It’s Sunshine!
You can find her in the May issue of Essence in a feature on natural hair!
Sunshine debuted her big chop on BGLH back in July 2009 when she participated in guest blogger week. She said
“I was living in Atlanta when I started to reevaluate things. Never before in my life had I seen so many black women wearing lace front wigs, false eye lashes and MAC makeup as I did in Atlanta. I started to feel like I was in an army of fake barbie dolls and started to feel that there was nothing unique about me. I felt like based on my appearance I was just one of those girls in Atlanta trying to star in a video. It seemed like we were all fronting, trying very hard to be something that we weren’t. I started to detest the whole idea that someone (other than myself) created this image of beauty and was selling it by the case load to women like me.
It was then that I decided I wanted a change in my life. I wanted to decide what was beautiful for me. I wanted to stop relying on this “Bourgeois” mentality I had so readily soaked up and find out who I really was beneath it all. So first I took out the weave. But there was still relaxer on my hair, and I wanted to shed it all! So about a week after I took out the weave, I woke up early on that Saturday and I drove around until I found an open barbershop. I walked in and asked the barber to cut it all off like a man’s hair cut.”
(For the full interview click HERE.)
Since then Sunshine has gone on to do big things. She is the founder of Natural Sunshine.com (an AWESOME natural hair community!) and opened her own shop Peace, Love and Sunshine Products. And now Essence. Congrats girl!
Did any of you see the feature? What are your thoughts on Essence embracing natural hair in a bigger way?
7 Responses
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awwww Im gonna go buy that issue now, I saw it in Target but then put it down at the last minute…
@Romney – I know the discussion in Good Hair was predominantly weaves. However, Chris’s promotional tour was essentially encouraging parents to stop relaxing their children’s hair. Natural hair has not been talked about this much in mainstream media until that movie. If you recall the Oprah episode had Solange to showcase natural hair. Tyra also ditched her weave and had Raven on the show talking about natural hair (i.e natural natural not relaxed hair).
In short, Good Hair encouraged talk about natural hair and encouraged publications like Essence to seek interest in new media like blogs and youtube where natural hair is all the rage.
Just gorgeous!! She looks great and I love her youtube channel. I need to get my hands on Essence ASAP.
@JC I can definitely tell you haven’t seen Good Hair because it would change the statement you just made. LOL. The movie barely discussed natural hair. I think the internet buzz of natural hair has had much more of an effect vs that movie. I urge you to see Good Hair, so you can see what I am talking about.
That picture of Sunshine is really nice!
About Essence – I think that they surely must have a new creative director or must have found someone who is an expert in new media.
I say this because all articles on natural hair have previously been terrible, unlike clutch magazine which was pumping out useful and thought provoking pieces. Essence was meanwhile giving us a hairdresser who recommended not using conditioner on natural hair but oils instead….hmmm…..someone needs a slap. Suddenly, they are now turning to the internet and finding a ‘new view’ of natural hair.
I also call this the Chris Rock effect. I haven’t watched Good Hair because it never screened near me but ever since that movie, natural hair has had the spotlight and it is portrayed as progressive and worth embracing. Essence is jumping on the band wagon but since it is a great band wagon…hop on!
Congrats Sunshine!!! You look great!
I was just looking at this earlier today like “omg she looks sooo pretty!!” lol