Why I chose to plait my hair
Jan 13, 2005
I do my hair because I want it done
Ragga Dee
I do my hair because I want it done. I didn’t want to ruin it by putting it in dreads, so I decided to do cornrows. I have been doing it for about five years. It takes about 30-40 minutes to have it done. No one has ever complained about it. If I were in another industry, say a if I were a doctor, I would still plait my hair. I have this rule it is about the inside not the outside. If my producers and managers asked me to cut off my hair, I would not. I would fire them!! But if it were off style, I would cut it off. I think some people do their hair because of me, but I don’t know any in particular!
David Obua, footballer
I plait my hair because it is a new era. I have to go with the flow. The rappers are doing it…every one is doing it. I wanna look good. But I will change it when they go out of fashion. I change my hairstyles every Friday. If I was in another profession, I would not wear this hair, because you’ve got to look presentable to your patients or students. But I go to the pitch to play and have fun. The people, who complain about my hair are normal Ugandans, who yap too much. They feel if they are bald, David has to be bald too. When we played against South Africa, they said I played badly because of my hair. When I was in Mauritius, I had cornrows and I played good, but no one said it was because of my hair! People should do what they want with their hair, as long as it’s your style. If you feel good in it, you can do what you want.
Sipate Simons, 20-year-old dancer with Miracle teens
Sometimes I plait cornrows, toots, or dreads using thread. I am motivated by some singers on LTV, but I can’t remember their names. I have been plaiting my hair since 2002. You know, young people also need to feel something that the world has. When they come to church, they feel they are missing out, so we want to show them they can also do it in church. Old people complain, but really, we are after getting young people to God. We want to attract them in every way we can, through music, dance and style. They say young people these days have got spoiled, but they don’t know the story behind. Our pastor has a vision of getting young people from the world to the church, so he agrees with us.
A friend of mine from church plaits my hair for free. In the beginning, my parents were like “you can’t plait your hairâ€, but when my pastor explained it to them, they chilled.
Cyrus the Vyrus, 25-year-old Photographer, Artist and model
Chicks like my hair because it’s kind of artistic. When you are a model, its good to look different. Of course, I like the attention women give me when I stroll by. Chicks are always on my case. “You look like Ludacris, you look like Snoop Dogg!â€
I plaited for two years, then quit for about eight months and now I am back… I think for life. It takes about two and a half hours to get the cornrows done, which drives me nuts when I have a lot to do. But I go through all that because of the above reasons. I change it depending on how fast it wears out. Of course I get some discouragement from the grownups, who don’t agree with this kind of stuff, especially my mum.
The girl who, used to do my hair moved to another salon, which is extremely expensive.
20-year-old Bahta Edrin , in S6 Vacation. He is a choreographer and a sound mixer at Rubaga Miracle centre
I started plaiting my hair four years ago. I am lazy. I don’t know how to keep my hair when it’s short. When it’s plaited, it’s easier to maintain. I like the hair styles of B2K of Omario and Ludacris. A lady called precious from Gulu plaits it for me at sh25,000. My hair is long and so it takes long… from10:00pm to 8:00am. I have to do it at night because during the day, I am very busy. I change hairstyles every month, depending on how much I’ve disturbed it. When it is out of style, I remove it. My parents don’t complain about my hair. Just that they say I am turning into a girl. But people around complain that when you plait hair, you attract girls and mess them up, but if you know who you are, that’s nothing. Different people have different views…some are too spiritual. But it’s about the heart, not the physical!
Mugisha “Muji†Sherurah, 33, radio presenter on Power Fm
I have been doing my hair for about a year. I first grew an Afro, and then I got tired of combing. So I decided to do a hairstyle that I wouldn’t have to touch…only oiling it. A friend of mine on campus does it for me for free. It takes about three hours. Some people think I do my hair because of R. Kelly, but I can’t say I look to anyone in particular about my hair. But I like the hairstyle of Jeff Koinange of CNN. I don’t really get negative comments about my hair. My friends are okay with it. My mom is conservative, but she doesn’t mind my hairstyles. She says that my hairstyles look like for King Menelik of Ethiopia.
Denis Maganda, a model, has a showbiz company
I look into my look big time. In showbiz, people look at you all the time. I pamper my body and my hair is not left out. Sometimes I have cornrows; sometimes an Afro or dreads. I don’t want to look the same on two occasions. Pretty much every man in Uganda is bald, so I plait my hair to look different. When I want the corporate look, I wear cornrows, a suit and a tie. I wear twisted crazy hair (toots) for jeans and Tshirts. A girl called Angela in Wandegeya does my hair. It takes about 45 minutes to fix the cornrows, which costs sh15,000. I love people, who do their hair like Ludacris, but I try to be myself. I have been plaiting my hair for three years. Once at an audition with many guys, my hair pulled me through, that’s when I decided to keep my hair.
Ian Eyall, a.k.a Thornhead , 28 produces local music videos
Basically, I am in the entertainment business and image matters. Plaiting hair is style. It makes me feel comfortable and look good. I change my hairstyles thrice a month. My sister Flora does it for me most times, but when I do it in the salon, it costs only sh10,000. It takes only an hour to have it done. I fancy Ludacris’s cornrows. He looks cool with them.
I do my hair because I want it done. I didn’t want to ruin it by putting it in dreads, so I decided to do cornrows. I have been doing it for about five years. It takes about 30-40 minutes to have it done. No one has ever complained about it. If I were in another industry, say a if I were a doctor, I would still plait my hair. I have this rule it is about the inside not the outside. If my producers and managers asked me to cut off my hair, I would not. I would fire them!! But if it were off style, I would cut it off. I think some people do their hair because of me, but I don’t know any in particular!
David Obua, footballer
I plait my hair because it is a new era. I have to go with the flow. The rappers are doing it…every one is doing it. I wanna look good. But I will change it when they go out of fashion. I change my hairstyles every Friday. If I was in another profession, I would not wear this hair, because you’ve got to look presentable to your patients or students. But I go to the pitch to play and have fun. The people, who complain about my hair are normal Ugandans, who yap too much. They feel if they are bald, David has to be bald too. When we played against South Africa, they said I played badly because of my hair. When I was in Mauritius, I had cornrows and I played good, but no one said it was because of my hair! People should do what they want with their hair, as long as it’s your style. If you feel good in it, you can do what you want.
Sipate Simons, 20-year-old dancer with Miracle teens
Sometimes I plait cornrows, toots, or dreads using thread. I am motivated by some singers on LTV, but I can’t remember their names. I have been plaiting my hair since 2002. You know, young people also need to feel something that the world has. When they come to church, they feel they are missing out, so we want to show them they can also do it in church. Old people complain, but really, we are after getting young people to God. We want to attract them in every way we can, through music, dance and style. They say young people these days have got spoiled, but they don’t know the story behind. Our pastor has a vision of getting young people from the world to the church, so he agrees with us.
A friend of mine from church plaits my hair for free. In the beginning, my parents were like “you can’t plait your hairâ€, but when my pastor explained it to them, they chilled.
Cyrus the Vyrus, 25-year-old Photographer, Artist and model
Chicks like my hair because it’s kind of artistic. When you are a model, its good to look different. Of course, I like the attention women give me when I stroll by. Chicks are always on my case. “You look like Ludacris, you look like Snoop Dogg!â€
I plaited for two years, then quit for about eight months and now I am back… I think for life. It takes about two and a half hours to get the cornrows done, which drives me nuts when I have a lot to do. But I go through all that because of the above reasons. I change it depending on how fast it wears out. Of course I get some discouragement from the grownups, who don’t agree with this kind of stuff, especially my mum.
The girl who, used to do my hair moved to another salon, which is extremely expensive.
20-year-old Bahta Edrin , in S6 Vacation. He is a choreographer and a sound mixer at Rubaga Miracle centre
I started plaiting my hair four years ago. I am lazy. I don’t know how to keep my hair when it’s short. When it’s plaited, it’s easier to maintain. I like the hair styles of B2K of Omario and Ludacris. A lady called precious from Gulu plaits it for me at sh25,000. My hair is long and so it takes long… from10:00pm to 8:00am. I have to do it at night because during the day, I am very busy. I change hairstyles every month, depending on how much I’ve disturbed it. When it is out of style, I remove it. My parents don’t complain about my hair. Just that they say I am turning into a girl. But people around complain that when you plait hair, you attract girls and mess them up, but if you know who you are, that’s nothing. Different people have different views…some are too spiritual. But it’s about the heart, not the physical!
Mugisha “Muji†Sherurah, 33, radio presenter on Power Fm
I have been doing my hair for about a year. I first grew an Afro, and then I got tired of combing. So I decided to do a hairstyle that I wouldn’t have to touch…only oiling it. A friend of mine on campus does it for me for free. It takes about three hours. Some people think I do my hair because of R. Kelly, but I can’t say I look to anyone in particular about my hair. But I like the hairstyle of Jeff Koinange of CNN. I don’t really get negative comments about my hair. My friends are okay with it. My mom is conservative, but she doesn’t mind my hairstyles. She says that my hairstyles look like for King Menelik of Ethiopia.
Denis Maganda, a model, has a showbiz company
I look into my look big time. In showbiz, people look at you all the time. I pamper my body and my hair is not left out. Sometimes I have cornrows; sometimes an Afro or dreads. I don’t want to look the same on two occasions. Pretty much every man in Uganda is bald, so I plait my hair to look different. When I want the corporate look, I wear cornrows, a suit and a tie. I wear twisted crazy hair (toots) for jeans and Tshirts. A girl called Angela in Wandegeya does my hair. It takes about 45 minutes to fix the cornrows, which costs sh15,000. I love people, who do their hair like Ludacris, but I try to be myself. I have been plaiting my hair for three years. Once at an audition with many guys, my hair pulled me through, that’s when I decided to keep my hair.
Ian Eyall, a.k.a Thornhead , 28 produces local music videos
Basically, I am in the entertainment business and image matters. Plaiting hair is style. It makes me feel comfortable and look good. I change my hairstyles thrice a month. My sister Flora does it for me most times, but when I do it in the salon, it costs only sh10,000. It takes only an hour to have it done. I fancy Ludacris’s cornrows. He looks cool with them.