Emo is short for “emotional hardcore”, a type of hardcore punk rock music that first developed in the 80’s and has become increasingly more popular with time. The emo music movement is known for its confessional lyrics that display a vast range of emotion. But the style is also emotional, in an expressive manner, displaying a uniqueness that’s both cute and sexy, appealing to cultures around the world and to people of various personalities.
You don’t have to listen to emo music to enjoy a great emo hairstyle. If you have a face that looks great with bangs, or enjoy the contrast of differing colors in your hair, then take a look at these 68 sexy hairdos that are bound to inspire you to get a new and fashionable haircut. Emo hairstyles are known for their “swooshing” bangs that usually cover one eye, sometimes you’ll see a hair bump, and dyed ends for that rocker-girl effect. If you were black-rimmed glasses, even better!
1. Platinum Blonde Baby
To start the 68 images off, here we see a classic emo hairstyle consisting of long tresses that reach the waist with either black-dyed or naturally darkened tips. The sweeping bangs are held to one side with a cute and well positioned bow. Many emo women enjoy having platinum blonde somewhere in their hairstyle while this one chose to make it the main feature.
2. Spiraling Blue Tresses
If you’re not ready for platinum blonde highlights, never fear! You can still sport the emo look by adding any color of the rainbow to your hair. If you have dark tresses like those seen here, try out a deeper shade of color that won’t require dying your hair blonde first.
3. Short Swoop with Purple Stripe
Emo styles can be long, short, or medium, the choice is up to you. If you prefer the convenience of having very little hair on your neck and shoulders, this shorter haircut is absolutely adorable, especially paired with a single purple highlight. Blonde or black hair would look great in this style.
4. Half and Half
5. Uniquely Short Half-Bangs
Some of us hate the normal bangs that we see most women wearing. You can always try something different – and why not? Your hair will grow back anyway! Here we can see some uniquely cut bangs, short on one side while the other side stays the length of the rest of the hair. Make sure you’ve got a great face to pull something like this off!
6. Black & Blonde Bangs Galore
Be careful when dying your hair platinum blonde and black. Sometimes the dyes will fade and give you a worn down bleached look that looks almost grey. If that’s your thing, then go for it. If not, see a hair specialist to decide how you’d like your blondes and blacks and if they’d look good together.
7. Big-Eyed Show Off
When it comes to emo, the make-up can also be an important aspect of your look. If you have some fabulous eyes that you’re trying to show off, go with a larger sweep of the bangs to properly display them. Part your hair to one side, closer to the side of your head rather than its center.
8. Same Styles, Different Colors
These girls are almost twins! They must be best friends, except one is blonde and one is brunette with old highlights. You can see here that the same emo hair style can often look great in varying colors.
9. Orange Push Pop
Make a real statement by including a vibrant color in your emo hairstyle. Got the sweeping bangs? Check. The tapered bump? Check. Long tresses pulled to the front? Check. Crazy Color? Definite check.
10. Long with Short Bangs & Highlights
Here’s a great example of a more simplistic emo hairstyle for us girls that want to keep our long hair but want the punk edge of the music movement. Simply cut some bangs, either super short like the ones here or longer bangs you can push to one side. Keep your natural highlights or add a few for depth.
11. Outlining Definition
If you plan on sporting the “swoosh” look, as in, the sweeping bangs, you can add a little dimension to your hairdo by dying the edges of your bangs for this mischievous look. The highlights will frame your eyes and grab the attention of your audience.
12. Anime All the Way
You know the anime style. Big, messy, yet perfectly so. This girl has perfected the side ponytail complete with a small bump and sweeping bangs. Depending on how big you want your bump, it may require a little teasing and lots of hair spray.
13. Orange and Blonde Shag
This style is simple, unique, and fun with layers and tapered hair that playfully falls about the face. The orange highlights aren’t meant to be even, and give off an amazing, almost natural fade into the natural color of this girl’s hair.
14. Short Tapered A-Line
A-Lines are a wonderful option for a hairstyle for anyone that doesn’t want their hair in the way and enjoys the sweeping bangs look. A-lines consist of a very short cut in the back, with longer hair towards the front that can be done with or without bangs – it’s up to you.
15. Simple Shaggy Tips
There isn’t much to this emo hairstyle. If you already have natural highlights, all the better. Keep whatever length of hair you choose and ask to have your tresses tapered and some medium-length bangs cut. Straighten and throw on a headband!
16. The Fluffy Crimped Look
Remember in the 80s when crimping hair used to be a must for any fashionable event? Emo style is all about being unique, and some women prefer to bring back the classics! You’ll need a good crimping iron for this look, and if you’re hair is long, a good amount of time to complete it.
17. Straight & Sweet
You can still grab that emo hairstyle even if your bangs have seemingly gotten out-of-control long. Straighten and part to the side – either mousse or hair spray will be your best friend for a style like the one above.
18. Avril’s Beach Look
The infamous Avril makes a fabulous fashion statement with her emo tresses that are gorgeously messy. This style would have looked wonderful without any added hair pieces, but the bow truly adds a lovely contrast and matches the ends of her tresses.
19. Long Purple Banged Puppy Love
You can be emo still have a love for pups. The purple bangs seen here are a unique shade, and depending on the color of your natural hair, a dye job like this might come out a variety of different shades.
20. Framing the Face with Color
What’s your favorite color? Why not put a few streaks of it in your bangs to add some dazzle to your style? Style your hair as you normally would and grab the locks of hair that frame your face naturally – those will be the tresses you dye to get a unique look like the one seen above.
21. Dark & Mysterious Punk
This emo look is a little more on the darker side, with raven black hair and the smallest of highlights to add depth and contrast to an otherwise boring hairdo. She has a good deal of layers, with the final ones reaching well to her abdomen. Teasing with hairspray will get you the messy look seen above.
22. Blueberry Popsicle
This dye job came out magnificent, and for those of us with darker hair, we’ll have to dye our hair blonde before considering vivid blues such as the ones seen here. Dark hair will make the blue dye seem almost black, and that’s the opposite of what we want here.
23. Powdery Pink Prowess
If you’ve decided to go platinum blonde with your look, or are already a natural blonde, you don’t need to get an overbearingly vivid color dyed into your hair for the emo look. You can pull it off with pastel colors, like the powder pink seen above. This hairdo is great in the winter, making you look like wonderland fae.
24. Red Gypsy Princess
Longer emo hairstyles can easily be put up in a messy yet glorious look. The deep red color can make a variety of fashion statements, from vampire goddess to gypsy princess to formal business tycoon – depending on how you wear your hair.
25. Can’t Tame Me
This look requires styling your bangs and tresses first and getting the style you want before using spray-in dye to make the lines that resemble an animal. Feel wild, sexy, and unique with friends or on a date.
26. Shaggy and Edgy
These layers are more apparent and cut straight rather than at an angle to match the shape of the face. Many emo hairstyles consist of choppy bangs or layers, so go crazy with whatever you like regarding these factors!
27. Short & Feathered Hello
Simply black hair blow-dried and combed over for a light and feathery look. If you have extremely thick hair, you may want to consider getting it thinned out for a look such as this one.
28. Hot, Pink, and Bowed
Towel dry that hair and get it nice and messy for this style! You’ll only need to straighten your bangs so you can achieve the sweeping look. You don’t necessarily have to dye your hair for this, you can find colored extensions in your beauty salon or large retailer. They’ve got clip-in ones, braid-in ones – or you can use a semi-permanent dye that washes out with time. Throw in a matching bow and Voila! You’re ready to the be gorgeous deity that you are.
29. Oh My Bangs!
This rocker-chic is obsessed with the sweeping look, and no wonder, it looks fabulous on her. While keeping her long hair, she’s decided to get a large chunk of her hair cut into bangs, more than normal, and the outcome is stunning.
30. Color Splashed Rock
If you’re choosing emo, you’re already one of the few. To be more original than most, give your hair a color splash dye treatment. You can use different shades of pinks, purples, and blues for a cooler look, or switch it up with reds, oranges, and yellows for a hot look. Some may even be interested in shades of greens – not many decide to dye their hair green!
31. Divine Frosty Tresses
A perfect example of the “cooler” look mentioned above. This frost-bitten girl is sporting vivid blues and indigos that will stand out in any setting.
32. Green-Eyed Girl Mixing Pinks & Oranges
Not all emo styles consist of dying just the tips of tresses. Here we can see there are layers of colors, starting with orange, fading into blonde, and ending in a pink stripe that crosses around her face to frame her vivid eyes.
33. Printed Indigo Queen
This look can be done with either semi-permanent dye or real dye, depending on how long you’ll want your hair to sport a unique pattern such as this. She’s allowed some of her bangs to be dyed and leaving the top layer platinum blonde for a gorgeous multi-colored sweep of the bangs.
34. Bubble Gum Waves
Honestly, you can have any type of hair style and still be perceived emo if you’ve got some amazing tattoos to show off with your hair. Here, her hair matches her tattoos! A bubble gum pink that’s sure to turn heads and grab the attention of your audience.
35. The Bump and Go
Yes, even a classic bump can be emo! And you can still be business-ready with many emo styles, all you have to do is pull it up with a bump or a simple bun with those sweeping bangs.
36. Hot Headband Love
What emo girl hasn’t tried a few headbands with her hairstyle? They were popular in the 80s – when emo style began to emerge, and they’ll always be an essential for any true hardcore emo fan. Headbands look great with sweeping bangs and add color and depth to your hair. They’re also great to wear with a bump in your hair.
37. Easy One, Two, Three
Easy blow dry, straighten, and sweep! This is a more natural emo look, if that’s a possible “thing”. It’s all in the bangs!
38. Spot Me From A Mile Away
Another easy straighten and sweep hairdo. Just make sure you want to be perceived as emo, because a look like this is bound to have you labeled.
39. Teased and Crowned
Here it is! The perfect example of why headbands are a must in the emo world. You can keep your swept and messy bangs, your long tresses, and add a glittering headband that resembles a crown with an outfit that is equally as dazzling.
40. Streams of Fiery Orange
You’ll need more than a straightening iron for this hairstyle, you’ll also need a curling iron to get the slight lift in the swept bangs. If you’ve ever wondered with mixing orange, back, and blonde would ever look like – look no further than this pic! The outcome is perfect for all us rocker chicks out there.
41. Black & Blonde Siren
Sometimes we don’t want just highlights. We want a Cruella DeVil look but with an emo twist – black and white tresses that are seemingly stripes. If you look close, you can see some natural color in the bangs. Now, was that intentional or a dye mistake?
42. Myriad of Colors
If you decide to put multiple colors in your hair, you’re bound to match any and every outfit you manage to create. Not particularly for business meetings, but all other events! The style seen here goes with the cooler blues and pinks and looks great if you also want black in your hair.
43. A Mermaid’s Calling
Not many girls can pull off the vivid teal! But why not try, just to see if you’ve got what it takes?
44. Vividly Gorgeous Pink
A deep pink hairstyle mixed with black is becoming a classic most women try at least once in their lives (on an emo level). They look gorgeous with deep pink lip colors.
45. Blonde or Black Highlights?
We can’t tell if this girl is naturally blonde, naturally brunette, or had both colors simultaneously dyed into her hair! In any case, playing with shades can look gorgeous like seen here.
46. Crazy Short Top
The top is completely blonde with a little purple, while the bottom is completely black. You don’t see many hairstyles that fail to have any fading shades like this one. The outcome is truly unique, and the purple adds a splash of awesome to your mane.
47. All Natural Emo
You don’t have to do too much to be emo if you’ve got black hair. You can just cut some bangs for the sweeping look, straighten, and voila! You’re gorgeously emo.
48. Showering Waves of Blue
Know of any bands that have blue as a main color? This would be perfect for a concert, just be careful not to head-bang too hard and get those beautiful curls all crazy!
49. Highlighted and Natural
Some emo hairstyles involve the swept bangs as well as some cute curls. If you’re liking the emo style but don’t want to get to crazy into it, try something like this – a little more natural, a little emo, and a little more “you”.
50. Pastel Purple Paradise
Pastel colors are becoming more and more popular, especially when one dyes their hair and it begins to fade! Why not keep that faded color? It looks amazing!
51. Blue with Rainbow Appeal
This lady isn’t backing down from a myriad of colors in her hair. You can dye your hair one vivid color and use extensions to add the streaks of other colors just so you don’t fry your hair too much from too much coloring!
52. Side Pony Tail & Part
If you want an up-do, don’t just throw it in a pony tail! Try the side pony tail, with a unique part in your hair and bangs to accompany it.
53. All Blonde & Lovely
This style is easily done with those of us sporting an emo hair style. If you’ve got a formal event coming up and don’t want to show off your emo prowess too eccentrically, you can always keep your swept bangs (make sure both eyes can be seen) and curl the rest of your hair.
54. Layered and Tapered
This one’s a classic! Straight from the 80s, one of the original emo hairstyles that began the trends you see today.
55. Thinned & Free Flowing
Some of us enjoy the thick feel hair, some prefer thinning our hair and have very few tresses fall over our shoulders, such as in the style seen here. Curl your ends for a more refined look.
56. Rainbow Sherbet Candy
This look requires some awesome hair accessories, such as a braided headband and cute hoodie whose hood comes with ears!
57. Superman’s Assistant
Blue hair with a black stripe through the bangs. What a marvelous combo, and great for anyone with light blue eyes!
58. Easy, Natural, and Free
Going to a concert and want to get down to some riffs? You probably shouldn’t style your hair too much if you plan to head bang to your favorite tunes. Just straighten your hair part on the side, you’ll be ready to get down in no time.
59. Head-Banging Beauty
Another perfect hairdo for head banging at a concert! This one doesn’t require straightening, just a nice towel-dry – allow it to frizz just a smidge and you’re ready to go. You’ll be sweating, getting your hair frizzy at the concert anyway, so why not?
60. Personalized to Perfection
If you’ve got a good amount of time on your hands and want a very personalized and unique look, better than all the other concert-goers, we dare you to try this look! Oranges, pinks, purples, and black, vertical and horizontal streaks, high bangs with straight tresses. If this isn’t emo, screaming expression, then nothing is.
61. Daringly Pink & Curled
This style is more magenta than bubble-gum pink, and will require you use either mousse or hairspray to ensure your bangs don’t keep falling over your eyes! You’ll need either/or to keep those beautiful curls in place, too.
62. Natural Born Goddess Tresses
If you’re not into the stripes or streaks of differing colors in your hair, you can always go with your natural color or simply dye your hair one color such as seen above. Just cut your bangs at a slight angle, tease a bump with hair spray and Voila! carefully place a peacock barrette in its place.
63. Easy on the Color
This emo hairstyle is of a more natural look and doesn’t require much time to create. All you need is it straighten your hair and part to the side. Great for formal events.
64. Braided and Beautiful
You can take your normally emo-rocker hairstyle and make it look more majestic for formal events by curling up your tresses too. Anyone with sweeping bangs can add some small braids to one side for added texture and appeal to your do.
65. Vampire Rock Siren
We’ve seen a majority of differing emo themes, and this one is perfect for those of us that enjoy the darker side of the art, or love the color of blood like vampires!
66. Princess of Pink
This emo style is a gorgeous powder pink, perfect for those of us that are girly and don’t care too much for differing highlights/colors in our hair. This color is easiest to get if you’re naturally blonde, but if you’re brunette, you’ll need to dye your hair blonde first and then pink. Careful not to fry your hair!
67. Magenta and Magnificent
This deep pink is close to red and is quite popular among emo style, especially mixed with black.
68. Orange You Loving This Color?
The final, 68th hairstyle! Orange is becoming more and more popular, since it used to be the color no one would ever dye their hair. And since being emo is all about being different and unique, people began to color their hair the colors no one else would dye! Well, now those colors are popular!
