Nai’vasha Johnson was that girl in the neighborhood doing everyone’s hair, but it took her a while to figure out that it was her calling. Years after going to beauty school, she noticed there was an empty space in Hollywood and on red carpets for curly-haired girls. So she set out to ensure that inclusion for Black women would become a norm.
“There was not enough representation of us out there,” she said. “So I said that I want to put some of our refined beautiful hair out there for the world to help us celebrate.”
And she’s been doing that with some of your favorite celebrities, including Yara Shahidi, Alicia Keys, Serena Williams, Hannah Bronfman, Tessa Thompson and more.
Johnson’s styles are gravity-defying, trailblazing, and trendsetting. She was the genius behind the hairstyle donned by Shahidi’s official Barbie that debuted on shelves earlier this year. She does all of this while bringing up five little ones.
Who better to share summer styling tips than someone who can juggle all of that while jet setting around the globe, studying hair to sharpen her craft, and looking ‘gram worthy at all times?
On Saturday, the expert artist dropped a gem on Essence Festival Beauty Carnival attendees about this year’s biggest hair trend.
“This year, and moving forward, the biggest trend is going to be embellishments,” Johnson revealed.
She used one of Diana Ross’ (the OG curl queen) most iconic looks in Mahogany as the inspiration for an intricate crystal embellished hair style that she demonstrated for the audience.
While the crowd was in awe, and in wonder about how to get the structured and creative look at home, Johnson assured everyone that it’s easy to play with this trend.
“You can do anything with your curls,” Johnson said. “Enjoy your crown, show your crown, share your crown, curl queen.”