After the hotel lobby is the after after party: just ask Janelle Monáe and Odessa A'zion. Following a whirlwind evening at the 2026 Met Gala, the stars hit the town for the annual post-Met after-party circuit. And down on the Lower East Side, Monáe and A'zion gathered their closet friends and celebrity pals for the aptly-titled After Glow fete.

Shortly after stepping off Public Hotel’s neon-lit mirrored escalators, the sounds of Prince echoed throughout the space—even before entering the Two Fifteen lounge. At 2:30 a.m., Sombr was spotted in the lobby area, chatting and laughing with A’zion before the two made their way back into the all-black den. The living-room style venue was dark, illuminated only by the room’s chandeliers and candle-lit tables that were sprinkled with gold confetti and mini disco balls.

The duo were mid greeting friends on the black jacquard sofas, when the Marty Supreme actor spotted a special guest walking through the door: her co-host, Monáe. The two embraced and jumped up and down in excitement to see each other after what had most certainly been a long night already.

With both co-hosts present, the event—which had a specific 1:11 a.m. start time—officially kicked off. “We’re about to have a mother f*cking good time—we’re going to go ‘til the sun is up. Let’s get it,” Monáe exclaimed, toasting guests with a Barcardi cocktail in hand as DJ Tokyo Rose continued to spin the beats.

Throughout the night—or should we say, morning—guests hung out at the bar, got cozy on plush sofas in front of the venue’s electric fireplace, and broke it down on the dance floor. Even Monáe was all about getting comfortable—kicking off their heels and maneuvering around the space sans footwear.

On the Met Gala carpet, the Lipstick Lover singer had wowed in a custom nature-inspired gown by Christian Siriano that combined technology and art with an entanglement of wires, crystals, succulents, and moving mechanical dragonflies and butterflies (the night before the gala, Monáe told Vogue about her love of a theme and how much she enjoys collaborating with artisans to create wearable art.) But for the After Glow soirée, the performer kept it more simple, in a black mini dress with structured shoulders, adorned with a silver metal bustier.

A’Zion also donned all-black, accessorizing her look with a pair of black shades—because why not wear your sunglasses inside? There was a certain “glow” about the party, after all. It was technically the actor’s third outfit of Met Monday—as earlier in the night, she had jokingly joined Hudson Williams in The Mark Hotel’s bathrobes as the duo posed for photographers on the staircase ahead of revealing their real red carpet looks.

It was just before 4 a.m., when Monáe took to the mic once again. “New York, New York! All the coolest people are here tonight. Thank you for reminding me what it means to be a human.”

After performing an I Love You call-and-response style rap with party attendees, Monáe was joined by another surprise guest: none other than the legendary Angela Basset, who had just arrived. The two posed for photos as the DJ revved up the music once more, showing no signs of early morning weariness—in fact, people did keep the party going into the wee hours of the morning until the sun came up.