Sabrina Carpenter is playing the long game, and when the path takes you from Disney darling to full-blown superstar, fashion becomes a key piece of every red-carpet magic. Just ahead of the MTV VMAs, where all eyes were glued to artists making waves both in music and fashion, Carpenter was leading the charge. While impeccable always, from retro glam to last year’s lavender haze stunner, at the 2024 VMAs, she took things up a notch, channeling an icon who made the biggest R-rated cinematic release a musical ride—Madonna.

The ‘Short n’ Sweet’ queen herself hit the carpet and dialed up drama in an archival piece by Bob Mackie, worn by Madonna to the 1991 Academy Awards. The gown boasts a dazzling, glittery bodice with a plunging neckline, which Carpenter topped off with a show-stopping diamond necklace. With her blonde curls perfectly bouncing above her shoulders, Carpenter looks like she was there to make history. And with the night’s big moments just around the corner, she might just be the one to steal the spotlight, with both her music and fashion.

As per Vogue's latest report, the style queen herself, Sabrina Carpenter, and her fashion guru, Jared Ellner, hit up the celeb-favorite Tab Vintage to craft a dazzling look that perfectly captures the glittery cloud nine she has been floating on since her album debut outshined Travis Scott to rocket into legend status alongside The Beatles. Alexis Novak, the mastermind behind Tab Vintage, spilled that Carpenter’s stylist came armed with a killer moodboard. 

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Although the gown in question was originally donned by Madonna at the Oscars, the inspiration was from Marilyn Monroe’s iconic Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. As everyone kept their eyes peeled on Carpenter's big night pick, it was not exactly a shocker that she went vintage. After all, channeling Madonna is kind of her thing.

Sabrina Carpenter is part of that rare fashion-meets-music squad, effortlessly fluent in both languages. While the MTV VMAs may have been the backdrop, her Madonna-inspired look stole the spotlight. However, this was not Carpenter’s first time bringing back the style queen this year. According to Michael Kors on Instagram in June, she served another archival fashion fantasy in Paris, rocking a hand-embroidered, crystal slip dress from the Resort 1990 collection show.

The very same dress graced the runway on model Gail Elliott and was later worn by Madonna for Glamour’s Woman of the Year issue in 1990. The ‘Espresso’ artist paired the shimmering knee-length number with sparkly peep-toe platforms, a silver clutch, and her signature blonde waves. Fans were living for the fairytale revival and seeing Carpenter channel Madonna twice in one year? It is a total fashion dream come true!

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What do you think of Sabrina Carpenter's Madonna-styled entry for the MTV VMAs? Let us know in the comments below!