We were first introduced to her melodious voice when she was a contestant on Idols SA in 2015. Since then, Amanda Benedicta Antony, who is popularly known as Amanda Black, has soared and has recently dropped her third album titled Mnyama.
Speaking to TRUELOVE, the singer says that her hair has always been part of her musical journey and has symbolised how far she has come.
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“My first hairstyle I had as a singer was the mohawk and at the time, it represented me no longer living at home and coming into my own. No one was telling me what to do or what to wear. It was me truly expressing myself,” she says.
“My grandparents didn’t understand that this hairstyle was an expression of me as a growing adult. Instead, they thought it was the beginning of a gothic era or something evil in my life,” she laughs.
She tells TRUELOVE more about her hair journey.
What is your hair philosophy?
My hair philosophy is to experiment with my hair as much as I can. I love my natural hair and feel more like myself when I’m in my natural state. My hair philosophy is to be myself and to love being myself.
Looking back at your hair journey, which hairstyle would you say is your favourite and why?
My favourite hairstyle has to be my mohawk. I loved the blue hair because it was electric and it represented me as a rockstar, but my mohawk is definitely my favourite hairstyle. It’s me, it’s natural and it’s also my vision. The mohawk suits me; that’s why it’s my favourite.
What has been your worst experience?
My worst hair experience has to be when I decided to blow out my hair and it left me with a few patches all over my head. As a result, I had to cut my hair. I’ve had a lot of bad hair experiences. I also remember so vividly the time when my grandmother cut off all my hair using scissors and I had to go to school like that. I had to ask my dad for money to properly cut my hair when I got home because I went through a whole day of school with kids laughing at me.
What is your current hair regimen?
Right now, I am using Native Child hair products and I’m enjoying them. My hair is healthy and much stronger. It does not break at all.
What do you think your current hairstyle says about you?
I have short, natural hair that is blonde right now and I dyed my hair this colour just before my album dropped. I could’ve dyed it any other colour. And although my album’s theme is mnyama, which is black, I still went with blonde because it sort of felt like a halo.
What do you enjoy most about getting your hair done?
I enjoy doing my hair myself because it feels therapeutic. Sometimes I even braid my own hair and for me, it feels like therapy because I get to relax and play music or watch something while doing my hair. It feels like good self-care. I really hate sitting at a salon, so I opted to do my own hair. It gives me a chance to connect with my hair.
