Key Takeaways
- Charli XCX wore her hair in ultra-long, middle-parted “Brontë Waves” for her “Chains of Love” music video.
- Hairstylist Matt Benns gave us the exclusive details on the style, including how you can copy it at home.
We’re in the season of movies, with so many great projects coming up, And yet! I have to offer my most sincere apologies to any film that’s not Wuthering Heights. It doesn’t come out until February, but I’m already all about it—the colors, the costumes, and the world that Charli XCX has helped build with her soundtrack.
On November 17, the singer released the music video for “Chains of Love,” the second track from Wuthering Heights. For the video, celebrity hairstylist Matt Benns took control of her locks, using Bumble and Bumble products to outfit the singer’s famous dark hair with ultra-long and ultra-moody waves.
“We all contribute to the world so well. For the soundtrack of the film Charli had a very strong idea of how this was to feel,” Benns tells Byrdie. Ahead, discover more about both artists’ creative processes—and how you can copy those perfect Brontë Waves at home.
The Inspiration
Benns didn’t have a name for the hairstyle, but agreed that one of our favorite fall looks—Brontë Waves—fit perfectly. To be fair, the trend was heavily inspired by Charli.
“I think [that name] encapsulates it so well,” he says. “We wanted really long hair, so it felt like another time. Very novel, a different type of raw [from] Brat. A little more romance.”
@charlixcx/Instagram
Charli’s famous dark hair reaches almost to her knees in the video, with messy, middle-parted waves that fly as she’s violently thrown across a banquette table by an unseen force. It’s a more physical representation of running a comb through your fever dream waves, lamenting your lover. As Benns noted, the hair—all the creative talent, really—contributes to the world of the film “so well.”
Courtesy of Matt Benns
“After digesting the initial video treatments/creative I’m off going through references I’ve collected over time (from books, people in the streets, old shoots),” he adds. “We’re also on a group thread throwing ideas back and forth to each other with her creative director Imogene [Strauss], director C Prinz, and makeup artist Yasmin [Istanbouli].”
@charlixcx/Instagram
Charli XCX’s “Wuthering Heights” Era Hair
On Substack, Charli recently wrote about how she really wanted to step outside herself for this project—”I wanted to dive into persona, into a world that felt undeniably raw, wild, sexual, gothic, British, tortured and full of actual real sentences, punctuation and grammar. Without a cigarette or a pair of sunglasses in sight, it was all totally other from the life I was currently living.”
Thus, the hair on this album will differ from what we know of “pop star Charli.” Benns says to think “fluffier” and “less curled.”
Courtesy of Matt Benns
“I think we’re going to see a lot of long hair on the Wuthering Heights album,” he adds. “We’re going to surprise you with a few new touches that feel different, but also very her.”
How to Get the Look
Benns started things off with Bumble and Bumble’s Bb.Prep to detangle and refresh the 33-year-old’s locks. This setup was necessary, so the other stylers he used for that mix of textures could work their magic.
Courtesy of Matt Benns
“I then blow dry and diffuse different parts of Charli’s hair using tongs, and then add in a mix of braids and iron over them, spraying sections with Bb.Spray de Mode hairspray which helps seal in the wavy texture while staying flexible,” he explains. After unraveling the braids, he went inwith Bb.Thickening Dryspun Texture Spray to encourage some airiness and texture.
If you’re trying to get the look at home, Benns’ best advice is to buy some clip-in extensions. Long ones, as in 25 inches or more.
“Braid your hair, spray Bb.Spray de Mode and iron over it lightly, allow the hair to cool then unravel,” he says. “Use different size curling irons to bring different textures!”
