Stylist Milton Dixon III on Culture, Community, and Curiosity

Milton Dixon III, Stylist

Hometown: Pompano Beach, FL
Based In: Brooklyn, NY
Representation: FRANK REPS

You’re a true multi-hyphenate, stylist, DJ, and program director of the Empowered Vision Awards. How did you get your start in fashion?
My interest in fashion started young, as it does for a lot of us. I grew up watching my family, especially my grandmother, get ready for church and gatherings with so much care and pride. That appreciation for style stayed with me. My industry entry was a little less poetic. I moved to New York for an internship at a model agency and got fired a few days in. Around the same time, I met an assistant working for Nicola Formichetti, who was styling Lady Gaga, and I started interning at his studio the next day. Brandon Maxwell, who was transitioning from assistant to lead stylist for Gaga, was actually the first stylist to hire me for a paid assisting job, back before he became a designer. At the time, I didn’t really understand what styling could lead to or where it could take me. I was just excited to be around people whose work I admired. Looking back, that’s really been the through line of my career. I’ve always followed curiosity more than a plan, and I’ve been fortunate that those moments of community and mentorship have continuously led me to the next chapter.

How would you describe your work? What’s your trademark?
My work has always been character-driven. I have been attracted to individuals who may not seem like the obvious choice for certain spaces or brands. Travel, music, nightlife, friends, strangers on the street, those things inspire me just as much as collections. I love blending real street style and cultural references with what’s happening in fashion. More than anything, I want the work to feel human. I want people to look at an image or project I’ve worked on and feel like there’s a real character behind it. That’s the common thread through everything I do: creating images that feel authentic and deeply connected to culture.

Funding is so crucial for independent designers. Can you walk us through how the Empowered Vision Awards came to life? And what does success look like for the initiative?
Like most things in my career, the Empowered Vision Award came together through a series of serendipitous moments. I had always wanted to support independent designers in a deeper way than the traditional stylist-designer relationship allows. Around that time, a personal styling client of mine was talking about expanding their family’s philanthropic work, and knowing how difficult it is for Black designers to access not only funding but meaningful guidance, I pitched the idea of creating a grant and mentorship program. I reached out to friends at the CFDA, and after many conversations and collaborations, the partnership came to life. Now we’re heading into year three. For me, success for this initiative has always been about more than writing a check. Funding is important, but money alone isn’t enough. The mentorship, relationships, and community that have grown around the program have been just as rewarding to witness. Ultimately, success looks like helping designers build sustainable businesses and creating a network that can support generations to come.

You created a custom look for the 2026 Met Gala with Daveed Baptiste, the recipient of the 2025 Vision Awards. Can you walk us through the look and what that experience was like?
My first time attending the MET Gala was in 2017 as a Vogue employee, which was such a beautiful and surreal experience. My first time styling someone for the Met was in 2025, when I collaborated with Rachel Scott of Diotima on her first menswear look. Rachel was also the inaugural recipient of the Empowered Vision Award, among many other accolades. So it was incredibly special to play a small part in such a monumental year for her. Working on the look for The Met 2026 with Daveed (Baptiste) and getting to know him through his design process was so fab. We began by looking at his existing work, and one thing that stood out to me was the meaning behind his signature swirling denim motifs, which reference his family’s migration journey from Haiti. That beautiful detail of his story stood out to me. From there, we translated this idea into a tailored suit that felt right for the Met while staying true to his design language.There were definitely a few trial-and-error moments, which are always to be expected, especially with this being his first tailored look and his first major red-carpet moment. So we needed to get it right. We were fortunate to have support from some incredible people who stepped in to help along the way. The entire process became a testament to how a network of people who believe in and show up for one another can have a profound impact, not just on your career but on the work itself.

What non-fashion influences (art, film, literature, music, etc.) shape your creative perspective?
I make a habit of taking in as much art as possible: films, books, poetry, photography, music. All of those things shape how I see the world, but if I had to point to the biggest influence on my creative perspective, it would be music and nightlife. This is in part the inspiration for co-founding my DJ collective Mecca NYC, and it began my journey into sound direction. Whenever I travel to a new place, I always try to make the time to go out. I want to see what people are listening to and dancing to, what they’re wearing, and how they’re expressing themselves. You really get a vibe for a place, its people, and its culture when you experience it after dark. For me, nightlife has always been this incredible archive of style and ideas, mostly coming from queer people, Black communities, immigrants, trans communities, people existing outside of what society might deem acceptable or desirable. Those spaces have pushed culture forward, and I truly love experiencing and understanding the worlds they create around them.

Music and fashion have a lot of synergy. You styled Momo Boyd for the Good Flirts music video featuring Kendrick Lamar and Baby Keem, directed by Renell Medrano. How did having a foot in both worlds shape your approach to that project?
Having a foot in both worlds gives me a better understanding of how artists feel, especially during moments that carry a lot of weight. Good Flirts was such a major moment for Momo (Boyd), so getting the look right was incredibly important. At the same time, it was a collaboration with a variety of creative partners; it wasn’t her solo project. Baby Keem’s track, Kendrick Lamar’s appearance, Renell’s directing, the label’s needs, and several different creative voices were all involved. Ultimately, on this project, my job was to understand each person’s vision while staying true to the style and identity Momo has already created for herself.

What do you love most about what you do?
What I love most is how limitless the work feels. Fashion and styling were my entry points, but they’ve allowed me to explore so many different worlds and collaborate with incredible minds. I’ve been lucky enough to work on everything from world tours to music videos to major orchestras, global brand campaigns, and music festivals. Now, I am venturing into building programs and ecosystems that support creatives. At the moment, I’m working with Kickstarter to bring more funding and resources to fashion and the broader creator economy. I’m also in early conversations about developing another initiative, similar to the Empowered Vision Award, with the Virgil Abloh “Post-Modern” Scholarship Fund. In my head, there are no limits to where this work can go, and that’s what keeps it exciting.

What have you watched, heard, or read lately that has inspired you?
I just saw an exhibition at the Brooklyn Central Library by Printing Black America that really inspired me. It was this fabulous interpretation of W.E.B. Du Bois’ data portraits. I loved seeing how something so historical could be reimagined through a new visual.

In fashion, the Polimoda Graduate show in Florence and the La Cambre graduate show in Belgium really blew me away this year. They really had some interesting new energy in their designs. I’ve also been listening to so much new music lately. There’s a DJ out of Detroit named Planet Kaia whose mix I’ve had on repeat, along with sets from a Toronto-based DJ named Baby Mmune. A lot of inspiration comes from those moments, just putting on a mix and shaking down in my apartment.

What’s something outside of your work that you would like people to know about you?
I can cook! I cook like a Southern auntie when the mood strikes. I come from a family of restaurateurs and neighborhood matriarchs, so it’s in my blood. Feeding people and bringing folks together has always been part of how I show love, and honestly, I take so much pride in a good meal.

What have been the biggest challenges you have faced professionally?
Aside from the structural challenges fashion still faces today, my biggest professional challenge has been finding the confidence to trust my own path. Over time, I’ve realized that the most fulfilling parts of my career have happened when I’ve allowed myself to go off script. Whether it’s DJ’ing and now Sound Direction or building programs like the Empowered Vision Award, none of those things were really on the roadmap I thought I was supposed to follow. Learning to trust yourself in an industry that’s so focused on appearances can be very difficult, and the confidence I have developed has been the biggest breakthrough in my career – so far :)

Who’s one to watch?
So much great talent out now! Obviously, there’s Daveed Baptiste, the Empowered Vision Award winner, whom I’m excited about. You’ve got Dauan Jacari, a design duo here in Brooklyn that is absolutely killing it. Harry Pontefract of Ponte in London is doing amazing. I’m rooting for him and Zane Li of Lii for the LVMH prize. And then there’s my friend Natasha Kalila, who’s an incredible multi-disciplinary artist and musician. She just dropped a new project that’s so beautiful.

Selected Work

Into Night for i-D Magazine
This shoot is really special to me because it was one of my first shoots for i-D, where I was fully on my own. The magazine had given me almost complete freedom to choose the designer, the photographer, cast, and really shape the story however I wanted, which felt both exciting and terrifying at the time. Everything came together so quickly, and I remember being so nervous throughout the process. Looking back, I love this particular image because of the way the light comes in. There was something about this image that felt magical and effortless, even though I know how much anxiety there was surrounding making it. More than anything, this image represents a turning point for me. It was one of those moments where everything aligned and gave me the confidence to trust myself a little more.

i-D Magazine 40th Anniversary Issue Fall 2020 Covers
This project was especially meaningful because it was my first cover, which felt like a dream come true. I introduced Alastair McKimm to photographer Rahim Fortune’s work, and he really connected with it. Looking back, it was one of those moments where all these small steps and relationships came together in a beautiful way. For me, it was another lesson in trusting my taste. Seeing people I look up to respond to the same things I was drawn to gave me a lot of confidence and reinforced my trust in my instincts.

Marc Jacobs Melissa Summer 2024 Collection
This project felt like a major milestone for me because it was one of my first big campaigns with a brand I had admired and built a relationship with, alongside a model I had loved watching grow into the star she is today. More than anything, it felt like one of those moments that quietly deposits confidence into you. After years of putting in the work, it was an affirmation that all those relationships, experiences, and long days in the industry were leading somewhere. It wasn’t necessarily one big breakthrough, but another reminder that this moment in my career has been a long time coming.

Dominican Adventures for i-D
This shoot still inspires me. My friend Mitch Zachary and I decided to go to the Dominican Republic, where he’s from, and just take pictures. I pitched the idea to i-D, explaining that we had access to all these incredible characters and stories, and they got behind it. In reality, it was just a small team wandering around the Dominican Republic, visiting places Mitch knew and mapping things out as we went. Almost everyone in the story was street cast, and by chance, we connected with Tokischa’s team while she happened to be in town. What I loved most was the energy. It was exactly how I wanted to work. There was music playing, people following us down the street, kids coming up to talk to us, and everyone was just having fun. It felt alive and completely collaborative. Nothing felt overly precious or manufactured. To this day, it’s one of my favorite experiences because it reminded me that some of the best work comes from curiosity and being open enough to let things unfold naturally.

Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour
This one is a wild card because it’s technically not a shoot; it comes from the summer of 2023, which I was fortunate enough to spend on tour with arguably the biggest star in the world. I was extremely flattered to be asked to collaborate with an amazing team of costume designers working on Beyoncé’s Renaissance World Tour. Of all the looks I worked on, this one is my favorite, and it was also a full-circle moment because it was a custom piece by Marc Jacobs, who I’d already been styling for separately at the time. There were a lot of moving parts and a lot of nerves getting this together, and those Kiki boots felt like a bit of a risk for the stage. But when she came out in the full look, I definitely shed a couple of tears. It was one of those moments where I couldn’t believe I got to be a part of something so special.