How Black Beauty Professionals Are Prioritising Safe Spaces for Black Models Behind The Scenes.

Not much, unfortunately. When speaking to stylist and HBCU student Paloma Accrombessi, she noted that, “unfortunately we are far from the appropriate reaction these beautiful Black models should be receiving. It's been seen many times that the reception of Black models on set has been disappointing, as the right staff is not hired to appeal to their needs.”

Black hair is no longer the elephant in the room it was perhaps a decade ago, but the lasting effects of its avoidance is clear as day when it comes to Black models. In a Refinery29 interview with hairstylist Lacy Redway, she recounts the horror stories told by Black models of their hair being flat-ironed wet. It does send shivers down the spine, but what's more is that it leads to an unanswered question: Where are all the Black beauty professionals? 

We sat down with stylists, founders, models, and artists on what they thought about the BTS moments that usually go unseen for Black models, and how these spaces are changing for better, or for worse.

Where are all the Black beauty professionals? 

Somewhere in New England, stylist, artist, and creative Valencia Vixama, is prioritising Black models. “In working as a full time photo stylist for a number of global e-commerce sportswear projects, many have actually sought out and requested a more diverse look too which was so incredible to be a part of.” 

This only stems from the influence of the artists and brands that have ultimately opened the door to acknowledging that in trying to create inclusive ranges, you have to hire inclusive models, and brands shouldn't shy away from it. Valencia follows up by saying that “If it wasn’t for people like Pat McGrath, Kevyn Aucoin, Azzedine Alaïa, Thierry Mugler, or even MAC Cosmetics, and Fenty Beauty, and many more who have been such trailblazers and pioneers in these spaces, I’d be interested to see the state of the industry.”

It’s a state we worry about often, mostly because the progressions we’ve seen come and go appear one and the same. 

Paloma, with her styling experience originally beginning in university, was used to seeing Black models on the daily. “But as I started to explore opportunities outside of my University, I was seeing less representation of Black models in the industry.”

It’s an interesting shift to go from a pocket in the ocean to the sea itself, and although her experience working on shoots was met with Black models and Black talent, there is still a disparaging gap between the Black models and Black beauty professionals. 

Model and student Sekera Besta, is hoping to work with more Black beauty professionals in the future. During her first modelling gig for Rains, she was pleasantly surprised at the inclusivity she was met with, which started off her modelling career on a good note. Not having worked with a Black beauty professional, her experience was thankfully horror-free, but she considers that “It would make me so comfortable working with someone that knows my shade, what does and doesn’t look good on my face, what hair and colour would look good on my skin tone, stuff like that. When I'm in these spaces, sometimes I don’t like the makeup that they do, but I can’t really say anything. Sometimes the make up isn’t even really bad, but it’s something like they could’ve gone darker with some colours here and there.”

The importance of Black beauty professionals 

“I mean I may be a little bit biased, but everything we touch turns to gold. If and when we’re given the space to show up fully and safely as and in ourselves, it’ll be nothing but magic.” - Valencia Vixama.

 In a Harper’s Bazaar interview with 8 Black beauty experts, MUA Nikita Bafour noted that the ‘workforce must match the consumer base.’ It’s important to remember that with a lot of current beauty trends, the inspiration comes from Black consumers and creators. Your nude lipstick combos, the Euphoria makeup and acrylic nails, but that’s a story for another time. 

To not seek out the originators of the beauty industry’s favourite trends is embarrassingly still the case. What’s more is that the models in the chairs are also being outwardly berated, if Anok Yai’s recent Tweets about her experience working with Zara is anything to go off of. Being called a cockroach by the photographer, being gaslit to tears. It’s hard to hear about these experiences and assume that Black models are being treated well behind the scenes.

How unfortunate it is that one action dictates another, as Anok details in her now deleted tweet that she couldn’t 'react the way I [wanted] to react because at the end of the day I’m young, I’m alone, I’m black… anything that I do will affect me, my family, and other black models.'

According to a Zara employee, Yai was ‘never smiling’ and ‘never happy to be here’, which is a tired assumption already made often about Black women, but in an industry where someone puts their trust in your ability to transform their appearance, what does that leave them with? 

Aside from crippling self doubt, it doesn’t bode well for the future of Black models. The hope is there, sure, but how much hope do we have left to give to these big industry brands?

Black faces have power. In popular media, in music, and on the cover of your favourite indie magazine. But that visibility doesn’t translate well with the care put into the treatment of Black models. In speaking with founder of Mane Hook Up, Jade Buffong-Phillips , she says "you see Black models better represented in television and film, you’re seeing them more often on social media, but I don’t think they’re being treated with the level of respect, diligence and care as their white counterparts."

But she also considers that Black hair models tend to operate predominantly as influencers, which might be the thing to save the future of Black models and beauty professionals alike.

It’s a Community thing

The transformation from casket ready photo ops and grey flashbacks to today's Slayful Serves has shown us that times really have changed, only the change hasn’t necessarily been by Big Beauty Brands™. Jade notes that ‘our community is good at creating safe spaces for ourselves’, and this has been the case for years now in the fashion and beauty industry. Black creators are well known for putting the power of influence back in their hands and the need for Big Beauty Brands™ to be the voice of representation is still needed but with fewer variables.

The influencer space isn’t perfect, in fact, it’s a bit of a mess. But with the trend of de-influencing and de-centreing celebrities from our spheres of influence, there’s a lot to be said for the future of modelling, and the future of Black beauty as a whole. 

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What brands needs to understand:

• Black models will go where they're valued. No more sticking it for the sake of losing future opportunities.

• Influencer spheres are strong enough match the impact of Big Beauty Brands™. Individual creators are doing the work to create their own spaces.

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• Let your inclusive messaging match your workforce. The case for inclusivity shouldn't stop at what consumers see.

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• Black consumers are in the majority, but the lack of representation on and off the camera isn't mirroring how much revenue they alone bring in. Look towards the the professionals and Black beauty experts to learn how to better represent them, they know what they're talking about.

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