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Leave it to Chappell Roan to find a loophole in Instagram\u2019s nudity guidelines. On the Grammys red carpet last night, the singer (who was nominated for song of the year and best pop solo performance) wore a sheer burgundy Mugler dress, a recreation of a piece from the designer\u2019s 1998 spring\/summer collection. The garment\u2019s loose fabric, which was also fashioned into a coordinating sheer cape, dangled off either breast from what looked like small silver nipple rings. Somehow, I, along with everyone else, was able to see Roan\u2019s near-naked look from all angles on social media despite Instagram\u2019s notably strict (and inconsistent) censorship of female breasts. So, how did she get around that? By leaving one key detail out of the look: the nipples themselves. As if we needed another example of how absurd and outdated the platform’s guidelines really are.<\/p>\n
Like many others who tuned into the red carpet on February 1, I zoomed in on Roan\u2019s look to see what, exactly, her dress was attached to. Instead of finding real piercings on the singer\u2019s actual nipples, as I\u2019d assumed was the case, my curiosity was instead met with a smooth, nipple-less surface thanks to prosthetic artist Sasha Glasser. As she revealed on Instagram, Glasser used realistic peel-and-stick pasties from the prosthetics brand Out of Kit to provide some coverage for Roan (and likely some protection for her real breasts in case someone stepped on her dress). The prosthetics and their lack of nipples seem to be the reason we were able to see the singer\u2019s look all over our feeds: Without them, Instagram and other platforms with similar censorship policies likely would\u2019ve flagged every photo of her as explicit content due to their guidelines on what human body parts are appropriate to showcase.<\/p>\n