Every Halloween , you can always count on Janelle Monáe to deliver one of the year’s most epic and memorable costumes. (Last year she dressed up as an unforgettable E.T. ) The star has loved the spooky holiday since childhood. “Halloween has always been a spiritual and sacred time for me,” Monáe tells Vogue . “I remember going trick-or-treating with my sister and cousins, running to Party City or Spencer’s to pick out costumes, and feeling that shared excitement and creativity. That sense of imagination and play has stayed with me.”

This year, Monáe was as excited as ever to play dress up—and, as per usual, fully commit to the art of transformation. In past years, she has turned herself into everything from The Fifth Element ’s Diva Plavalaguna to a headless bride . “Halloween

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