Guns N' Roses Guitarist Slash Shares Rare Photo Without Signature Top Hat and Shades
There are plenty of celebrities out there who are known for their signature looks. Stevie Nicks is rarely seen onstage without her black fringe shawl. Steven Tyler's microphone is always draped in scarves, and Guns N' Roses lead guitarist Slash is rarely ever seen without his signature top hat and shades.
However, the prolific musician recently posted a rare photo with his bandmates of Slash featuring Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators (SMKC) without his signature look.
The guitarist took the opportunity to share a quick selfie with Todd Kerns and Guns N' Roses bandmate Duff McKagan for a movie night in Florida. He also casually announced that SMKC was putting the final touches on a record due out in 2027.
Fans Were Floored to See Slash Without His Signature Look
While the news of the album was exciting, it was slightly more thrilling for longtime fans (and friends) to see their hero grinning without his usual look.
"Finally a regular Slash photo," joked a fan. "Everyone make a wish."
"Once every six years, Slash has a night off," quipped artist Bowe.
"Absolutely fantastic. Great to see you all looking so very happy," added another.
All in all, fans were thrilled to see him looking so happy and relaxed.
How Did Slash Get His Signature Look?
Loudwire reported that Slash never intended to make his top hat part of his style, according to an older interview with Conan O'Brien on his Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend podcast. He recalled that he stole it from a Los Angeles store and wore it back to his apartment with Guns N' Roses singer Axl Rose before a gig later that night.
"I remember this because there were two stores—there was Leathers and Treasures, and Retail Slut next door. And Taime Downe, the singer from a band called Faster Pussycat, used to work at Retail Slut, so that's how I remember the name of it. I went in there, and I didn't have any money. And I always used to wear some sort of a hat; it completed whatever look you had."
"I went in there and I just saw the top hat," he continued. "It just spoke to me. I figured, what the [redacted], I'll just walk out with it and see what happens, so I did. Then I went next door to Leathers and Treasures and I stole a concho belt and went back to the apartment me and Axl were living in at the time. We had a show at the Whisky that night, so I took the concho belt and I cut it up and put it around the hat, and I wore it that night."
Ultimately, he revealed he liked the way he could hide behind it a bit, using it to fix his curly black hair in front of his eyes to hide that he was inebriated. He added that with the addition of sunglasses, it really helped him to get over his stage fright—something he claimed he still struggles with—though it was not his intention to make it a consistent show look.
"Put the hat on, and nobody knows who I am and what I'm doing and what I'm up to. I can see you, you can't see me. During shows, it was great to have that because to this day, I still can't look at the audience, like, straight into the audience. So having the top hat, really, you just pull it down and you could just do your thing and you didn't feel as intimidated."
That's exactly why it's so cool to see him without it today 40 years since the iconic guitarist made a name for himself.
This story was originally reported by Parade on Aug 23, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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