Hayley Williams’s Best Hair Colors, Cuts, and Styles Throughout the Years
Thirteen years after its release, people who were teens and tweens in the 2000s will still scream the lyrics to any song from Paramore's Riot when given the chance. They're also still salivating over Hayley Williams's hair. The singer's perpetually bright hair colors, cuts, and styles have always been bold to the point that they almost distract from her powerhouse vocals — almost.
Just about every single one of those looks is thanks to Williams's longtime hairstylist and makeup artist Brian O'Connor. "I've done her hair since Riot — right before 'Misery Business' came out," he previously told Allure. "From then on, any hair cut, color, and styling have pretty much been me." According to O'Connor, the singer's look is a collaborative effort between the two of them. "It's definitely a joint relationship, but Hayley is very stylish and kinda thinks outside the box for herself, too," he says. "That makes it a lot easier for me to creatively flow off of that."
Williams's near-monthly hair changes wouldn't have been possible without a lot of hard work and upkeep. According to London-based colorist Leanne Chadwick, Williams's penchant for bold, neon hair dyes would require her to keep a very light base shade with frequent root touch-ups. "For vibrant colors, you need a really light base for the true tones of neon oranges and pinks to shine and make a statement," she explains. "The lighter the blonde [underneath], the brighter the color."
Chadwick also estimates that the singer sticks mostly to temporary hair dyes in order to achieve such quick color turnaround. If you're the type to drastically change your hair color often like Williams, Chadwick ensures that those bright pigments won't pose any damage to the hair — it's the lightening of your hair you need to be careful about. "Always use a bond builder such as Olaplex to balance out the porosity of the hair so when applying the vibrant color, it will develop even," she advises.
Because Williams has changed her hair so frequently for the past decade-plus, she alone can serve as all the punk-fueled hair inspiration you'd ever need. Though her hair tastes have definitely evolved, she clearly hasn't put away her love for out-there colors, cuts, and styles.
So now, as the singer promotes her first-ever solo album, Petals for Armor, we're revisiting her best hair looks, including Paramore's entry into fame up and Williams's first solo single release. Sorry in advance if scrolling along makes you want to dye your hair immediately.
Getty Images1/21June 2007: Tri-Color Shag
Although she had dark auburn hair when Paramore released its first album, All We Know Is Falling, most people will recall this look from their first impression of Williams, thanks to the "Misery Business" music video. With a mix of orange, yellow, and platinum blonde tones, this style still makes self-proclaimed emo kids just a tiny bit jealous.
Getty Images2/21November 2007: Glossy Copper
As Paramore quickly becomes a chart-topping band, Williams trades her shaggy, neon yellow and orange style for a toned-down copper hue paired with front-facing bangs. It won't last very long, but that doesn't make it any less cute.
Getty Images3/21February 2008: Burgundy With Pink Streaks
Paramore make their first-ever Grammy Awards appearance (and score the nomination for best new artist). Williams walks the red carpet with a burgundy hair color and florescent red streaks. It's by far the most head-turning hair look of the night.
Getty Images4/21December 2008: Dark Brown With Red Bangs
Williams wears her signature bright-orange hair color for most of the 2008 but ends the year with a totally new style: dark brown hair with choppy red bangs. Because even when she's wearing a natural-looking hair color, she's has to put her own bold twist on it.
Getty Images5/21July 2009: Signature Neon Orange
Williams quickly returns to her signature orange hair in 2009, this time forgoing her blonde and yellow streaks in favor of one high-impact shade. With the longer layers and side-swept bangs, this is essentially an upgraded version of the hair that made Williams's a pop-punk beauty icon to begin with.
Getty Images6/21September 2009: Strawberry Blonde
As Paramore release Brand New Eyes, their third studio album, Williams lets her high-impact orange dye fade out to this pretty strawberry blonde. To give it more dimension, she also opts for roots that are slightly darker.
Getty Images7/21December 2009: Platinum Blonde
Though Williams has a very light natural hair color, Paramore fans can't help but feel shocked when she reveals this platinum blonde shade at the end of 2009. This time, her cool blonde hue is very temporary — but little do fans know, it'll be back for the long run in the future.
Getty Images8/21January 2010: Red-Orange Choppy Bob
Williams rings in the new year in 2010 by cutting her hair into a short, choppy bob with mid-length bangs. Much to fans' delight, she also revives her beloved orange hair, this time with deeper red undertones.
Getty Images9/21September 2010: Color-Blocked Updo
At the 2010 MTV Music Video Awards, Williams reveals one of her most adventurous hair looks to date: a color-blocked combination of red, yellow, and orange shades, all separated by a twisted updo. The longer she wears these colors after this appearance, the more they blend into one seamless orange shade.
Getty Images10/21November 2010: Vivid Bubblegum Pink
Williams appears with pink hair for the first time ever at the 2010 MTV Europe Music Awards. She pairs the bright bubblegum hue with blunt-cut bangs, out-of-this-world volume, and a full metallic makeup look.
Getty Images11/21December 2010: Neon Orange With Front-Facing Bangs
Williams returns yet again to a red-orange shade, and it's somehow even more neon than it ever has been. At this point, she's also totally mastered the art of the front-facing fringe.
Getty Images12/21June 2011: Yellow Roots
Before Billie Eilish made it cool for 2020, Williams had neon-colored roots in 2011. After her red-orange shade began growing out, she simply had her roots lightened and put a yellow dye in their place.
Getty Images13/21April 2013: Two-Toned Pink and Orange
After four long years, Paramore finally release their fourth studio album, Paramore. Williams kicks off the so-called Self-Titled era with baby bangs and two-tone hair dye in her signature neon orange plus bubblegum pink.
Getty Images14/21August 2013: Muted Orange With Blunt-Cut Bob
Over the summer, Williams's hair does a disappearing act, resulting in this blunt, ear-length bob with a hidden undercut. Though it's still in her signature hair color, it's a style Paramore fans had never expected to see on her.
Getty Images15/21May 2014: Mixed Yellows and Turquoise
While touring with Paramore's self-titled album, Williams tries a very unique color combination of warm yellow and blue-green hair colors. It's an unexpectedly harmonious combination.
Getty Images16/21July 2014: Full Turquoise
As her undercut and bob grow out, Hayley goes full turquoise for the summer. It's the first and only time she ever wears blue hair in public, and we're low-key hoping she brings it back someday.
Getty Images17/21September 2014: Light Auburn
Williams makes an expected yet wholly welcomed return to red hair, this time with a more neutral auburn shade. Paired with her chin-length bob and textured waves, it's one of Williams's best color choices to date.
Getty Images18/21December 2014: Red And Pink Ombre
Hair colors don't usually last long for Williams, which is why it's no surprise that she quickly traded her copper hair for a true red. The last time she wore a red this dark, it was paired with bright pink streaks — this time, it blends into neon coral at the ends.
Getty Images19/21May 2017: Platinum Blonde (Again)
After a long break from making new music, Paramore release After Laughter, the last album they'll release before Williams begins experimenting as a solo act. To mark the occasion, she dyes her grown-out hair platinum blonde once again.
Getty Images20/21August 2019: Natural Dirty Blonde
In the summer of 2019, Williams makes one of her most shocking hair choices yet: the choice to wear her natural hair color, a warm dirty blonde. To add her own flair to it, she slathers her hair with her own brand's temporary hair color pastes.
Getty Images21/21February 2020: Two-Tone Blonde and Brown
Just before Williams begins releasing her first-ever solo songs, she tiptoes back into the hair dye world with this two-toned blonde and brunette color. She pairs it with a long, shaggy cut because, as always, Williams is ahead of the curve when it comes to hair.
