Motown chanteuse Mary Wells always wore the most intricate, teased-and-sprayed wig styles.
What’s not to love about big hair? It’s fun, it’s fierce, and it’s wildly over-the-top, a fact that Tom Ford capitalized on when he recently enlisted Beyonce—and her gi-normous, blonde curls—to walk in his private fashion show! We’ve been so obsessed with her voluminous ’do, that we decided a “big hair” timeline was in order. From Diahann Carroll (left, on “The Tom Jones” show) to Mariah, here are our favorite supersized styles of all time.
In the Seventies, Pam Grier made a name for herself not only for her iconic roles in blaxploitation flicks like Foxxy Brown, but also for her super-big, sexy afro.
On her first solo tour of Britain, Diana Ross rocked a head full of voluminous ringlets—a real departure from the structured Supremes bouffants of the Sixties.
Chaka hits the stage with Rufus rocking an enormous, fluffy ’fro.
In 1984, singer and legendary percussionist Sheila E. sported a much-copied mane of teased-and-sprayed curls.
In the mid-Eighties, Tina Turner’s crimped, teased platinum wig was almost as iconic as her mile-long legs and raspy rocker girl voice!
Patti Labelle was known for her over-the-top wigs and hair pieces in the 80’s. Here, her real hair around the hairline is blended in with a spiked, wing-like wig.
In Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” video, she flaunted a massive tumble of amber-hued spirals.
For her breakout “Control” album, Janet Jackson sported a waterfall of huge, flowing waves and back-combed bangs—an Eighties hair spectacular!
In 1989, Revlon ran a groundbreaking ad featuring the top Black supermodels of the time: Beverly Johnson, Louise Vyent and Iman, all rocking lavender bodysuits and an endless amount of chestnut curls.
When she first stepped on the modeling scene, up-and-comer Tyra Banks sported masses of adorable honey-blonde ringlets.
At the 1998 ESSENCE Awards, Mariah Carey rocked the red carpet in a honey-highlighted, super-curly coif. Very lioness-chic.
Iman hit an Interview party sporting a cherry red wig overflowing with face-framing, high-volume spirals.
At the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, Halle Berry traded in her signature pixie cut for massive, waist-length ringlets.
Jada Pinkett-Smith paired a halo of teased curls with a sleek cornrow for a textured, ultra-glam look.
At Scott Barnes’ book release party, all eyes were on Kelly Rowland and her huge, Chaka Khan-esque tresses.
At a private party for Tom Ford’s new collection, Beyonce hit the runway sporting huge, platinum blonde spirals.
At a pre-Grammy bash in Manhattan, Rihanna sported a wig that was virtually exploding with wild woman ringlets. Love!
At the iHeartRadio Music Festival, Nicki Minaj went over-the-top (even for her) in these platinum, poodle perm ponytails. We love her audacity!
