Speaker 1: Good morning, good afternoon, good evening. You are tuned into
Speaker 1: the Vitamin D with Dawn Day podcast and I am
Speaker 1: your host, Dawn Day, here to get you excited about
Speaker 1: your life so that you can live life on purpose
Speaker 1: and for a purpose. And this is your first time
Speaker 1: tuning in and welcome Vitamin D. It's upon of my name.
Speaker 1: My name is Dawn, and you get Vitamin D for
Speaker 1: the sun. So I'm here to share light into your life.
Speaker 1: And I do this with inspirational insights and conversations with
Speaker 1: celebrities and everyday people like you and me, Because if
Speaker 1: you want to be better and you want to do better,
Speaker 1: then you're going to have to be able to see better.
Speaker 1: So join me on this journey of living our best
Speaker 1: lives and understanding and realizing how you are your greatest
Speaker 1: assad I can't tell you how important it is for
Speaker 1: us to edify one another, to uplift, to shine light,
Speaker 1: to pay how much to those who have paid the way,
Speaker 1: to those who are paving the way, and to those
Speaker 1: who have yet to pave the way. It's the last
Speaker 1: day of women's history mine and I know you've probably
Speaker 1: checked out the interview, the hearing, the saga, the whole
Speaker 1: process with Honorable Katangi Brown Jackson and her confirmation of
Speaker 1: joining the highest court in the land. There was so
Speaker 1: much backlash thrown at her, yet she stood in so
Speaker 1: much grace and grit in the words of Senator Cory Booker,
Speaker 1: and I broke down in tears of just how he
Speaker 1: edified her as a woman. I really enjoy how Corey
Speaker 1: Booker was able to see her, how she was able
Speaker 1: to reside in who she is. How was some little
Speaker 1: girl out there that's saying because she can, I can't too.
Speaker 1: And more importantly, how we're coming together to her and
Speaker 1: celebrate a woman about change, a woman who was so
Speaker 1: well decorated, a woman who has crossed through the fire
Speaker 1: and actually set fire a blaze of the trail that
Speaker 1: she is making. Maybe remember that, maybe we also honor
Speaker 1: and respect all the things that she's been through and
Speaker 1: that she's going through using as a means of inspiration.
Speaker 1: Can you imagine or we see her so we can.
Speaker 1: So I want to thank you, Honorable Katangi Brown Jackson,
Speaker 1: for being bold, for showing us with women's history looks
Speaker 1: like thank you for being you. Maybe we all learned
Speaker 1: something about what it means to be who you truly are,
Speaker 1: to stand in your truth and to operating your truth.
Speaker 1: Maybe all do that, get your right right with me?
Speaker 1: I get excited. How are you doing, I'm doing great?
Speaker 1: Thank you so much. It is a pleasure and absolute
Speaker 1: pleasure for one to see your face, to to have
Speaker 1: you on the Vitamin dvadan A podcast. I'm excited to
Speaker 1: be here. I'm excited to have you. And which makes
Speaker 1: me more excited is because what you and at least
Speaker 1: you are doing with the black Hair Experience. We're gonna
Speaker 1: talk about this um and I have the opportunity which
Speaker 1: I'm so excited about. I went ahead and took a
Speaker 1: visit over at the ball on Hills mall rightf for Grinshaw, Martin, Luther, King, Bilevard.
Speaker 1: So it was great to really stuff in it. And
Speaker 1: can I just say, y'all do it to day and
Speaker 1: all day. Thank you, Thank you so much. From the
Speaker 1: moment of stepping in there and even before I even
Speaker 1: got to the exhibit, you know how you grabbed me.
Speaker 1: You grabbed me with the music. It was so nostalgic
Speaker 1: being a nineties kind of girl like was immediately taken back.
Speaker 1: The lighting was phenomenal, the installations were phenomenal, and I
Speaker 1: understand that you guys have different exhibits or whatnot based
Speaker 1: on the location. Correct, yes, yes, And I have to
Speaker 1: say I have to give a Leisha her credit. I
Speaker 1: can't take credit for the music because since is all
Speaker 1: about the nineties and she curated that playlist. But yeah,
Speaker 1: so each city has their own, you know, different flares
Speaker 1: to it. We always try to keep some of the
Speaker 1: same installations but make them different. And then this is
Speaker 1: our fourth location, so we've learned some things along the way.
Speaker 1: So I feel like you got to see the culmination
Speaker 1: of like a year's you know, um years of hard work,
Speaker 1: you know, coming together. So we're really happy with that
Speaker 1: location and what it looks like. Okay, Okay, So while
Speaker 1: I was there, you know, I had to dive in
Speaker 1: because I know that this experience was not only amazing
Speaker 1: for me, but I'm like, you know, while we're bringing
Speaker 1: up this conversation talking to black black hair, I was like, well,
Speaker 1: let me go and ed and ask some of the
Speaker 1: people that were there if they could ask you to
Speaker 1: a question, what would they say. So leading into it,
Speaker 1: I had the opportunity to talk to a young woman
Speaker 1: she goes by the name of Queen Being. Her question
Speaker 1: is what prompted you to create the black Hair Experience?
Speaker 1: What was the impetus for it? Okay, So Alicia and
Speaker 1: I have been friends for longer than I want to admit,
Speaker 1: and I am by trade a photographer and she's a
Speaker 1: graphic designer. And we were at a conference and I
Speaker 1: was telling her like, you know, I'm entering into these
Speaker 1: weddings and I'm in these spaces where I'm the only
Speaker 1: black woman and I'm the only black person, and I'm
Speaker 1: struggling with figuring out what i want my hair to
Speaker 1: look like. And um, I was gonna do a photo
Speaker 1: project on black women and their stories with their hair,
Speaker 1: and she was like, why don't we turn that into us,
Speaker 1: you know, experiential museum. And it's just like a brilliant idea.
Speaker 1: We came together. It took us about a year to
Speaker 1: figure out fabrication and like get all of that going,
Speaker 1: and it really manifested from that as we continued our conversation.
Speaker 1: We started our journey together in corporate America when we
Speaker 1: were intern Yeah, so we our first corporate job we
Speaker 1: were together, and then we end up being roommates. So
Speaker 1: we kind of talked about that experience that we had
Speaker 1: and transitioning from undergrad to that environment and what that
Speaker 1: was like with our hair. So we really just kind
Speaker 1: of dove really deep and trying to say, like, there
Speaker 1: hasn't been a place to celebrate our hair. There hasn't
Speaker 1: been a place that was made for positivity with our hair.
Speaker 1: We know it's so heavy, we know it's a journey.
Speaker 1: We both have been on that, so we intentionally wanted
Speaker 1: to make it fun. We intentionally wanted to make it positive,
Speaker 1: and we really wanted to figure out a way to
Speaker 1: connect with people and for them to be able to
Speaker 1: come in and laugh and have a good time. So
Speaker 1: that's kind of how it came about, Like kind of
Speaker 1: starting that story of going through our journey and making
Speaker 1: sure I was like, we gotta have a kitchen. I
Speaker 1: remember those Easter Sundays with my mom in the kitchen.
Speaker 1: We gotta make sure we have that and trying to
Speaker 1: make it beautiful and something that should be celebrated. So
Speaker 1: much love that happened in those you know situations. So yeah,
Speaker 1: that's kind of how it came about and like what
Speaker 1: the thought was behind it. And it's been an amazing
Speaker 1: journey putting it together. You have me over here clapping
Speaker 1: and probably everybody once you mentioned the kitchen, because it
Speaker 1: was between well three, okay, it was between the bedroom.
Speaker 1: Immediately I heard Brandy sitting up in my room, everybody
Speaker 1: on the wall. And then and of course everything starts.
Speaker 1: I mean, especially just as a young black girl grown up,
Speaker 1: you knew you were in the hair salon. I mentioned it.
Speaker 1: Before you get to the hair salon at six am.
Speaker 1: You're lucky if you leave out by three pm. But
Speaker 1: hold on, hold on where you got me and Elizabeth,
Speaker 1: when you got when you hit right here, right here
Speaker 1: is when I moved into that kitchen, I said it was.
Speaker 1: It was just a black history moment in general. Like
Speaker 1: I'm surprised I hadn't seen a post that said, like
Speaker 1: like TVT and just the back of somebody's neck that
Speaker 1: just say okay, because the days of holding them ears
Speaker 1: down and squinching, and then your mom or whoever was
Speaker 1: pressing your hair had to hit it on the paper,
Speaker 1: tie a little toilet paper just to make sure it's
Speaker 1: not too hot. Then wait a minute, if you like me,
Speaker 1: start sweating and you hit a little sizzle, and oh
Speaker 1: my gosh, I looked this because the sisterhood that you
Speaker 1: gotts share, that's what you got brought to life. And
Speaker 1: you guys both being a woman that are bringing something visually.
Speaker 1: The fact that you were able to evoke that into
Speaker 1: a conversation that everybody can relate and I think that's
Speaker 1: the type of community when I think about the black
Speaker 1: Hair experience, because we're all just sharing our journey. Yes, yes,
Speaker 1: you mentioned that this is the fourth exhibit here in
Speaker 1: l A. Yes, tell me about the others and the
Speaker 1: process of even securing the space, because I'm sure people
Speaker 1: were thinking about like what a pop up art exhibit hair?
Speaker 1: Talk to me. Yeah. So our first location was Atlanta, Georgia.
Speaker 1: Our second look quication is in Maryland in the d
Speaker 1: n B area, um so in National Harbor, and then
Speaker 1: we have a tour of Texas that is happening, so
Speaker 1: we just close our Dallas location is moving to Austin. UM.
Speaker 1: We like our biggest goal was to kind of take
Speaker 1: it on tour and make sure that as many places
Speaker 1: get to see it as possible. Um and not to
Speaker 1: get you heavy and be completely honest, like, securing our
Speaker 1: location has always been the hardest thing for us. You know,
Speaker 1: it didn't matter if we had a business plan, it
Speaker 1: didn't matter if we had capital. You know, we had
Speaker 1: black in our title before was popular, you know. So
Speaker 1: it was one of those things where we honestly saw
Speaker 1: that that was an issue, but we really persevered found
Speaker 1: some great people to you know, partner with us. So
Speaker 1: it took us about a year to be able to
Speaker 1: find a location that was willing to you know, understand
Speaker 1: the concept and you know, um like allow you know
Speaker 1: us to be in the space and get a lease
Speaker 1: and all that good stuff. But yeah, it was definitely
Speaker 1: a journey in the beginning. And I always love to
Speaker 1: be transparent about that because getting commercial leases and really
Speaker 1: um regular house you know leases are completely different in
Speaker 1: terms of the rules and things like that. But we
Speaker 1: were really happy with Atlanta. Atlanta is still open. We
Speaker 1: call it our baby. It is one of our smaller locations.
Speaker 1: It's about four thousand square feet, but it's still it's mighty,
Speaker 1: has fifteen different installations, So that's kind of where we
Speaker 1: started and we've just been growing ever since. I love
Speaker 1: what you said that because you know, vitamin D it's
Speaker 1: a pun off my name, and vitamin D is all
Speaker 1: about shedding line because you get vitamin D for the sun.
Speaker 1: And the fact that you are transparent, the fact that
Speaker 1: you can't say and attest to the fact that it
Speaker 1: took time and how you had to push through it.
Speaker 1: I think that makes the reality of things because in
Speaker 1: the world where everything is so instant, people think that
Speaker 1: it's easy, but you realize the things that you work
Speaker 1: hard for are worth having because now here we are
Speaker 1: talking about something that may here. I am, you know,
Speaker 1: at the exhibit talking to mothers and daughters and have
Speaker 1: it just you took me back and it felt good.
Speaker 1: It felt really good. And so I'm just curious. Out
Speaker 1: of all the installations, what would you say the one
Speaker 1: that really, you know, touched here for you in the inside.
Speaker 1: I mean, honestly, I have to do the kitchen, because
Speaker 1: that for me was like I just remember my mom
Speaker 1: being in the kitchen, my grandmother, my aunt, like it
Speaker 1: was like our Easter Sunday, Like I have this picture
Speaker 1: of of me, like when I was twelve and my
Speaker 1: whole family were blue for Easter and I just remember,
Speaker 1: like I was so like dumb by the time the
Speaker 1: photos came around, but it was such a beautiful, like
Speaker 1: experience because like we color coordinated as a family. So
Speaker 1: just like so many good memories of the women in
Speaker 1: my family in that moment, like as a child may
Speaker 1: not necessarily appreciating it as an adult. Oh my gosh,
Speaker 1: Like that was so much fun. So definitely the kitchen
Speaker 1: is for me. That's the one that means the most.
Speaker 1: And just having those memory, especially with my grandmother, you know,
Speaker 1: I think that that is just time that I will
Speaker 1: always cherish. It's the kitchen for me. So since we're
Speaker 1: talking about family mother's grandmother's daughters, I understand that you
Speaker 1: guys have a weak care workshops that you guys also
Speaker 1: um have part of the black hair experience. So tell
Speaker 1: me a little bit about that and what's that about. Yeah, absolutely,
Speaker 1: so you know, understanding that the we wanted the experience
Speaker 1: to be as positive as possible, there's still a level
Speaker 1: of responsibility. We know that we're up against a lot.
Speaker 1: We know that young girls are still struggling when it
Speaker 1: comes to their journey with their hair. So our workshops
Speaker 1: are really geared towards sowing self love and furthering that
Speaker 1: conversation with younger girls, middle school and high school girls. UM,
Speaker 1: we talk about you know what it's like or the
Speaker 1: experience that they have in the media, you know, just
Speaker 1: building self confidence and team building and UM we bring
Speaker 1: in you know, UM influencers and just women of color
Speaker 1: that are out here moving and shaking for them to
Speaker 1: be able to see, you know, how important it is
Speaker 1: and what they can do. UM representation matters like UH
Speaker 1: so much. And I know that young girls even being
Speaker 1: able to see, like, you know, like this is ours,
Speaker 1: we this big facility that you're inside of, this is us.
Speaker 1: So them being able to even see that, I think
Speaker 1: it's impactful. So we do those in every single one
Speaker 1: of our locations. We have a community Engagement manager on
Speaker 1: staff full time. Her whole job is to do these
Speaker 1: workshops in each of our locations because it's important for us.
Speaker 1: We knew that we wanted to give back to the
Speaker 1: communities that we were in and we felt that curating
Speaker 1: this program was the best way to do it. I
Speaker 1: understand you guys talk about something like a hair trauma.
Speaker 1: Is this the kinds of things that you discussed in
Speaker 1: the workshop? Yeah, So for the girls, we try to
Speaker 1: UM allow them to see it through. UM like seeing
Speaker 1: it through more so themselves. We like the one thing
Speaker 1: that we try to do is we try to focus
Speaker 1: on reinforcing positive skills when they are in the moment
Speaker 1: of you know, feeling doubt and how do I get
Speaker 1: myself out of it? Like what are some affirmations I
Speaker 1: can say to myself to reinforce those positivities. So we
Speaker 1: try not to focus so much on the trauma because
Speaker 1: sometimes just my personal opinion, I feel like a lot
Speaker 1: of things are focused on black trauma. So we're trying to,
Speaker 1: like with the girls, to be able to give them
Speaker 1: tools to be able to overcome that, and to be
Speaker 1: able to say, if you're having a moment, what are
Speaker 1: the steps to be able to take you back to
Speaker 1: a positive um you know, position, and then also just
Speaker 1: being able to say, like, your hair is beautiful and
Speaker 1: you'll be surprised with you know, our younger girls that
Speaker 1: that statement within itself is like oh really, that statement
Speaker 1: just kind of itself is what needs to be reinforced.
Speaker 1: So we kind of start there, and I love that
Speaker 1: because know, oftentimes in some families the rhetoric has been
Speaker 1: like natural here is unacceptable. I was talking to a
Speaker 1: woman there and she was just saying that when she
Speaker 1: was coming up it wasn't a thing to wear natural heir,
Speaker 1: her mother did not necessarily approve. And now she was
Speaker 1: revisiting back with her daughter and one of her good girlfriends,
Speaker 1: and she said, hey, don I don't want to repeat that.
Speaker 1: I want to create a safe space for my daughter
Speaker 1: to express herself how she wants to be. And I
Speaker 1: just said, come on a black hair experience. Yeah, absolutely absolutely,
Speaker 1: I'm so here for that. And it reminds me of
Speaker 1: this quote that this young woman once said, her name
Speaker 1: is Kiva Clark, and just an excerpt of her quote,
Speaker 1: and she talks about how you can't be what you
Speaker 1: cannot see and to have that representation people, I can't
Speaker 1: take it lightly. Um, how important it is to see
Speaker 1: someone that looks like you because it's like you can exist. Now,
Speaker 1: we definitely have those who are trailblazers, but we are
Speaker 1: people that are led by this, and we heard if
Speaker 1: we want to talk about the Scripture without the vision
Speaker 1: of people with perish, So to create these environments that
Speaker 1: are so nurturing, I can say it's so imperative because
Speaker 1: I myself have been on a hair journey, like I
Speaker 1: don't know if I shoot, but I practically had had
Speaker 1: every hairstyle from We had the natural, we had the
Speaker 1: creamy crag with the perm relaxer. I've had the short
Speaker 1: blonde fade. I've even went completely bald. I've had the
Speaker 1: box sprays, and now I currently have locks. But catch this, Elizabeth.
Speaker 1: You may mention about how sometimes a dialogue when it
Speaker 1: comes down to the industry entertainment as to whether or
Speaker 1: not your step forward with it. It took me so
Speaker 1: long to get my lucks because I thought it was
Speaker 1: going to hold me back. Can you believe that's something
Speaker 1: that is an expression of me. I withheld me back.
Speaker 1: And one thing I always say, even talking about the
Speaker 1: vitamin D deva Dawn Day podcast, It's just about being
Speaker 1: a light so that you can shine. And if I
Speaker 1: come to a point that I'm trying to high behind something,
Speaker 1: I can't be truly who wanted to be absolutely absolutely
Speaker 1: And you know, our theme um is spreading the message
Speaker 1: that all black hair is beautiful, you know, and I
Speaker 1: think understanding that each person is at a different point
Speaker 1: in that journey. I have been at a point where
Speaker 1: it's like, oh, I hate my hair. Then I've been
Speaker 1: at a point where I've loved my hair, but I
Speaker 1: want to make the choices of how I choose my
Speaker 1: hair because that's what I want to do. And we
Speaker 1: know that we're not there yet, you know, we know
Speaker 1: that there's still a lot of women that have to
Speaker 1: feel like they have to do something just to be
Speaker 1: in order to provide for their family, like that is
Speaker 1: a real reality. Or we're still seeing children not be
Speaker 1: able to cross the stage because they have box braids.
Speaker 1: We know that's the reality. So we really want to
Speaker 1: further that message that all black hair is beautiful and
Speaker 1: that no matter where you are in the journey, if
Speaker 1: you love yourself, thenish your choice. I may have braids today,
Speaker 1: tomorrow may have a wig, tomorrow may have a fathe,
Speaker 1: I may you know, switch it back up. But it's
Speaker 1: just as long as I'm happy with me, then that's
Speaker 1: all that matters. So that's really the broad message that
Speaker 1: we're trying to send um because we know that it's
Speaker 1: not always it's not easy, and we know a lot
Speaker 1: of our reflection of ourselves is tied to our hair.
Speaker 1: So I totally understand that and that's unfortunate, and we
Speaker 1: partner with the Crown Act and the different states that
Speaker 1: we're in further those conversations because we know that not everywhere.
Speaker 1: You know, these things aren't easy for our community, and
Speaker 1: there's still people today that are facing that type of
Speaker 1: discrimination just to be able to work. Yeah, and if
Speaker 1: anyone's unfamiliar, the Crown ex stands for to create a
Speaker 1: respectful and open world for natural hair. Wow, it's a
Speaker 1: beautiful thing to know when you belong or when you
Speaker 1: have a place, you know, it gives yourself permission to
Speaker 1: stand in that and the fact that you got are
Speaker 1: giving these these skills and providing these tools for young
Speaker 1: ladies because it may not it's not about the fact
Speaker 1: that you have bad hair. It's not manageable. Let's just
Speaker 1: figure out maybe you need some moisture, just a little
Speaker 1: bit of water, let me get you that good seting
Speaker 1: called scarf, get your silk pillow, you know, those kind
Speaker 1: of things that just really helped, like aid in that.
Speaker 1: And then even farther, it's like, Okay, you had a
Speaker 1: bad day, since you're still beautiful. You know your hair
Speaker 1: may not be what it needs to be today, it's
Speaker 1: all right, we got tomorrow, we got next week. It happens,
Speaker 1: you know. So I feel like that too, Like I
Speaker 1: feel like sometimes just as when we put this pressure
Speaker 1: on ourselves that we think that it should be a
Speaker 1: certain way, and it doesn't always have to be that way.
Speaker 1: So you know what I said, I was like, for myself,
Speaker 1: I'm learning to embrace the gray. I've been a person
Speaker 1: that's just very you know, black and white, right or wrong,
Speaker 1: left or right, And I just had to say, wait
Speaker 1: a minute, what happened to existing in the great cause?
Speaker 1: I think in the gray is with the beauty. Lie,
Speaker 1: It's the magic, is the art, it is the love,
Speaker 1: it's the flexibility. It's the reason why our hair can
Speaker 1: define gravity. It's why it's an extension of us. It
Speaker 1: is why it is an art. It is a masterpiece
Speaker 1: on Yes, and the fact that you guys can capture that,
Speaker 1: the fact the fact that it's women's his three months
Speaker 1: and this is evoking this much excitement. Thank you, I
Speaker 1: appreciate you. Hello, it's your girl supermodel. His lyrics cross
Speaker 1: representing all my Curry girls out there. Hey, what's up?
Speaker 1: It's to be ja and you are tuned into Vitamin
Speaker 1: D the down day. So now that we're invoking all
Speaker 1: of these conversations, I'm just wondering, like, what's next for
Speaker 1: the Black Hair Experience. Okay, there's so many things. So
Speaker 1: one of the things that's really important to us is
Speaker 1: also UM me and Alicia before we started the experience,
Speaker 1: we're entrepreneurs within ourselves, so we have a retail inside
Speaker 1: of the experience. UM, So expanding upon the retail UM
Speaker 1: is something that's really important to us. We partner with
Speaker 1: other black owned businesses to sell their products inside of
Speaker 1: our retail. So what's really cool is like we have
Speaker 1: this uh these cards where you can learn more about
Speaker 1: the person, you know, scan their QR code, follow their business.
Speaker 1: So UM expanding upon that UM. We feel like we
Speaker 1: understand the power of the ripples that we can create,
Speaker 1: UM in terms of the economic power inside of our community.
Speaker 1: So we're gonna be doing some really great special things
Speaker 1: there and UM we are also continue our tour of
Speaker 1: Texas or Austin location will be opening. We will be
Speaker 1: there for ninety days and then honestly, we have other
Speaker 1: markets that we're expanding into, be in Houston this year
Speaker 1: and then UM all so New York this year. So
Speaker 1: we are really excited to you know, continue on and
Speaker 1: you know build you know, this community of women that
Speaker 1: I'm so proud of like, our team is absolutely amazing
Speaker 1: and uh yeah, so that's kind of what's next for us. Well,
Speaker 1: I must ask, you've named all these cities. I didn't
Speaker 1: hear you say anything about Detroit. I'm from Detroit. I mean,
Speaker 1: what's happening, Elizabeth, Detroit is on the list and it's
Speaker 1: gonna be I promise. Hey, you know I'm from Cleveland,
Speaker 1: so I'm not far from you. I got family in Detroit.
Speaker 1: I love that. And when you mentioned that was something,
Speaker 1: I brought my assistant Jeremiah along with me and we
Speaker 1: were sitting there. We walked over. We saw the install
Speaker 1: unless installations, but the areas that you were showing the
Speaker 1: black businesses, and that's one thing that I appreciate seeing
Speaker 1: around every were supporting black businesses. It was it was
Speaker 1: the love for me and I saw I said, wow,
Speaker 1: this is sisterhood. This is an actual replication of what
Speaker 1: you and Alicia are about of supporting each other. You
Speaker 1: saw something and you said, let's make it happen. Now.
Speaker 1: I did ask a question to another individual who also
Speaker 1: was wondering what's next. Her name is Litha Wells, and
Speaker 1: she asked, are you going to create an exhibit to
Speaker 1: approach the hair of black men maybe like the significance
Speaker 1: of the faith, the taper being bald braided. What's up? Oh,
Speaker 1: you know, it's coming. So you know, the reason why
Speaker 1: we named it the Black Hair Experience is because we
Speaker 1: wanted to make sure that it was incumbass of everyone right,
Speaker 1: So we were getting our men's story right. And just
Speaker 1: know that it is coming. It's gonna be on one
Speaker 1: of our cities and it's gonna be amazing. So yes,
Speaker 1: all of all from the barbershopics experience, faith experience to
Speaker 1: um you're trying to get some ways, like it's all,
Speaker 1: it's all gonna be there. We just want to do
Speaker 1: it right because a lot of men have adjusted their
Speaker 1: hair whether or not they're going to have the you know,
Speaker 1: even the five o'clock shoutout. Absolutely, So I mean I
Speaker 1: feel like our men have been very exported with their
Speaker 1: hair as well, Like I'm loving that they're getting the
Speaker 1: braids on top and with the half with the faith,
Speaker 1: like just experimenting and even getting color. So like we're
Speaker 1: really excited about that. But yes, it is coming. It
Speaker 1: is in the works we are designing, and it will
Speaker 1: definitely be UM. A few installations in our next location,
Speaker 1: catch it while it's hot. So just from a historical standpoint,
Speaker 1: I'm just curious because we're talking about, you know, how
Speaker 1: our men are wearing braids and a lot of our
Speaker 1: women are wearing braids. We understand that black hair has
Speaker 1: also like historical you know, context behind it, whether it
Speaker 1: be showing a significance of our tribes that we belonged to.
Speaker 1: Did you know, and my assistant brought this again to
Speaker 1: my attention, did you know that our braids were like
Speaker 1: the maps to escape routes when we're doing slavery? Now,
Speaker 1: is this something that you will highlight and the experience. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So one of our biggest reasons why we have like
Speaker 1: haven't had like full on, you know, historical things inside
Speaker 1: is because we wanted to make sure we were telling
Speaker 1: the right stories and we felt that it was the
Speaker 1: most important thing to do and to do it right,
Speaker 1: to hire the right people, to make sure that it's
Speaker 1: peer reviewed, like all of that stuff takes time. So
Speaker 1: just know that, yes, all of that is something that
Speaker 1: we are very excited about. Um, we do have an
Speaker 1: installation inside of the Bowing Hills and and our other
Speaker 1: locations that speak to different historical facts that we felt
Speaker 1: comfortable with, but we really wanted to make sure that
Speaker 1: we got it right because those things, we don't ever
Speaker 1: want to say the wrong message. And it's like one
Speaker 1: of those like we know our lane, so we needed
Speaker 1: to make sure we got somebody in the right lane.
Speaker 1: And that is definitely something we're working on to do,
Speaker 1: to do us right, you know, because it's important to
Speaker 1: be able to have fun, but then to learn why
Speaker 1: you're having fun as well. I respect that. I love
Speaker 1: that so much and even talking about that because you know,
Speaker 1: we come from the rich history that wise, and then
Speaker 1: we can come from the art and the beauty. Wise,
Speaker 1: it's is the encompass of everything all beautiful. But what
Speaker 1: I'm wondering as we delve into more history, how do
Speaker 1: you feel or what do you feel about gate keeping
Speaker 1: some of our terms or what things mean. Because we
Speaker 1: understand that cultural appropriation is real and it comes to
Speaker 1: the point that we shed light on different things about
Speaker 1: our community, the black community. Do you feel like different
Speaker 1: things will be stolen? Is there a way that we
Speaker 1: need to do I want to say hord or kind
Speaker 1: of be protective on the things that we share, you know, um,
Speaker 1: I definitely. You believe that there are moments where I mean,
Speaker 1: the thing that makes me sad and why we particularly
Speaker 1: chose hair is because we know that our creativity has
Speaker 1: not been celebrated right. So like we can go from
Speaker 1: like the beehives, um, you know, in the adoring those
Speaker 1: or the braids and adoring those, but it's seen as
Speaker 1: less than or not as pretty on us as it
Speaker 1: is on other people. So I feel like part of
Speaker 1: the reason not to minimize, because I know this is
Speaker 1: a very complex, you know um issue of why it
Speaker 1: has been or people feel that way is because when
Speaker 1: we do it, it is seen as less than. There
Speaker 1: hasn't been anything to celebrate the terms or celebrate our
Speaker 1: creativity or there's nothing like it's not seen as positive
Speaker 1: when we do it right. So I do feel like
Speaker 1: for me that that's kind of where the first things
Speaker 1: kind of came in mind. With that, I do believe
Speaker 1: that our community should get recognition for our creativity. I
Speaker 1: do believe that this is an issue that is bigger
Speaker 1: than just hair. When it comes to that, we know
Speaker 1: that if we do a dance and may be seen
Speaker 1: as ghetto, somebody else do it as creative like those
Speaker 1: are just that's unfortunately what it is. But um, I
Speaker 1: do think that within our community we need to like,
Speaker 1: I don't worry about what other people feel about what
Speaker 1: we're doing. I want us to be able to have
Speaker 1: the beauty inside, right, So I want to say that
Speaker 1: are what is the hair show culture when they were
Speaker 1: doing fantasy hair, I want that to be celebrated inside
Speaker 1: of us, and I'm not looking for other people to
Speaker 1: validate that. I guess. So what I'm trying to say,
Speaker 1: it's unfortunate. We know what it what that feels like,
Speaker 1: but I'm not I'm not I'm not worried. It's like
Speaker 1: I'm worried about what they're doing from the outside and
Speaker 1: worried about making sure that other black people know that
Speaker 1: what we're creating or what we've created is beautiful. I
Speaker 1: guess that's the way that I approach it. I know
Speaker 1: it's frustrating. I know that it's irritating. I know that
Speaker 1: it's like, you know, we've been over here doing this,
Speaker 1: So if we've been over here doing this, let's continue
Speaker 1: to do it and do it great. So that's kind
Speaker 1: of how I think about it, because otherwise I would
Speaker 1: just spend my time being being upset about it, right,
Speaker 1: because comparison is a thief of joy, and I don't
Speaker 1: have time to look at what you're doing and what
Speaker 1: you're saying. If I'm minded what's on my plate. Yes,
Speaker 1: that's right. I try. I know it's hard, because it's
Speaker 1: hard over the magazine like, oh, you're calling it something different.
Speaker 1: These are box breaks, you know, So I get I
Speaker 1: get the frustration, but it's one of those things where
Speaker 1: I choose to move in positivity and I tried to
Speaker 1: create spaces where we can be ourselves and not worrying
Speaker 1: about what's happening over there. And I guess that's probably
Speaker 1: not the easiest thing because I know that over there
Speaker 1: is where the majority of the capital is. Like we're
Speaker 1: still trying to get in quality and like bringing us
Speaker 1: all together, but I still believe that it's important for
Speaker 1: us to celebrate us. I feel like inside of our
Speaker 1: community we still have issues or stigmas about even like
Speaker 1: you said, like we still have generational things that we
Speaker 1: need to fix. So I'd rather fix that so my
Speaker 1: daughter and her friends aren't worried about somebody's empty, you know,
Speaker 1: saying something crazy about their hair. Because every we've already
Speaker 1: started these conversations within our community so that when they
Speaker 1: are outside of our community that they feel more comfortable
Speaker 1: because they know that we're getting there, you know. So
Speaker 1: that's kind of my approach to it. I know that
Speaker 1: we need people on in all different fronts. We need
Speaker 1: the clap back queen, we need we need all of it. Also, um,
Speaker 1: that's what I say about the about any movement, like
Speaker 1: we need the different pieces and this is just my piece.
Speaker 1: I love that. And when you talk about creating space,
Speaker 1: I feel like it's a moment of also saying making room.
Speaker 1: We're making room. And one of the things that you said, well,
Speaker 1: if we enrich our young people, assume we'll be saying
Speaker 1: young boys too. But right now we're dressing young girls
Speaker 1: of knowing. That's what confidence is. Confidence is just knowing.
Speaker 1: And if I know who I am, I know the
Speaker 1: beauty that are reciting and I know the strength behind
Speaker 1: that when you put me out there, what's going to happen?
Speaker 1: It's just getting to the root of it pun intended.
Speaker 1: You know. Let me ask you this, what kinds of
Speaker 1: conversations or what type of dialogue are you hoping that
Speaker 1: people start to engage in after having or attending the
Speaker 1: Black Hair Experience. Ah, man, I really hope people will
Speaker 1: leave feeling seen. I really, I really hope they leave
Speaker 1: feeling like, oh, this was made for or me, this
Speaker 1: was made with me, and mind like, oh my gosh,
Speaker 1: like they put this together thinking about me, And I
Speaker 1: think that that is the most important thing. I feel like,
Speaker 1: you know, um our community and our women and our
Speaker 1: hairshes So I'm tired of us not flourishing our beautiful
Speaker 1: bright lights. And I want all of the words of
Speaker 1: affirmation that are throughout the space, Like I want every
Speaker 1: black woman to be given their flowers and all the
Speaker 1: you know, things they have to carry. And it's it's
Speaker 1: just I really want people to be seeing. I think
Speaker 1: that's the easiest way, and just to feel loved and
Speaker 1: to feel like this is something that is more than
Speaker 1: it was about. It's more than just hair, you know,
Speaker 1: it was more than just a place to come to
Speaker 1: take pictures. And it's so much like as me being
Speaker 1: a photographer and underunderstanding the power of an image. And
Speaker 1: you said, my favorite you know Bible versus actually you
Speaker 1: know about it. And part of the reason why I
Speaker 1: chose to be a wedding photographer on that side is
Speaker 1: because I knew the power of the image of what
Speaker 1: that would do for black love. So now taking this
Speaker 1: over here and making it creative and something fun, and
Speaker 1: all these beautiful images of all these black women just
Speaker 1: living in their glory and just being just being themselves
Speaker 1: and like all these big words behind them of black
Speaker 1: hair is beautiful, bold like that those visuals just seeping
Speaker 1: through everywhere on the Internet. Like I couldn't ask for
Speaker 1: a better way to do that, in a better way
Speaker 1: to have that message. And someone who doesn't even know
Speaker 1: about black hair, doesn't even understand what it is to
Speaker 1: be able to see that message, to be like what
Speaker 1: is this? What is that about? And learn a little
Speaker 1: bit from it, just from a simple something that people say,
Speaker 1: like a simple Instagram photo, Like now, it's so much
Speaker 1: more than that. So that's what I hope people get
Speaker 1: from the space and truly exemplified. You know, a picture
Speaker 1: is worth a thousand words or billion at this point,
Speaker 1: who knows no, but thank you, and I just want
Speaker 1: to assure you that that is what you're doing and
Speaker 1: it's a beautiful thing. I've been telling everybody since I
Speaker 1: when I was like, yea, this is so dope. Like,
Speaker 1: on one front for everybody that loves to take a selfie,
Speaker 1: but on another front, you know, it makes that connection.
Speaker 1: And I'm all about reaching people where they are and
Speaker 1: then let me take you where you need to go.
Speaker 1: And then once I found out you guys had the
Speaker 1: week Care workshop, I was like strength, because there's nothing
Speaker 1: more beautiful and understanding and realizing how important it is
Speaker 1: to love yourself and where you are right now and
Speaker 1: to be in a community of people that support that.
Speaker 1: So to you and Alicia, I say thank you. Now,
Speaker 1: is there anything else that you would like to share? Um,
Speaker 1: let us know, promote support. This is the moment. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean I would love for you all just to
Speaker 1: come out. You know, we are really really excited about
Speaker 1: our different locations. So if you're in the l A area,
Speaker 1: come out to the cruns Shall Mall. If you're in
Speaker 1: the d n B, we are in National Harbor, Atlanta.
Speaker 1: We are over by Emery and then Austin. You guys,
Speaker 1: we are coming and we are happy to be there.
Speaker 1: We are only there for ninety days, so make sure
Speaker 1: that while we're there that you guys get to come
Speaker 1: see us. You literally gotta catch it while it's hot.
Speaker 1: While it's hots hot. Our d m s are going off.
Speaker 1: We closed Dallas this weekend and people are like, you're gone.
Speaker 1: I'm like, that's it, that's it, that's it, really Alarm
Speaker 1: the care Experience dot Com. Dawn Day sent you. Get
Speaker 1: get your dolls, get your doughs. Okay, now they know,
Speaker 1: Now they know we can just continue to grow right right,
Speaker 1: all right, listen, you're done, listen to my crazy solf.
Speaker 1: Thank you so much for joining us on the Vitamin
Speaker 1: D with John Day podcast. Well, thank you for having me.
Speaker 1: You have a good one. You'd be amazing and keep
Speaker 1: doing what you're doing. Thank you. All right, Our hair
Speaker 1: is a journey, and it's a journey that we all
Speaker 1: should experience. And I'm grateful to have this kind of
Speaker 1: conversation that evokes this type of thought process to evoke change,
Speaker 1: to evoke education, but more importantly, to edify and evoke
Speaker 1: what beauty really is. Black hair is beautiful, and so
Speaker 1: are you. So make sure if you're in a city
Speaker 1: near you, check out the Black Hair Experience, join the
Speaker 1: conversation and cut on down some memory lane. Okay, and
Speaker 1: be sure to tell him that Dawn Day sent you.
Speaker 1: All Right, what's time for me to get out of here.
Speaker 1: If you would like to be a guest on the show,
Speaker 1: go ahead and send an email to Vitamin D at
Speaker 1: Dawn Day Speaks. Or perhaps you have an idea we
Speaker 1: would love to hear from you. Also, you know that
Speaker 1: I'm excelled tek advice letters, So if you need advice
Speaker 1: on your love, your relationship, purpose, anything dealing with life,
Speaker 1: email us Vitamin D at dawn Day speaks dot com.
Speaker 1: Now you know I'm in the business of speaking life
Speaker 1: and speaking truth. Now, don't come on here thinking that
Speaker 1: it's gonna be all braining bowls and butterflies, because what
Speaker 1: do I say? If you want to be better and
Speaker 1: you want to do better, you have to be able
Speaker 1: to see better. So I'm gonna keep it quar with
Speaker 1: you because I love you, Okay. And then also I
Speaker 1: want to encourage you to make sure you follow us
Speaker 1: on all social media. Yeah, if you want to see
Speaker 1: clippers of the interview, even this interview, if you like
Speaker 1: to see what's happening behind the scenes, if you like
Speaker 1: to just see some awesome updates and excerpts, make sure
Speaker 1: you follow us on all social media at Vitamin D
Speaker 1: Dawn Day Okay, all right, well, I'm about to head
Speaker 1: out of here and continue on to my black hair experience,
Speaker 1: my journey. And you know I always say I'm in
Speaker 1: the business of making dreams come true, and our damn
Speaker 1: show ain't gonna forget about mind. So until next time,
Speaker 1: always remember you are your greatest stats at get your
Speaker 1: videamin d right here with me, and get excited about
Speaker 1: your lives.