Last month, Donatella Versace and Jennifer Lopez teamed up for what Anna Wintour called “the fashion event of the season, if not the year” at Versace's spring-summer 2020 show in Milan. The 50-year-old superstar wore a revamped version of her 2000 Grammy dress, which featured a memorable green palm trees print. It was a look that became iconic in fashion history, so bringing it back for the world to see was extremely special. During Vogue’s Forces of Fashion conference, the designer sat down with Anna Wintour and revealed how she and JLo dreamed up the surprise moment.
© Getty ImagesThe designer only thought of asking Jennifer this year when she saw her at the Met Ball. “We were sitting together at the table. I took a look at her, and she looked so gorgeous and she was so sweet, and she hasn’t changed a bit since the first time,” Donatella told Anna. “And I said, ‘Would you do it again, Jennifer?’ And she said, ‘Why not, let me check my schedule.’ That happened in like two seconds.”
She continued by praising the entertainer. “This is what I like about her. She’s very instinctive. She doesn’t have to ask too many managers what to do,” she explained. “Then she came [to Milan], and everything was undercover. Nobody knew she was going to do that.”
© Getty ImagesAnna noted how the moment got a standing ovation from the audience, which according to her, “is something you don’t often see in the bored world of fashion.” She then mentioned how it was the power of JLo that made the dress iconic around the world. Ginger Spice had worn the design before JLo in January 2000 and Donatella had also worn the design in December 1999. “Somehow it was JLo wearing it at the Grammys that broke the bank,” Anna said, while Donatella agreed. “I didn’t break the Internet. And Ginger Spice didn’t either, but JLo did it.”
