What Does a Rockstar Outfit Look Like?

Quick answer

Friday night, the queue outside a concert: everyone is in black, and everyone wears it differently. A rockstar outfit is made of just a few pieces: a band tee or a shirt with a big graphic, a black leather jacket, black jeans, boots and one piece of silver jewellery. Two of them set the tone, wear them all and you are in full gear, and everything can look a little worn already.

Rockstar outfit at a glance

• Shirt: a band tee or graphic tee, meaning a shirt with a big graphic, washed out if you like
• Jacket: a black leather jacket in a biker cut, ending at the belt
• Trousers: black jeans, skinny or straight
• Shoes: Chelsea boots, lace-up boots or flat sneakers
• Jewellery: silver, from a single ring to lots of chains
• Colours: black, grey, white, plus one bold colour or more
• How much: one rock piece as an accent or all of them at once, as you like
• Full gear: studs, bandana, leather trousers and sunglasses all at once, as often as you like
• Men and women: the same pieces, just put together differently

Quick questions

How do you dress like a rockstar?

Start with a black or washed-out shirt with a graphic. Add black jeans and a leather jacket. Boots and a silver ring finish the look.

What does a man wear for a rockstar outfit?

The simplest version: band tee, black leather jacket, black straight jeans, Chelsea boots. Without a leather jacket, a black denim jacket works too.

What does a rockstar outfit for women look like?

The same pieces as for men. A miniskirt with black tights or a long shirt worn as a dress go well with them. Boots make the look tougher, high heels more glamorous.

What shoes do rockstars wear?

Mostly boots. The most popular are Chelsea boots, ankle boots with an elastic panel at the side. Back in the seventies, though, the punk band the Ramones simply wore sneakers.

What is the difference between a rockstar outfit and a rockstar costume?

An outfit is made of real clothes that you wear again and again. A costume is made for dressing up: glitter, a wig, a plastic guitar.

Do I have to know the band on my shirt?

Nobody is going to quiz you. But if you would rather not risk a conversation about an album, pick a shirt with a graphic and no band name.

In detail: five rock looks and how to wear them today

The basic shape of the rockstar outfit is more than 70 years old. And it did not start with a band at all. It started with a film.

Where does the rockstar look come from?

In 1953 the film “The Wild One” came out in cinemas. Marlon Brando plays the leader of a motorcycle gang. He wears a black leather jacket and jeans. For many teenagers in the fifties, that made him a role model.

Brando himself was surprised by it, as he wrote decades later in his memoirs. T-shirt, jeans and leather jacket suddenly stood for rebellion. A good 20 years later, a punk band from New York picked up the idea of the leather jacket: the Ramones. Since then it has been part of almost every rock look.

What makes the rockstar look today is quick to say. Lots of black. One piece that already shows some wear. And one detail that shines, usually silver.

The big rockstar looks: from glam rock to rap

Rock has many looks. Five of them you still see on the street today.

70s glam rock: glitter and platform shoes

Glam rock was rock music with glitter and make-up. It took off in Britain in the early seventies. Platform shoes and shiny fabrics were typical.

The most famous glam star is David Bowie, the British singer. In 1972 he appeared as his stage persona Ziggy Stardust. He had bright red hair and wore a colourful jumpsuit, even on television.

How to wear it today: one shiny piece sets an accent, a satin shirt worn open over a white T-shirt, say, with black jeans and boots. More shine makes the look more glamorous, all the way to a glitter jumpsuit.

Punk: leather jacket, ripped jeans, sneakers

Punk appeared in the mid-seventies, in New York and London. The Ramones had a fixed uniform: long hair, leather jacket, T-shirt, ripped jeans and sneakers.

Other punks stuck safety pins through their clothes. Their jackets got studs, paint and badges.

How to wear it today: a leather jacket, a white or black T-shirt, black jeans with an open knee, flat sneakers. Studs on one piece set an accent, studs on all of them make it properly punk.

90s grunge: flannel shirt and washed-out tee

Grunge is the look of the Seattle rock bands around 1990. The best known was Nirvana, with singer Kurt Cobain. It means a flannel shirt, an old T-shirt, ripped jeans and heavy boots. Almost all of it came from the second-hand shop.

How to wear it today: a grey, washed-out T-shirt, an open checked shirt over it, straight jeans, boots. Everything else is in our guide Grunge Style.

2000s indie sleaze: the party years

In 2001 The Strokes, a band from New York, released their first album. Their scene had a look of its own: skinny jeans, leather jackets, band tees, high-top Chucks and smudged eyeliner. And party photos with a harsh flash.

The whole thing only got the name indie sleaze in 2021, from an Instagram account. Sleaze means something like grubby. It is meant affectionately.

How to wear it today: skinny black jeans, a striped or slightly shorter T-shirt, a short leather jacket, high-top Chucks. A short shirt makes the legs look longer.

Today: rap rockstars

In 2017 a song by the US musician Post Malone was simply called “Rockstar”. Together with the rapper 21 Savage, he took it to number 1 in the US and number 2 in Germany.

The clothes crossed over too. Around that time the rapper Travis Scott mostly wore ripped skinny jeans, black band tees and now and then a striking piece of jewellery. In rap, rockstar means loud, rich and a little dangerous.

How to wear it today: a shirt with a big graphic, wide jeans, heavy boots, two or three silver chains. Here the jewellery is often louder than in the other looks.

What do I need for a rockstar outfit? The five key pieces

Band tee or graphic tee

A graphic tee is a T-shirt with a big graphic. A band tee is the same thing, just with a band name on it. Washed out, with a soft print and small signs of wear, it looks as if it has been to a lot of concerts. A brand-new shirt with a glossy print looks fresh, as if it had just come from the merch stand.

Look for a thick fabric. A heavy shirt keeps its shape under a jacket, a thin one ripples at the collar. Our current collection is called Rockstar Attitude. It has four shirts in heavy cotton at 300 GSM. You will find more shirts with graphics among the Graphic Tees.

Leather jacket

The classic is the biker jacket with a diagonal zip. The first model of its kind came out in 1928, and it was called the Perfecto. This is the classic fit:

• Length: the jacket ends at the belt, not below it.
• Shoulder: the seam sits right on the shoulder.
• Sleeves: they end at the wrist.
• Underneath: a slim or short shirt fits under a tight jacket, a wide shirt needs a looser jacket over it.

Faux leather works too. Matte faux leather looks like the real thing, shiny faux leather more like patent.

Black jeans: skinny or straight?

In the 2000s, very tight skinny jeans were a must. Today, straight jeans look more relaxed. One idea: a wide shirt goes with straight trousers, tight trousers go with a shorter shirt.

For tight trousers, boxy shirts work well, cut wide and a little shorter. We explain how they differ from oversized and slim fit in Boxy, Oversized or Slim Fit.

Boots

Chelsea boots are ankle boots with an elastic panel at the side. In the sixties the Beatles and the Rolling Stones made them famous in London. They go with almost every rock look, because they are slim and look clean.

Lace-up boots with a thick sole make the look tougher. High-top Chucks go with punk and indie. If the trouser hem ends smoothly on the shoe, the look stays slim. If it stacks, the look gets looser.

Silver jewellery

Next to black and leather, silver looks cooler than gold. Even one ring or one chain stands out, and more silver makes the look louder. Many take their cue from Chrome Hearts, a luxury brand from Los Angeles. It mainly makes silver jewellery, and its logo shows a cross.

Rockstar outfit for men: four formulas to copy

All our shirts are unisex. So you can swap the formulas for men and women.

1. Stage: ANTAGONIST in Vintage White with pink lettering, an open black leather jacket, black straight jeans, Chelsea boots. Pink is the only colour, which is why it stands out.
2. Punk, tidied up: SHOTTIE in black, black jeans with an open knee, white flat sneakers, one silver ring. In autumn a black denim jacket goes over the top.
3. Indie 2007: FUGITIVE with stripes in grey and black, skinny black jeans, high-top Chucks, a short leather jacket. The shirt is boxy, so a little shorter, which is why the skinny jeans work.
4. Rap rockstar: LAW OF ATTRACTION in white with the lettering MONEY NEEDS ME, wide jeans, heavy boots, two silver chains. The dollar signs on the chest go with the loud jewellery.

Rockstar outfit for women: four formulas to copy

One of the best references is more than 50 years old. In 1975 “Horses” came out, the first album by the US singer Patti Smith. On the cover she wears a plain white shirt from a second-hand shop and a black jacket over her shoulder. Simple, and still pure rock.

1. Patti Smith, today: a white shirt or white tee, a black blazer, black straight jeans, boots. No jewellery, no colour.
2. Rock chic: ANTAGONIST tucked a little way into a black miniskirt at the front, black tights, lace-up boots, a leather jacket. The shirt is only tucked at the front, so it stays loose.
3. Shirt as a dress: YOKO ONO is extra long and has no shoulder seam. With a slim belt at the waist and knee-high boots, it becomes a dress. The embroidery is on the back, so feel free to show it off.
4. Indie party: FUGITIVE with skinny high-waisted black jeans, ballet flats or Chucks, plus eyeliner. The eyeliner can be smudged, that is how it is meant to look.

The rockstar look every day: as much as you like

One rock piece sets an accent. Wear everything together and you are in full gear. How much is your call. Rock pieces are the leather jacket, band tee, boots, studs, leather trousers, eyeliner and lots of jewellery. Completely ordinary pieces go with them too, like blue jeans, a hoodie, a coat or sneakers. A few ideas:

• School or uni: graphic tee, blue jeans, Chelsea boots.
• Office: a band tee under a dark suit jacket, black tailored trousers, Chelsea boots.
• Date: a black T-shirt, leather jacket, straight jeans, clean sneakers.
• Concert: the full uniform, with leather jacket, band tee, boots and ring.

Rockstar costume or outfit? Five things that change the look

1. Everything at once: studs, bandana, leather trousers, sunglasses and fingerless gloves. Together they are full gear, and you can wear that on any day of the week.
2. Everything new: stiff jeans, a shiny jacket, a fresh print. New pieces look fresh and sharp, worn ones already carry their marks.
3. Printed holes: printed-on rips and artificial stains look more even than real ones.
4. Wide leather jacket: if the shoulder seam sits on the upper arm, the look is looser than with the classic biker jacket.
5. Lots of colours: classic rock lives on black and one colour. With more colours, the look moves closer to glam rock.

And if you are looking for a costume for a party? Then take everything you can: glitter like Bowie, lots of eyeliner, a plastic guitar.

And the queue outside the concert? A guy in a band tee is standing next to a woman in full gear. Both of them are rock.

Sources15

1. Wikipedia: Der Wilde, 1953 film (German)
2. Wikipedia: The Wild One (English)
3. Wikipedia: Ramones (English)
4. Wikipedia: Perfecto motorcycle jacket (English)
5. Wikipedia: Glam rock (English)
6. Wikipedia: Ziggy Stardust, stage persona of David Bowie (English)
7. Wikipedia: Punk fashion (English)
8. Wikipedia: Grunge fashion (English)
9. Wikipedia: Indie sleaze (English)
10. Wikipedia: Is This It, The Strokes album (English)
11. Wikipedia: Rockstar, Post Malone song (English)
12. The Diamondback: Metal, rap and fashion: The art of looking violent (13 November 2016, English)
13. Wikipedia: Chelsea boot (English)
14. Wikipedia: Chrome Hearts (English)
15. Wikipedia: Horses, Patti Smith album (English)