Simone Biles Says Her Red Carpet Glam Bill Hit $22K — and the Internet Had Questions
The Olympic gymnast said she is “staying inside” after seeing what hair, makeup, and styling cost for one event.
Simone Biles has handled Olympic pressure, internet criticism, and skills that look physically impossible to the rest of us.
But a $22,000 red carpet glam bill? That one had her spiraling.
In a TikTok video posted April 28, Biles said the cost of hair, makeup, and styling for a recent red carpet event came to $22,000. She asked other influencers, athletes, and celebrities to weigh in because she needed to know if that number was normal.
“My grand total, any guesses? I’ll wait. Probably higher than what you’re thinking. Keep going,” Biles said before revealing the number.
“I just need to know if this is normal,” she added.
Biles Said She Wasn’t Trying to Bash Anyone
Biles made it clear she was not trying to call out her glam team.
“My intention isn’t to bash anyone, everyone I work with/have worked with is LOVELY!” she wrote in the caption. “I’m just curious if this is normal.”
Biles also pointed out something plenty of public figures probably deal with but rarely say out loud: sometimes the price goes up because of the name attached to the booking.
“Also kinda wack when they double or triple the price because of your name,” she wrote, adding that it did not happen in this case, but has happened before.
The Comments Were Baffled By This Number Too
The internet did not need long to react.
One commenter wrote, “i need to see an itemized receipt because how?!”
Another said, “Girl, I’m struggling to buy groceries lol.”
Someone else kept it simple: “22 BANDS?”
Others thought Biles may have been hit with celebrity pricing. One commenter wrote, “Yea they playing. Thats the Simone price as they are trying to come up.”
Another joked, “Girl, they taxing YOU differently.”
And honestly, that seemed to be the general mood. People understand that red carpet beauty and styling are expensive. But $22,000 for one event is still the kind of number that makes everyone suddenly want receipts.
Other Athletes Were Wondering Too
Biles specifically asked influencers and athletes to weigh in, and a few did.
Olympic skier Mikaela Shiffrin commented, “Girl, I’ve been wondering the same.”
Biles replied, “texting you asap, we can cry together.”
Creator Alysha Newman added that she has paid “6-8K per red carpet events,” but said that included a stylist, hair, makeup, driver, and sometimes flights and accommodations.
That still leaves a pretty wide gap between “expensive night out” and $22,000.
Influencer Madeleine White also said she stopped using stylists years ago because it was cheaper to buy a gown she could keep.
Red Carpet Glam Is Not Just Makeup and a Curling Iron
To be fair, major event glam is usually not one person with a makeup bag showing up two hours before the step-and-repeat.
A full red carpet look can include styling fees, hair, makeup, fittings, tailoring, assistants, wardrobe sourcing, shipping, returns, prep time, travel, and last-minute fixes. Depending on the event, the team may be coordinating everything from the dress to the jewelry to the backup options no one ever sees.
That does not mean $22,000 suddenly sounds normal.
But it does explain why the number can climb fast, especially when someone is expected to look flawless in high-resolution photos that will be picked apart online by strangers with zoom buttons and too much free time.
The Bigger Issue Is the Pressure to Look “Effortless”
Biles has been criticized for her hair, makeup, wedding looks, competition choices, and pretty much everything else that comes with being one of the most famous athletes in the world.
So there is something telling about her being the one to say this out loud.
Public figures, especially women, are expected to show up looking polished. If they do not, people comment. If they spend a fortune to look polished, people comment on that, too.
It is a rigged little beauty economy, and Biles’ TikTok cracked the door open just enough for everyone to peek at the invoice.
Biles May Be Done With Events for a While
Biles joked that if this is the new normal, people may not see her at another event.
“Y’all will never see me at another event,” she said. “I’ll be right here where it’s free.”
Biles’ TikTok hit because it pulled back the curtain on the cost of looking “effortless” in public. Every major event now turns into a full fashion and beauty audit, whether people are copying beauty trends from the Oscars or debating a celebrity’s red carpet look in real time (like Nicole Kidman’s).
And if $22,000 is the price of leaving the house, staying inside suddenly sounds like a very reasonable financial plan.
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