The ‘Mop Top’ hairstyle is a look that gained popularity on TikTok and is continuing to trend years later. But what exactly is this hairstyle, and why is it still going viral?
TikTok is a hive for trends of all sorts, sparking viral pasta recipes, dances, makeup looks, and even hairstyles that have leaked from the online world into real life.
One of the more well-known haircuts to come out of the TikTok era is popularly called the ‘Mop Top,’ a boyish hairstyle that features long hair on top and a shorter cut on the bottom — think of it as the distant cousin of the undercut.
A slew of TikTok stars have worn this hairstyle over the years, most notably Bryce Hall, Noah Beck, and Josh Richards (although the former has since gotten a mullet).
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Popular hairstylist ‘The Salon Guy’ explained the style in a YouTube video two years ago, when the trend was just beginning to become popular online.
“The look itself can appear to be a grown out mess, but the haircut is actually a classic layered shape that tapers down to a much shorter length on the sides and back,” he said of the look.
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Most often, this haircut is paired with curly or textured hair on top.
The Salon Guy says that “hair texture plays a huge part in the look. It’s best to have a bit of a wave and some texture; this can be from either bleaching the hair or from the sun, and a fine to thick head of hair would be ideal.”
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Despite its emergence in popular culture over two years ago, the style continues to trend online and is still one of the more common hairstyles on TikTok.
Like many styles and fashions, the ‘Mop Top’ hairstyle is a reflection of the times, although it did exist prior to TikTok’s dominance as the world’s most-frequented website.
Only time will tell if the look has staying power to overcome the coming and going trends of social media, though.