Did you know that the Mullet Haircut has made a sudden comeback?
The pandemic struck in 2020 and with it brought back Fashion's most controversial haircut. Now, style can be – among other things – a way for individuals to express the influence of the external world. It makes perfect sense and should not come has a surprise, then, that the definitive beauty trend of the previous year – one of the most chaotic and traumatic years in global memory – is the resurgence of one of the most reviled and lampooned haircuts in modern history: the mullet. The long in the back, short on the top-and-sides look has made a powerful and poetic comeback during the coronavirus pandemic, (like the virus itself) and what’s more shows no signs of leaving us soon. Here is then highlighting a few facts of this unique yet controversial hairstyle that has once again become a trend.
a. The humble beginnings of the Mullet haircut in an Ancient world:
Although it's largely agreed that the mullet's first surge of popularity in the 20th Century was thanks to Paul McCartney (who debuted the look as early as 1972) and glam rock icon David Bowie – or as he was better known in his red mullet, Ziggy Stardust – there has been speculation that the mullet has a more ancient history. As a matter of fact, the first mention of a similar style is in the Iliad, when Homer describes a group of spearman as having "their forelocks cropped, hair grown long at the backs." Additionally, In his Secret History, the 6th-Century Byzantine scholar Procopius wrote about chariot race hooligans in Ancient Rome: "The hair of their heads they cut off in front back to the temples, leaving the part behind to hang down to a very great length in a senseless fashion."
b. The Mullet hairstyle gaining popularity along with notoriety :
Saying the mullet fell out of style in the mid-90s is a dramatic understatement; it was condemned as perhaps the most tragic fashion faux pas of the decade. During this period the cut (which is known by countless other monikers, like hockey hair, the bi-level, the Kentucky waterfall and so on) finally earned the name by which we know it today, thanks to the musical group, Beastie Boys. In their now defunct magazine Grand Royal, they attacked the style in a six-page feature. The story reads: "There's nothing quite as bad as a bad haircut. And perhaps the worst haircut of all is the cut we call The Mullet." Throughout the 2000s, the mullet remained the butt of many jokes, but its status as the "ultimate bad haircut" instilled it with a unique power that enticed progressives in the fashion industry.
c.The Mullet finally rising like a phoenix from the ashes during the lockdown:
The process of adjustment was expedited during the 2020 pandemic. Lack of access to salons required many people to take their hair into their own hands; shaggier, looser styles have become a matter of practicality. Extensive periods of social isolation are also ideal conditions for beauty experiments. With nowhere to go and no one to please, the stakes in trying out something drastic like a mullet have never been lower. "I have been cutting mullets for years, but what has changed... is the attitude," Richards said. "When it comes to my clients' relationship with their hair, everyone's braver and willing for a change."
While its connotations with queerness and androgyny are still very potent, the mullet's associations with a rejection of mainstream beauty are fading, as it grows in popularity. "It used to be a real Marmite thing," Vial explains. "You either found it repugnant or you loved it. But now we don't think twice when we see a mullet." Early adopter Rob Ayton, who got a mullet back in 2017, said he intended for his haircut to be a "middle finger to social norms". As the reigning champion of Australia's Mulletfest, Ayton says the style he used to be incessantly ridiculed for is now cause for global celebration. And though the mullet may no longer be shocking per-se, it has certainly retained its ironic humour. When asked if he supports the growth of the trend, Ayton replies: "We need more smiling faces [in] 2021!".