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Hey Everyone
I'm 18 and i really desperately wanna grow my hair out. I have a desired length and way i want it to look. Exactly like Corbin Bleu. I used to cut my hair every two weeks but now its been like a month since i last cut it. I havent read anything about black people and their hair in this forum and i'm hoping that i can get some suggestions
Thanx in advance!
JR
Is Corbin Bleu the guy that was on "Flight 29 Down"? It used to come on TV on Saturday mornings I think. A helicopter hit the broadcast tower of our local NBC station, so I don't know if it still comes on. If so, he does have cool hair.
But anyway, if it were me, I would look to my mom, sisters, cousins to see how their hair turns out when it is is longer, if they have longer hair and if you have sisters with longer hair. That would be a good indication of how yours might be. The tightness of the curl and the texture of your own hair is going to be an indicator of how your hair may turn out when it's longer - whether is will be curly but loosly-flowing like you want or more wirey.
The reason I say that is because all the black guys I know/see either have short hair like your picture or if it is long, it is usually braids or dreads. But then again, I have seen black women with everything from perfectly straight, 'moveable' hair (like Beyonce) to the afro. So, I believe it is possible for you to approach the style you want, although you may have to have your hair treated some certain way or relaxed. Relaxers can be very damaging if done wrong and too frequently though. This is something you will have to check into more thoroughly. If nothing else, check out to see if Corbin Bleu has a website with a message board that he checks or if you can somehow ask him questions and just ask him about his hair - how he does it, if it is all natural or processed, etc.
Now you may wonder how I know so much about all this? Several years ago, I used to work the drive-thru teller window at the bank with two black women who frequently changed hair styles and this was frequently the topic of conversation. ;-)
Good luck, and tell us what you find out.
Bragi
Thank you everyone. Wow! you guys are amazing and respond really quickly.
I dont have any sisters but my Mom has relaxed hair. I have a younger cousin who still has her natural hair but its normally in plaits and i havent seen her in anything else.
Corbin Bleu has a white mom and black dad so thats probably why his hair is so awesome. He says that he uses Dove products and shampoos conditions and runs a big tooth comb through it everyday (i did my homework, lol) I live in the caribbean on an island and i'm not sure if its really masculine to go to a salon to do my hair. lol! but i can grow it out still and wait till i get to the states.
I know that my hair will probably just grow out and stick out like an afro but to put chemicals in it i'm kinda shakey on that.
Anything else you wanna know or any other suggestions i'll gladly accept.
You guys here are awesome
Thanx
The suggestions I have are:
don't cut it (not entirely original, I know);
keep it moisturized -- there are a variety of products out there for afros and thick curls. I recommend "Mane'N'Tail" products, like the miracle growth product, or even 'Cholesterol' (I don't know if it has a brand, but my black family members (I'm in a mixed race family, though have, unfortunately, no known black in my bloodline) use it regularly to keep their hair soft and style-able);
Don't over comb it - curly hair is more fragile and combing will just lead to breakage if overdone. Gently with the pick, when the hair is dry, to get out upcoming tangles.
Best of luck, Junior. I look forward to update pics in the months and years to come.
Shawn (Mr.Crow)
PS. I am really sorry to hear that your family made you cut your hair. I do have to say, though, that being 18 doesn't necessarily mean you get to do whatever you want to now - not if you are relying on your family for anything be it a roof, a car, food...Sure you have the right to do what you want, but, if you are at all dependent on them, then undfortunately you also have the responsibility to keep the peace. I am hoping it is a peaceful re-growth for you, my fellow curly-haired enthusiast of manlocks.
I just looked through our member list, and we have one guy, Fallen_angels, who seems to have come close to achieving what you want. You can e-mail people through there.
Members with userids beginning with F
It shouldn't take too long, maybe a year, maybe slightly longer.
Don't lose hope brother!
I am too starting to grow out my hair again from scratch! [ I used to have hair roughly twice Corbin Bleu's length, but my parents made me cut it 3 days ago!].
But now I turned 18 today, and im growing back. It will probably take me 2 1/2 years to get back what I lost, but I don't care, I have the patience!
Unfornately the products for black hair care are a little different than for straight hair. I would ask your mother or sisters what they use. I live in New York City and all the black guys I see have it in braids, cornrows or dreads. I haven't seen too many with stick straight hair.
Straight hair here in New York is popular for black women here. If you live in a Major City you can go to a salon that cater's just to African American hair and you could probally get the style you want.
You know, I used to know this black folk who has long hair, and not in dreads too. He looks really good but I suspect it takes a little more work for Africans to have longer hair since the hair tends to be thick and curly, that is why dreads tends to be popular among african americans who do choose to have long hair. At first the hair tends to get afro look because of the thick hair but you gotta use combs (preferably wide tooth ones to minimize damage) to get it down... once you can train your hair down it shouldn't be too hard. I dont have anything against dreads I think it looks good too but to have long hair and no dreads is a lot of work for most africans, which is why dreads or little to no hair tends to be popular among africans... except for Egyptians since they have normal hair...
what did you mean when you said Egyptians have normal hair? :P if you mean straight hair, that's pretty rare all around east africa and parts of north-western africa due to the asian/european heritage they all share. their hair tends to be dry even if it's straight (which i never understood =/ lol). The norm in the arab world, however, is to grease your hair and pull it back. it actually looks cool though.
I dont know... I guess I keep seeing pictures of Cleopatra and Egyptian wall paintings depicting them having straight hair... I only knew of a few Egyptians in my life and they all had afro like hair... but their skin ranges from light (as in white) to kinda dark.
Ooooh that. I read about that as well. As it turns out, the process they would use to preserve the body would actually help straighten out the hair. I forgot where I read that though.
And yea, many of them can have afro-textured hair when they're light/white whereas the darker ones often have loosely-curled or even straight hair :P If you go to any other place in the Middle East you'll find similar patterns because Arabs have African heritage (especially in Yemen where arabs originated).
Getting hair to grow is easy as long as you keep it clean and have the right diet. Soy milk, eggs, and beef are all good sources of protein.
This will all get your hair to grow. But If you want your hair to look like Corbin Bleu's hair you would have to already have his hair type--either that or curl your hair :P
Hi Junior,
Welcome, it's good to have you around.
I remember having seen a few young men with afros and with somewhat straightened hair in a pony tail in western equatorial Africa - and I thought both styles looked really cool on them.
It's good that you have stopped getting hair cuts already, so nothing will stop your hair, and you can take it from there - it seems to me that "African" hair offers lots of possibilities as it grows out - and it's possibly a lot more resistant to all kinds of damage than straight "European" hair.
There are some board members with at least some African genes and African-type hair, and they will be much more qualified to assist you than I would, of course.
All the best, and happy growth!
Hans-Uwe
Hi Junior, --- and WELCOME!
I apologize for not knowing who Corbin Bleu is, or for that matter, much about African American hair either. But, you still should be able to grow your hair out, regardless! In my city (San Francisco, CA) there are plenty of hair salons that specialize in hair care for blacks. My suggestion is to ask around, especially any guy (or even girl) who has hair similar to yours which is longer, asking questions like: 1) where do you go for hair trims?, or; 2) how can I get my hair to get as long and look as good as yours?, ---- or other similar questions. Word-of-mouth is usually the best recommendation you can find to end up going to the best place to meet your individual needs.
My understanding of Black hair, based on any conversations with black friends or co-workers I've known over the years, is that African American hair is a totally different type of hair to deal with than European/Cuacasian or Asian hair, --- and that it's best to go to a stylist who specializes in that type of hair (meaning, the stylist is usually also Black themselves).
Hope this helps!
- Ken
Welcome!
So you want your hair to look like Corbin Bleu's, what a change from your current length! It's going to take awhile, probably close to two years. Just as importlantly, you're going to need the time to adjust to the changes in your hair care. You're going to be going from basically no maintenance to daily hair care - tangles, dreads wanting to form, etc. For the best advice for growing out your type of hair, I'd talk to Fallen_angels. Good luck!