Demi Lovato's Striking New Look Has Fans Talking

The year 2021 has been one of transformation for Demi Lovato. The former Disney Channel star came out as non-binary in May and announced their pronouns are they/them. "I feel that this best represents the fluidity I feel in my gender expression and allows me to feel most authentic and true to the person I both know I am, and am still discovering," Lovato explained on their "4D With Demi Lovato" podcast.

On Lovato's journey of self-discovery over the past year, they have transformed their appearance several times. Fans were shocked when the "Dancing With The Devil" singer first debuted a pixie cut in February. Lovato discussed why they got the big chop on "The Drew Barrymore Show." "I cut my hair because I just wanted to free myself of all of the gender and sexuality norms that were placed on me as a Christian in the South," they said, per Today. "And when I cut my hair, I felt so liberated because I wasn't subscribing to an ideal or a belief placed upon me to be something that I'm not."

It seems Lovato gave themselves one last hair makeover before the year's end, and fans are again talking about the singer's bold style statement.

Demi Lovato showed off a new buzz cut hairstyle on their Instagram just before Christmas. The post shows off several clips of the star posing in front of a snowy backdrop. Lovato captioned the reveal, "#freshstart," perhaps hinting at a new transformation for 2022. One fan wrote, "Yesss so beautiful @ddlovato" with a bunch of fire and heart emojis. Someone else said, "YOU LOOK SO GOOD." Another person didn't exactly love it, writing, "why demi? why?"

A buzz cut was actually always in the plans for Lovato, who revealed their intention to shave their head to Glamour in March. Prior to embracing their identity, fans' comments about Lovato's makeovers affected the star. "It reignited that fear inside of me of being who I really am," Lovato said of the backlash they received when they dyed their hair pink in 2014. "I am now making choices — for the day, and then the future — about what it is I want and what's going to make me the happiest," they explained of their future plans for a buzz cut.

Suppressing their true gender identity had a negative impact on Lovato, who suffered a near-fatal overdose in 2018. "I went to such great lengths to suppress who I really am to fit this sexy, feminine pop star and actress image that others had assigned for me that I never truly identified with," Lovato told People in June, adding, "You can only carry on like that for so long before it comes spilling out and manifesting, sometimes negatively, in other ways."