There's nothing wrong with having 21 inches of glory flowing in the wind, but, as Coco Chanel is infamously quoted as saying, "A woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life."
Stars from Halle Berry to Toni Braxton to Kelis, have changed their lives---and the beauty game---with short manes that made them stand out from the crowd of long diva-weaves of their day. And we all know what a big chop signifies for some women seeking to embrace their natural curls and tap into their own versions of transitions into self-love.
The need for change and expression through a unique creative outlet was no different for Tahira Wright, who founded The Cut Life, celebrating short hair when long weaves and lace fronts seemed to dominate the social media beauty scene. She was then able to turn an online visual playground of buzz cuts, tapered bobs, curly pixies, and mohawks into a fab tribe of its own and a full-fledged business.
"The idea for The Cut Life was birthed in 2013 based on my personal love of having short hair and seeing little to no sources of inspiration online," Tahira told xoNecole in an exclusive interview. "At the time, I was a publicist in the music and entertainment industry in search of my next entrepreneurial endeavor. The Cut Life was honestly [something] that quickly turned into a business, and here we are five years later!"
Since launching on social, amassing 1.3 million followers on IG alone, Tahira and The Cut Life have expanded into a multimedia powerhouse, partnering with Creme of Nature, Dark & Lovely, Carol's Daughter, Design Essentials, Procter & Gamble's My Black Is Beautiful, and more for lucrative campaigns. There's also a podcast where they talk to experts and professionals on industry trends, hair care, career advancement, and style inspiration. They've hosted curated events for tribes of women who love a good short cut, and they continue to expand their video content and following via YouTube, featuring candid chats with celebrities including Nicole Murphy and how-tos with seasoned stylists.
"We're continuing to create quality content and increase opportunities for new revenue streams through our podcast, events, and webinars," Tahira said. "Short hair is trending a lot lately with celebrities that I almost can't keep count. A few of my recent favorites are Teyana Taylor's pixie, Sanaa Lathan's big chop, Niki Murphy is one of the baddest, Lupita's natural tresses, and I still stan for Kelis, Monica, and Jada Pinkett Smith! There's so many!"
Wright has had her own personal hair journey with styles that have been partners in the transitions of her own life. "One of my most memorable experiences was getting blonde highlights in college that completely destroyed my hair. I was used to wearing my hair long but there was no doubt I would have to cut it," she recalled. "My first short haircut was the Halle Berry flip gone wrong, and I hated it. I grew my hair back long and wore it that way for a while until the emergence of Rihanna's 'Good Girl Gone Bad' era. Ursula Stephen, who I adore and who has been featured on our podcast, transformed Rihanna's image with a cut, and it inspired me to cut my hair again. I found a haircut that I absolutely loved and never looked back."
For Wright, short hair represents making a powerful statement with a style that is both versatile and diverse. "The right cut gave me this boost of confidence and sexiness I hadn't experienced before," she added. "To this day, my hair is often a head-turner and a topic of conversation because short hair is still considered going against the norm."
Tahira has a point. Many of us still face a huge level of scrutiny and awe when it comes to making any sorts of changes to our hair, whether it's wearing your natural curls a la Michelle Obama on vacay, shaving it all off in a chic baldie a la Tamar Braxton, or even cutting the style of which many have defined you, like Nia the Light. Some even shun hair transitions---particularly cuts---citing the usual "crowning glory" adages.
Tahira says there's confidence, individuality, and freedom that comes with rocking a short 'do. "Women, especially black women, love changing their hair often and our site offers a variety of quality content to serve many lifestyles. Many women are on the fence about cutting their hair but we're here to serve as a positive inspiration for people to try something new."
With The Cut Life, Tahira and her team are also showing themselves to be major disruptors, showcasing a community of master cutters and hairstylists and offering a new outlet for up-and-comers and experts alike. She urges other young women who seek to shake up the beauty industry and those who want to monetize their digital platforms to do their research and continue honing their crafts.
"Being of service is the best way to learn the ins and outs of any industry to determine which area is the best fit," Tahira recommended. "Research the current trends in the market and identify a void that needs to be filled. There's no overnight success. Entrepreneurship isn't for the weak and takes a daily commitment to the grind, lessons learned from failures, financial downfalls, and setbacks before you reach a level of success. Lastly, find the joy in the journey. We're always so consumed about the next level that we don't celebrate the daily wins. Taking one step towards your goals each day is still a move forward."
"Entrepreneurship isn't for the weak and takes a daily commitment to the grind, lessons learned from failures, financial downfalls, and setbacks before you reach a level of success."
With so many opportunities coming her way, Tahira says taking the time to determine a good fit, having a great team, and being smart with the coin goes a long way to helping sustain success.
"I've learned that the best collaborations come from working with people who are experts in areas where you fall short. Maya Table is our creative director and is completely skilled in her lane, which helps us to not bump heads and effectively grow the business," Tahira said. "[Also, you have to] be financially responsible. Learn how to make money, save money, and spend money wisely. This is an ongoing process for me, but I've become much more intentional about being financially sound and having attainable financial goals."
Also, focusing on passion and embracing your unique style doesn't hurt either. Tahira has been able to fill a void and cater to a niche audience simply by tapping into her true self and promoting something dear to her heart. "I love the fact that my short hair makes me stand out in a crowd. I'm constantly switching it up and it makes me less worried about what's considered the 'beauty standard' and more focused on what I like and what makes me feel like my best self. Confidence starts from within and how you love and take care of yourself first."
"Confidence starts from within and how you love and take care of yourself first."
"Eating healthy, working out, getting my hair and nails done, wearing what looks good on me, and not focusing too much on trends is what's best for me and my overall self-esteem. We all have our insecurities, but I stay prayed up and confident in knowing what God has for me is for me. I'm divinely and uniquely made. There's only one Tahira, no carbon copies."
To keep up with Tahira, follow her on Instagram. And be sure to also check out her fab brand The Cut Life.
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During the Los Angeles tour stop, which spanned three dates on May 21, May 23, with the finale on May 24, xoNecole had the opportunity to test out the glosses included in this soft launch, as SZA revealed in a statement that "this is just the start of other lip products, including plans to launch stains, liners, and creams all inspired by SZA's “infamous layered lip combinations.”
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So, what is included in the first Not Beauty launch?
The current Not Beauty products available are lip glosses that come in three shades: In the Flesh, Strawberry Jelly, and Quartz.
During my visit to the first LA Not Beauty pop-up activation, I not only had the chance to purchase all three glosses but also took a peek inside the blow-up log tent. Inside, fans got to experience SZA’s love for nature and her fascination with bugs, which are prominently featured in her performances for this tour. At one point, she even had human preying mantis prancing across the stage y'all.
There were blow-up photos of the beauty that is SZA for fans (myself included) to take photos, but in wooden-like tree trunks were a deeper dive into some of the ingredients featured in her products and their benefits.
For example, the glosses feature Hi-Shine Lip Jelly and Shea Butter as key ingredients and some of the listed benefits included are:
- Shea Butter - “A powerhouse ingredient, offering both functional and nourishing benefits.”
- Hi-Shine Lip Jelly (featured in the In the Flesh shade) - “Formula glides on with perfect adhesion to the lips without stickiness).
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What are in the products?
Featured in an orange package, with images of a bug and flower on the side, the back of the box reads: “It’s NOT BEAUTY, it just works. Developed by Solána “SZA” Rowe.
As someone who never leaves home without a good lip gloss, I loved how compact the wood panel packaging is. Perfect to slip into my purse, or in the case of the show at SoFi Stadium, into my pocket when I’m not carrying a bag.
Because I’m a sucker for a good black and brown lip liner and clear gloss combo, I decided to wear the Quartz flavor on night one of the Grand National Tour LA stop, and it did not disappoint. I’ll admit, it’s light weight feel made me nervous because it felt like there was nothing on my lips. However, when I checked my lips in my compact mirror several times throughout the night, I was shocked to find that my gloss was still intact. I only reapplied once out of the habit of looking cute and applying my gloss, but not necessity.
Here are some of the ingredients featured, but not limited to, in the Quartz flavor.
- Polyisoubutene
- Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea)Butter
- Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil
- Mentha Piperita (Peppermint) Oil
- Tocopherol
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Lip prep
I’m a simple girl who loves to stay true to her roots. So ahead of the show, I stopped by a local Inglewood Beauty Supply store and grabbed a Black and Brown shade lip pencil for just under $2 a piece.
Shading the outline of my lips with the black pencil first, I used the brown to lightly fill the inside of my lips before applying my Quartz Not Beauty shade gloss.
How to apply
There’s truly no right or wrong way to apply lip gloss (in my opinion), with this being a brush applicator sort of product, I simply untwisted the top and swiped the gloss around my top and bottom lip generously.
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Results
Again, my Not Beauty Quartz product stayed on my lips from the start of the show, which began with a fire DJ set from LA’s very own, Mustard, to the conclusion when Kendrick and SZA reunited on stage to send us home to their duet, “luther,” featured on the rapper's GNX album.
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xoMAN started as an Instagram Live series and is now a full-cast production, with Walker as the host. Initially, she was skeptical about joining as the new host of xoMan. Not because she doesn’t have the chops to thrive in the role, but because coming in on something that wasn’t her original idea initially seemed daunting for the media personality.
However, since she loves a challenge, the CockTales: Dirty Discussionspodcast host embraced the task with an open heart and mind.
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“I was like, this is a cool concept, so I’m so glad that they decided to turn it into a podcast,” Walker tells xoNecole. “It’s been interesting to take somebody else’s idea and try to turn it into a thing, put it together, and bring it to fruition. I am anxious, nervous, and all things, but above all, I’m excited.”
When xoNecole's managing editor Sheriden Garrett approached Walker to take on the position, it felt like fate. She had previously attempted to get Garrett on her CockTales platform about six or seven years ago due to her expertise in the love and relationship space.
“I was like, wait, y’all listen to the show? And you want me to host a show where I’m only talking to men? And I’m listening to them and not giving them a hard time? I say that because sometimes I feel like, on my show, I may come off like I don’t even like men," she says.
"I love men, but it can be frustrating sometimes on that platform, social media, and other places when they continue to regurgitate the same rhetoric about what I like to call Twitter topics, like constantly talking about who’s paying as a man, as a woman. You should do this. You should do that…It’s been cool hearing the stories with the men we’ve spoken to so far at xoMAN, hearing these stories, and hearing them let their guards down.”
A Howard graduate, Walker almost didn’t enter the world of media after listening to advice from elders who said she would make a great lawyer because she loves to debate topics and sometimes argue (haha).
"It’s been cool hearing the stories with the men we’ve spoken to so far at xoMAN, hearing these stories, and hearing them let their guards down.”
After traveling to the nation’s capital to study political science, Walker soon discovered that her only motivation for becoming an attorney was the potential income and witnessing how boss women like Erika Alexander’s Maxine Shaw character on Living Single would look in their suits as career women.
“I realized that this was for real,” she says, studying law at Howard. “This is a lot of work, and when you think about what you do, I was like, this is not a performance, and I just wanted to talk. I wasn’t trying to defend anyone.”
A visit to a fair showcasing the different organizations on Howard’s campus, combined with her affinity for celebrity gossip and entertainment news, ultimately led Walker to explore a radio career. Soon, she auditioned for a show and landed the gig. By the spring semester, she was on the radio, ultimately leading her to switch her major to journalism with a concentration in broadcast news.
Soon after earning her degree in the field, Walker decided she didn’t want to do anything related to hard news. Instead, she became involved in lifestyle content. She used her friends' love of hearing her stories to motivate her to get into podcasting.
The rest is, as they say, history.
“Before podcasts became what they are, I was in a living room with a microphone before ultimately moving to a studio and refining the show. I loved it and knew people were listening because I monitored the analytics and everything," she explains.
"When we decided to do a live show, the show sold out in two weeks, and I was so nervous. I was like, 'Are we ready? Are we gonna be able to sell out this venue?' We didn’t have any sponsorship. We were still independent and had to front the money for everything.”
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“When they sold out in two weeks, not only did I price my tickets too low, but I thought, wow, we’ve got something. I was like, people spent money to hear me and my co-host talking about our shitty love lives. This is wild, all from an idea in my head. It made me feel like I was on the right path and encouraged me to stop doubting myself. I have imposter syndrome," she reveals.
"Even to this day, I’m constantly biased. But it’s like, if not me, then who? And, like, why not me? If people can do it with way less and way more. I’ve been trying to encourage myself and other people to eliminate the doubt that we have in ourselves so we can do whatever it is we want to do. I love it. No matter how many sleepless nights I have, I will continue to have bags under my eyes until the end of time because I’m enjoying it.”
"I have imposter syndrome. Even to this day, I’m constantly biased. But it’s like, if not me, then who? And, like, why not me? If people can do it with way less and way more. I’ve been trying to encourage myself and other people to eliminate the doubt that we have in ourselves so we can do whatever it is we want to do."
In between garnering a strong social media presence for her work as a podcast host, lifestyle influencer, and beyond, Walker has managed to use her many gifts and talents, like cooking, and most importantly, giving a strong opinion about the things she does (or doesn’t) believe in to carve out a lane of her own.
As she embarks on this chapter as the host of xoMAN, where she has already spoken with actors Devale Ellis and Skyh Black and Dear Future Wifey podcast host Laterras R. Whitfield, Walker hopes that it encourages people, especially women, to look at their male counterparts from a different perspective.
“I hope that anyone listening can listen to the first few episodes, hear how different each man is, and learn to let down whatever preconceived notions you have about me or a specific man, whoever it is in your life," she says. "Just listen, talk to them, ask them how they feel, and listen with an open mind, without thinking that you already know what the answer is.”
“I just hope that people learn to, again, not put people in boxes and make the other person, whoever it is, men specifically for this show, but sit down and talk with an open mind and listen to understand, not to respond. Help someone feel safe.”
xoMAN officially launches on Tuesday, June. 17.
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