Jeniffer Lopez Wears the Jungle Dress Again

Role of an ongoing series of 29Secrets stories, taking a deep dive into the history of legendary beauty products and iconic way moments…

By Christopher Turner
Illustration by Michael Hak

It'due south an ofttimes-repeated fashion tale – the story of the Versace Jungle dress. 20 years after its outset appearance, the daring slit-down-to-there dress that carved itself into the heart of popular civilization and manner history all the same commands our attention. And rightfully then. The dress changed the class of history…in more ways than one.

Of grade, it was Jennifer Lopez who made the Jungle dress famous. Her walk on the red carpet at the 42nd annual Grammy Awards in 2000 is a moment forever sealed in popular culture history. But Lopez wasn't the first to sideslip into the memorable silk chiffon gown.

On the rails
The tropical-impress showstopper made its debut on Versace'south Leap/Summer 2000 runway in Milan in the fall of 1999, where it was worn by American supermodel Bister Valletta.

Valletta gave way watchers the first glimpse of the notorious print when she opened the rails show wearing the beginning iteration of the cleavage-baring Jungle print apparel, albeit in a shorter length than the one worn by Lopez. (Valetta would also close the rail bear witness wearing the flowing gown version.) With diddled-out hair, plenty of eyeshadow and a pair of strappy bejewelled sandals, Valletta'southward strut down the runway set the tone for Donatella Versace'south brand new era of no-holds-barred excess.

"Versace'southward requisite ingredients [for the show] were all present: sex, vivid colours and rock-hard mental attitude," the editors of Vogue Magazine reported at the time.

The Italian label'south dialed-up Spring/Summertime 2000 ready-to-wear collection was filled with variations of the green jungle print, which appeared on strappy handkerchief tops, brocade trousers and swimwear. "The volume on the runway was cranked upwardly to xi as an array of Hawaiian prints (not your traditional embankment shirts, mind you), Grecian-front slinky dresses, mischievous handkerchief blouses and draped evening gowns flashed by under the strobe lights. Cleavages were deeper than ever, and a jet-prepare look imbued everything from the strappy bathing suits to the glittery heels and tie-collar blouses," according to Faddy.

"Versace's daring cut, wild use of colour and uncensored drama continue to be the label's strongest avails – and Donatella shows no signs of slowing down," Vogue declared.

Later on the runway extravaganza, Valletta would also don the gown for the house's Spring/Summer 2000 advertizing entrada, shot by fashion lensman Steven Meisel, which graced the pages of countless fashion magazines that year.

Jennifer Lopez was non the start person to wear the clothes on the red carpeting. In fact, that honour went (naturally) to Donatella Versace herself. The designer wore a sleeveless version of the gown to the Met Gala in New York Metropolis on Dec vi, 1999, mark the gown'south first off-catwalk appearance. The annual gala celebrated the launch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute's "Rock Style" exhibition, and the guest list was a who's who of '90s manner icons.

Versace was accompanied downwardly the ruby-red carpeting that night by histrion Matt Dillon (who was also conveniently wearing Versace), who had appeared in the box office smashes In that location's Something Almost Mary and Wild Things merely the year before.

"Wait At Me"
Lopez was not even the first songstress to habiliment the remarkable Jungle print clothes on the crimson carpet. That honour goes to Geri Halliwell, who had grabbed international headlines the year before when she dramatically left the Spice Girls to pursue a solo career. Halliwell was promoting her debut album, Schizophonic (which spawned the hit singles "Mi Chico Latino," "Lift Me Upwards," "Purse Information technology Upwardly" and the lead single, "Expect at Me") when she walked the red carpet at the NRJ Music Awards in Cannes, French republic, on January 22, 2000, a month earlier Lopez would make history at the Grammy Awards.

Halliwell was on height of the world that night, and the world was following her every move. Different Lopez, though, Halliwell's strut in the Versace gown with her long peroxide-blonde hair went almost entirely unnoticed.

Grammy night
2000 was a breakout year for Lopez. She was known as a dancer and an actress, only she was on a mission to prove herself every bit a singer as well. With the release of her first single, "If You lot Had My Dearest," in 1999, she was intent on showing the globe that she was a triple threat. The Grammys would be her commencement big award bear witness.

On Feb 23, 2000, Lopez arrived on the ruddy carpet of the 42nd Grammy Awards at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, accompanied by so-swain Sean "Puffy" Combs, who was dressed in an oversized greyness conform. Lopez was wearing Versace's Jungle print apparel, which featured the aforementioned low-cut neck that extended several inches below her navel, where it was loosely fastened with a sparkly brooch and then opened out once again, exposing her midriff, and cut forth the front end of the legs like a bathrobe. The wearing apparel drooped behind her on the floor, open up at the back. Under it, Lopez wore a pair of nude-tone bathing suit shorts – and she kept the dress on by using double-sided fashion tape.

Lopez immediately monopolized photographers' attention on the red carpet, and when she stepped out on phase with role player David Duchovny to nowadays the laurels for Best R&B Anthology, the world was watching. "This is the starting time time in v or six years that I'chiliad sure that nobody is looking at me," Duchovny said, prompting laughter from the audience and Lopez.

"It was 1 of those perfect moments. I walked out on stage and it kind of blew open up and the dress was just provocative enough, I guess, to make people actually interested," Lopez recalled in a September 2022 interview with Vogue, shot to mark the 20th ceremony of "The Dress."

The gown was an unexpected selection. When Lopez was deciding what to wear to the Grammys, her stylist at the time, Andrea Lieberman, presented her with multiple looks, but null stood out. When Lieberman showed Lopez the light-green Versace gown, Lopez later claimed she knew it was the perfect choice – despite the fact that the gown had already been worn past Halliwell and Donatella Versace herself.

"Andrea, my stylist, was similar, 'No! You tin can't wear that 1.' And I was like, 'Why did you bring it then?'" Lopez told Vogue. "She was like, 'No, you can't wear that ane, somebody else has worn information technology – really, Donatella herself has worn it. One of the Spice Girls has worn information technology. Sandra Bullock has worn information technology in another colour.' I said, 'This is what we're going to wear. This is information technology.' I really didn't think about it. I didn't think it was all that risqué, to exist honest. I was more than excited that it was the Grammys. I wasn't really thinking about the dress that much. I was but glad I had something to vesture."

Bravado up the cyberspace
Lopez and her gown made headlines around the world – but the goggle box footage and newspaper clippings weren't enough to satisfy the earth's curiosity. People were so fascinated that they turned to the internet looking for more. And that actually changed the cyberspace equally nosotros know information technology today: Lopez and her headline-grabbing dress went viral earlier viral was a thing.

There was in one case a earth without Google Epitome Search – and there might still be, had it non been for Lopez and the Jungle dress.

In an essay published on Projection Syndicate in 2015, Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google, explained how the chase for pictures of Lopez in the Versace dress spearheaded the creation of Google Images.

"At the time, it was the most popular search query we had e'er seen," Schmidt wrote. "But we had no sure-fire manner of getting users exactly what they wanted: J-Lo wearing that dress. As a result, Google Prototype Search was born."

Lopez was humbled to discover that Google Images was birthed a few months afterwards her famous style moment. In a YouTube video titled "Moments of Fashion," she expressed her stupor and gratitude. "It just goes to show y'all the power of fashion and the power of those types of moments," she said. "And I know people try to make it frivolous at times, but what those things do is they requite people an inspiration. It puts a beautiful moment out into the world."

Donatella later revealed that the memorable fashion moment was the turning point in her career. She openly struggled afterwards the 1997 murder of her blood brother, Gianni Versace, and claimed the insane media attention surrounding the Jungle dress gave her the confidence to believe in her own vision after her blood brother's death.

Modern-twenty-four hour period reinterpretation
The dress would continue to be referenced throughout the years, making countless appearances in the press. One memorable case was at the 72nd University Awards in March 2000, when South Park co-creator Trey Parker grabbed our attending wearing an false (admitting a poor one) of the much-publicized dress.

And so on September 22, 2019, Lopez would plow heads and make headlines once again wearing Versace – this fourth dimension at Versace'due south Spring/Summer 2022 show, which was held during Milan Way Week.

The bear witness marked the 20th anniversary of Versace'south jungle impress, with models wearing tops, skirts, suits and dresses in its vivid greenish hues.

Lopez closed out the runway bear witness with a bang, with the crowd rising to their feet as she strutted downwards the runaway in a reimagining of the original apparel. Though similar in manner – and keeping its dramatic neckline – the new Jungle print wearing apparel had some updates. It was sleeveless, with cutouts at the waist and embellishments throughout.

"For the Spring/Summer 2022 Collection, Donatella Versace honours an iconic moment when fashion and civilization became a catalyst for technological progress," the brand said.

In December 2019, Lopez slipped on the reinvented Jungle dress for an advent on Sat Dark Alive! On the SNL stage, she quipped, "Some people say I wait meliorate now than I did then."

In Versace's recently released Spring/Summertime 2022 ad entrada, shot past Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, Lopez in one case again dons the leafy jungle print in a multifariousness of seductive ensembles, actualization alongside various holographic panels and tech-inspired projections of keypads and search bars.

In a statement most the advert campaign, Lopez had this to say: "In terms of my career, the Jungle wearing apparel really marked a moment in time. To me, Versace represents empowerment and putting something beautiful out into the globe."

She continued: "It's a dream to collaborate with my friend Donatella over again on this gorgeous campaign, and to create something new and fresh out of a piece of iconic fashion history."

As for the original dress? After a few years on display in the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles, it has been reclaimed by Lopez as her own. The original Versace Jungle wearing apparel that Lopez wore that nighttime hangs inside her own wardrobe, set for possible reuse. Fingers crossed.

Want more than? You lot can read other stories from our The Story Of series right here.

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Source: https://29secrets.com/style/the-story-of-jennifer-lopez-and-the-versace-jungle-dress/

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