Whether they were natural dos, surprise dye jobs or extensions, revamped versions of braided hairstyles took over Hollywood this year. We never grow tired of seeing standard box braids, cornrows and fishtails, but it equally exciting to see A-lister mane moments that are almost too unique to describe. From Solange’s braided crown on Saturday Night Live to Erykah Badu’s floor-length braids at this year’s Soul Train Awards, these are the looks we’ll gladly take into 2017.
Sanaa was a braided goddess at the LA premiere of When the Bough Breaks.
We’re still obsessed with the actress and singer’s platinum braids.
The Survivor’s Remorse actress added flowery details to her box braids at the show’s 2016 premiere event.
The Insecure star attended the show’s premiere in a standout style.
Mel B. rocks cornrows that fall into long braids—a popular spin on the classic hairstyle.
The singer wore her hair braided over the forehead, forming a bang.
Yemi rocks beautiful, braided bantu knots to this year’s BET Awards.
Miss USA slayed in a flawless fishtail braid.
The teenage actress turned heads in auburn braids at this year’s Sundance NEXT Fest.
The stylist pulled off one of this year’s most unique hairstyles–flawless!
The singer accented her messy bun with braids at MTV’s Video Music Awards.
Dyeing braids was very popular in 2016, as seen here with YouTuber Salome and her ombréd gray braids.
The powerhouse singer’s crew shut down the BET Awards red carpet in braided hairstyles. A few were wearing braided buns, one of the most popular braided looks this year.
One of Yara’s best mane moments were these fabulous French braids.
Queen Bey and her little princess slayed the hair game together at this year’s VMAs.
One of our favorite hair chameleons slayed NYFW in beautiful braids.
The actress and director’s teeny braids made a big impression at the Game of Thrones Season 6 premiere.
The Queen Sugar star sported a braided bun to HBO’s Post Emmy Awards reception.
The AlunaGeorge singer looked like a dream in her mermaid braid at the British Fashion Awards.
The mother of two made her return to the red carpet in a braided style at this year’s Critic’s Choice Awards.
The model turned entrepeneur looked runway ready in a half up, half down style accented with a braid at Beautycon.
The Westworld actress made quite the statement in a braided lob this past fall.
We literally could not stop staring at the model’s epic braid at a June 2016 Mizani event.
The actress and singer sported plenty of styles this year, included a braided up-do, complete with gold hair rings.
The actress and TV host has always been a standout in the hair department; this is just one of our many favorite looks from her.
The legendary model sported the jumbo braid of our dreams at the 2016 CFDA Fashion Awards.
The seasoned actress killed it in this braided do at the premiere of Barbershop: The Next Cut.
The singer’s epic floor-length braids stole the show at this year’s Soul Train Awards.
And we’ll never ever forget the braided crown Solo wore for her Saturday Night Live debut.
As host of this year’s Billboard Music Awards, the expectant mother wore a bevy of stage-ready looks, including this wispy braid.
The Almost Christmas star slayed in box braids this year.
The powerhouse performer wore more hairstyles than we can count during her “Formation Tour,” but this braid–seen at the Tidal X show–is the most epic by far.
