From Arkansas to Hollywood: Stylist Marko Monroe’s Journey to Designing for Lady Gaga and Mariah Carey

Hollywood stylist Marko Monroe has found himself making over some very unlikely new stars – Labubus.

While Monroe may be more used to styling for the likes of Lizzo, this past year he’s earned a new reputation re-designing Labubus for numerous stars, with Lady Gaga, Lisa Rinna, Marc Jacobs, and even Blackpink’s Lisa now the owners of his custom-made creations. 

Originally from Arkansas, the LA-based stylist and Avalon TV star was thrust into a new whole spotlight after Gaga was spotted carrying a Labubu he revamped specifically for her last month. 

In an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail in late August, Monroe opened up about what it’s like customizing the mischievous gremlin toys for some of the biggest names in showbiz. 

Gaga’s Labubu in particular was a labor of love and came to be after Monroe attended her Los Angeles concert. 

‘That was a really cool project, it was done out of love. I was lucky enough to see her in Coachella and then she came to LA, and I got to see her the first night, which was crazy… So I made one kind of inspired off of her intro look,’ Monroe told the Daily Mail. ‘And also when she’s at the beginning of the concert, she’s like sitting down and she’s writing and writing and writing. 

‘And then when she picks the quill up is when the concert starts. So I kind of used that as inspo, and then lucky enough, it landed in her hands,’ he told the Daily Mail.

While the Labubu wasn’t requested by Gaga herself but rather her team, she is clearly a fan of it – she’s been photographed at least twice with the toy, which Monroe outfitted with a bold red cloak with it’s own sleek black bob wig. 

Ever since Gaga made her public debut with the doll, the spotlight has only increased on Monroe.  

‘The next day she was seen out and about in public with it, which skyrocketed it. Attention to me and also the Labubu itself and the Lady Gaga fans. I was flooded with admiration, which was really fun,’ he told Daily Mail. 

Monroe’s passion for redesigning the dolls began earlier this year after a ‘lull’ in work inspired him to get extra creative with his Labubu.

His very first Labubu landed in his hands after his boyfriend purchased one off eBay – prompting Monroe to claim it as his own and even redesign it into a doll inspired by his Dachshunds. 

‘I carried it around everywhere I went. I was going to Europe, it just never left my Acne Studios bag,’ Monroe, who has a BFA in sculpture, said. ‘It got kind of dingy and the time period was kind of slow in the industry. I was really kind trying to fight depression and just the lull that happens with working in the entertainment world and I just decided to take it apart.’

Gaga isn’t the only big name receiving a Labubu – the cast of Netflix’s Wednesday got their own dolls, all designed after their respective gothic characters. 

‘I was lucky enough to make the cast of Wednesday, so Jenna Ortega and Catherine Zeta-Jones, all of them, their customs as well,’ he said. ‘And my favorite was that I got to make one for Tim Burton.’

Even the stars of Bravo’s The Real Housewives franchise have gotten in on the fun, with Lisa Rinna and Braunwyn Windham-Burke snagging one from Monroe. 

‘She got hers delivered yesterday,’ Monroe said of Rinna. ‘And Braunwyn’s… should have been delivered yesterday as well because I’ve just finished them.’

In a true full circle moment, Monroe’s work got back to Labubu creator Kasing Lung himself. 

Monroe said Lung is now following him on Instagram, a moment of recognition he called ‘major’ due to his admiration for the designer’s illustration work. 

And ‘mother Labubu’ herself – aka Lisa, the Black Pink songstress who has been credited with bringing the dolls to mainstream – even wore a Monroe design on stage last month.

Monroe worked with Lisa’s stylist Brett to help make the doll a reality, and the end result – an adorable hot pink Labubu – was attached to her hip as she danced on stage in London.

‘So we were chatting and he sent me over sketches,’ Monroe said of working with Lisa’s stylist. ‘I was like, “These are the pinks I have now.” But I was like, “Please, if you have scraps of the fur that you’re using, I think it would just be so major to match it identically.”

‘He was able to round up some of the scraps from the custom look for me to use. So that’s what I used, I pieced together what was left of the fur on her Labubu,’ he explained.

Monroe also equips his creations with a tag identifying them as one of his designs, and he was thrilled to see Brett had left the marker on for Lisa’s performance: ‘I had my custom tag, and he left it on there on stage, which I thought was really sweet. So it’s the little hand tag that said, “Handmade by Marco Monroe,’ which was precious,’ he said. 

The end result made it to Lisa’s hip and matched perfectly the hot pink crop top and mini skirt she wore on stage. 

‘That was another sort of sweet project because she was the one that kind of started the Labubu craze. It was just like, oh… mother LaBubu is now wearing something that I made right here in my studio, which is crazy!’ Monroe said of seeing Lisa on stage. 

Since this interview, Monroe’s designs have ended up in the hands of Mariah Carey, the girls group KATSEYE – which they received at the MTV VMAs. 

Monroe’s Labubus are available for order on his website and prices vary, with the designer charging anywhere from $250 for a ‘Surprise Custom’ to $350 for an ‘Ultimate Custom’.

While he’s now ‘swamped’ with orders, Monroe would be happy to carve time to make a custom Labubu for two special stars – Kasing Lung and surprise Labubu fan Madonna. 

‘I would love to make one for Madonna,’ he said. ‘So if Madonna reads this, your Labubu’s coming!’