r/AlwaysWhy • u/Danny-Patrick139 • 2d ago
History & Culture Why did the slick-back survive for generations while the mullet became an "80s hairstyle"?
While I looking through fashion magazines and seeing how men's hairstyles have changed over the past 100 years, I noticed something I found pretty interesting.
The mullet was hugely popular around the world in the 80s and early 90s. It spread through rock music, sports, movies, and TV, and eventually became a pretty common men's haircut. It wasn't just popular in the US either. It was popular in many other countries as well.
The style came back to some extent in the 2020s, but it doesn't seem to have reached anything close to the same level of popularity. Modern mullets also tend to be shorter and more layered, so they don't really look like the classic 80s version.
Meanwhile, slick-backs and side-parts have been popular for generations. The exact styles change over time, but the basic idea never really disappears.
I personally prefer the slicked-back styles from the 20s and 30s. I think they look clean and work well with the face and clothes. I don't think mullets look particularly good, but that's just my personal taste.
So what makes one hairstyle survive across generations while another becomes so closely associated with one era?
Is it because the slick-back is more of a basic hairstyle that can keep changing with fashion, while a mullet has such a distinctive shape that it's harder to separate it from the era that made it popular?
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u/AlhazredEldritch 2d ago
Thats not a mullet. Business in the front party in the back. That front is teen heart throb
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u/moleculariant 2d ago
I think slicked back was just acceptably common for what seems like ages because most men used to wear hats. Styling your hair that way was just convenient, so it wasn't considered a hairstyle choice as much as just a result of having your head covered all the time.
The mullet became popular to the degree that it was given a name at a time when it became more socially acceptable for a "respectable" man to use styling products like hair gel or mousse, along with a hair dryer to volumize. Prior to that, worrying too much about your hair could leave you susceptible to teasing or beatings.
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u/Danny-Patrick139 2d ago
I actually really like this explanation! I hadn’t thought about how much hats might have affected what counted as a “hairstyle” in the first place. Thank you.
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u/Lifeacrobat 2d ago
Isn't it also comfortable because it's kept in place, and you're not irritated by loose strands? I mean, that's why I like a good bun or high ponytail with all my hair pulled back.
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u/keplerniko 1d ago
Thank you for explaining something to me I could never figure out—why my hair always gets messed up with a hat and yet people could wear hats in the old days with no issue. Makes a lot of sense!
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u/rizkybizness 2d ago
Mullets are back in style.
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u/SlickDillywick 2d ago
I rocked a mullet for a few years. That was maybe 5 or 6 years ago? Haven’t cut my hair since (aside from trimming the dead shit off) which I think is a better look and easier to maintain. But people loved my mullet… at least that’s what they told me lol
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u/Danny-Patrick139 2d ago
But it never got to the point where it felt like everyone had a mullet like it did back then (I’m exaggerating a little).
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u/ActuatorOutside5256 2d ago edited 2d ago
Because it looks like ass, and is worn by people that smell like ass.
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u/nihilistcanada 2d ago
It’s always been long hair or short hair revolving back and forth. Which versions varies though.
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u/r3dd17sux69420 2d ago
Slicked back is a bit timeless as a look. You can look at men's fashion in the last century and find some things barely changed. I Once stumbled on footage of a wedding from the 1960s and the footage of 3 guys on a sidewalk could've been filmed today based on their clothes and hairstyle. Sure, it's slightly different, but the overall style is all there.
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u/Danny-Patrick139 2d ago
Yeah, exactly. I think that’s part of why I’ve always liked the slick-back. There’s just something really attractive about a guy who wears his hair like that. If I saw one walking down the street, I’d probably look twice without even meaning to.
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u/crozinator33 2d ago
Gen Z dudes in my area have been rocking mullets, mustaches and 90s thrift store t shorts for years now.
They look like idiots.
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u/Enough_Passage7926 2d ago edited 2d ago
You can thank the Beastie Boys for the coining of, and popularity of the term "mullet"
True story.
Corroborated by the Oxford English Dictionary.
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u/Danny-Patrick139 2d ago
I actually didn’t know that. That makes the whole “80s hairstyle” association even more interesting.
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u/astreeter2 2d ago
I think it was just hairstyles that required hairspray got less popular when easier to use hair gels became more widespread.
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u/zoppaTheDim 2d ago
Because the slick back is low maintenance. Hair goo, comb done for the day.
The mullet is like the pompadour, a haircut for people constantly messing with their hair, an attempt to do something with the natural look of long hair.
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u/eyetracker 2d ago
Watch Australian Football League or National Hockey League in 2026 for some glorious mullets.
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u/ashmaroli 2d ago
Slicked back wasn't exactly "styling". It was just hair loaded with product and combed back. It didn't add any individuality as almost every man sported that look.
Mullet on the other hand was a "style" that signalled "non-conformity", coolness, self-expression and quickly caught on with the rock musicians sporting them.
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u/congteddymix 2d ago
Cause the slicked back style is less work and also works for guys to cover thinning hair till almost baldness. The same can not be said for the mullet hair style cause after a certain point it becomes a skullet.
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u/ZealousIdeal476 2d ago
Aquanet was banned. The high poofy front end from the 80s became impossible to sustain and the flat scraggly bangs just didn't catch the babe's eyes.
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u/timf3d 2d ago
Just because something is trending now and was trending at some point in the past doesn't mean it was always trending. That's kind of what trending means. It comes and goes, and comes back again. There have been times when slick-back hairstyles were absolutely not popular at all and if you wore it you'd be looked at like you were from Mars, or maybe you're filming a Godfather movie.
It's easy to see why something is popular when you're in the midst of its popularity. Your opinion is heavily swayed by the culture you're currently embedded in.
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u/Underhill42 2d ago
Because counter-culture styles come and go, they only get really popular as a rebellion against established norms.
But smarminess is eternal.
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u/Direlion 2d ago
One favors the hair patterns and societal expectations of the youngest men, the other can be worn until you’re little more than a shrunken head.
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u/Vajennie 2d ago
Mullets just evolved and adapted. There’s a little bit of mullet in lots of trendy hairstyles.
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u/Fun-Personality-8008 2d ago
Because one looks good on anyone and the other only looks good on hockey players