Former US President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama attend the inauguration of US President-elect Joe Biden on the West Front of the US Capitol on Jan. 20, 2021, in Washington, DC. Image: Rob Carr/Getty Images/AFP
After charming the internet with their Obama-inspired inauguration looks, two 4-year-old kids got the attention of Michelle Obama herself.
“Ryleigh & Zayden, you nailed it!” the former First Lady said on Twitter today, Feb. 2, as she shared their photos.
Ryleigh & Zayden, you nailed it! 😍💕
📷: its_allry on IG pic.twitter.com/82jMswh3Lk
— Michelle Obama (@MichelleObama) February 1, 2021
Ryleigh Madison Hampton and her friend Zayden Lowe quickly went viral after photos of them posing in the Obamas’ outfits were shared on Ryleigh’s Instagram last Sunday, Jan. 31.
Ryleigh, a model, wore a mini version of Michelle’s powerful plum outfit, complete with hoop earrings and belt with gold details. Zayden looked dashing in Barack’s no-nonsense navy-blue suit, bright-blue tie and long, black coat. The two had matching black face masks too.
Ryleigh’s aunt Zoe Hampton reacted to the positive responses the kids have received in an interview with Yahoo! Life today.
“We never expected it to get as big as it has gotten. We definitely didn’t expect Michelle to actually see it,” she said. “It is truly amazing and we are beyond grateful and thankful for the support and love the picture has gotten.”
Zoe praised the Obamas for being “powerful role models” that children can look up to. “Young children are so impressionable and at a young age it’s important to let them know you can do anything you put your mind to,” she noted.
Before posing as Michelle, Ryleigh pulled off Kamala Harris’s white outfit from the night she made her acceptance speech as vice president-elect last November.
Behind Michelle’s head-turning look during Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration was her stylist Meredith Koop, who has been with her since 2010. Koop worked with Black designer Sergio Hudson, who made the wine-colored coat, sweater, pants and belt.
Koop explained on Instagram that comfort was the priority for the event and that she was going for something “sleek, chic and modern.” She sought out Hudson because he is “in the top in his designs, construction and understanding of how to dress the curves of a woman’s body.”
“What I want to convey most, though, is that this particular outfit is about the woman wearing it more than anything. It is about her and what she means to you and to America,” Koop said. “She is powerful and she needs to move… She has taken a look at the rule book and turned the page. She leads, she inspires, she slays.” Niña V. Guno /ra
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