Watch Cardi B’s Met Gala arrival as nine men help carry the rapper’s massive black gown.

Cardi B went dark at the Met Gala on Monday night. The Grammy Award-winning rapper arrived with a large entourage that included her longtime stylist Colin Carter and at least nine men who helped carry her black gown and straighten her train for photographers. Accordingly, Cardi teamed up with Chinese designer Windowsison for a custom gown that took two months to create and took over the entire carpet landing as guests arrived, creating a jaw-dropping spectacle. .

This year’s dress code, “The Garden of Time,” borrows from the 1962 short story of the same name by JG Ballard, presented in conjunction with the newest Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute exhibit. Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashionwhich opens to the public on Friday, May 10. Andrew Bolton’s curated show spotlights fragile pieces from the institute’s archives, all viewed through the lens of nature. The coffee table book of the exhibition will be released on June 18.

The Grammy Award-winning rapper and Carter — who recently appeared on the cover of Top Stylist issue — have been in prep mode for months as they step up to look at fashion’s biggest night thanks to 2018.

“We’re always thinking ahead,” Cardi said in late March during a brief interview inside Sunset Tower, a celebratory spot for Hollywood’s top image makers. “I feel like the Met Gala is almost like going to the Grammys. It’s very nerve-wracking, and even though we make it look so easy, we get really nervous.”

Despite those nerves, Cardi explained that he approaches the event with the same strategy every year. “We always try to make sure that everything is right, that everything is famous. We want everything to be famous. I know people are sometimes like, ‘Oh, that’s her. Not about who’s there and who’s not’, but it’s like, no, you always need to remember us.

To see Cardi’s previous Met Gala looks, click here.

Read more Met Gala coverage here.