The Style of Sound: Leather Jackets are Music’s Moto-Marvelous Companion

Leather jackets are known for their versatility, but they have marked their territory as a staple fashion piece serving multiple generations of musicians. 

From the stage to the runway, The Style of Sound is a series that explores the intricate relationships forged between your favorite artists and their iconic fashion statements. 

Written by Alany Rodriguez

Illustrated by Roberto Soto

The classic outerwear has a long history behind it. In the 1900s, leather jackets were used for fighter pilot uniforms during World War I and World War II. Within the next 50 years, they had morphed into a high fashion necessity as Hollywood swept the reigns of pop culture and movie stars such as Marlon Brando sported the leather staple in highly acclaimed films such as “The Wild One.” But movie stars weren’t the only icons that popularized this iconic silhouette.

Here are the various ways that the leather look has traveled through the times and musical genres.

1950s

Photo courtesy of Alamy

During the 1950s, rock and roll became the dominating genre of music, and musicians such as Chuck Berrybegan sporting leather jackets during casual outings, emitting a cool, calm, and collected aura that charmed the nation. It was not long after that the next class of world-renowned  musicians would begin to adopt the sleek style and transform it into an immortal phenomenon. Berry was a rock and roll pioneer, and his fashion sense was just as impactful as the standard he set for his artistic antecedents. 

1960s

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Boy bands, boy bands, boy bands — it seems like they have always been a pop culture craze, from the moment that The Beatles had their breakout year in 1962, creating a world-wide explosion. The Liverpool legends, composed of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, John Lennon, and George Harrison, are known to be members of one of the most influential pop groups in history. And as a picture perfect boy band, they often made fashion a priority, since all eyes were on them. Before sporting matching outfits to translate their synchronization as a group, The Beatles were a group of juvenile rock and rollers who took inspiration from the musicians who came before them. Though they eventually donned suits and ties as they made international waves with their performance on “The Ed Sullivan Show,”  the quartet started out as a blue jean, motorcycle jacket-wearing group of youngsters trying to book gigs throughout Europe. 

1970s

Photo courtesy of Chris Stein 

Debbie Harry, lead singer of Blondie, was the queen of the 1970s new wave era of music. She took her roots in the ‘70s DIY era of punk, and thus adapted from that a nontraditional style that society was not accustomed to associating with women. Harry effortlessly feminized rocker fashion, making it chic for women to wear leather jackets. It soon became a style that mirrored the leap young people were making from clean-cut music, creating a new generation that wanted to push boundaries. Her ever-present femininity in a male-dominated rock subgenre was both inspirational and pioneering, as she became a role model for her female fans wanting to adopt the style of rock and roll for themselves. 

1980s

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. 

Prince took the classic leather jacket trend and innovated it, bringing life to the often eclipsed look. This era of music saw color in leather, and Prince wore it well. His music also sought to add color to the sultry, edgy, dark genres more often identified with leather, as his musical career explored genres of rock, funk, psychedelia, jazz, and more. The multi-instrumentalist won seven Grammy Awards in his career, and his iconic androdynous style has still been seen today, often being mimicked by mainstream artists such as Harry Styles. Prince’s adaptation of different fashion trends, such as the leather jacket, will continue to live on in various eras of pop culture as a perpetual part of his everlasting legacy. 

1990s

Photo courtesy of Michel Linssen

The 1990s laid the groundwork for grunge to fuse previously popular styles of rock and roll like punk rock and metal. And the fashion statements that came of the era were just as unique as the music being made. Kurt Cobain, lead singer of Nirvana, made dark and gritty music often stripped down and sonically acoustic. It was his essence — simple and unbothered, but soulful and intense — that made him such a popular figure throughout his career. The musician was often seen simply wearing a leather jacket, with a cigarette in hand during performances. Because of this effortless and elusive coolness, he unintentionally became a fashion icon, making ripped jeans, band tees, and chains staples in the grunge era of fashion. 

2000s

Photo courtesy of Rex USA

R&B and hip-hop dominated the 2000s, and the leather jackets of this era perfectly fit into the Y2K scene. Leather of this era was oversized and in some cases trench coat-like, with less pockets and a more blazer-inspired structure. As the style became popularized in high fashion, the public started to see this style worn by major R&B sensations such as Usher. The crooner rarely missed a chance to incorporate a classic leather jacket into his style, blending high fashion with street wear. As a style chameleon and a top charting artist with his hit songs such as “Yeah!,” he dominated pop culture. His legacy has transferred into the likes of artists such as Miguel and Drake who have credited the R&B sensation for inspiring their creativity, and no doubt, their fashion sense. 

2010s

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The early 2010s era, flooded with punk, neo-goth, and emo-rock bands such as My Chemical Romance, saw the rise of the classic leather jacket style once again. The black leather often featured quilted embossments or cross symbols, and the iconic outerwear sported by many Warped Tour punk bands began to gain popularity. Whether the band’s music was a response to aggression or a confessional, black clothing was a fundamental piece of the creative puzzle during this era. In 2011, My Chemical Romance had just released its final album, Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys. The band members went on a joint tour with punk all-stars Blink-182, who had also embraced the leather jacket trend, and often used classic biker patches to accessorize them. 

2020s

Photo courtesy of GC Images

Latin music and leather jackets have one common denominator: They each have been able to create an unimaginable cross-cultural influence. As the genre continues to break out into new major markets such as the United States, leather jackets will run along with it. So far, the 2020s have seen luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton take classic leather jackets and innovate them, adding multiple compartments — from pockets shaped like small purses to belt straps that nod to the street wear fashion trend. Reggaeton artist Ozuna has sported the new approach to this classic piece on stage and, given the power that Latin music has in the industry right now, the fashion that comes with these artists has the potential to foster a significant legacy.  

After an exploration of fashion history, it’s clear that leather jackets are indestructible, literally and figuratively. In an ever-changing and multifaceted industry that craves fresh sound and fresh faces, leather jackets have proven a constant in music’s life and legacy, having crossed paths with the most influential artists of the past seven decades time and time again. 

To further commemorate the significance of the leather jacket in music, Afterglow created a playlist filled with an artist from each decade since the 1950s that has helped the sporty leather look maintain its musical relevancy.