Rihanna. By now, her name is synonymous with a few things: Umbrellas. Rude Boys. Sharp-shouldered silhouettes. And lastly, but perhaps most importantly, hair. The Barbadian beauty famously chopped her long locks into a boyish crop for the release of her album “Good Girl Gone Bad,” and almost overnight, she went from dancehall-ish two hit wonder to international pop phenomenon! We know that hair can’t make you a star, but we also know this—every time RiRi rocks her short hair in a new style, whether it’s highlights or curls, everyone from A-listers to your BFF tries to copy it. Here, we take a look back at the Grammy-winning artist’s hottest mane moments.
When Rihanna first burst on the scene with 2005’s hit single “Pon de Replay,” she was a fresh-faced 17 year-old with long blowout and eyelash-grazing bangs.
Riri hit the red carpet at the 2006 Billboard Music Awards rocking waist-length, pin-straight auburn extensions. Paired with red lips and black liner, she looked every inch the vamp.
At Paris Fashion Week, Rihanna wore her raven-black hair in an exaggerated, super-sculptural pompadour that inspired a whole new mane movement.
Here, Rihanna began moving away from her signature long, brown blowout. She died her hair jet black, cut it to her shoulders, and set it in glossy, retro curls.
“Umbrella” established Rihanna as a worldwide phenomenon, and her new, razor-sharp boyish crop established her as a tress trendsetter.
Never one to stick with the same hairstyle for too long, Rihanna jazzed up her heavy bangs with some expertly-placed platinum streaks.
At the NRJ Music Awards in Cannes, Rihanna debuted a new super-blonde style and tousled waves.
At the 2010 Grammy Awards, Rihanna wore her golden strands swept up into a gravity-defying pompadour. So chic!
Rihanna remixed her short-on-the-sides, long-on-top cut by rocking the front in a dramatic swoop across one eye.
In another trendsetting move, Rihanna refined her “rooster” style into a modified, retro mushroom/bowl cut.
Rihanna debuted her longer, funkier, tiger-striped ‘do at the Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards.
