In our world, the answer to “Should I change my hair?” is always yes. Chop it off, add extensions, dye it pink, get bangs, or go blonder than you’ve ever been before. The point is, mixing it up is fun—as you can tell by any of the celebrities in this gallery. Some of them transform their look every season, others have a new color every week. No matter the change, though, it always leaves us talking. Ahead, the biggest celebrity hair transformations that dominated the headlines over the past year.

In 2019, pretty much anyone and anything can become Internet famous. I mean, an egg beat out Kylie Jenner for the most-liked Instagram photo ever. So when I recently compared a body wash to an influencer at work, everyone shook their head, nodding in agreement. Crazier things have been said, but you know what, I wasn’t wrong.

Shortly after its release last November, Nécessaire The Body Wash was everywhere. As I scrolled through my Instagram feed it felt impossible to avoid a photo of a yellowy-orange bottle propped up next to a single lit Diptyque candle, living together in bougie self-care bath routine unity.

What struck me the most about The Body Wash was the fact that I had never before seen anyone photograph their body wash quite like this. I, for one, have only ever used Dove body wash and that’s for no other reason than I don’t know what else to use. I don’t ever think about body wash at all ever. It’s just an errand—something I pick up at CVS when I run out. And for that reason, I’ve never, ever thought to Instagram it. If anything I always hide my showering products away whenever I take a picture or my friends come over to my apartment. My feelings towards body wash can best be described as the complete and total opposite of how people feel about something like Glossier: apathetic.

So when I saw everyone willingly showing off Nécessaire as if it were Boy Brow or Drunk Elephant (key elements in every Instagram girl’s top shelf and vanity photos), I really wanted in. I bought a bottle in Sandalwood and after my first shower with it I immediately understood where everyone was coming from. I didn’t just want to photograph it, I wanted to write a love letter to it.

For one, the smell is light, beautiful, and undeniably soothing. I shower with a branch of eucalyptus hanging from my showerhead and the sandalwood scent definitely adds to the spa-like atmosphere I’m trying to accomplish. One of Nécessaire’s co-founders, Randi Christiansen, has actually described the smell as “sexual.” She’s right, and the sexy smell definitely made me feel confident like no other body wash has ever done when I was massaging the foam into my skin.

Speaking of skin, mine felt incredible right after I used it. This was also a new sensation, since I typically don’t feel any longterm after effects from the body washes I’ve tried in the past. I just always assume they’re getting the job done. That wasn’t the case with Nécessaire, which made my skin feel so clean, so moisturized, and so hydrated. It became evident why when I flipped over the bottle to read the ingredients.

Nécessaire’s body wash uses gentle plant-derived surfactants instead of harsher, frothier alternatives. The formula doesn’t have sulfates, parabens, or synthetic dyes. Instead, all you’ll find is vitamins and pure essential oils (like sandalwood). Obviously the branding is also pretty (hence all the Instagram photos), but a maybe underrated detail is the simple lid design. There is no loose cap or hard-to-open flip top. You just turn and squeeze the bottle, which helps me not over-pour and waste product.

Christiansen and Nick Axelrod, Nécessaire’s other co-founder (who originally co-founded the cult beauty site Into the Gloss), started Nécessaire because they wanted a body care (and also sex care) brand that felt like a necessity and not an after-thought. Considering I now look forward to using it every night (while also occasionally propping it up against my bathroom vase for a photo opp), I think it’s safe to say they succeeded.

Nordstrom

Nécessaire The Body Wash

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Tara Gonzalez is the commerce editor at Glamour. Follow her at @tarigonzalez on Instagram.

Last Sunday, I, along with 17.4 million other viewers, tuned in to the premiere of the final season of Game of Thrones. I didn’t cosplay for the occasion, but I did wear something special—a silver ring, with a braided, adjustable band and a wolf crest. From a distance, it’s not unlike the stackable jewelry you see any fashion person (or Meghan Markle) wearing. But if you look closely (and are a fan of Game of Thrones), you’ll recognize the House Stark sigil on its face.

The ring is from a collaboration between HBO and jewelry brand Alex & Ani, and it’s one of several Game of Thrones-inspired collections that have come out in the lead-up to the final season. There are Adidas sneakers, John Varvatos T-shirts, and even Urban Decay makeup palettes. And it’s not just the Seven Kingdoms inspiring big-name brands.

Alex & Ani

Alex & Ani Game of Thrones Stark Signet Adjustable Ring

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When Star Wars: The Last Jedi was released in 2017, it was met with limited-edition capsules from Rag & Bone, ASOS, Clarks, and many others. Coach is a frequent Disney collaborator, creating apparel and accessories embroidered with characters from different franchises. Opening Ceremony’s Spring 2018 collection was inspired by Mickey Mouse—and debuted at Disneyland in California. Alex & Ani has a page for all of its collaborations, called Official Fan Collection, where you can buy pieces inspired by Harry Potter, Wonder Woman, and, yes, Game of Thrones.

Now, these partnerships are first and foremost a canny business move. The Wall Street Journal reported that HBO’s cumulative marketing partnerships for the final season of Game of Thrones are valued at $20 million. Fans of the show number in the millions, and they’re hyped for new episodes after a two-year hiatus. There’s a sense of nostalgia, too, knowing that the current season is its last, so the fans will commemorate it, and the checks will come in. It’s a matter of going where the money is—with a little help from licensing agreements and legal fees.

Coach

Disney x Coach Kisslock Frame Pouch With Disney Motif

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But as an avid fan, it’s more than just another way to support the shows I love.

I care about how I dress—I always have. I also get really invested in certain franchises: Outlander, Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, I could go on. In the past, I’d want to combine the two, but I’d look at the merch that was available and be disappointed. I couldn’t justify spending the money on gimmicky pieces I couldn’t see myself wearing outside of the house or to a meet-up. I was so fed up with it, I started creating my own fan gear, transcribing my favorite quotes or symbols from a series onto blank T-shirts. Still, I wanted something a little bit more legitimate, something I’d feel proud investing in and could get excited about.

Fast-forward to 2019: Whenever a big-budget project with an established fandom premieres, I can expect a handful of inspired-by collections to drop with it. Finally, as both parties have wised up to the big business opportunity at the intersection of fashion and fandom, I have access to merch that looks and feels cool, not costume-y. I’ve graduated from DIY T-shirts and pins to sleek denim jackets and sophisticated leather bags, and it’s super validating. It legitimizes to me that fashion and fandom aren’t mutually exclusive.

The numbers show that the customer is there: The International Licensing Industry Merchandisers’ Association (LIMA)’s report on the global licensing industry for 2016 revealed that spending on licensed merchandise was up by 4.4 percent and valued at $262.9 billion, according to Deadline. More than half of those sales came from the U.S. and Canada, the group found.

Interestingly, what’s happening in movies right now reflects this. There have been not one, not two, but four films to come out in recent months that explore the psyche of female music stars. First there was A Star Is Born, in which Lady Gaga plays Ally, an aspiring singer who achieves supersonic fame at a devastating cost. Two months later there was Vox Lux, a gripping drama about a pop star, Celeste (Natalie Portman), staging a comeback after years of well-documented struggles.

Today, April 19, two more were released. Teen Spirit stars Elle Fanning as Violet, a young girl plucked from obscurity for a singing competition. Her Smell is an indie film about the self-destruction of a female rock star named Becky Something (Elisabeth Moss).

They’re not easy movies to watch. Three of these four characters have narratives eerily similar to Spears’, though it’s unfair to assume she was a direct inspiration. Becky Something and Celeste have full-blown emotional breakdowns in public. Violet goes clubbing one night to alleviate stress and winds up partying too hard. The only one who doesn’t quite fit is Ally, but the vulnerability she exudes in A Star Is Born‘s final scene has shades of 2007 Britney. The difference: Britney was crucified for showing weakness back then while Ally is applauded. Literally.

Elle Fanning and Max Minghella, the director of Teen Spirit, point to a few reasons why we’re getting several pop-star films in a row. Minghella thinks they might be a response to another popular music movie. “The success of La La Land has given people the confidence to green-light projects I think they’d been hesitant to for a long time,” he explains. “There was never an appetite for [Teen Spirit] to be made until La La Land did OK.”

Fanning, however, sees a more historical explanation for the trend. “Watching someone’s rise to stardom is very cinematic,” she says. “It’s a story that’s always going to be told in one way or another.” Even so, “There’s something really magical about it. It’s weird three or four filmmakers all came up with the idea to do [music movies]. Obviously there’s something in the atmosphere.”

For my part, I don’t think it’s a coincidence these movies are coming out now, a time when our culture is kinder to not just flawed pop stars but flawed women in general. We still have a long way to go, of course. As Sady Doyle, the author of Trainwreck: The Women We Love to Hate, Mock, and Fear…and Why, tells Glamour, “All of us are raised to believe that we have the right to judge and control women’s lives and decisions. That is a perfect recipe for mob hatred and punitive vigilante cruelty.”

But the tides are turning. There isn’t as harsh of a response to women making mistakes in public as there was 10 years ago. In fact, it’s the imperfections that people are often drawn to. Take Ariana Grande, arguably the biggest pop star in the business right now, whose M.O. is complete transparency with her fans. She talks to them, tweets at them—she even shares photos of her brain scans with them. Nothing feels polished or premeditated.