Menswear, womenswear—if you want to pull off a fit, then wear whatever you please. That’s certainly what multihyphenate Grammy-winning artist Anderson .Paak did when he hit the red carpet for the 2026 Met Gala red carpet, donning his signature bob, a star-emblazoned Amiri jacket, and pearly white ballet flats. A closer look at Paak’s choice of footwear will reveal he’s not wearing just any pair of shoes, but a signature of Tory Burch’s collections since the early aughts: the Reva ballet flats.

Named after Burch’s mother, the Reva flats, distinguished by their medallion-clad toe box, have been a staple among celebrities and IYKYK city dwellers since their release in 2006, just two years after she launched her brand. “When you have such a simple shape, there are so many ways you can evolve it over time,” the designer told Vogue in 2022.

Women have worn dainty flats forever, and men are recently getting familiar with the sensible-yet-fashionable footwear of choice. As of late, Harry Styles has gotten in on the trend. These days, fashionable men, overloaded by loafers and similar low-profile shoes, have come to the realization that ballet flats are the low-key, playful way to accent an outfit—more of a cheeky semi-colon to a thought rather than a loud exclamation point.

Courtesy of Tory Burch

At the Met Gala, the rest of .Paak’s outfit fell in line with his usual Silk Sonic ’70s sleaze style: big lapels, point collars, and oval sunglasses. When everything’s so over the top, a pair of understated ballet flats almost feels like it was the natural choice of footwear. The theme of this year’s Met Gala was “Fashion Is Art” after all, and as my colleague Sam Hine put it: “How can men elevate their outfits on a night when a beautiful tuxedo won’t exactly cut it?” It might just get guys to look at the fairer sex’s shoe rack when they’re leaving the house.