Transformation

Lenny Kravitz kicked off his career with wild style and major dreads—that is, before he chopped them off in 1998 because "they contained too much bad energy." From the very beginning, getting dressed was high theater, as he told People, "I wanted to be David Bowie—I liked the style, the girls, everything." These days he still sports a piercing in each nostril and a flair for layering, but he channels the drama into serious acting, from his critically acclaimed turn in Precious to his upcoming role in The Hunger Games. As costar Elizabeth Banks puts it, in his latest permutation as stylist Cinna, Kravitz simply "embodies elegance."

Having dropped his Romeo Blue stage name, Kravitz launched Let Love Rule with a flower-power combo of Lennon-esque shades and shoulder-length dreads.