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The Most Stylish Black Stars Under 30

Yara Shahidi, Olly Sholotan and Malia Obama are some of the young stars who always make a statement with their style.

Photo: Getty Images

So they may not know what life is like without the internet or cell phone, but celebrities born after 1994 are making major contributions to the style game.

Stars like Marsai Martin, Zendaya and Trevor Jackson are defining fashion on their own terms and forcing the rest of us to take notice.

These are some of the most stylish young Black stars in Hollywood.

Marsai Martin

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 25: Marsai Martin attends the 54th NAACP Image Awards at Pasadena Civic Auditorium on February 25, 2023 in Pasadena, California. Photo: Getty Images Frazer Harrison

Marsai Martin stole our hearts at age 9 as the tough-talking twin Diane Johnson on ABC’s Black-ish. Now, at age 20, she’s stealing the show on red carpets everywhere with her unmistakeable style. In an interview with USA Today, Martin says the key to looking great is being comfortable.

ā€œI’m very comfortable (in what I wear). That’s always the top priority for me, is to be able to feel comfortable within myself,ā€ she said. ā€œAnd making sure that I’m flowing easily and that I can just always stay active and moving around and do my thing.ā€

Storm Reid

Storm Reid at Coach RTW Spring 2025 as part of New York Ready to Wear Fashion Week held at The High Line on September 9, 2024 in New York, New York. Photo: Getty Images Gilbert Flores/Variety

The only thing we love more than ā€œA Wrinkle in Timeā€ star Storm Reid’s style is her sense of principle. She and her stylist make sure that every designer she wears aligns with her values. ā€œI like to have fun, but stay within what we believe in,ā€ she said.

Tati Gabrielle

Tati Gabrielle at the Gold House x MACRO ā€œOne House Toast to the Emmysā€ held at the Gold House on September 12, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Michael Buckner

When asked to describe her style, ā€œYouā€ star Tati Gabrielle says, ā€œIt’s all over the place.ā€

ā€œMy mom calls me her Bohemian child, because I was a hippie, spacey kid,ā€ the 28-year-old told W. ā€œStill am, I guess.ā€

Olly Sholatan

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 25: Olly Sholotan attends TikTok’s Visionary Voices Black Hollywood Brunch on February 25, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Randy Shropshire

Olly Sholotan plays prep school student Carlton Banks in Peacock’s ā€œBel-Air.ā€ But as the 26-year-old actor and musician told The Root, he has fun playing with his style.

Coco Jones

ELMONT, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 11: Coco Jones attends the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards at UBS Arena on September 11, 2024 in Elmont, New York. Photo: Getty Images Taylor Hill

If you don’t know ā€œBel-Air’sā€ Coco Jones, you’d better start paying attention. From the Cannes Film Festival to New York Fashion Week, she shows up and shows out on red carpets all over the world.

But besides looking great, Jones says one of her favorite things to do at high-fashion events is catch up with other fashionable friends.

ā€œMy favorite part of the event was catching up with the girlies! I love running into fellow artists and creatives and chopping it up,ā€ she told them about NYFW.

Amandla Stenberg

LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 28: Amandla Stenberg attends the ā€œStar Wars: The Acolyteā€ UK Premiere Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on May 28, 2024 in London, England. Photo: Getty Images Stuart C. Wilson

ā€œStar Wars: The Acolyteā€ star Amandla Stenberg says she doesn’t allow her style to be confined by traditional gender stereotypes.

ā€œI think something that was a huge limitation for me was gender. I thought that I had to dress a certain way in order to appear female…and once I lifted that limitation off of myself of trying to look digestible, especially to the male gaze, it was a lot easier for me to find what style actually suited me,ā€ the 25-year-old star told InStyle.Ā Ā 

Yara Shahidi

Yara Shahidi at Bottega Veneta RTW Spring 2025 as part of Milan Ready to Wear Fashion Week on September 21, 2024 in Milan, Italy. Photo: Getty Images Aitor Rosas Sune

Actress Yara Shahidi always looks great. But she told Who What Wear that a white button-down blouse is one of her favorite closet basics– something that forces her to play with accessories to put her personal stamp on her looks.

ā€œBecause my wardrobe [on] so many days is a white button-down, I really do lean on jewelry as that point of perspective or that ā€˜something interesting,ā€™ā€ she said.

Trevor Jackson

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 05: Trevor Jackson attends the 2024 BMI R&B/Hip-Hop Awards at Fairmont Century Plaza on September 05, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. Photo: Getty Images Amy Sussman

Yara’s ā€œGrown-ishā€ costar Trevor Jackson has a smooth style of his own. And while he likes the finer things in life, he says his shoes need to be fit for dancing.

ā€œI’m not trying to spend $1,500 on a shoe. That’s just me, because I’m always dancing or running or doing some craziness and messing up sneakers. Expensive shoes are not the goal. House of Hounds are nice boots. They have a lot of different styles,ā€ he told GQ.

Zendaya

PARIS, FRANCE – OCTOBER 01: (EDITORIAL USE ONLY – For Non-Editorial use please seek approval from Fashion House) Zendaya Coleman attends the Louis Vuitton Paris Womenswear Spring-Summer 2025 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on October 01, 2024 in Paris, France. Photo: Getty Images Marc Piasecki

We couldn’t have a list of stylish young stars without including Zendaya. The 28-year-old actress stays fly wherever she goes. But as her stylist and image architect Law Roach said, her style keeps changing.

ā€œHer style has evolved just like her womanhood,ā€ he said. ā€œWhat people tend to forget is that your palette for fashion also matures the way your palette for food does. And things that you didn’t like when you were younger change over time.ā€

Malia Obama

DEAUVILLE, FRANCE – SEPTEMBER 06: Malia Ann Obama attends the opening ceremony during the 50th Deauville American Film Festival on September 06, 2024 in Deauville, France. Photo: Getty Images Foc Kan/WireImage

Unlike most of the stars on this list, former First Daughter Malia Obama tends to keep a low profile. But when she does pop out, everyone is watching. When asked about a plaid Vivienne Westwood look she wore to the Deauville American Film Festival in France in September 2024, Obama said, ā€œI don’t know as much about fashion. But I’m happy to be wearing it.ā€

Lexi Underwood

HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 08: Lexi Underwood attends the opening night for the 20th anniversary of the HollyShorts Film Festival at the Dolby Theatre on August 08, 2024 in Hollywood, California. Photo: Getty Images Vivien Killilea

When it comes to her style, 21-year-old ā€œLittle Fires Everywhereā€ star Lexi Underwood says she loves to borrow from the past, particularly the 1990s.

ā€œWe’re taking inspiration from so many other generations. A lot of the same trends that were big in the ā€˜80s and ā€˜90s are coming back now. We’re just being very free and unapologetic to the choices that we make, especially when it comes to fashion. I hope that future generations are going to come back and look at our stuff and be like, ā€˜Hey, that’s cute. Let’s bring that trend back,ā€™ā€ she said.

Savannah Lee Smith

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – FEBRUARY 15: Savannah Lee Smith wears white head scarf, black oversized button shirt, wide leg pants outside Willy Chavarria New York Fashion Week during on February 15, 2023 in New York City. Photo: Getty Images Christian Vierig

We love 24-year-old actress Savannah Lee Smith’s style. But the ā€œGossip Girlā€ star said it was the show’s costume designer, Eric Daman, who gave her a crash course in fashion.

ā€œEvery time I go to a fitting, he’s like, ā€˜Do you know this brand?’ And I’m like, ā€˜No no no’; I look it up, I write it down in my Notes app, like, ā€˜I need this dress.’ It’s an educational thing for me,ā€ she said.

Caleb McLaughlin

ATLANTA, GEORGIA – JULY 26: Caleb McLaughlin backstage during Rema Rave and Roses North American Tour II at Tabernacle on July 26, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Prince Williams/WireImage) Photo: Getty Images Prince Williams

When asked by Esquire to describe his personal style, 22-year-old ā€œStranger Thingsā€ star Caleb McLaughlin said, ā€œNeat, classic…whatever goes with my vibe and I’m comfortable with.ā€ And we’re here for it.

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