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Beyoncé’s mom, Tina Knowles, owned a hair salon while raising both her daughters. Tina learned about the importance of hair care from her mother, Agnez Dereon. Essentially, Beyoncé’s grandmother was the blueprint for hair care in their family and Cécred is a continuation of what’s been passed down with the help of new technology. The entire line of products is made from a patent-pending bioactive keratin ferment and, of course, it’s infused with honey. It includes a clarifying shampoo and scalp scrub, a hydrating shampoo, a moisturizing deep conditioner, a reconstructing treatment mask, and a moisture-sealing lotion. It’s the basics of what you need for your hair to thrive. It’s Beyoncé’s connection to hair care that makes me want to try the product line even more.
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Beyoncé told Essence that she remembers sweeping floors and seeing women come into her mother’s salon. She said, “I saw her shampooing and trimming hair, transforming women, leaving them feeling really good. Looking back, it was more than just a hair appointment — it was therapy.” So many women can relate to weekly hair appointments being therapeutic. It’s often the one thing a lot of women will do for themselves, especially in the Black community. We pride ourselves on the different styles and maintenance that we do. It made me think of my own upbringing and how my mother showed me the importance of taking care of yourself at a young age.
I grew up having a mother who got her hair and nails done weekly. She has never missed one appointment even to this day. And as soon as I could walk, my mom had me in the Dominican hair salon while she got her weekly wash and set, and her biannual relaxer touch-ups.
Unlike Ms. Tina, my mom was never really good at hairstyles, but my godmother would always have the hot comb ready for me and enjoyed doing my hair for a while. Once we moved further away from her, my mom was on her own with the day-to-day maintenance of my kinky/coily hair.
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She really didn’t know what to do with my hair and at the age of 6 years old, I got my first relaxer in the same salon she’d been going to for years. I remember crying a lot that day because there were so many different people in my hair and it felt strange to be the one sitting in the styling chair for the first time. But the owner and long-time stylist had known my mother for years and had seen me coming to the salon with her all the time. She made the extra effort to make me feel comfortable even though I was just a little girl crying over a comb. From ages 6 to 19, I continued my weekly wash and set appointments with my mom.
Although I liked walking out of the salon that first time with pin-straight hair, I did not like how long of a process it was and you could read it all over my face.
The times after that, I dreaded going to the salon because I felt like it took up too much time and I’d rather do anything else but that. What I didn’t realize at the time was that my mother’s weekly hair appointment was her form of self-care. It was sacred for her to have her hair washed, conditioned, and blown out. It was her “me time” and it filled her cup after a long work week. At a young age, I was taught that it’s essential to take care of yourself and do things that make you feel good. A lot of times, women feel like they have to take care of everyone around them before they even think about taking care of themselves, especially if they’re mothers. But my mom showed me that you can’t care for others without taking the time for yourself.
She didn’t have to sit me down and explain this to me, she simply showed me how to carry myself by doing the things that she loved. She loved getting her hair curled and changing her nail color every week and, even though I didn’t know it at the time, it left an impression on me. I constantly seek out ways to do self-care, whether it’s doing my weekly face masks or conditioning my now coily hair every week. I don’t do the weekly salon visits anymore since growing out that relaxer and going back to my coily roots. But Beyoncé’s connection to her hair and growing up in hair salons made me think back to my own experience.
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Beyoncé’s hair story makes her a bit more relatable because she’s always seen as this almost otherworldly musical genius. At her core, she is just like us and has had a childhood full of experiences that have led her to be the superstar that she is today.
Her stardom can make us forget that she was also once a little girl admiring her mother from afar. Beyoncé is one of those celebrities who don’t let us into her private world a lot (which I highly respect and understand). So opening up about her childhood and how Cécred has become a generational dream realized, makes it even more special. The story behind the brand lets us into her world. We get a more holistic look at her upbringing and why Cécred is more than just hair products. It’s a combination of knowledge from the women who came before her and the self-care tools she hopes to pass to her fans and everyone looking to embrace self-care.
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