Lady Gaga is known for switching up her hair and she recently went for a more textured look with blond faux-locs, posting pictures of the new look to Twitter on Thanksgiving. Click below for more pics and to let us know what you think!
What do you think ladies? Crazy or cute?
154 Responses
Thanks for another excellent article. The place else could anybody get that type of info
in such a perfect approach of writing? I’ve a presentation next week, and I’m at the search for
such info.
Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, activist, businesswoman, fashion designer and actress. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to focus on her musical career. She soon began performing in the rock music scene of Manhattan’s Lower East Side. By the end of 2007, record executive and producer Vincent Herbert signed her to his label Streamline Records, an imprint of Interscope Records. Initially working as a songwriter at Interscope Records, her vocal abilities captured the attention of recording artist Akon, who also signed her to Kon Live Distribution, his own label under Interscope.-“.
http://caramoan.phSee you in a bit
interesting not bad
Ignoring all the irrelevant racial comments, I like the style on her.
I think it is cute that she is trying a different hairstyle, especially since everything else that she does to her hair is harmful (continues hair dyes, added heat, bleaching, etc.) it is always nice to give our hair a break and let it relax. For example for women who are tried of thinking up new ideas to wear their hair and they decide to wear braided extensions. Also idk why people are even putting race into this, it is just a hair style……like so what if she is wearing locks, it is not like she is saying that she is rocking locks like all her african american sisters out there. She is just wearing a hair style, she is trying something new….is that really so wrong because if it is than that means black women shouldn’t dye their hair blonde even though they are trying something new. Lastly why is it that she has to be copying off of a culture, like i said before why can’t we just see it as a new hairstyle. Locks are just one thing that is normally seen on colored people, and it is just hair…..it is a hairstyle that everyone can have. For example for black women who wear red lipstick, they are not labeled as coping white women even though red lips was normally always seen on white women, but people do not make that connection.
If this picture of lady gag had her rising her fist doing the black power symbol while rocking her locks than sure say she is coping another culture but not just because she is wearing a hairstyle.
I was thinking something similar. All the black women wearing long wavy weaves, blonde highlughts, pink blush, red lipstick, bleaching their skin.. are people really preaching about being excluded, yet bitch about wanting to be segregated from other cultures. Its hair. If someone white or not black complained about the looks black women copy, they’d be a racist.. its hair, my goodness.
I’m not impressed. With all the money she has, she could have made them look a helluva lot better. If she likes it, cool. If her dickriders like it, cool. But I don’t. Then again, I’m not a fan of (dirty, tacky-looking) dreads on white people. If they’re nicely groomed, it’s ok. But that’s just my opinion.
In other news, how is this article relevant? I agree. If we can’t identify this site as something for black girls ( or girls who identify as being black to a certain extent) then what is the point? I like coming on here and seeing people who look like me. I like seeing people I share similarities with. And this isn’t it. But that’s just my opinion.
Is it me or is she going down the Amy Winehouse path – but with much less talent?
So Lady Gaga got some dreads. My world continues to go on.
DISCLAIMER: I actually like Lady Gaga. Her IDGAF attitude regarding her style choices is what attracts me to her. She’s secure in who she is and what she does. SELF AWARENESS I believe is what they call it
And white dreads are just plain whack and unappealing. Polish plait having MFs
She literally has no place being mentioned on this site and praised for her ugly ass hair style (that isn’t even natural). I thought this was a site catering to black women throughout the world with natural tresses and the issues surrounding said natural hair phenomenon. And the fact there are women defending her, tho???? Really? Quick to throw shade and shit on other black women, however. I can find 10 other black women with locs 428420424 times better than hers and some of you wouldn’t be on their dick like you are on lady gaga’s. Some of y’all are too easily impressed and entertained about whites who do some of the most mundane, lackluster and sub par shit. On another note, her face is hard and rough as fuck. Too much money to be looking like that bad.
Natural hair is unprocessed hair. Natural hair is hair that has not been chemically altered to change the texture of the hair. So technically whites, asians, latinos, native americans and many other women and men have natural hair. I never understood why some black women with “natural” hair think that the term “natural” belongs to them.
Oh Lord, I had a feeling it would come to this. I have no problem with Lady G getting dreds, but with all that money she makes, they should look waaaaaaaaaay better.
If these lady’s claims of cultural appropriation still seem like a urban legend then please read a FASHION BLOG on the 70’s “icon” Bo Derek and her “cornrows and beads:
Bo Derek became an instant sex symbol in 1979 when she co-starred in Blake Edward’s romantic comedy 10 with Dudley Moore, playing the object of his infatuation. During the 70s, when women wore big, pouffy hair along with dresses and jackets with equally big shoulder pads, Derek stole the screen with a daring look: a nude swimsuit and hair braided into cornrows, adorned with beads on the ends. Soon, women took note of the striking image and began to copy DEREK’S hairstyle…
…The Bo Derek look has resurfaced many times since the years after in different variations: straight rows braided evenly across the head, rows crisscrossing over each other, the inclusion of colored extensions, or ends left loose and tied up in a bun. Cornrows have even popped up on the red carpet—Christina Aguilera wore her hair in braids at the Grammys in 2001. And in March of this year, reality star Kim Kardashian decided to channel Derek in her music video for “Jam (Turn it Up)”. Thanks to Bo Derek, braids will always be associated with summer and a standout beach look that is sure to make waves.
Not a SINGLE reference to ANYONE of African descent or that women of African descent have worn their hair like this since the beginning of time. Still don’t believe it?
[img]https://bglh-marketplace.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Salon-Buzz_Bo-Derek-Cornrows-Brades.jpg[/img]
In 1992 I spent a week in Florida with my family. I decided to wear my hair braided for the trip. Everyday that week, at the beach, restaurants, and even Disney World, I was approached by white people who all said, “Wow. I really like your hair. You know, black women got that style from Bo Derek.”
I tried to explain that women of African descent have worn their hair this way throughout history. Some were surprised. Most of them didn’t believe me.
This has been a very interesting debate and also interesting to see the different views. I could find agreement with various sides (well minus name calling and such). Definitely gave me food for thought.
1) I would like the look better on her if her makeup was right.
2) As far as LOCS are concerned, I only like them if they look neat. You know what I mean. Doesn’t matter if you’re black, white, purple, green, or whatever. I don’t care for locs that make you look like you don’t give a frack the first.
3) I’m all about a bit of healthy discussion and even debate, but this post feels like instigation…
She looks dirty and worn out, sorry but being truthful. And whoever did her faux locs needs to be fired because they look bad. I have a white friend with locs at my college and she looks great with hers. The only thing is people call her “Marley” and she hates it because people try to stereotype her based on her hair before they know her similar to many people who wear certain styles. She just love the hairstyle and it fits her lifestyle…simple as that. I have no problem with white people wearing locs, yeah I get that it is associate with black culture and it seems like people always take from the culture without crediting or giving back, but again nothing is limited to one culture. Every culture borrow or try something from another culture it isn’t that serious, what’s next are we going to get mad at Jewish people for having the so called “Jew-fro” and celebrating it too. I get some of the counterarguments listed but it seems like making a mountain out of an anthill.
Firstly why is this on BLACK girl long hair
Secondly she looks hideous(im not even trying to hate)
Thirdly that i snot textured hair….its just straight haired locs
Well, she looks ill here so it’s hard to focus on the hair! And to join the fray a little: I agree that we shouldn’t claim locs as if no one else can have them. Any hair can loc, as many have said. I am black, and I make no cultural claim to locs… they are not a significant part of *my* cultural history. And I don’t think that it’s all bad to have someone in the limelight and the majority showcase something that is generally used by a minority group, because it introduces it to the wider society. That is a bit annoying, when someone stumbles upon you and then you’re magically acceptable, but I think it’s just a fact of being a minority and it’s good to break down some of these separations while being able to maintain individuality.
I don’t even know why Lady Gaga does to her hair matters and why she’s even featured on this website.
Nothing against her but I still don’t get it….
Yeah let’s go back to the peaceful and respectful commenting on style icons muahahaha.
LOOOOOOL!
If we go with the logic that Caucasians should not be allowed to wear locs then all black people that do not ascribe to the Rastafrian lifestyle should also not be allowed to have their hair loc’d either. Once we start with this, should we then start banning folks from being able to wear afro hairstyles or getting cornrows? I don’t see where we would stop. As I previously stated, locs are not exclusive to African or African Americans. It is a style that has been worn for centuries by many different ethnic groups.
100000000% true. It may be associated with black/African culture now but it was not always that way. Everyone should wear their hair the way they like it and if you want o play the “it’s my opinion, I can say what I want” be prepared to receive that same level of treatment from others. I’m just sayin’ what goes around comes around.
Not only do I like the hairstyle on Gaga I like GaGa in general. While People who complain about about white people stealing blacks culture has a lot of merit, can you honestly say you haven’t stolen anything from someone else’s culture? Furthermore, My mom has had locks since I was a little girl and the lady who does her hair is black but her husband is white and his locks are ALWAYS on point. As women with natural hair doesn’t it hurt you when people generalize who you are based on the fact that you wear your hair a certain way? Then why on Earth would you ever generalize someone else whether you have reason to or not.
We need to do better… smh
Exactly!!! I’ve never understood judging someone based on physical appearances alone but I am astounded when it’s a lack person because we are fighting so hard against that type of thinking (i.e. generalizing an entire race, discriminating, segregating, etc).
How can you complain the loudest about something while simultaneously contributing to it?
Why is she on BLACK girl long hair? *sighs* Can we for once have anything of our own without it being infiltrated?
As a mixed person I find your comment offensive, racist, hateful… You long for racial purity but your mind has been infiltraded by stupidity…
There is no hate but as a BLACK woman we need to have stuff solely for Blacks. Is that so much to ask? Don’t others do that? Since you are NOT BLACK you probably haven’t noticed that there systematic erasure of Blackness going on right now. Harriet Tubman is now mixed. Nina Simone is now mixed. Marvin Gaye is now mixed. Where is the Black representation of Blacks? Look at your local news how are blacks represented. I don’t want White as the new Black nor do I want MIXED as the new Black. This isn’t about being racist or hating others. I just want Blacks to have something of there own to come to without having to share with “others”. Those are same others that try to put us down on a daily basis. Of course you would find what I said offense because you’re co-signing White supremacy because it BENEFITS you. As a MIXED person why are you on a BLACK website? *deep sigh* I just want something for us blacks.
….the amount of ignorance in this post. Wow.
I get what your saying, we need to stop trying to always include every race because a lot of the time we are being excluded even Latinos try to exclude us! This ain’t no United colors of bennetton!
This ain’t no United colors of bennetton!
Say it again and again and again and if it is the name might as well change to “black girl or any ol’ girl with long hair. “
Thank you.
LMAO!!!!
That was ugly…. I’ m pretty sure the creators of this site don’t share your supremacist views… It has never been a supremacist site. Have you noticed how many mixed women were featured? So yes, as a mixed woman i feel very welcome thank you…
Where is the moderation? Such posts should be banned…
I freed a thousand slaves I could have freed a thousand more if only they knew they were slaves.
– Harriet Tubman
….I’m sorry if you think disagreeing with you makes us “slaves” or brainwashed (which is what I think you’re trying to say with this post), but that simply not the case. There’s just no need for your ignorant and hateful words on this site.
IKR – @Ummmmm As an IGNORANT BIGOT, why are you on this website? *deep sigh* this ain’t the 1950s anyone can view and comment so get off your high horse or get on it and ride out to this utopian blacks only site you speak of.
You know…swapping white with black in a few spaces and such, you can get a nice white supremacist speech a grand dragon would be proud of. For example:”There is no hate but as a WHITE man we need to have stuff solely for Whites. Is that so much to ask? Don’t others do that? Since you are NOT WHITE you probably haven’t noticed that there systematic erasure of Whiteness going on right now.
Or this: “I just want Whites to have something of there own to come to without having to share with “others”.”
I find it amusing that you spew the same tropes white racists use when bemoaning lack of racial purity.
The thing about that is… if Whites had left us alone they WOULD have all their own stuff. If Whites hadn’t raped y/our great-great-grandmothers, there WOULD NOT be an erasure of Whiteness going on. If, say, the British hadn’t tried to ‘better’ Nigeria by making it British, would my parents have tried to ‘better’ themselves by coming over to Britain…?
Not that I agree with Ummm, I’m just saying there’s a reason their complaints sound foolish…
REALLY?
Somebody call the wahhhhhhhh ambulance!
what you didn’t get enough of BET ?
*sarcasm*
The mixed woman on this website is here for the same reasons you are.
Another thing blacks need to stop looking for acceptance and validation outside of themseleves, if you don’t feel that you need to make it for yourself.
america is a melting pot meaning almost everyone here is mixed. there is no absolutely pure race on this planet everyone is mixed with something. it may take you awhile to find it but trust that its there
“Mixed” does not mean “not black”, because if you’re any black (African-American, AfroLatin@, Carribean, Afro-European, etc) other than African (and then not even), you’re most likely mixed with something. Harriet Tubman, Nina Simone, and Marvin Gaye may have been mixed, but they sure were treated as black, and are still regarded as black, because that was their culture. This mixed girl, Nora, still is probably treated as a black person because that’s what people see. If she were on the news, they’d probably treat her like any other black person. She’s on here because she still has “black” hair. And no matter what, she still has that black past and black culture. And the admin of this site can ask the BGLH community what they think of Lady Gaga’s hair if they want to. So, as an African black person and the only pure black person I’ve met outside of my family, I think that you should reconsider your position.
#1- This article is posted all over and linked to here, has nothing to do with a “black girls site”. I found it on a gossip site.
#2 Europeans, Russians, Native Americans, etc have had locked hair since the dawn of human kind. You don’t brush, it locks. I am german with long brown hair and if i don’t brush then with in a week it locks up.
My wife is black and straightens her hair because she chooses to- I bet you have some racist bullshit theories about how she hates herself as well.
Too bad you can’t see your own racism.
So you are offended (on the internet, because, you know, that will help everything), and yet you call yourself “mixed”… Like a dog…
Logic.
Cause god forbid black women create spaces for ourselves when we’re constantly excluded, erased and silenced from others. Please take your tragic mulatto tears elsewhere.
It’s comments like these that do nothing but spread unneeded and unwanted animosity, please take several seats.
yeah I’m not sure what this has to do with the purpose on the site
Bait article?
It sure is!
I’m just waiting on an album, Gaga!
*this*
125+ comments says yes. Not that I mind! I love a good debate/argument just as much as the next person who says they don’t… (there does NOT need to be any name-calling though)
Just going to toss the question out there since I need some clarity. How is this appropriation? Is it being called this due to the rastafari movement? If so I would assume all non-rastafarians, black, white or whomever have dreadlocks would be appropriating the style.
Is it due to its root in african ancestry? But I don’t view this as something absolutely intrinsic to that either since well….all hair can dread and there have been people throughout history with them.
That’s the thing, it’s not exclusive to African culture. This has been a hairstyle that has been worn by many different ethnicities through out history. I think people are up in arms and shouting out cultural appropriation because locs have more recently become associated with African culture. When I say recently, I mean within the last few centuries and most recently with the rise of Reggae music and Bob Marley who helped to popularize the hair style.
And why can’t we all just be FLATTERED that “white people are copying our look/culture”? I for one look at all the fine, straight-haired blondies here with intrigue & amusement; I honor their “reasons why” without needing to know about it. Perhaps they feel a sense of connection to our “culture”; perhaps they are trying to pay homage to a part of themselves that they feel they’ve cast aside all of their lives. Who knows? We certainly don’t.
Regardless, if they want to be all rastafarian, it ain’t hurting nobody. If anything, it’s just making us black folk look even better.
And, for the record, these white people with dreads are the same people who will look at my free flying afro & gush over it; they want my hair to be theirs. (I NEVER get that reaction from relaxed black people.) If that’s not the best compliment — given our/the history with oppression/discrimination when it comes to our hair — I don’t know what is. Very healing, too.
finally ^^
Amen.
She would fit in nicely in Portland, OR, where a majority of the loc’d people here are not black but white, & the ability to adequately rock them is fairly high, given the hippie/hipster nature.
I wonder if other races are as critical and unsupportive of each other as we are of our own. It seems some of us always feel the need to put others down and criticise just to make our selves feel better. We want to talk about how whites did us this and that but it seems to me that the biggest problem is us. We can’t let others express themselves without resorting to name calling, we can’t let others express their individuality without putting our two cents. We have much bigger problems to deal with. Like our salvation for instance. Anyway…
Amen sister, how can we think that other races should respect us, when we don’t even respect each other!!
They are, this isn’t exclusive to black people, it’s exclusive to the human race. My best friend is Chinese, and some of the things her parents say about the Japanese are crazy. I have a Puerto Rican friend that dispises Cubans. I lived in the UK, and white people insult white people all the time using their heritage as an insult. This isn’t new. It all boils down to culture and history, plus humans seemto live to divide themselves. It’s not new, never has been.
+1
Agreed. I’m tired of the ‘Black people always be putting other Black people down’ mantra. Or the worse, Black WOMEN always hate on other Black women blah blah. Everybody does it! The English and the Welsh are all pally-pally yeah?? The Scots love the English and would support all things English because they share skin colour, right? The Irish Catholic would never do the Irish Protestant wrong, no???
We notice OUR ‘self-criticism’ because it concerns US because we are Black! Heck, I wish for the day that I am so care-free that I have the time to worry about and look for White people putting each other down! I’ll fret about White on White crime when my skin turns white and hell freezes over…
could not agree more you said it all.
Wow, some of you just gave up after the transitive properties of mathematics and never looked back did ya?
You cannot make the comparison of Black women wearing their hair straight to White women who WILLINGLY get dreads. It’s like you suddenly forgot the natural hair movement arose from our largely Eurocentric idealistic culture thinking our textures and bodies were UNFIT for the work place. Come on now… if you’re going to dissent at least apply a fair amount of logic into the discussion.
DO NOT FORGET MOST OF OUR STRUGGLE STARTED WITH AN INTERNAL BATTLE BETWEEN BLACKNESS AND ASSIMILATION. Or are you going to deny the origins of the straight comb, the perm, the word “nappy”…
black women willingly wear weaves. many willingly relax even after trying natural hair for awhile. sayin they prefer the look of straight hair, or its more manageable for them to care for. no one is forcing black women to have straight hair in most circles. some, but truth is most pressures come from black relatives, other blacks who still cannot get their heads out of what they think white society still wants.
Lol so I like how you had to ignore most of my comment to drum up that fallacy.
Next time someone complains about their hair being deemed unacceptable in the work place, or women with kinkier curls lamenting comparisons to Aunt Jemima by White coworkers I hope you’re there to tell them it never happened.
Or you could read about it…
http://www.diversityinc.com/ask-the-white-guy/do-blacks-need-to-relax-their-natural-hair-to-get-promoted/
That’s all well and good, but White people don’t have that struggle, does that mean they can’t wear a drastically different hairstyle because they weren’t shamed or forced into doing so?
What would you (general ‘you’) have them do to acknowledge that ‘locs started with Black people? The ones who aren’t wearing them to mock Rastafaris (who don’t have the monopoly on ‘locs by the way), but just think they look nice. Or maybe they even think they’re ‘cool’ and ‘edgy’ like whoever said above? What exactly is the problem with that if they are just copying the hairstyle but not trying to claim wearing the hairstyle makes them Black or means they know our struggle or they invented the hairstyle or anything like that (not that I’ve ever heard a White loc-wearer say these things btw)? Somebody spell out the actual problem and the actual solution please without just spouting ‘cultural appropriation’ and leaving it at that.
Black humans were around for thousands of years before our melanin-deficient cousins, so it’s no wonder we did MANY things first and sometimes it seems that White people have no real culture. Sucks to be them! But really, does this mean they are not allowed to do anything because they didn’t do it first? There are loads of things that we deserve to be acknowledged as doing first from mathematics to music to medicine, and I agree and wish European textbooks would pay homage at least. But when it comes to non-academic stuff like an individual White person wanting to wear a hairstyle (and that’s all it is imo unless it specifically/personally means something more to YOU) because they like the hairstyle and think it’ll suit them, how exactly are they meant to pay homage? By just not wearing it and admiring from a distance because some other people who share their race think/thought the hairstyle is/was unfit? What would you have that individual do?
And I have bad news. The more ‘locs are accepted, the more they are going to be copied by other races. Yes, it shouldn’t be so that we need ‘acceptance’ for our hair, but hey ho, we (most of us posting) live in the White man’s world and need this acceptance to survive in the way that we want. So you either need to get over it or cling onto the tag of ‘the discriminated’.
Find for me:
Where I said White people shouldn’t lock their hair.
I merely said it wasn’t the same connotation and y’all need to stop acting like everyone is happy, nappy and Black. To state Black Women aren’t shaped by Eurocentric ideals is a fallacy. No, actually it’s willful ignorance. The results for the ‘Doll Test’ haven’t changed. Hell, ABC JUST released a study about the self-esteem of young women and people of color being ‘shockingly low’ due to lack of adequate representation.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/health/2012/05/30/more-tv-less-self-esteem-except-for-white-boys/
Are young girls still think they need to be lighter than a paper bag.
I mean this site just posted about Viola Davis and her struggle with Blackness. The amount of willful ignorance it takes to say our hairstyles are largely shaped by PERSONAL CHOICE and not the ROLES people have put on us is staggering… I mean just look at the hate Willow Smith gets. Smh… the forest is full of trees. Y’all are so eager to sing praises of a post-racial world you forgot to actually create it.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120715771
This world is most definitely not post-racial and Black people all over the world are of course still consciously or subconsciously directly and indirectly pressured by Eurocentric/Western ideals – like I said, we ‘need’ their acceptance to survive happily. The comparison between weaves on Blacks and ‘locs on White is a stupid one tbh. You would notice I never claimed otherwise.
However, my entire point was how and why does this lead to Black people getting upset or offended if a White person ‘locs their hair? I understand the whole cultural appropriation thing even though I may not agree with the idea that it is always a negative thing, BUT ‘locs aren’t tied to a culture! It has some significance to a relatively modern religion, but it has existed and been practiced well before that. To me, it’d be like saying a non-religious person circumcising their son because they think it looks better and is easier (to clean or whatever) is cultural appropriation.
I’d understand if an artist’s or designer’s personal style was ripped off and I’d even understand if what was being copied had sacred significance to the culture it originated from or if something was being mocked, but generally the whole cultural appropriation thing baffles me. The same way people who fuss about how they liked bands before they become popular baffle me. And often they’re not taking issue with the idea that they might be priced out of concert tickets or whatever. Strange! (sorry! Went off on a tangent!)
EVERYONE’s hairstyle is shaped by the roles the world places on them! Everyone’s! The ‘role’ we were/are given has been particularly challenging, yes, but again why does that mean the people who have fewer restrictions should not choose something the people with more restrictions would be forced into? Is it jealousy at their freedom? Is it paranoia that our struggle is being mocked?
(again, this post is directed at the general ‘you’)
Not my favorite look on her, but i’m not surprised. Just wish she’d smile or smirk or something….
Uhm… Why shouldn’t white people dread their hair when black people straighten their hair tho it’s not their natural texture either? Just sayin.. *shrugs* haters hate on everything i guess!
white people wear locs it because it’s “cool” and “edgy” for them to do it never-mind the millions of black/brown people who’ve worn and been perscuted for wearing locs from thousands of year.
The initial reason black people wear their hair straight because is makes their life easier whilst navigating through white society.
Its sick because at times, black people’s lives were made hell for wearing their hair un-straightened, in locs, by white people. What culture whiteness hasn’t destroyed, it steals
Stop with the generalizations. You have not shaken every white persons hand nor do you know how they feel/think. Some white people simply like the hairstyle and choose to wear it because it makes them HAPPY. I find it ironic that women with natural hair get so mad at people doing to them what you’re doing to whites who wear dreads….. girl bye.
*standing ovation for this comment*
@Cat that was motivational lol! my bf is considering getting locs (yes he’s white with long blonde straight hair) because he LOOOOOVES them and always had and my two teammates in college had locs (they were blond Australians)….I think in talking about how black people were/are mistreated for having locs undermines the fact that for many having locs in general causes discrimination. I remember a teammate saying that she thought the two aussies never washed their hair and thats how they got locs, my teammates had been stared at, talked about too and judged to be a ‘certain kind of person’ that they absolutely were not. i feel locs on all races in these times would do a world of good in making the style more mainstream thus more accepted.
best comment here hands down
White people with dredlock don’t usually look right to me because the new growth comes in straight and that makes the whole look look messy. But that’s saying more about my dislike for locs that are uncared for than anything cultural. My problem with Zanthe is that she dismissed Rae’s comment because it sounded intelligent, as if black people aren’t allowed to sound intelligent or use words longer than 1-2 syllables. I do agree with Rae and I think the comedian Paul Moony said it best, “Everyone wants to be a nigga, but nobody wants to be a nigga.” They want the hair, they want the lips, they want the brown skin, they want the butt, etc., but they don’t actually want to be black. Is there anything we can really say is part of “white culture”? No. Because white culture is basically comprised of different aspects of other ethnic cultures and subcultures and then sanitized for the mainstream.
Bravo! There is nothing wrong with being intelligent and being able to express that intelligence with written communication. No need for dismissal of opinion or name calling. As far as Gaga, I don’t like it because it looks unclean and unkempt.
no one ever said that black people were not allowed to sound intelligent. do you really need someone’s approval to sound intelliigent? the problem is not about sounding intelligent or not the problem is that will to scream about everything.
Never baited. LOL
This will not end well. Here was me thinking most people would skip this one.
Co-sign.
Cultural appropriation, I don’t think so. Locs are not exclusive to the African or African American experience. Locs have been around way longer than the Rastafarian movement. Barbarians in Europe such as the Celts circa the 11th and 12th century rocked loc’d hairstyles and that’s just one example of a non African culture wearing locs. Not to sound condescending, but some people on here truly need to learn their history and not just a singular history but world history. We’re so busy focusing on who had it first that we miss the fact that no one culture can truly claim ownership of a particular hairstyle.
It started in Africa, it may be associated with Rastafarians, but like almost everything else associated with us, it originated in Africa. Same as with raggae music, people think it’s a Jamaican thing, but our Ancestors in Africa started that as well. I forget what specific region, but i’m sure google can help you.
Now you sounds a bit ignorant.. Stop googling and go read some real history and anthropology books. Do you understand that cultural forms do have an history, change, evolve… Reggae music was not born in Africa. It has African roots… Not exactly the same. Thousands of ethnomusicology works say that clearly. And the history of cultures show that cultural forms do travel and are transformes by their contacts wih other cultures. Musics, hairstyles, religions, arts are alll the results of intercultural contacts… African cultures have themselves assimilated cultural traits from Arabs, Indians, Indonesians and Europeans. And of course Europeans ans Asians did the same with African cultural forms. Cultures are not islands. Peace.
The only ignorant person here is you. Who told you I went to google? I told her to go to google if she did not believe me, but I learned that little fact in a black history class, so I guess the ignorant one here is YOU. You know what they say about ASSuming? good, cause that’s you.
If it started in Africa, than it was born there, if the word ‘born’ bothers you, then use a different one, but don’t try to make it seem as if what I said is not true.
Sure. Maybe you need more classes then. From a proud african lady with locs ( and a phd in african anthropology).
Peace.
A phd from an online university doesn’t count boo.
🙂 i guess it is better than nothing?
In your case? no …but I have a degree from a real brick-and-mortar university so I wouldn’t know. smooches.
Now that’ s a surpise. Well, good for you girl…
Wow. Rude. Why does it matter where people get their education? As long as they’re bringing correct facts to the table, everything else is a non-factor.
Where you obtained your education does NOT make you better than another person.
Lol at the educational top trumps up yonder. People on here really can’t do polite discussion, some of it would put your local fishwives to shame. People crying over white people with locs and swearing up and down that it’s THAT important and then we have the name calling and accusations of people being self hating coons and online graduates. You are all a trip….goodnight.
Lettuce be reality…you googled.
Seriously some people here sound racist.
Because some of them are.
Really, like who? All I see are people who are tired of doing something first and not being recognized for it until someone white does it. There are white people who swear that bo derek? made braids cool even though it has been a part of our culture since the begining of it.
If you disagree with folks then say so, but don’t call people out their names and not expect backlash. I personally feel no sense of pride when I say white people copy certain parts of our culture that relates to hair/beauty. Be open minded about me living in your neighborhood, then we’ll talk. Otherwise…….it’s appropriation.
In the global world we live,culture is exported via the media and celebrities so I acknowledge your point about trends not being attributed to the place it started with.i guess when people like something they copy it without thinking about the cultural aspect or any deep signification.
I personally believe we have free will and it is a gift when used responsibly. It is ok to have differing views as we learn by listening to others and realising we don’t know all the answers.
i think locs are well recognized as a black style. i dont know what more ure looking for. Do blacks who relax or weave come with a written message “see white heads for source/reference”?
that’s because it’s on the package, you know ‘indian’ remy hair….or the new favorite…brazilian
Lol! Love your answer !
Seriously. It’s honestly just hair. Why can’t people worry about their own instead of busying themselves with everyone else’s?
@zanthe i agree with you on that one. i have read black folks on other blogs who tried to defend those who swear by wigs and weaves by saying that it was just hair and aestethics. i am fully aware of who i am and my history and i learnt by myself many things that you do not read in history books because we did not write them but come on now. there are always people who scream when they see a non black person wearing what’s considered a black style but the next second will be crying that natural hair is not recognized.
it’s just hair and everyone is entitled to do what they want with their own hair. i do not know who you want to liberate here but the day black women as a whole will wearing their own hair without relaxing it and wearing weaves to emulate caucasian hair then you’ll be entitled to scream at a non black person with locks.
Your AMAZING.
thanks! it’s nice to see that some of us do not want to start a fight about everything
I think you meant “you’re”.
This. I don’t get how it’s cultural appropriation, Black hair is not the only hair that can mat.
Apparently people in the far east were dreading their hair before rastas. Honestly Black people, get over yourselves!
lol at people ignorance, because Jamaicans invented what people called locks LMAO!!!!!!
Also “locks” have been worn by different races many centuries ago, it wasn’t only an “African” thing.
I’m sure that cavemen and women wore their hair in locs too a looong time ago.
best post ever
This. This exactly. Bless your ability to put words together in such a manner.
I have yet to master it!
i am sure you will
+1
I can’t accurately comment on her hairstyle when all I see is how tired she looks. Get some sleep Lady Gaga!!
And what’s this “cultural appropriation” crap? It’s hair. People are free to do whatever they want with their own hair. Get over it.
I swear. I see people complain about that and the only thing I get from the conversation is “We had it first! No copycats!!” Grow up, guys. We’re better than that.
Though I agree that people can “do whatever they want with their own hair” does that mean others are not entitled to their own opinion? Simply by saying “Get over it” implies that another person’s feelings and/or opinions are invalidated. And yes I do see it as cultural appropriation not merely because “we had it first” but because cultural appropriation, cooptation and “borrowing” is not done out of admiration of cultural expression. Do not get me wrong though I am not talking about Gaga’s individual intent, I am referring to a system of whiteness that attempts to fill a signified cultural void. It is done without reflection and understanding of specific cultural meaning. Locs have a significance in the Rastafarian culture. It would be like wearing a hijab or a yarmulke because you think it is “cool” as opposed to fully understanding its significance.
Bla bla bla. Trying to sound intelligent “a system of whiteness”bla bla but simply put you sound like an elitist A*****E
…and you sound like a brainwashed, self-loathing, head scratching, tap-dancing, Sambo-COON. Wake-up and stop persecuting those who seek to liberate you. If you have a problem with reality and love delusion eat it for yourself and keep your trap shut. Rae’s opinion is perfectly valid and it was well-stated and backed-up with examples. Your comment is just an attempt to shame her into submission. If you’ve sold your soul it’s too late for you. However, for those who still have theirs let them SPEAK and leave them alone!
Woah that name calling is out of line! You sound like you have major issues. We should have pride in ourselves, culture and roots but it’s ok for you to rattle off a list of disgusting insults based on racist stereotypes then throw them at Zanthe?!
she sounds brainwashed because shes not willing to whine and moan and get worked up?please
You missed the entire point of this entire post.
Please re-read, and try again.
k thx
Prrrrrrreach, chil’!
ICAM Zanthe that being said, I don’t like how it looks on Gaga.
Yes, it is cultural theft with no regard or care to where it came from or why. Give it twenty years and white people will have black folks thinking locs was THEIR thing since the beginning of time. They enjoy rewriting history to their advantage by remixing it and pushing it to black people to keep our spirit down and to pump their egos up. The wiser we are about these little things — the wiser we will be about the weightier issues involving what they do and typically get-away with. They have (collectively) built their entire existence and fortune on sucking the ‘soul’ out of us since our ancestors were drug kicking and screaming to this damn place. Gaga looks like a vampire and a ‘soul’-sucker. Too bad a lot of these diluted young sisters aspire to this sort of thing.
“It’s just hair…” give me a break. We’re better than THAT.
…..yes. It IS just hair. And you’re reading way deep into things that honestly don’t matter. You sound like an extremists in your racial beliefs, which is why I can’t take you seriously. The instant you start claiming that an entire race are “soul-suckers” because they lay claim to hairstyles that “aren’t theirs”?
Yeah…it makes me think you have issues.
We’re better than conspiracy theories that make us unnecessarily hateful and bitter towards other races. At least, that’s MY opinion.
There’s a distinct difference between presenting facts and being “angry” and entertaining “conspiracy theories”. Black people, or black-ness, have consistently been written out of history (Jesus + Mary Magdalane, Egypt, Moors, Aboriginals), and pointing that out does not make one “angry”, it makes one informed. In regards to Lady Gaga’s hair, just because black people did it first doesn’t mean no one else is allowed to do it. If that were the case, almost all of the world’s art, fashion, spirituality, and technology would be stifled. Its my understanding that Rastafarian is a faith system, not a color system, and anyone can declare themselves as such. Never mind the fact that there are plenty of black folks who loc their hair without considering the spiritual implications, and nobody jumps down their throats.
See….that’s also part of the problem. Locks are worn by rastafarians but the locking of hair was around way before the rastafarian movement. So no I do not co-sign on “Never mind the fact that there are plenty of black folks who loc their hair without considering the spiritual implications”
There need not be such a connection. There need not be some spirituality connected to it if the person so chooses since locks are a style/hair choice and not necessarily an indicator of a certain belief set.
Otherwise I am in total agreement with what you said
eleriero, My dear, you have been whitewashed and brainwashed.
She always looks FAB
Too true, but sometimes she just looks beyond exhausted. The woman needs to rest sometimes, lol!!
I’m sorry, but I can’t understand your logic. People emulate styles that have historical value all the time, and yet it seems that people want to pick and choose what’s important to one group or another. Let’s just forget about cultural meanings for a minute. As a person farther below stated, anyone’s hair can mat up and loc up. That’s not specific to black people. So if a person let their hair get to that point and decided to just roll with the style, that person is now guilty of cultural appropriation? I don’t think so.
You can’t always tell the intent behind a person’s actions…and until you do, you have no right to judge them for “appropriating” something that’s not from their “culture”. That’s honestly none of your business.
And even if it were….what exactly did you plan to do about it? Besides sit here and complain about a picture…
Dude, plenty of black folks rock locs with no idea about why rastafarian wear locs. I’d also be willing to say a large portion of them don’t care
<~~~non rasta black loc wearer. FYI other people and cultures have had locks, just think of the indian mystics etc.
Exactly Rae! I’m in college and I’m surrounded by hipsters. It’s so annoying! There’s this white girl in my class that has locs and has a fake D.C accent(she’s from Montgomery county. She always talks about how she needs to get her bone straight roots re-twisted -__-. I’m no hater or simply angry…..I’m just annoyed! My best friend is Vietnamese,and she also hates how people appropriate her culture.
That’s your opinion. cultural appropriation is real and hurtful. if it doesn’t affect your then cool, but allow other people to state their opinion without you shutting them down and calling it “crap”. and telling them to “get over” something they find offensive. “we” don’t all have the same opinions that “we” decide at an annual black people meeting. you are not the spokesperson.
If you find it offensive, then I can’t really do anything about it. I know that. But still. You’d think it’d just be better to save your outrage for something that deserves it. That outrage loses credibility when spent on something that really isn’t that big of a deal. Save it for something truly horrendous, not on someone’s individual choice to wear their hair in locs.
…or does their individual opinion not matter either?
1)please show me where i said i was outraged
2) I will decide how much of a big deal it is for myself without you quantifying and qualifying it for me. you do not set the bar for how strongly i should feel.
Appreciate the reply
1) Maybe not in your reply to me, but I’ve read some of your other replies here….really strong opinions you have on the topic of hair.. And I’m not just referring to you when I “outrage”. I’ve had this same discussion to other people.
2) You can decide how big a deal it is to YOU, doesn’t change the fact that to MOST other people, this is honestly nothing to cry over, and fighting something like hairstyle with such vehemence makes us, as a race, lose credibility when we want to speak out for things that ACTUALLY matter, such as equal treatment and the end of racial-fueled violence. Compared to those matters, to feel this outraged about hair just seems trivial to me.
Exactly. It’s washed energy. I wish there were more like you instead of “you know who”.
you’re actually giving me jokes boy.
I’ve only commented using this name on all of 4 posts.
no tears here. no violence. i’m not snatching virtual loc wigs off of white women. they’re totally free to do what they want with their hair. But I am free to speak. I am free to have strong opinions as an Individual. boy you are actually running up and down this comment section bending over backwards to defend this woman. I don’t need to agree with the status quo to be “credibile”
Yeah, I’m all over the place on this board. Your point? Oh…you don’t have one? That’s nice.
And I’m not defending Lady Gaga (not that she needs it, again, her hair is no one’s business but her own), I’m just saying. Why does race even have to be a factor in this equation? Why can’t people leave well enough alone what other people choose to do with their own bodies (hair included) without coming up with 5 reasons on the spot to be mad?
And who said anything about “status quo”? Why even bring it up?
Looks like appropriation at its best… not a fan
I love locks on EVERYONE(black or white) its looks cool, it doesnt look like locks though..maybe thicker and neater
never been a fan of locs on caucasian’s it looks really messy… i like me some gaga but she looks tired
I agree!
Agree!!
Honestly, she has never looked good to me, and this instance is no exception.The only person I’ve seen rock this look succesfully is Shakira.
Love are cool but come on Gaga your a millionaire, its okay to smile 🙂
Honestly? She looks a little crackish.
eeew no
ewwwww whitelocks.
I’m so sick of the icky hipsters who think losing their combs and rubbing crisco on their heads = locs.
The locs are cute but the bottle-blonde color is throwing me off. I’ve never liked bleached hair on her.
she looks stoned