The Brief: Billy Porter walked the Grammys red carpet in a bejeweled blue hat with a motorized moving shade, inspiring dozens of memes.

Bluesquiggle
DEEP DIVE

Billy Porter hat memes come from his show-stopping Grammys getup. At the 2020 Grammy awards, Pose star Billy Porter turned heads with his outfit: a blue crystal jumpsuit and a blue brimmed hat equipped with mechanically opening and closing silver fringe. The jumpsuit was designed by Scott Studenberg of Baja East. Sarah Sokol designed the hat with mechanical components engineered by Smooth Technology, the same company behind Janelle Monae’s Met Gala look.

As soon as videos of Billy Porter’s Grammys hat were posted online, memes began to emerge about its ability to hide or show one’s face to the public. Jokes pose situations in which someone comes out of hiding to get free food, hear hot gossip, flirt, or flex their prowess.

As Billy Porter is a prominent gay public figure, these memes were particularly popular in LGBTQ+ online communities.

Porter’s resemblance to a lamp didn’t go unnoticed either…

More Grammys Outfit Memes

Porter’s hat wasn’t the only awe-inspiring or meme-inspiring Grammys look. Tyler, The Creator’s Grand Budapest Hotel-inspired look was met with memes about emotional baggage. Looks sported by Lil Nas X, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, and Ariana Grande, among others, drew attention for their elegance and extra-ness.