The Stunning Hair Transformation Of Rihanna

Rihanna is one of the few artists in history who has not only shaped the music industry with her unique sound and voice but has also had an undeniable impact on the world of beauty and fashion with the launch of her company, Fenty. In fact, RiRi's style transformation over the years is breathtaking, as the singer has allowed herself to explore various facets of fashion, never putting herself or her beauty in a singular box — and the same applies to the musician's ever-changing hair.

From long and luscious to an edgy pixie, there isn't a haircut that RiRi hasn't tried. And don't even get us started on the various hair colors the "Love on the Brain" singer has had over the years. Frankly, if we had to pick one color that suits her best, we wouldn't be able to decide, as Rihanna is one of the few stars who could pull off any shade (and she definitely has). For USA Today, Rihanna's long-term hairstylist, Yusef Williams, admitted that the two love going for the unexpected. "It's always our goal to go against the norm. We don't like to think about it and talk about it (too long). When we would do campaigns with Rihanna and it was like, 'We want her hair to be short.' And I'm like, 'No. We're going to shave the side and we're going to put wind on it and we're going to make it long.'" And it's particularly this resistance to conforming to what people expect of her that has helped RiRi become a hair trendsetter, too.

Rihanna broke onto the international music scene as a teenager in 2005, and at the time, the musician was rocking her naturally brown hair. With hits like "Pon de Replay" and "If It's Lovin' That You Want," the Barbadian singer was embracing a carefree and sunkissed look, and for her hair, this meant long, shiny locks.

Of course, this by no means meant that her hair was at all boring. Even back then, it was clear that RiRi would grow into a style icon as she was effortlessly switching between straight hair cut in layers with a straight across fringe, and luscious curls cascading down her shoulders with a middle part. And while we're by no means undermining her talent as a musician, it's safe to say that her effortless sense of fashion and beauty (hair included) played a major role in her popularity at the time.

The year 2007 marked a major leao for Rihanna's hair. With the release of her third studio album, "Good Girl Gone Bad," the musician was ready for a more dramatic change. RiRi chopped her hair into an asymmetrical bob, which she debuted in her "Umbrella" music video, and the style quickly became replicated by fans worldwide.

"If she didn't change her look, [the album] wouldn't have been as impactful," Rihanna's hairstylist Ursula Stephen reflected to Billboard in 2017. "Obviously, the music would have still been good, but her changing the look really made people pay attention to her. Everything worked together because even the music was so different. Everything was different. And [the hair] separated her from a bunch of girls that were kind of coming out at the same time or were already out at the same time," Stephen said. "I definitely give the bob credit for leading the way, because if she didn't make that big chop, which influenced a lot of other changes, who knows if she would have done everything else that came after," Stephen admitted.

In fact, even RiRi herself admitted that this specific change in her hairstyle played a major role in her career. "When I cut my hair, the whole sound changed, my style changed," the singer said, reflecting on the era (via Capital FM). The iconic asymmetrical bob became a signature look for Rihanna, and she gave us plenty of variety with it. From a shorter in the back and longer in the front haircut to sleek and blunt bangs, RiRi (alongside Victoria Beckham) was the undeniable queen of the Y2K bob. And just like that, the singer began a whole new era of having fun with her hair.

By the end of the 2000s, Rihanna's approach to hair was unapologetic. The musician chopped her hair even shorter, going for a pixie haircut with length at the top. The length is what allowed the star to have fun with her look, going for different hairstyles. At the time, RiRi began working with hairstylist Yusef Williams, and he revealed that the length at the top is what made the pixie edgy. "I started doing crazy flips, gave her a little bit of edge, [and] made it a little bit more badass," he revealed to Allure in 2018, referencing RiRi's late 2000s hair.

Around this time, Rihana also embarked on a hair color journey, swapping her signature brunette locks for blond ones. The singer also played around with undercuts, which allowed her to showcase even more edge when she chose to. Alternatively, she could always cover them up with the longer bits of her haircut, giving her the ultimate freedom.

While RiRi had plenty of unforgettable hair eras, one that stands out is undoubtedly at the beginning of the 2010s when the singer opted to dye her locks a vibrant red color, switching her style up for her fifth studio album, "Loud." Rihanna's hairstylist, Ursula Stephen, was in charge of the dramatic change. "The album was called 'Loud,' and it just fit," Stephen said in 2010 to The New York Times. "It made the statement she wanted to make." 

In 2011, Rihanna admitted that the new hair color was a way for her to reinvent herself. "Red [hair] suits my mood right now. I was over my last project. So I reinvented myself," she said (via Bossip). While her hair was a loud red at the time, the star didn't lack in hairstyle variety. From glamorous Hollywood-style updos to tight curls, there wasn't a hairstyle red RiRi couldn't pull off!

Once Rihanna got tired of the red hair, she decided to go for a more natural shade. Even though she didn't plan on sticking to the blond for long, the musician admitted to The Hollywood Reporter in 2012 that parting ways with the hair color wasn't easy. "Now I am attached to it (the blond hue) and keep going lighter and lighter," Rihanna said. "But it's easy to go to black from here." 

While she didn't go to black just yet, the star did eventually embrace a brunette ombré look. In fact, RiRi wore three different hair colors to the annual Grammy Awards in three consecutive years. In 2011, she was still rocking that vibrant red hair, in 2012, she glowed in golden blond, and in 2013, the singer showed up to the event as a brunette with a subtle ombré style. And, of course, all three looked absolutely stunning on the star, who seems to be one of the few who can effortlessly pull off any hair color out there. In 2012, RiRi's hairstylist, Yusef Williams, revealed that the two find inspiration for hairstyles everywhere. "We can sit down and talk about hair for hours, she and I," he told Vogue. "She sends me pictures of things she's seen in magazines at 5 a.m. from her home. We take a lot of inspiration from guys actually," Williams said.

During the mid-2010s, Rihanna's hair remained mostly dark brown, but the singer ensured her hairstyle was never boring, rocking a variety of different looks to red carpet events. "I always take care of my hair, that's why I switch my hair up so often," the singer told PopSugar in 2015. "I don't like to leave my weave in for too long. I like to treat my hair and take care of it under there because one day I don't want to wear this." One of our favorite hairstyles from this RiRi era is the messy updo she rocked to fashion's biggest night in 2014 — the Met Gala. For the occasion, the singer went with a hairstyle that perfectly offset the sleek white outfit she wore, balancing out the entire look.

The star also revealed that for her, inspiration for beauty knows no bounds. "I find my inspiration anywhere. You can never limit yourself to any specific place," RiRi told PopSugar. "I go off the energy that I want, and find things that give me that. I never really plan my looks. I go spur of the moment how I feel." And the fact that she has rocked a variety of different haircuts and hair colors over the years only underscores that.

Rihanna decided to stick to dark hair, but between 2017 and 2018, she wore a variety of different hair lengths, even going for an edgy short bob. "This is one of the shortest looks she's worn in a while," her hairstylist Yusef Williams told Refinery29 in 2018, referring to the short bob the "Umbrella" singer was rocking a year prior. "You never know, though. We might go shorter soon!"

In another interview with Refinery29, Williams revealed that RiRi and her family are big on hair health and that having strong and naturally shiny locks is important to them. "Rihanna is natural — we always make her hair soft and pretty," he said. "Underneath the wigs and weaves, we are big on hair care and treatment. Rih's mom brings me hair treatments all the time ... it's really important to take care of it."

In 2018, Rihanna had a major hair moment as she starred in the heist comedy "Ocean's 8" alongside Hollywood stars like Sandra Bullock and Anne Hathaway. For her character, Nine Ball, RiRi and Williams agreed that locs would be the best hairstyle. "We thought it would be strong. Her locs would maintain that tie to Africa. She wasn't just going to be some American girl in this movie," Williams revealed to Refinery29. That same year, he also reflected on all the years he styled RiRi's hair. "I think I came in right in the beginning of the fashion portion of her life, and that was a lot of pressure," he told British Vogue. "We grew and evolved together. I'd been working on fashion shows in Paris, so when I met her it was like: alright girl, let's do it!"

By the end of the 2010s, it was clear that Rihanna was never going to be bored of her hair as the "Work" singer was always switching it up. From midnight brown braids to a red ponytail, RiRi was always doing something unexpected with her hairstyle, and hairstylist Yusef Williams was always a major part of that.

In 2019, the star opted to rock a dramatic burgundy ponytail to the BET Awards. "I wanted to play along with [her outfit] by providing some contrast and going with a more feminine look for her hair," Williams revealed to Teen Vogue. "Rihanna wanted to look very pretty. We were working with her beautiful burgundy hair, so I wanted to really feature the bold color and let it speak for itself." For RiRi's fans, Williams also revealed just how to recreate the dramatic ponytail. "Prepping your hair to retain moisture and shine is a great first step to achieve this look at home," he said, adding that lots of teasing was needed to achieve that amount of volume.

As we entered the 2020s, Rihanna embraced ultra-long hair with lots of volume. The "We Found Love" singer kept the color dark, going for a femme fatale look. Even though she still rocked various hairstyles, we frequently got to see the "Work" singer with her hair styled in a sleek and shiny blowout.

For Glossy, RiRi's hairstylist, Yusef Williams, opened up about the change the singer had brought into the beauty community by stressing the importance of inclusivity. "Shoutout to Fenty Beauty for paving the way for that. Ri basically kicked the door down," he said. "That is something I've always thought was really important, for even me being a hairstylist — knowing how to deal with all textures of hair." Williams was also asked just what his favorite hairstyles on Rihanna are, to which he responded, "They're all my babies. They're all trendsetting works of art." We couldn't agree more.

In 2022 and 2023, Rihanna continued rocking dark hair while playing around with texture and layers. RiRi also jumped on the '90s updo trend, channeling that nonchalant messiness the decade's hair was so well known for.

In fact, two of our favorite hairstyles from these years are updos. For the Savage X Fenty Show in November 2022, RiRi rocked a casual updo with a skinny fringe, reminiscent of the trendy hairstyle popularized by Pamela Anderson in the '90s. With plenty of volume in the back and expertly placed face-framing pieces, RiRi looked like she just put her hair up in a second and it looked stunning — but we know that in reality, the hairstyle took meticulous styling. For the 2023 Academy Awards, RiRi opted for another messy updo — however, this one was placed much higher on her head, giving the star additional height. What made this updo particularly fun and unexpected was that, unlike the trending buns of the early 2020s, it wasn't sleek and perfectly pulled together. In fact, RiRi's bun had curled pieces sticking out of it, adding texture and interest to the hairstyle.

In early 2024, Rihanna decided to go for a more dramatic change by saying goodbye to her dark hair and embracing blond once again. And while the "Diamonds" singer looked stunning with long blond locks, it was her natural hair texture that caught our eye. In June 2024, RiRi launched the highly anticipated Fenty Hair line, and for the accompanying party in Los Angeles, the singer decided to show off her natural look. RiRi's blond coily curls were cut in a super short haircut that allowed her facial features to come to the forefront. Her hairstylist, Yusef Williams, told USA Today that going natural wasn't the original plan. "We never expected to do that at the launch party. She had this cute little curl and I was like, 'You know what? Let's perfect these curls and get the hell out of here and launch this product.'"

However, Rihanna wouldn't be Rihanna if she wasn't prepared for another hair change. For Allure, the star admitted that she already got tired of the blond. "I get bored. I get bored, and I need to move on to something, or I'm going to crawl out of my body," Rihanna said. "Cut it. I don't care. It's hair. It'll grow back. Bleach it, whatever. Just do something. I feel like a lot of people get scared to play with hair because it's such a huge part of your identity," the singer admitted. And while her hairstylist never knows what RiRi will request next, we have no doubt that the future of the star's hair is in great hands — and we can't wait to see what the singer rocks next!