​

Erinma Onyewuchi

 

What are you doing with your hair right now?

Right now I have a sew-in in with leave out instead of a closure. I usually get straight texture.

 

Do you switch up your hair often?

Yeah it's either in braids, twists, or a sew in. I like different things.
 

What do you like about the ability to be able to change it up so often?

It's fun and interesting. It's not something that everyone does. Most people tend to keep their hair the same for the most part. For me, it's always been apart of the routine to change something up every couple weeks. Doing that was apart of growing up for me. It was a Sundays kind of thing that my mom did. Before church or after church, she would always do my hair.

 

Did you learn how to do your own hair through that?

Basically I did, but I can’t cornrow. I learned other things though, and I can do the basics for myself.

 

Can you talk about the hair salon atmosphere?

When you start going to the same place, you end up getting to know the women who do your hair. They’re very welcoming--it's a big sister kind of thing. It's cool to see black women come together in that way. We gas each other up, and we’re all working towards confidence.

 

Have you ever been influenced by this notion of good hair vs bad hair?

Definitely. I thought I had bad hair growing up because my hair is thicker and curlier. It isn’t wavy and loose. It's dark black. This notion was introduced to me when I was very young, so it took me a very long time before I could unlearn that. It took me awhile to realize what “good hair” implied. “Good hair” means hair that is closer to european beauty standards is better than other hair types. It's racist and rooted in years of oppression as well as internalized oppression. Once you learn about that and what actually works for your hair then you’re set. You don’t need to start using products for only “good hair”, and you learn a lot about yourself. You don’t need to have straight hair for your hair to be acceptable.

 

How did you unlearn that for yourself?

Youtube! Seeing black girls with hair like mine that could style it like people who had “good hair” and who had the freedom to switch it up as well as experiment with color taught me that “good hair vs bad hair” doesn’t exist. People had that versatility regardless, so seeing that on other black women on instagram and youtube really helped.

 

What are some of the challenges of being a boarder and being black girl on campus trying to do your hair?

I’m from Maryland, so finding hair salons was a struggle, especially because for day students their hair salons were farther away. I am lucky though because a lot of people in my grade and the grade above me can do hair, so I can go to a friends dorm and get my hair braided. I also have to schedule time around my hair.

 

Did you have any challenges doing your hair at home that you don’t have here?

At home, I was more into what other people were doing with their hair. Here, there’s not enough black girls for me to feel like I’m not fitting in. At home though, if there’s a certain style that is popular, like having straight hair or adding color, I feel more influenced by those trends.

 

Did you ever feel a pressure to have your hair done all the time?

In my family, your hair isn’t done unless it's in braids. Natural hair isn’t considered done. You might see my hair out here, but at home, it's not considered done. It's all about how you think black people should present themselves. But to combat that, you have to wear what you wear with confidence. If you walk around acting like your hair is done, people will think that your hair is done.

 

How has your hair shaped your identity?

For awhile, I was that person that switched up their hair all the time. That was a big part of my identity. Now I’m thinking about getting locs over the summer. I guess that's a different identity because I’m in a new community with people who have locs rather than loose natural hair. I think it says more about how people look at you versus how you look at yourself. Because if you are confident and people are still looking at you weirdly, then it's more on them.

 

What is prompting you to change your to locs?

Part of why I switched up my hair so much is because I was looking for a style that fit me and everything I do. I feel like in the summer a lot of black girls get braids because we’re doing more. In the winter we want it straight. We switch it so much because so that it can fit our lifestyle. I love locs thought--they’re really pretty. Growing up, people hated on them, and my parents still don’t like them. The reasons for that are not that stable though,and I really like them.

 

Why do you think hair is so important to black women?

It's expression! There’s so much that happens during the day that's out of our control, but our body is one thing we can. We are expressing ourselves and reaching out to other black women through styling and creating youtube communities around hair. It's positive!

 

Artists you listen to while doing your hair?

Solange, SZA, new Tyler the Creator, the Internet, Thunderkat, and other chill stuff. If I listen to hype stuff, I get tired.

 

Hair Icons?

Chloe and Halle because of their dreads. For natural hair, Solange and SZA.