Rapper Nicki Minaj Rocks Natural Hair

-April D. Byrd


Hip- Hop femcee Nicki Minaj who rigorously refers and expresses herself as a "Barbie", posted photos to Instagram of herself sporting a more natural look.  The rapper who we see mainly wearing a rainbow of wig colors chose to go with a more dark color which most naturally reflects her own. 

(credit: Instagram)

Speculators say she chose the transformation in honor of returning to a more classic, gritty sound for her work. Nicki's new Au Natural look, looks good on her. Hopefully it will be the beginning of more natural confidence and authentic love for the star. Whether it does or doesn't promote more self-love to her fans, being real is still a good look. No matter how "Black Swan-ish" she looks with the make-up, kudos to her for making the switch!

(credit: Instagram)

What are your thoughts on Nicki's "New Do"?

The New Me by guest blogger Michelle Joseph

I wrote an article years ago entitled, “Happy To Be Nappy.” I spoke about how much I loved shedding my chemically relaxed hair and embracing the hair that God gave me.

I was very proud of my article, but I felt an unsettling, hypocritical feeling inside. I wrote about loving my natural, kinky, coily hair, but guess what.....no one ever saw it.

I constantly wore my chemical-free hair in braids, long twists and ponytails, but my hair was buried under a mountain of extensions. There is absolutely nothing wrong with wearing extensions mind you, but I felt that if I were proclaiming to be proud of my hair, why wasn’t I showing it to the world?

I wore extensions on and off for the past 10 years. It was incredibly easy to maintain, looked great and it was a minor luxury that I was able to afford.

In December 2011, I was laid off from my full-time job. Although I was no longer working, I continued to get my extension every 7 weeks. In late May 2012 I experienced some breakage and I decided that it was a good time to let my hair breathe and give my extensions a rest. It also would give me the chance to be myself and learn to accept my hair. Fortunately I wasn’t working, so I was free to do whatever I wanted with my mane.

The journey was not easy. I watched an innumerable amount of videos on styling natural hair and I read countless blogs on how to have healthy hair. I spent many a night writing down the products used by fellow naturals and then following it up by reading product reviews. After a couple of weeks, I felt ready and armed to attack my head of curls.

So in June 2012, I did it. I styled my own hair! As insignificant as is sounds, it was a huge achievement for me. I tried a few times in the past to tame my wild hair, but always gave up and ran back to my trusty bag of extensions. But this time was different. I washed and styled my hair and it looked great. It wasn’t perfect, but it looked good.

Even though I received compliments from my family, I was unbelievably nervous inside. I no longer had the security of hiding under my fake hair—I was exposed. Everyone was able to see all of me. I had a million questions swirling in my head—Would others treat me differently because my hair looked “different?” Would men find me attractive?” “Would I be able to find gainful employment with natural hair?” As much as I was sticking to my decision to remain natural, I was a little terrified.

So instead of running to the nearest beauty supply store and stocking up on my favourite “bag of hair”, I continued to practice taking care of my hair. Learning the proper methods to wash, comb and style my hair.

My signature look is the twistout and I love it. It looks different every single time I rock it, but it is hands down, my favourite look.

I’ve gone to barbeques, social events and dinner with my friends, and I received only the nicest feedback. I was told never to go back to my old style and to continue doing what I’m doing.

I have embraced my curls so much that I recently posted a pic of my new do on Facebook. I can’t tell you how scared I was putting “the new me” online. Within minutes I received a barrage of compliments.

I can finally say, that I am truly happy to be natural!


Michelle Joseph is a free spirited writer living in Toronto, Canada. She currently publishes The Happygrrls Blog (www.happygrrls.blogspot.com) which features entries on just about anything that makes her smile. She is currently working on a new blog- Discovering Michelle, which will feature articles on all the super cool people that she meets. Stay tuned!