Before we get to the context of this, check out ADELE. Our Adele. Adele Adkins, the Adele who used to be a redhead. Adele who cried singing “Someone Like You” live in front of an audience at the BRIT Awards. We’ve gotten glimpses of Adele’s makeover several times over the past two years, but I thought the makeover just involved her significant weight loss. But it looks as if Adele has changed her hair (and her face!) as she’s lost weight. Who would have thought all those years ago that Adele would one day move to California, drop some serious weight and go blonde. And it looks like she has a weird perm now too. What is that?? Adele has always had straight-ish red hair. I don’t even know anymore.
As for the context of this photo – Adele was watching Black Is King on Disney-plus. Somehow, she has a matching top, worn by Beyonce in the movie/art-piece. Did Beyonce send it to her? Possibly/probably. Bey and Adele are quite friendly, although I think it’s more like “mutual respect between two A-list singers” rather than Beyonce and Adele being BFFs who hang out regularly. But Adele really does worship Bey (she’s totally a member of the Hive) and I could see Beyonce sending her this top.
Some people are claiming that Adele has lost close to 100 pounds, which… I don’t think it’s that much. She lost weight consistently after giving birth to her son, and then she went on a diet ahead of her tour for 25. My point is that she’s been losing weight consistently for years, probably with some backsliding and weight gains here and there, but things didn’t get this drastic until the past two years. I think it’s more like she’s lost about 50 pounds over the past two years. Which is still remarkable.
.@Adele rocks matching outfit to @Beyonce’s from #BlackIsKing. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/JY0Z3Z6WCd
— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) August 1, 2020
Photos courtesy of Adele’s IG.
Could be that this is her natural hair and she’s always straightened it?
Yes, most likely. “Weird perm” — okay. It’s annoying when people deride naturally curly hair.
This looks like the texture she had as a child which is also coloured to be close to her childhood hair colour as well. http://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/photos-from-adeles-childhood-family-album-753828.amp
I love Adele. That’s all from me!
Ummm yeah as a naturally curly haired person that weird perm comment stung a bit. This looks like her natural hair. The curl is slightly more intense at the top which makes me think this is her natural hair texture. A perm would be more uniform and straighter at the roots. Maybe her diet is making her more comfortable with her natural hair?
I agree that curl derision is annoying — waves, curls, and coils are spectacular, and it took me a looooong time to come to terms with that for my own hair, so I’m *extra* in love with them now. But I’ve also seen a plethora of “Perms are Back!” articles over the last month or so, so I could see someone thinking this is a perm-and-rod style. I think it looks natural and really good, though. Very beachy. She should wear it like this more often.
I didn’t say anything about naturally curly hair. This is not naturally curly hair.
As someone who grew up with straight hair, but now has very wavy hair…she does look like she has a weird perm, especially since she was always seen with straight hair. I didn’t sense any derision toward people with curly hair at all. Honestly, people have to stop taking offense where none was intended.
I assumed it was a perm too. Not as any knock at people with wavy or curly hair.
I have straight hair as an adult and had the same curly hair when grown out as Adele did in her child years.
Her now uniformed waves are not at all similar to what she had outside of her very young years. Or at any point in photos during her career or random paps.
Just my 2 cents
Whether or not she has had a perm or this is her natural hair, the phrase “weird perm” makes it sound like her hair is wrong, silly, laughable, not good, too different. And then other people with the same curly hair, including those whose natural hair looks like this, feel like they’re also being told they have weird, wrong, silly, laughable, not good, or too different hair.
She has natural wave to her hair but this looks like she was wearing it in two Dutch braids and took them out leaving her with cute waves.
My hair has turned into a similar wave pattern as I’ve gotten older, could be a mix of natural plus styling as mentioned by MISSM?
1. Adele looks amazing
2. She is def a bey Stan….. And rightfully so black is king is amazing
Maybe that’s what her hair looks like without blow drying? I went years (more like decades) blowing out my hair because it was poofy and frizzy when it dried naturally until I discovered the curly girl method. That’s what my hair looks like now when I don’t blow dry and apply the proper oils/product.
Anyway, she does look like a completely different person now, and had I not seen this pic from Adele’s own IG, I would have been like “Harpo, who dis woman?” too.
I also think she is just using the curly hair method to restore her natural hair. No issues with that though.
Same; I forever wanted a straight, blunt bob and just wasn’t going to happen. Moved across the country and new stylist taught me to embrace my natural wave/curl and more importantly how to care for it, ie curlygirl method.
Now I have to go watch “The Color Purple” for the 25th time 😊
Me, too, Regina! I gave up the blow dryer about 12 years ago and discovered I actually love my cur;y hair. Also, my hair is much healthier, because in trying to tame that frizz by straightening it, I was in fact, making it frizzier. Nowadays we can buy a nice serum or whatever to condition the ends and tame the frizzies, so what we are left with are lovely curls. My very best friend’s hair is even curlier than mine, and people who don’t know us think we’re sisters, which we love!
I can’t put my finger on it, but her face is different. Maybe just the weight lost changed her features?
I agree. If they didn’t say this was Adele, I never would have known. Her face does look different. Maybe it’s from all the weight loss. Although, I think it looks like she had a bit of work done on her face. Regardless, she looks amazing!!!
I think she looks so different because it’s a combo of many changes on top of her weight loss. She looks like she’s going for a more natural make up look along with tanning, I think she styles her brows differently and has a different hair and color. She could be in the witness protection program but live in plain sight since she looks so different.
I don’t know about surgery but the make up and brows are different for sure . Made me realize she wore a lot of make up , fake lashes etc. She’s young and young looking regardless but now looks a lot younger
Those brows are throwing me off completely. I can see her in there, just barely, beneath those things. And of course she has lost a lot of weight and her hair is completely diff from how we’ve always seen her, but she still has her nails!
I thought her face looked different until I did an image search. Her face is the same, just thinner. It’s the lack of heavy eye make up and strong lip that is throwing everyone off. It’s the brows and the hair that have changed. Her face looks pretty much the same. You can find photos of her at this weight but made up and she looks the same.
Re: weight dramatically changing a person’s face
It can happen. I’ve known several people who got morbidly obese, had a health scare, then lost ALL the extra weight. Even “cute” weight they had been carrying since childhood, so they are now the skinniest they’ve ever been and have completely different cheeks and smiles, eyes and eyebrow shapes, etc., compared to how they’ve been their whole lives.
It can look like they had plastic surgery, but, LOL, all my people are poor like me so that ain’t it. Plus, I would have known they were hiding out from all of us for weeks while they let the bruises heal, and that didn’t happen. We saw them throughout their weight loss all the time.
Given that Adele now looks like she could be her own teenaged little sister, I think this is what happened unless we get some MUCH better evidence she went under the scalpel. (Which, of course, isn’t beyond the realm of possibility. SoCal can do a real number on you mentally when you are surrounded by big eyed, waxy faced blondes all the time.)
On reddit they call it “face gains,” and it’s fascinating to see the before and after pics people post. Some people look basically the same, and some look like they are in a remake of “Face/Off”.
A lot of it is your bone structure. People with more angular faces will look radically different thin than when they’re heavier. If you’re like me and have a more heart shaped/softer cheeked look, then your face will merely get rounder but not necessarily significantly different in appearance.
It’s difficult to tell with celebs if they’ve had work done, unless they’re older and we know that can’t possibly look the way they do without “help”. She’s still pretty young so it just could be the weight loss. When my daughter was in kindergarten, her teacher carried more extra weight than Adele ever did. She had such a pretty face, was always impeccablely groomed (curly, scrunched hair!) and wore such great clothes. She was only there for another year before being placed at another school. About three years later, a friend was also played at that school. One day she told me to buy a certain women’s magazine,as the old kindy teacher was in there. Sure enough, there she was, although she was unrecognisable. It was a story about the state winners of a competition by a certain weight-loss company (lets just say they didn’t use double w initials at the time). She had lost at least half her body weight and ditched the shoulder-length curly hair. Now she was thin, with a short, sharper, no-curl haircut and just looked like a completely different person Had my friend not alerted me or the young woman’s name under the photo, I would’t have believed it. Also, she wore the same, heavy, gold charm bracelet. She was about the age Adele is now, so it is hard to tell, but wouldn’t come as any surprised if she’s had a bit of help, too.
It’s not only the effect of hair but the change in make up. She used to wear really heavy make up, whether here, it seems she is wearing only brows.
I don’t really like how she’s doing her brows now. Maybe I just need to get used to it though, she looks so different all together
The brows are no good. I don’t understand why they are like that. She has good taste for pretty much everything and looks great now and before but why would she have her brows like that is beyond me
The straight across (fox) brow is pretty trendy right now in certain places, but I wonder if it’s more striking because she’s lightened her typical eye and face makeup?
This is a me problem though, not a her problem. She still looks lovey and very happy.
I fully support women doing what makes them feel good about themselves but I think it’s sad that so often the result is conformity – thin and blond. It makes me sad though because most women are already beautiful in their own unique way.
I agree, she was gorgeous and sensuous.
As someone who is currently heavier than I should be and than I’m ‘used to’ being, (Gained weight around age 30) personally being heavier feels worse physically and makes many things more difficult. Even if I don’t look in the mirror I don’t feel as good as I did before. So vanity and conformity aside it’s not surprising that people with resources would devote them to things that feel good.
Agree. I live in Florida near a rich tourist area and the standard look is thin, blonde, pleated skirts. It’s played out imo.
Same. I understand getting healthier but the trade off she was so unique and such a positive influence for others before as someone with a such a different look. She was always very regal with her red tresses and how she styled them, her wardrobe choices, and not being a cookie cuter size. She was iconic before, now she looks like every blonde Instagram influencer. Nothing really distinct.
It’s a little disappointing. We need more variety in the world, especially in those who are in the spotlight and exulted positions that people look up to.
Having maybe the greatest voice in music today being curvy and (at that point) still out there and unashamed of it was a big deal.
After her weightloss last year, she was left with a bit of loose skin on her face. So I think she may have had some work done to tighten up her face, and that’s why she looks so different.
Anyway, she looks beautiful. I truly hope that she is happy and healthy.
Maybe but maybe not. She’s young, skin is very elastic and likely adjusted; I’m a lot older and lost 74 pounds through VSG, the only loose skin (above the shoulders) is the neck.
Everybody regardless of age reacts differently to weight loss and our skin is our biggest organ. It’s possible for someone young to lose weight and seek help with loose skin.
I literally have no idea if that’s case with Adele. But don’t assume someone’s skin elasticity will be similar to yours even if they are younger.
She’s morphed into 1970s Carole King. It’s a great look for Adele.
My fear with all of this is that scientific studies have shown that dieting doesn’t work. Very, very, very few people lose a significant amount of weight and keep it off – our bodies have set points where they like to settle at and attempting to *drastically* change that through diet and exercise is setting you up for failure.
What happens if she gains some or all of the weight back? She will always remember everything telling her how ‘amazing’ she looked when she was a completely different size, even though she was stunning before.
And to be honest, I feel uncomfortable in general with the ease at which society comments on female bodies… we don’t know what we’re complimenting when we compliment someone’s weight loss. They could be sick, grieving, they could have an eating disorder. We just don’t know.
I don’t know how she lost the weight, but it might not have been from a specific diet, but perhaps eating more healthily and working out? That’s the only way (for me personally) to lose weight consistently and keep it off). I agree that very restrictive diets set you up for failure long-term.
“we don’t know what we’re complimenting when we compliment someone’s weight loss. They could be sick, grieving, they could have an eating disorder. We just don’t know.”
So much this. My weight has gone up and down over the years, and there’s nothing like being told how great I looked when I was unhealthy. It’s just as bad as tut-tutting over fatness.
I’ve kind of aged out of it, thankfully, but it always made me cringe. I spent two years in yoga pants because it’s really hard to find size 14, and there were other times when, yes, I could have used a cheeseburger as they say. Just be happy I don’t tell you why I can’t, hmm? I have a damn mirror!
Beyond that, others’ opinion of my weight (big or small, positive or negative) is none of my damn business. People need to STFU. Tell me that you like my earrings or my outfit, ask how I am, but FFS, please refrain from commenting on my body. I know what I look like and I don’t want to hear about it! It’s hard enough to deal with life without being scriutinized all the time.
Adele has always been gorgeous in my book. I admire her a lot.
Your words are very relatable to me, SomeChick.
I’m with you Iris. I don’t ever comment on peoples weight and don’t like it when people comment on mine. Also very true that long term weight loss it hard to maintain.we’re now seeing people who under went gastric bypass gain back a significant amount of weight so that isn’t the panacea we thought it was.
I wish Adele well but no comment on her weight from me.
Also I think the reports that she lost 100 lbs are true.
She did say a few years ago that she gave up the sugar in her tea, which was a lot I think, plus several cups of it a day. If she continued to do that, plus added more changes, it’s totally possible.
And I never have commented on her weight really either (except to say that it’s noticeable!). Lots of people lose it and then it comes bouncing back because fat is it’s own organ and it will defend itself to the death!
My guess is that she had a gastric band. No hate or shade but for anyone her size to lose so much weight so quickly, it’s the only explication. She always been big Even when she has lost weight before, so it’s not like she yo yo diets to this extreme. Good for her.
It’s not at all true that dieting doesn’t work. The problem is usually that people view it as a diet and not a lifestyle change so when they reach their goal weight, they go back to their old habits and gain it all back. If you see a nutritionist, they make it very clear that it’s not a diet, it’s a lifestyle change. If you can make the change and have the self control to maintain it, you’ll be fine. My dad lost 200lbs over the course of 4 years because he made the lifestyle change and he is disabled so that was all diet. He probably would have dropped the weight faster if he could have exercised more. Hes kept it off too.
Thanks MISSM – I am on the journey of life style change not dieting. I am half way there and your note gave me more inspiration. I am glad to hear about your da.
Yeah, I agree with that. I’ve been bigger and smaller and either way, people had something to say, it’s just tiring. And then all my girlfriends are constantly doing various things to lose weight. My friend who gained weight and is now a us size 4 was saying she’s getting fat. My size 10 to 12 does not really appreciate comments like that. I just want to roll my eyes but it’s my friend so I don’t.
I think Abbey Sharpe’s new YouTube series on Intuitive Eating frames these issues really well. She’s a registered dietitian and follows the HAES (Health at every size) model.
Besides the weight loss and hair I think it could be her eyebrows making her look so different. They look so dark against her hair
And looking at her signature eye look, I’m guessing having almost no (or no) makeup on her eye in this shot is just really different.
The brows are off-to dark and needs a different shape.
If she feels great good for her-I thought she was stunning before and didn’t need to change.
If the caption didn’t say Adele, I would have thought it was some Real Wives cast member. Maybe a minority opinion, but I thought she looked so beautiful before with red hair and some weight on her.
Wow-I don’t think she has that “fake” Real Wives look at all.
She looks like a completely different person – and it’s not simply the weight. When she first arrived on the scene I thought she looked to be around 40. Now, she looks significantly younger.
40??? GTFO! She looked like a baby when she first came out.
Really? I think she looks about 38 right now, but much younger a few years ago. Significant weight loss can age a person, but lighter eyebrows would probably make her look her actual age. That shade is too harsh for her.
I would be relishing in the anonymity if I was her, not posting what I look like lols.
I did NOT recognise her!
I know! If she didn’t post the photos, she could go anywhere and not be recognized. Of course we can’t go anywhere now so…
I just came here to say that. If you showed me this photo without telling me it’s Adele, I wouldn’t know that’s her. It must be nice for her, being one of the most famous singers in the world, to be able to go out and not be recognized and approached by fans.
I was trying to figure out who Adele reminded me of in the photo – Kate Winslet – I finally realized
I’m thinking Sarah Paulson!
I got a young Glen Close vibe as well
Cressida bonas? Piper Chapman? I’m lost
Adele has true talent, writes her own songs, can belt out a great tune without 95 backup dancers half dressed on stage, I am a fan!
Good for her, takes a lot of work to get and keep weight off, I bet she has tons of energy now.
I’m not sure what it is about her new look, maybe side part on her hair would be more flattering? I do not like the yellow-y blonde color at all. Not on anyone, I if was ruling the hair color business I would banish the crayon yellow shade forever.
IMO, that brown moon pattern is ugly. On anybody.
Adele, turn out a new album with some happy songs for a change, take my money.
Karl Lagerfeld publicly bullied Adele for her weight. And oftentimes public discourse about her singing talent is conflated with opinions on her body.
Perhaps training & losing weight was all about empowerment for her during a breakup. Maybe it’s a response to living in a new place with rigid beauty standards. Perhaps working with a trainer helped her reclaim her body after having offensive commentary made about it publicly.
I thinks it’s important to acknowledge how many much she was body shamed by the media when discussing her size.
Also her curls are beautiful! As a curly haired womxn I love seeing other ladies with curls (natural or otherwise)
That’s really too bad. I thought (think) she was (is) stunningly beautiful and talented.
Good point. Jameela Jamil isn’t my favorite person and is problematic herself, but she wasn’t wrong about Karl Lagerfeld. He had a history of being misogynistic and racist.
To be fair I know other people made gross comments about Adele. Cuz it made me feel bad about my own body by extension so it sticks in my mind.
Once I found how much of a misogynist & racist Karl was his hideous designs made sense. He was incapable of designing an outfit that showcase a womxn’s natural beauty. His misogynior limited his creativity and contributed to toxic sexist commentary especially about black womxn.
Anyhow TLDR I think it’s inappropriate for me to comment on Adele’s weight. Beyond acknowledging that she was publicly bullied for her size. And I’m just grateful she didn’t develop an eating disorder.
Her lack of her signature eye makeup (black liquid cat eyeliner) changes her face up quite a bit. She looks great no matter what.
Oh man, I do not like that hair colour on her at all. The red was gorgeous, this is so brassy and (imo) so unflattering. But wowza on the weight loss, she looks like a whole new person.
I always thought of Adele as blonde…where are y’all getting that she had red hair?
Same, never saw her as a redhead
I could have sworn she was a redhead too, huh
I’ve never seen her as anything other than a redhead. A friend and I were raving over how beautiful she is and what a gorgeous shade of red her hair was. Never knew she was a blonde.
https://pin.it/4cBmtA0
Chillywilly more reddy brown than blonde for sure. This I like. The in your face blonde I dislike.
I like the hair color and the curls, just not the eyebrows.
She looks healthy and happy. I’m glad for her 🙂
She looks really great and happy. That’s all I will say about her appearance because I wouldn’t want people to comment on mine either.
I loved Adele’s look prior, but she didn’t ask for my opinion. 😃 As long as she keeps singing, I’m good!
She looks well and happy – she’s just not wearing as much make-up as she usually does and seems to be embracing her naturally curly hair. The eyebrows are a tad much, but otherwise she’s lovely.
I’m glad that I’m not a woman in the public eye. Even greatly loved the way that they get picked apart for any change in their appearance is troubling.
People are exaggerating. She looks like herself just thinner and the lighter hair and no cat eye and big brows and quarantine look is getting you all confused.
I think she’s totally recognizable. I am a big woman – bigger than she was back then, and I’ve been thinner and it you put my pics side by side from now and then i look quite different. You can still tell it’s me.
Happy for her. She seems very happy now. I hope I can also make myself lose some weight and be happy like that one day…
Hasn’t she been blonde for some years now?? I don’t even remember her with red hair.
Same actually.
She reminds me of Kate Winslet in this photo.
I love her, LUFF HER, but doesn’t she have a girlfriend who will take her aside and talk to her about those eyebrows? She has the face of a Botticelli goddess with LA brows. Honey, no.
Weird Perm – if only straight haired people understood……
Just looking at the comments…Someone had mentioned they never mentioned someones weight loss because anything could cause it, including grief, stress, illness.
I want to personally say Thank You to this person for this comment.
Years back, I went thru a very bad time. How odd and hurtful it was to me to have co-workers and neighbors notice my weight loss with “God, you have lost weight. You look great. Good for you!” Hurtful and cruel comments because I was losing weight due to serious trauma and was under the care of 2 doctors at the time to function at all.
I can recall thinking “STFU! Is my being a size 10 my only value in life?”
No one commenting on my weight loss seemed to notice the heartbreak on my face or dead eyed stare, I remember that clearly.
Kindness, it is free and should be easy to give. 🙂
Hear, hear! I never understood that compliment. Sure, if you know someone has been working at losing weight, that’s one thing. But I still think bodies should only be brought up by the person who is in them. There are so many more interesting things to talk about, and it just reinforces unfortunate beauty standards.
Well said. My mom lost so much weight because of insomnia and depression, and everyone was just complimenting her on how much “better” she now looked. I remember her telling me it made her feel horrible. Just don’t comment on people’s appearance ffs.
She looked beautiful before.
She looks beautiful now (I just think she should change her eyebrows.)
As others have said, Adele was beautiful before and she’s beautiful now. But it’s kind of like Jennifer Grey after her nose job; she looks like a completely different person.
If she’s happy with it good for her. I find all this speculation and discussion of her body gross.
I could believe 100 pounds, to be honest. Adele’s 5’9″ and has curves on her. Easy to carry a lot of weight well at that height. I’m 5’7″ and have wide hips and a big bust. Generally, people are shocked when I tell them what I weigh. Hopefully, her weight loss was intentional and not a result of something less flattering.
I think the angle and brows are generally changing her face, but it’s also the hair. My features look different when I straighten my hair versus when I put it out or let the waviness and curl out. But frankly, I also just don’t think this blonde is exceptionally flattering on her. It may work when she straightens it, but when you have curl, you have to be mindful of how the light will capture on it differently.
Uhhh she probably just has naturally curly hair that she straightens. Nothing “weird” about it.
If she has type 2C hair and is using product to define it during lockdown instead of getting blowouts, this could absolutely be her natural hair.
It could also be a cute 🙂 perm.
This new Adele looks like Casey Cobb. Especially with the curly hair.