2009 just might be year of the clippers!
Earlier this year Cassie eschewed her good girl image by shaving off a portion of her hair, then former Veejay Lala did the same. Not soon after Rihanna was also seen sporting a shaved side ‘do.
Well, Solange has topped all three by taking it all off:
Yes! Solange went from long and flowing to short and edgy.
I applaud Solange for going au natural. It takes a lot of courage to leave the extensions behind and embrace what’s yours (I’m speaking from experience):
It’ll be interesting to see how she dresses it up.
What do you think of her new look?
I like it, simply because she just looks like she’s natural. I think it has a calming effect, rather that the “LOOK AT ME” message both Cassie and LaLa garner. I love Solange and her random looks and ability to switch it up!
Why is this a big deal? Didn’t India Aire and Erkyah Badu do this already? I think it should be cut a little lower, it would look better. I think if anybody can carry it with confidence, it’d be Solange. I hope she’s going natural, not just doing for attention.
^^ It’s a big deal because most celebs are ALL WEAVED OUT. Especially Beyonce. When do you EVER see a huge celebrity with no weaved tacked on their head? Erykah Badu wears all assortments of long braids and huge afros. And she’s also like an indie, soul singer. Indie Arie, same. But how many Rihanna, Ashanti, Kelly, Sanaa, Nia, Gabby….do you see rocking their REAL HAIR?!? NOONE!
I am sorry..natural, different..this doesn’t look good. Everyone can’t do that look right..only a limited few & she is not one of them. This is not a good look for her. I don’t think she has the face for it & I don’t think the cut is that great either.
I hate it, its great that she has alot of confidence but the cut still gets a thumbs down from me. Maybe if she shaped it up better…..no, forget it, it still wouldn’t work
I think once she finds the right accessories for her new ‘do she’ll rock it really well! Good for you Solange!!
In other news, now I can see that her son really looks like her!
I don’t particularly care for the sunglasses; a pair of aviators would set the crop cut off perfectly. I like it! Short cropped cut hair really sets off her facial features, I applaud her choice.
@anonymous: what do you mean “everyone can’t do that look, right?” This is the hair, facial features and headshape that is NATURAL TO HER! How can that be wrong?
If she dont slap a wig on that nappy shyt …
If she don’t slap a wig on that nappy shyt …
lol @ penne
It doesnt look good on her. First,the cut is uneven and looks like it needs a good brushing and some oil.
Second, solange does not have a pretty enough face to have hair that short. sorry.
@t what do you consider “pretty enough?”
To Rhonda-I mean just what I said “everyone can’t do that right.” Not every style fits every person. I think we all know that. Just like a long weave may not fit everyone, or bangs, or a bob, or braids, or an afro, or whatever else. Just b/c you can do it doesn’t mean you should. Same goes for certain styles of clothing. Some people pull off certain more daring hairstyles better than others b/c of their facial structure, head shape or any other number of reasons.
@noname
I didn’t know weave was a crime. Whether it’s a weave or natural, it should look good. And Solange, it ain’t looking good. She needs a good shape up like India did, and it’d be fine
Think about what weave is. Weave is attaching long, stringy hair that isn’t yours to your head so that you’ll look….white. White = pretty.
The minute anyone, especially anyone we consider pretty or a celebrity, rocks their own hair, suddenly this natural black hair is ugly.
weave is a crime it should be burned. there’s nothing wrong with what god gave you.
I salute Solange for being courageous enough to show that what she was born with is fine. Beyonce would never do that.
@anon regardless proponent or opponent to Solange’s cut: She cut it! My issue is when it is a matter of natural hair, whether Celeb or non-celeb, it is usually met with negativity. Where is the crime in defining oneself for oneself? If she likes what she sees, who am I judge what beauty she has decidedly defined for herself?
E.Badu wears weave afros and braided weave so…not a valid point.
As a entertainer your hair faces a lot of stress from performing and always having to look above par.
I don’t care for it but whatever makes her happy and from her @solangeknowles page she changes her hair every 2 months so I am sure it is a phase…can’t wait to her her go off on the haters LOL
I don’t know why this is turning into a political discussion about hair. As far as I’m concerned, it’s all about aesthetics. She does not look good with her hair like this. I think she would look better with an afro, twists, or locks. Just because it’s natural does not make it right.
I also do not see anything wrong with weaves. Women have been attaching strings and animal hair for centuries to lengthen their braids or do exotic styles. If it looks good, who cares?
Oh and you cannot deny that she looks so much older in a bad way with this style.
I applaud the au natural, but what about her LOREAL ad she’s in, wonder if they will continue to use her with this new look.
If she’s going to keep it natural, I think she’d look great with sister locs. She probably just wanted something different. Besides, its summer, and a lot of hair makes you hot. Lots of people cut their hair during the summer for that reason.
i mean…she’s ugly. cover that face with some hair. sorry.
Maybe its just that she’s not comfortable wqith it yet, but i agree with Nina, once she gets the right accessories and really “finds” herself in her new natural look, she will be fine. And she is not ugly. I hate it when ppl give someone a verdict. And the ones saying those ugly things are usually not so hot *note*. Anyway, if she is happy…do it!!!!!!!!!
Lol..wow T tell us how u really feel!
a woman is still a woman if her hair ain’t sweeping up against her face.
Take it as you may, if your sooooo concerned wit women and their “hair”, stop encouraging woman to wax and be bare down there.
Sorry Brit for taking it there. You can’t have it one way or another…. Read More
And yes, folks I’m hella perturbed by folks hating on beautiful black women who keep their ‘ish low.
You ask the majority of women to show their real hair, I can swear by it, they ain’t got none. Front Laces, Wigs, Weaves don’t count, just cause you bought it.
Naturality is what’s up darlings!!!!
This is coming from a chick who had locs for 8 odd years down her back and cut them off to a sweet sexy fade.
I thik Solange has that perfect pretty but quirky face/style to pull it off. Now her weave is fierce too but this is not her first time with a fade. She had one when she was preggo too
I’m all for natural hair but this STYLE of natural hair just doesn’t look nice on HER (to me).
Perhaps she needs some oil, a shape up new sunglasses…per the suggestions above. Or not. I’ll just hope that maybe as she gets used to this look, I will too.
Not a good move at all. The low cut does not look good on her nor does it compliment her style. Try again Solo.
I like it… not because it is a short cut but thatI think it looks nice on her.. will look even better if she shave it some more, I think. My younger sister recently got this style and it looks great on her.. I rock locks but I can’t shave it off because my head is huge (lol.. a bit funny shaped)..so not everything is for everybody (which I agree with)
This is an enlightening discussion.. also, I don’t think there is anything wrong for a black woman to have relaxed hair, wear a weave or a wig.. just make it look nice and rock it out..
People have different opinions but I also think why people have such a strong reaction to it is that the style isn’t common in the US and where women wear it this short, they are considered “earthy” and “real” like Erykah and India and not “commercial” like Solange. In other parts of the world (I will say East Africa because I have visited Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania) lots of women rock this style and it is like “whatever”. So I think it matters on what people are used to.
LESSON OF THE DAY: YOU ARE NOT YOUR HAIR! Wear what suits you and what you like and step out with confidence..
also, what you do with your hair does not define blackness. You are either black or you are not. Rock it out.. like I had said before, while the short cut is popular in East Africa, there are also women rocking weaves, wigs, relaxed hair and the like. Blackness is not about the way you act, dress or talk.. it is being proud of who you are by carrying yourself with dignity..
ok, enough with the essays! lol!
Okay, so at first glance… I had to give it a \hmmm\. But a few seconds in I can’t do anything but congratulate. Because see as black women in America- society has always tried to define us by two things- our complexion and our hair…. and our men especially (not all our men, but MANY) really really want us to have the longest hair ever… and in so many words, black women aren’t really given a chance to love themselves for who they are. India Arie allowed many black women to do this… and then Kelis and Rihanna pushed it even more.. and though i feel she was just attention starved- Cassie, followed by Lala attempt to push this notion of \i am not my hair\ \i feel comfortable with me\ \imma do me\ \i love me\….
i probably am not articulating this in the most eloquent way, but i applaud Solange. Her hair cut is daring, cute, and will inspire many girls- girls of color around the world. most importantly these hairstyles push our men to re-think their \slave-mentality brain-washed\ version of what beauty is and it will allow them to really embrace God’s greatest gift to Earth- black women.
I have this big article I’m currently writing about weaves and how we must free ourselves from them. It should be up by Friday, check it out on my blog later- The American Parlor (theamericanparlor.blogspot.com)
Now I’m not knocking weaves- do you… but people must ask themselves, \why do i feel the need to spend hundreds on weaves every month\ \why are 6th grade girls wearing hair weaves\… if you want long hair then just grown your own- natural or relaxed… but lets stop making more non-blacks rich as hell… the hair weave industry is a billionaire dollar industry and though we spend the dollars we are not the ones benefiting…
anyway, im getting off topic.
I don’t knwo why she did it, but I KNOW she ddi something that is going to inspire so many young girls, her act will boost the self-esteems of so many girls who watch these wretched videos and (no offense Solange) see weaved-out stars like Beyonce and think this is what they must do to be beautiful. Because all teh guys are jockin this…. But point blank- i LOVE the hair SOLANGE! And I would love to know why you decided to do it.
And Solange, could you PLEASE ask Beyonce to cut her hair too and perhaps go natural. Now that would be the most selfless, role-model like act she has ever done because Bey is not a positive role-model for young black women… yes she has a great voice and is a great performer. But, no offense again, she constantly shows her body in tight fitting clothes, always has the most weaves, she marries a ex-drug dealer/rapper- she just perpetuates the negative stereotypes in all ways.
(sorry for any typos)
Well she just went off on Twitter. I love her!
This is a “hmm” in my book. Not flattering at all. This look would be hard even for Hallie to pull off!
I admire Solo for being someone who pushes the envelope and dares to express her own style as versus that of a stylist.
That being said…it’s just a “buzz cut”, nothing special. There are plenty of short hairstyles (that don’t require a weave) that would have been more flattering to her face.
I like Solo, and maybe with the right makeup and earrings, she’ll pull this off. But it is “easy” and if she gets “bored” she can always put on a wig or get a weave for that matter.
This look will be one hell of a grow out; and I believe she’ll be bored when all is said and done!
I’d hate to get off topic, because I’ll be continuing this discussion on my blog, but why did this turn into a discussion about Beyonce? We should not be telling the ‘you’re BAD and you want to be white because you have a weave’. Why can’t we teach them that THEY are what’s beautiful, their mind, their soul, their spirit, not what’s on top of their head? We need to do better.
I don’t mind if she go natural but at least have the cut a little nicer.
Women care about hair,make-up,and clothes.(We are more than vanity of course)but most of us love fashion.All races enhances their beauty in some form.Why is that I must be ashamed of myself,because I wear certain accessories?My hair is long and natural,sometimes I wear wigs,not for the length or texture,but for style.Bleached blonde hair isn’t natural,curly perms that other races wear,but it’s okay?Paris and Britney go from short to long the next day and it’s okay.Jessica Simpson can have a weave line,So many people besides blacks wear weaves.I understand when people go overboard,but if you use it for enhancement&looks right then big deal.Some ppl can’t grow their hair,why do they have to be bald just to say I’m black and proud?Solange looks great both ways.I don’t see her more or less being black and proud because of her hair.As long as your look is groomed:relaxers,weave,locks,natural your hair is beautiful.Why everything that we do has to be critized?Let’s not make this a black/weave issue,but a woman’s personal choice of how she wants to represent herself as a individual,not the whole black race.
First off I have nothing against natural hairdo’s. I know several women that have done that & have thought it looks great. India Arie, Erykah Badu, Jada Pinkett & several women in my personal life have gone there and looked great doing it. Funny enough my mom has a very low haircut & it looks great on her, so I am not against the look as a whole at all. SOLANGE IS NOT ONE OF THE WOMEN IT LOOKS GOOD ON. It is okay for everything not to work for everyone. And to those that say who are we to judge..hmmm..let me see..I think when she decided to be a celebrity it opened her up to people commenting, judging, watching. Thats just a part of the territory, like it or not. Thi sis what happens as a celebrity & I don’t feel bad..if you wan the checks take the good comments with the bad ones. I shouldn’t have to filter my opinion just b/c it isn’t a positive one. Maybe a line up & some oil sheen will make the difference….
I would like to say how hilarious it is that we are all (myself included) commenting like crazy on a chic we don’t even know. SMH at all of us. Fun times. LOL
Lets face it, If she was rocking longer hair, this post wouldn’t have received so many comments.
Lets get real, longer hair is preferred in many aspects of our culture among others.
And when someone in the limelight poses a new depiction of beauty, it’s automatically given a “hmmm”.
Trust and believe, I do understand and acknowledge that we are all entitled to our own opinion or preference, but this is truly about our issues with hair.
If the norm were such in the states to see women rocking a fade, and we managed to be introduced to someone who had longer hair. We would impose the same ambigiousness that we do with Solange at this very moment.
I’m not saying that you can’t be chemically altered, wrapped up, or sewed in.
All I’m saying is that before we give the hmmm, we should take a step back and think where our judgment is arising from.
And not to be a a$$hole of any sort,
But be honest with yourself,
You critique negatively towards the new do, bc it may not be something that you yourself would do or be associated with because you have found some celebrity that you may like doing it.
I would put my life savings on it,
If Beyonce was rocking this do, I can guarantee you a mass majority of her stans would go seek out their bf’s barber to rock a fade.
Whether you realize, we are a culture who gets dictated to by celebrities that we aspire to be like.
So if Rhianna wants to rock her Ace Ventura peacock look, best of believe it, a lot of folks will.
When she cut her hair into a pixie hair cut, it was all the rage last summer.
People wake up and realize you walk and talk what the celebrities do.
We big them up, to pull them right down, when something seems out of step with our own personal boundaries on what we’re willing to do.
http://factfatsandfries.blogspot.com/
@Takiya *Bravo* Very well said!
I love her hair. This will force her to take her fashion to a new level. I love the picture because her hair and her face is very natural. I love it. My head is too big for this but baby she is wearing it with her peanut head.
I shrieked with delight when I saw this! Solange looks Beautiful! I’m shocked that she did and I love her for it!
Just to clarify Cassie & La La were not first to rock this style. I believe it all began with Kelis. I have the Black Sophisticate 2006 issue with her on the cover and she had the style even had a heart design cut into it. So…
If another black female celebrity with the right face did this to her hair, I’d have nothing but praise. There are people arguing about two separate issues here. One is about the politics of black hair. The other is about what fits someone. I have natural hair, but there’s no way in hell I would look good with a fade. India Arie, fine. Erykah Badu, fine. Halle Berry, fine. Jada Pinkett, fine. Solange, not fine.
That said, she made it clear that she’s not looking to please anyone. She’s not looking for a new style. She’s not trying to fit into some new mold. And since that’s the case, then my argument about aesthetics is moot, and the politics argument is irrelevant.
When did the relaxer become the devil? For all us relaxed sistas, it is cool. i’m not gonna apologize for my relaxer. it helps make my originally “could run a comb through it if i tried” hair mangagable. i did not get it cause i wanted to be white. i love being black and i love nature hair. it just isn’t for everyone and not everyone can manage it. i’m really not feeling how natural girls go after relaxed girls and say their trying to be white or not embracing who we are. Not a good look at all.
Solange i appauld u for goin au natural…but not this paticular cut. maybe lower or a afro…
@ Ash WRONG!! “Just to clarify Cassie & La La and Kelis were not first to rock this style, I believe it all began with†Grace Jones, if you or anyone else doesn’t know who she is (and you should) then Google her.
Anyway I too applaud Solange for her current hair style / choice, she has the small head for this low cut, and this cut accentuates her features even more, she’s a beautiful girl whether she’s rocking a weave (ugh) or a low cut fade, a press or a perm (ugh) and I don’t get the silly comments about her needing some accessories or makeup to make her look better and more acceptable in some folks eyes, you folks are brain washed,†and maybe with the right makeup and earrings, she’ll pull this off†if Solange we still rocking her weave or if she and even cut her weave a little bit shorter no one would be commenting about her needing any makeup or accessories to make her choice of hair style more appealing, what the hell is that? So many black women are slaves to weaves and “the creamy crack†hey do you ladies but there is something wrong when you don’t know texture of your own hair, when you haven’t seen that texture of your own hair since you were a child.
@ Jadakiss “……and i love nature hair. it just isn’t for everyone†Hello!!! the hair that you were born with isn’t for you? The hair grown from your own scalp isn’t for you? This comment kills me, if all other ethnicities wear their own natural hair why is it that Black women are soo quick to get someone else’s hair sewn in or glued into their own scalps? Are some black women still plugged into that good hair = straight, fine, curly hair, bad hair = nappy, kinky, tightly coiled? Even forcing weaves and perms onto the heads of 3 & 4 year old girls?
Signed Loc’d Up
I wonder why she cut it all off b/c to me below the weave her hair was already natural all this time. I’ve seen vacation pics of her with her hair only in one with a puff. I also suspect B is all natural below all the stuff too.
I just feel if you’re gonna rock it do it to the fullest. That cut wasn’t the greatest … she still needs a shape up.
Honestly, I’m quickly getting used to this look on her. At first glance, I hated it too. But I think it looks like a natural progression for her. I think she will eventually learn to rock it in her own Solange kind of way. No, she may not always be up to the normal standards for looking “hollywood” or “glamorous”, but I think she wears and looks in a way that makes her happy. Isn’t that what it’s all about anyway? self-confidence?
You do you, Sol. It’s all good either way. I mean, shoot, it’s about time we as Af-Am women start EMBRACING our roots. ;)
I don’t like it. Not that I liked her weave so much either. I am with “secret” in that why does how you wear your hair define your blackness? With all of the issues both political and economic that black women face in this society, why is hair yet another petty device used to degrade us? It is so not the issue! My hairSTYLE-that’s what it is, a STYLE, is as relevant to who I really am as much as how Paris, Britney, Eva, or Christina’s hair is to their identity. Since the way they wear their hair doesn’t have to be a political statement, why does the way I choose to wear my hair have to be? And then who are they trying to be because they add extensions or straighten thier hair? AND finally, where does that leave the african-american sisters who are born with hair that is naturally silky and not coiled or kinky? Where is their identity?
I said all this to say, that we are not our hair. So at the end of the day it is just a style. I in fact chose to go natural because I do hate the chemical, and appreciate my own natural curly texture. I grew excited about the styles I could rock with my own unaltered hair. But I will not be a militant and judge someone because they prefer to sport a booty length weave (white girl or black), or straighten their hair bone straight (again, white girl or black).
My boyfriend would actually like me to shave my head because he likes the look. I choose not, because I don’t like the style for my face or headshape. Bottom line, it is a style that is beautiful for some but not all. I didn’t like it on Britney either.
This is so sad that you have people saying they don’t like her hair because it’s “nappy.” WOW. Can you say regression? Anyway, I love the hair. I think she’s fab. I think some nice lipgloss will really make her pop. I wish all the Black celeb women did this. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT.
I hate it, its great that she has alot of confidence but the cut still gets a thumbs down from me. Maybe if she shaped it up better…..no, forget it, it still wouldn’t work
1) I like the shortness, but it needs some oil (coco, olive, etc) and a shape up because her hairline isn’t straight like others
2) I don’t mind people chemically processing or weaving their hair AS LONG AS they don’t neeedddddd to do it. Once you feel that you neeeeddd a relaxer, you neeeeeeddd to reexamine your own definition of beauty. If you could be happy with natural hair yet choose to relax or weave or whatever….rock out!
3) Most people won’t admit to and/or don’t want to be white, however, the idea of lighter = brighter = prettier = better is still floating around in the subconscious of many African and African diasporan peoples
4) My hair is nappy AND WHAT? that is not an insult baby…please. as bscott would say “I’ve been talked about….by better” keep it moving
5) I can rock a big fro or a fade. my head is just shaped nicely. some people’s heads aren’t. It’s not bad or good. It just is. So not all long or short styles work for everybody, processed or otherwise.
6) Non-black people use weave that is similar to their natural hair. black people use weave that is the total opposite of their natural hair… Just saying. Can’t really defend weave that way.
7) It would be great if Tyra or Oprah or Bey did the same thing, show their natural hair…because MOST (not all) non-blacks thinks it’s fine as long as it’s not a mess, MOST black people care a whole lot. Think about it ladies and gents.
I know you mofo’s that say this looks good, are LYING. Solange before already paled in comparison to her sister and then she goes and does this. She was very stupid, doing a britney is not a good look for her and the worse thing is that I am sure her hair don’t grow like weeds, so her hair is going to look like shit for a while.
First of all, she can’t help who her sister is. She may not be prettier than Beyonce to most but that is her natural hair and I don’t understand how people can say it looks bad if that’s the hair she was born with. I love her hair and I love the fact that she loves her natural hair even more. I was just contemplating doing the big chop myself and she just gave me even more incentive. A lot of black women could learn a little from her and stop hiding behind the weaves, extensions, and wigs. Don’t conform to the mainstream idea of beauty…rock what God gave you…you can’t go wrong.
she dont even got no edges wat she cut he hair for to show that beyonce dont got no edges either
I think she looks great with short hair. I am so tired of people putting her down. She represents us in the media we should be happy to see a woman that looks like someone in our family doing good. Maybe it will encourage others to follow their dreams. But no, people always have to be ignorant and outright mean. That is the one revolving fault we have as a people, that we don’t raise each other up…we knock people down one after the other. To the women on here have given due compliments thank you for this. We should be proud and praise one another. And should we find we have nothing nice to say..keep it to ourselves instead of making it public for all the world to see.
Talk about bring the 80s Au natural low cut…next it’ll be the box like grace jones. lol I like it. I think she look really good with her hair like this.
omg