Kerane Marcellus
It’s officially Black Maternal Health Week which was created to bring awareness to the disparities that Black women face in the American healthcare system. Even those of us who are celebrities have faced issues during their birth like Olympian Serena Williams who had to wear a Nike catsuit for the French Open in 2018 because of compression issues in her blood, according to Elle.
Speaking of Williams, she wore her first baby bump elegantly in a green gown halter-style gown with floral appliques to the 2017 “Rei Kawakubo Comme des Garcons: Art of the In-Between” Met Gala. One woman who doesn’t get her flowers enough is Kelis. Her maternity moments were filled with tons of color like her 2009 Four Seasons Hope Gala look. It was a psychedelic printed short dress in a satin blue and white. She’s always dying her hair eclectic colors and this look was no exception with her blue pompadour hairstyle.
Kimora Lee Simmons will always be fabulous and pregnancy just seems to enhance that for her. She was radiant in a photo below wearing a satin kimono-printed yellow dress with a floral print over a pair of black pants paired with strappy sandals. Actress Jurnee Smollett-Bell has always been radiant on screen but this moment on the red carpet in her black and white color block minidress with white sandals in 2016 brought a smile to our faces. Another actress who wore her baby bump on a red carpet was Tika Sumpter in an all-black short dress with a silver zipper detail and clear heels for her Southside With You film premiere in 2016.
Our Fashion Issue cover star Keke Palmer’s maternity style was perfection as soon as she revealed her baby bump on the SNL show in 2022. Her sparkling New York Film Critics Circle Awards gown made her look ethereal too. She glowed in more ways than one that night. Actress Kerry Washington wearing a strapless black cutout gown at the 68th Emmy Awards in 2016 with her curls out was a maternity-style moment that still lives in our minds.
Rihanna has redefined maternity looks with her outfits on and off the red carpet. Her 2023 Met Gala look honoring Karl Lagerfeld was jaw-dropping. The all-white dress with its long train floral appliques accentuated her baby bump flawlessly. Our March/April issue Beyoncé stunned in a sparkling red plunging neckline gown at the 2017 Grammy Awards. She posed with her two awards and baby bump with beauty and pride.
Another singer who does maternity style well is Ciara. Her all-white pants set with a long train at The Color Purple premiere in 2023 was breathtaking. She wore her button-down unbuttoned at her baby bump and added fold shavings to it to make her maternity fashion statement. Actress Jada Pinkett Smith had fun with her maternity style in the late ‘90s with a sparkling sheer paneled dress at the 1998 Grammy Awards. She was all smiles that night in her halter-style dress.
Below take a look at our favorite celebrity maternity style moments.
01
Serena Williams
03
Kimora Lee Simmons
04
Jurnee Smollett-Bell
05
Tika Sumpter
06
Keke Palmer
07
Kerry Washington
08
Rihanna
09
Beyoncé
10
Ciara Wilson
11
Jada Pinkett Smith
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