By

Olivia Craighead,

a news writer for The Cut who covers pop culture and celebrity.

Previously, she wrote about pop culture and entertainment at Gawker.

If you’ve been rocking the same hairstyle for over 30 years, you can’t just show up at work one day looking totally different and not say a word about it. Well, technically you can do that, but people are going to have a lot of questions. Such is the case with Conan O’Brien, who appeared on the latest episode of his podcast, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, with his signature ginger pompadour slicked back with gel.