Celebs Who Are Basically Unrecognizable Without Hair Extensions

Hair extensions can have a dramatic impact on what our favorite celebrities look like. Take Sarah Hyland, for example. During her time on "Modern Family," the actor wore them after experiencing hair loss tied to her kidney dysplasia and endometriosis diagnoses. "With medications and stuff, it can make your hair fall out. So I had extensions put in for Haley to hide any of that loss," she told Refinery29 in 2019, confirming she took the pieces out when the show ended. And she noticed a big change when she embraced her natural look. "My hair that's growing back now is much curlier than what it used to be," she said.

But Hyland, who's had a stunning transformation, isn't the only one. Stars including Demi Lovato, Nicole Richie, and Naomi Campbell have also changed up the length of and volume in their tresses, and we can't get over how unrecognizable they look without a few extra strands.

Naomi Campbell is a celeb who's been open and honest about wearing wigs after constantly adding extra strands ruined her locks. (Improper use of accessories, including extensions, can potentially cause hair loss by damaging the follicles.) "I do take more care of my hair now, because I lost all of it with extensions. I am more careful and I do different things," she told The Standard in 2017. The following year, she was barely recognizable in a selfie posted to X, formerly known as Twitter, that showed her real hair in cornrows.

Nicole Richie's rocked some iconic hair looks and she looked totally different without extra pieces in her tresses. "When I look at my photos of myself in my 20s, the first thing that comes to mind is just how much I thought I needed between extensions and makeup," she told People in 2024. "I would say, 'I can never let anyone see me without extensions, not even my animals' [because] my hair is so thin." But, as her stunning shorter 'do shows, she's become more in tune with her mane's health and her natural beauty. "In my 40s, I just want to look like myself," she said.

Carrie Underwood is almost as well-known for her super voluminous, long, blond locks, as she is her country hits. So when she took out her extensions, it was striking how different she looked. "It's just easier to fix in the morning," she told People in 2016 after getting a bob. "I was just like, 'Enough, no more extensions.' It was a mess. It was enough. This is better. This is me," she added. But the "Good Girl" singer's stunning leap from long hair to short didn't last too long, as her lengthy tresses returned the following year.

Tyra Banks has made no secret of showing her natural beauty, and that includes stepping out sans extensions. "I've worn weaves, and wigs, and pieces, and clip-ons, and clip outs, and clip downs and arounds since I was 17, 18 years old," the former "America's Next Top Model" host revealed on her now-defunct talk show "Tyra" in 2009, proudly showing her real tresses. She's taken out the faux strands on various occasions since, including in a 2018 Instagram post where she told fans, "Some people might not like to see me in my natural hair and face, but this is as real as it gets." Real and gorgeous.

In 2023, Kelsea Ballerini told The New York Times she got extensions after experiencing hair loss due to stress. "It's growing back, in, like, little sprouts," she said. The following year though, the country star took her blond mane in the opposite direction when she cut off several inches and removed her extra pieces. And she looked so different. "I really put my hair through it. I have for a decade ... it needed a little attention," she told People after getting a bob. The star soon showed how versatile her locks could be though, as she embraced them again on the 2025 Grammys red carpet.

Demi Lovato, who uses she/her and they/them pronouns, has changed up their locks a lot over the years — and her 'dos have made her look drastically different. They've rocked everything from a buzzcut to XXL looks, though her hairstylist Amber Maynard Bolt told People Lovato has a soft spot for longer styles for one reason. "I think my favorite thing about adding long hair to Demi is her reaction. She likes to whip her hair back and forth ... and might I say, she does a pretty good job of that!" Bolt shared.

Former "Baywatch" star Pamela Anderson has leaned into a more natural approach to beauty as she's gotten older, and that's involved removing any additions to her locks for super short cuts (and back again). The star opened up about the reaction to her ditching her bombshell long, blond hair to Elle in 2014, sharing, "I have a friend who is an awesome, studly man, and he goes, 'You know, some women cut their hair and it makes them look even more masculine, but you look even more feminine.'" Clearly, Anderson is as gorgeous without makeup as sans extensions.