"Fresh" and "new" are the words we'll use to describe Rihanna's braided hairstyles throughout her career.
Maybe you also fell in love with Rihanna's style for the very first time during the music video for "Pon de Replay" (because who could forget that end-credit dance montage from "Bring It On: All or Nothing"?). In the 17 years since her debut single dropped, her look has evolved and grown into icon status — and we don't use that word lightly. Rihanna has pulled off everything from layered bangs to a MySpace-era striped dye job and even an edgy mullet, but there's one style that has us screenshotting time and time again: Rihanna in braids.
"Her focus, intelligence, beauty, strength, and sex appeal are intensified when she wears one of my custom braided styles," says Naphia White, a Brooklyn-based hairstylist who has worked with the star for more than a decade. "Rihanna is 100 percent involved with the design of her hair and her overall vibe. It's a collaboration. We work together, creating fresh new hairstyles that are displayed to the world."
