Entertainment Awards Shows and Events 2024 Met Gala Janelle Monáe Says Her 2023 Met Gala Look Will Be 'an Experience' (Exclusive) "My first Met Gala was in 2011, and I went with Karl [Lagerfeld]. So this is sort of full circle for us to be honoring him," Monaé said of the 2023 Met Gala paying tribute to the late fashion designer By Skyler Caruso Skyler Caruso Skyler Caruso is a Writer and Reporter of PEOPLE Digital Entertainment. She joined PEOPLE in 2021, but has eight years of experience working in digital publishing with a focus on entertainment and pop culture news. People Editorial Guidelines and Alexis Jones Alexis Jones Alexis Jones is a writer-reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2022. Her work has previously appeared on Daily Bruin. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 30, 2023 03:14PM EDT Close Photo: TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Janelle Monáe is teasing her 2023 Met Gala look ahead of the big event on Monday. The Knives Out star, 37, shared with PEOPLE what fashion lovers can look forward to with her Met Gala ensemble while celebrating 130 years of cultured pearls with Japanese jewelry brand Mikimoto in New York City's Central Park Tower Penthouse on Saturday. "It's such a surprise. I have an experience that I've put together," she said. "You have to watch. Watch that red carpet because you don't want to miss a beat." While Monáe cannot attest to the "Met Gala bathroom experience" because she has yet to use the facilities, she shared that a fun person to sit next to inside the gala is "whoever's not taking themselves seriously." Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Craig Barritt/Getty for Mikimoto America "It's supposed to be fun. It's supposed not to be serious. So I always enjoy people who are not stressed out over the Met Gala because I'm not," she added. However, the event is ultimately "supposed to be for me." She continued, "I go as an art student. You have an assignment. This is the theme. And me and my team are literally like art students collaborating on a group project, and we're there." This year's theme, Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty, couldn't be more fitting for Monáe, who shared that her most memorable Met Gala to date was her first one in 2011 wearing Chanel with the late creative director of the luxury brand. Janelle Monáe Talks Conquering Music, Film and Fashion: 'There Are a Thousand Versions of Me' Kevin Mazur/WireImage "I went with Karl, so this is sort of full circle for us to be honoring him. I'm really excited about what we'll do," she told PEOPLE. As for her greatest memory with Lagerfeld, she said it "was when he asked me to perform at the Chanel show in Dubai." "He invited me and I got to meet Tilda Swinton, and I was doing, I think it was the cruise show, and he built, literally built something that felt like a pyramid in the middle of the sand," she continued. "And we all gathered, by boat we came over. And he was just so cool, and he hugged me." Janelle Monáe on Inspiring the Next Generation: 'I Have to Remain Authentic to My Evolution' Francois Nel/Getty Monáe added, "Then there's a moment where he was in the audience at another event. This is now a different event that he invited me to, and he sketched me while I performed and gave me the sketch afterward." The actress and singer revealed that she still has that sketch "hidden" somewhere and will eventually have it framed "because it's really amazing." It was through this sketch that she realized just how "incredible" a visual artist Lagerfeld was. "I knew that he was a really good artist, but it took him less than 15 minutes, and he had a full sketch of my body, my movement," Monáe said. She also shared that she relates to the fashion designer always wearing black and white, telling PEOPLE, "He's probably worn black and white longer than me, and I'm next after him."