Dannielynn Birkhead's Goth Rock Hair Transformation Has A Sweet Link To Her Late Mom Anna

Anna Nicole Smith led a truly tragic life, but perhaps the most heartbreaking part of it was that she never got to watch her daughter grow up. The model and actor died at the age of just 39 in February 2007, around five months after giving birth to Dannielynn Birkhead, her child by former partner Larry Birkhead (Smith's only other child, Daniel, passed away following a drug overdose at her bedside days after Dannielynn was born — yet another horrible twist in her short and troubled story). 

The 1990s icon would surely have been proud of her daughter today. Dannielynn grew up to be Smith's twin; at nearly 19, she shares her mother's strikingly gorgeous green eyes, warm smile, and photogenic nature. Dannielynn has even ventured into her mom's career path, becoming a model for GUESS Kids at age 6. And even though the college student is very much her own person, she made sure to maintain a connection to Smith when she debuted a new look at the 2026 Kentucky Derby.

For the gala preceding the 2025 Run for the Roses, Dannielynn appeared in the same black, backless dress Smith wore to the Derby back in 2004. With her long blonde hair teased in a half-updo, she was almost indistinguishable from her famous mom. This year, a hairstylist friend of Smith's gave her a fresh, cropped cut, bleached almost white with black tips. "She chopped it all off and put some wild colors in it," Larry told People. He later elaborated, "This is kind of Dannielynn showing off her own sense of style, and she said it's a goth rock theme. And this is kind of, I think, her coming into her own, doing her own thing and kind of exuding her own style and her choices that she made."

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Far from being one of the worst-dressed stars at the 2026 Kentucky Derby, Dannielynn Birkhead stunned in a monochrome, strapless Mac Duggal gown with statement-making floral detailing. It was a perfect complement to her new hairstyle, which reflects her new aesthetic. "I feel like a vampire, which is my goal every day," she proudly confirmed to "Access Hollywood" (via YouTube). Dad Larry Birkhead couldn't help laughing as his daughter continued, "It's like my life's goal is to look like a vampire." Specifically, she's going for an "'Interview With the Vampire' modern-ish" vibe. Birkhead was less enthused about Dannielynn's stunning transformation until he saw the raves she got from strangers.

In a separate "Access Hollywood" interview, Dannielynn admitted that she wasn't sure her mother would have been totally onboard with her goth look. "I can't really say for sure, but she was cool, and I'm cool," the teen reasoned (via Instagram). Larry, on the other hand, was sure that Anna Nicole Smith would have loved seeing her daughter coming into her own. As for what next year's Derby holds for the father-daughter duo, as the forensic science major acknowledged, "I kind of want to step away." 

After all, the glitzy event falls right in the middle of her college finals. "I just kind of want to focus more on school, and as school ends, career choice [...] I'm more of a stay-at-home-and-hide-under-my-blanket kind of person," Dannielynn noted. Her father added that she's still figuring out whether to pursue modeling or go into forensics full-time, but whatever the ambitious teen decides, "The sky's the limit."