Long before Nicki Minaj and Lady Gaga were teetering onto the red carpet with their towering wigs, Patti Labelle had jaws dropping with her sky-high hairdos. Known for belting out hits like "Lady Marmalade," "New Attitude" and "On My Own," the Philadelphia-born singer's hairstyles were symbolic of her career trajectory.
From the big and bouncy curls she sported as frontwoman of the girl group "Labelle" to the gel-sculpted hair designs she broke out in as a solo star, there were no limits for this diva. Labelle has since traded in her wild hair for sleeker styles, however, we're secretly hoping she'll pull out a tub of Let's Jam and revive her over-the-top look.
So in celebration of Patti Labelle's 69th birthday today (May 24), we've rounded up her 13 wildest hairdos. (We bet she'd win hands down at the Detroit Hair Wars.)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
What's your favorite Patti Labelle hairstyle?
See this R&B diva in action:
Want more HuffPost Style beauty content? Check us out on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest and Instagram at @HuffPostBeauty. (For everything else check out our main HuffPost Style Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest and Instagram @HuffPostStyle.)
---
Do you have a beauty story idea or tip? Email us at beautytips@huffingtonpost.com. (PR pitches sent to this address will be ignored.)