traditional dress codes while honoring their essence. Today’s dandyism celebrates personal heritage, challenges gender constructs, and infuses streetwear sensibilities with a confident, effortless elegance.

Marrisa Wilson, designer of Marrisa Wilson

A modern dandy not only has the audacity to present themselves outside of perceived societal and cultural norms, but to do so with an ethereal air of lightness. That’s what makes the dandy more than a style icon — it’s an art form, an over-the-top brilliance. The magic is in the performance of weightless contradictions. Creative sameness no longer serves us and the modern dandy offers a vision for living more dimensionally, expressively and meaningfully.

As a lifelong Knicks fan now living in Los Angeles during playoff season, the MSG broadcast offers a fascinating look at the evolution of dandyism. Walt Frazier is the textbook definition of a dandy, as we’ve come to know the term over the years — sharp tailoring, avant-garde prints and fabrications, and an undeniably cool spirit. And broadcaster Monica McNutt — who both brilliantly calls the games on the radio and appears on the TV broadcasts — embodies the spirit of a modern dandy. She is a former star NCAA athlete who’s now the only woman in this very masculine world of Knicks basketball and her style fuses sharp lines, punchy colors, and soft, feminine palettes. Her very presence in sports media is a contradiction, but she chooses — courageously — to stand out with a whimsical wardrobe, sharp wit and effervescent personality.

LaQuan Smith, designer of LaQuan Smith

The modern dandy is someone who isn’t afraid to command attention with intention. It’s about elegance, but with edge. Today’s dandy redefines classic tailoring through confidence, sensuality and individuality. He blurs the line between masculine and feminine, understands the power of silhouette, and uses fashion as a form of self-expression not just presentation. The modern dandy doesn’t just dress well, he owns the room. And he does it unapologetically.