How Adele Became a Style Icon, and Why She Asked Fans Not to Hold Her Up as a Role Model

Adele started going to the gym not because she wanted to lose weight. In fact, she said in a recent interview that her weight loss was just a side effect of her exercising, which she started doing as a way to manage anxiety.
Currently, the media can’t stop talking about her style and shape. Her opinion about fashion is valued by many, including celebrities. Adele is often named a style icon, but this was not always the case.

At Bright Side, we decided to look through old glossy magazines to recall Adele’s brightest appearances, trying to find the moment when she became a fashion role model for women all over the world.

Her first steps in the world of fashion

This photo is from one of Adele’s first appearances at a red carpet event. This was the 2008 Brit Awards in London. She was named the number-one predicted breakthrough act of 2008, her songs reached top positions in music charts, and magazines wrote about her, saying, “Adele truly has potential to become among the most respected and inspiring international artists among her generation.”

However, the young singer was far from the world of fashion but this is part of an artist’s job. In 2009, she was invited to take part in a photo session for Vogue magazine. Later, she said, “It was just like The Devil Wears Prada.” But Anna Wintour helped her out and chose beautiful dresses by famous fashion designers.

In 2009, a whole professional crew of stylists, makeup artists, and hairstylists took care of Adele’s looks for The Grammy Awards. As a result, she appeared at the event wearing a custom black satin cocktail frock by Barbara Tfank. Before the event, Adele laughed, “I’ll go proper glam.”

Meanwhile, Adele’s life was far from glamorous. She led a not-too-healthy lifestyle and canceled her performances because she was homesick while on tour. The singer referred to this period as her “early life crisis.”

But soon the life of the emerging star improved. Adele and her music became more and more popular. Her songs broke sales records, and magazines studied her every event appearance. At the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards, Adele wore a black dress and a 1960s-style hairdo.

A time of fashion experiments

Over the following few years, the singer experimented with her style. At the 2012 Grammys, Adele appeared wearing a custom black, sparkly Giorgio Armani floor-length gown with three-quarter length sleeves. It was the first time she showed up with her hair bright blonde. She would remain blonde for many more years.

One of Adele’s boldest and, at the same time, contradictory experiments can be seen in her look at the 2013 Grammys. This was a time when the singer decided to opt for a colorful outfit instead of her usual black. The Valentino couture floral embroidered gown with long sleeves and a collar and the shoes of the same color were called frumpy and carpet-like by critics.

At the 2017 Grammys, Adele appeared in a shimmery Givenchy gown. Her hairdo and makeup were simple and didn’t distract attention from the outfit. Her performance, however, wasn’t that perfect that day because of sound issues on stage. Because of it, she shared a life hack with her fans, “I’m treating myself with a burger. So maybe it was worth it.”

At the 59th Annual Grammy Awards, Adele cleaned up, winning 5 awards, including best album, song, and record. Her look was no less stunning. She wore a silk satin and lace-paneled Givenchy gown designed by Riccardo Tisci.

Time for change

Adele became a style role model not only for ordinary people but also for celebrities. For example, a funny thing happened during her interview with Oprah Winfrey. Before the interview, Oprah asked her team to make her an outfit of an apricot color.

But when she learned that Adele would wear a white suit, she changed her decision and chose an outfit of a neutral color. According to Oprah, she didn’t want to look like a parrot next to stylish Adele.

In 2020, tabloids wrote a lot about the singer’s changes in her looks — she lost around 100 pounds. But she lost weight not because she wanted to have a slim body. At the gym, Adele was able to cope with her anxiety attacks after her divorce from her husband, Simon Konecki.

For many years, people associated Adele with body positivity. After her weight loss, she received many negative messages because her fans felt they were let down. In response, the singer said that people shouldn’t hold her up as a role model. Moreover, she couldn’t say for sure that she wouldn’t gain weight again. “I was body positive then and I’m body positive now,” she said.

Did you ever go through a dramatic change of looks? If so, how did you feel after this transformation? Tell us in the comments below.