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Rihanna’s Fashion Show Sparks Row For Styling White Models’ Hair In Braids

‘For us, Black hair is Black history’: Rihanna’s fashion show sparks row for styling white models’ hair in braids

The Savage X Fenty lingerie label has been accused of cultural appropriation over the hairstyles in its annual fashion show. But why is this still going on?

inger Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty fashion line has stirred an online debate around cultural appropriation, after models wore what appeared to be braids during the label’s lingerie show. After the show was screened last Friday on Amazon Prime, viewers expressed concern on social media at seeing non-Black models, including Emily Ratajkowski, with braids.

“I wish I could write something as funny as putting all these white girls in braids for the Fenty show,” tweeted comedian and television writer Raina Morris. And Dylan Ali wrote: “I love the Fenty show but I think we need a trigger warning for seeing this many white women in braids.”

The author of My Beautiful Black Hair, St Clair Detrick-Jules, says: “For the producers of Rihanna’s fashion show to fashion white models with distinctively Black braids kind of feels exhausting. We’ve been making some headway with educating non-Black women about how deep our connections are to our hair – yet here come the producers wilfully ignoring all the easily accessible information online explaining what cultural appropriation is and why it’s harmful.”

With online commentators questioning the origins of the hairstyle, Detrick-Jules thinks the attempt to reframe the debate around hair occurs due to lack of knowledge and understanding of history. “The fact that our knowledge is so vague and often filled more with myths than facts, partly accounts for why there’s so much cultural appropriation.” She says braids originated in Africa around 3,500 years ago. “They have been used to indicate social status, religion, marital status and other identity markers. In other words, braids, like other Black hairstyles, are reflective of culture.”

Last year Selena Gomez was criticised after appearing on the cover of Interview magazine sporting braids. In May, Justin Bieber was called out online for wearing a cornrow hairstyle and Kim Kardashian has been called out regularly for “blackfishing”: appearing to wear hairstyles such as braids, and tan makeup, allegedly in order to look Black. Detrick-Jules thinks incidents like these keep happening because of a misconception about the meaning of the style.

“I look at the education system here in the United States and it’s clear that we have been miseducated about our history, in particular with regards to indigenous and Black history,” she says. In that context, Detrick-Jules says it’s easy to understand why a non-Black woman might think that it’s OK to have braids put into her hair. “[They] don’t understand that, for us, Black hair is Black history. [They] also don’t understand the centuries of real trauma Black women have suffered because of our hair and so [a non-Black woman] doesn’t understand that, to us, braids or other natural Black hairstyles aren’t ‘fashion’. They are history, they are our connection to our ancestors – a connection that was deliberately broken by the slave trade – they are heritage.”

 Savage X Fenty has been approached for a comment.

Entertainment

Peter Obi congratulates Tems on winning another Grammy award

File photo of Peter Obi and Tems

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has congratulated Nigerian singer, Tems, on her victory at the 67th annual Grammy Awards.

Tems’ ‘Love Me Jeje’ won the Best African Music Performance award over “Tomorrow” (Yemi Alade), “MMS” (Asake & Wizkid), “Sensational” (Chris Brown featuring Davido & Lojay), and “Higher” (Burna Boy), on Sunday.

Reacting in a statement shared via his X handle on Monday, Obi also celebrated the other Nigerian artists who were nominated in various categories despite missing out on the awards.

“I extend my hearty congratulations to our Nigerian Afrobeats star, Tems @temsbaby , who just secured her second Grammy Award with her win in the Best African Music Performance category.

“I also rejoice with Nigeria’s entertainment industry and other Nigerian artists who were nominated for different awards in their respective categories,” the statement partly read.

Obi reiterated that he’s committed to “building a nation that fosters growth among the youths and helps them discover and harness their individual talents for national productivity.”

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Entertainment

Tems beats Burna Boy, Davido, Wizkid to win 2nd Grammy

Popular Nigerian singer Temilade Openiyi, popularly known as Tems has won the Best African Music Performance category at the 67th Academy Grammy Awards for her song ‘Love Me JeJe’.

The 29-year-old singer clinched the award with her love song, Love Me Jeje, defeating Tomorrow by Yemi Alade, MMS by Asake featuring Wizkid, Sensational by Chris Brown featuring Davido and Lojay, and Higher by Burna Boy.

The prestigious award event was held on Sunday at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, United States.

The songstress’s latest victory make it her second golden gramophone at the Grammys.

Receiving the award, Tems said: “Dear God, thank you so much for putting me on this stage and bringing me this team”. She also dedicated the award to her mother.

Tems has been releasing hit songs since 2020, recording with top hit makers including Drake, Rihanna and Beyoncé.

She was nominated across three categories — Best African Music Performance, Best Global Music Album and Best R&B Song — making her the most nominated African act this year.

The singer in 2024 released her debut studio album, “Born in the Wild”. Her song “Love me jeje” is a standout from the album.

Tems, 29, now has more Grammy awards than any other Nigerian artiste. The award marks her second Grammy win.

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Entertainment

Verydarkman blames Annie Idibia for marriage crisis

Popular activist Verydarkman has weighed in on the ongoing controversy surrounding singer 2Baba’s marriage crisis, stating that Annie Idibia is to blame for her current predicament.

In a trending video on social media, the activist argued that 2Baba should not be held responsible for the collapse of his marriage, as Annie was fully aware of his history of infidelity and multiple baby mamas before choosing to marry him.

Verydarkman claimed that Annie’s decision to marry 2Baba was driven by her desire to be seen as the woman who ultimately won the heart of the legendary musician.

Additionally, he stirred controversy by suggesting that if media personality Toke Makinwa were approached by 2Baba for an affair, she would supposedly accept

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