As soon as we heard Tracee Ellis Ross would be hosting the 2017 American Music Awards, we knew we were in for a treat — especially considering her mother, legendary singer and actress Diana Ross, would be honored with a lifetime achievement award the very same evening. But the star of ABC’s Black-ish didn't just use Sunday night as an opportunity to show off her style prowess (and shout-out her new JCPenny holiday collection), with eight outfit changes, from a pleated Ronald Vanderkamp look to a poufy white Giambattista Valli skirt (styled with a crop top) to a glittery Paco Rabanne number. In fact, she used her wardrobe to pay tribute to her mother in her own special way.
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Not unlike when when Ellis Ross channeled one of her mothers' iconic performance looks (you know, during her days as the queen of Berry Gordy Jr.’s record label Motown in the '60s) at the 2017 Emmys wearing Chanel, glitter, cornrows, and dangling earrings, she overtly embraced all things sequined. Just before her mother took to the stage to do her own damn tribute, Ellis Ross appeared in front of the audiences wearing a white Alexander McQueen jacket, Christian Siriano trousers, custom glitter socks, and Manolo Blahnik pumps. But the best part about the whole look was her blouse: Her mother wore the exact same glitter-front top when she performed with the King of Pop Michael Jackson during a TV special called Diana in 1981.
“Okay, does this look familiar to anybody?” Ellis Ross asked the audience. “Diana Ross and Michael Jackson, twinsie outfits. This was the original shirt.” And according to Ellis Ross, she found it in her mom’s garage. “It’s the original shirt,” she wrote on Instagram, captioning a photo of herself wearing the full look. She got it straight from her mama — and it never looked better.