She is the daughter of a professional hairdresser (Miss Tina Knowles), who owned a successful beauty shop in Houston, Texas. It’s no surprise that Solange takes such pride in her hair. In this timeless piece, which appears on her album A Seat at the Table, she parallels her hair to her soul, her crown, and goes as far as to say that her hair is the feelings that she wears. Singer and songwriter, Solange Knowles honors her tresses in the song “Don’t Touch My Hair,” which was registered with the Copyright Office in 2018. She both literally and metaphorically creates a crown, and it is a true work of art. With no strand left behind, she makes intricate patterns of art with various braid styles and braid sizes, some overlapping, and others ornamented with coordinated ribbon. She adjusts the positioning of my head and begins to create. She parts my hair into sections and massages the warm oil onto my roots. She sits in a chair and I on a cushion on the floor, nestled between her knees. “Spray bottle?” “Check.” “Oil?” “Check.” “Comb?” “Check.” “Ribbon?” “Check.” My mother runs down the checklist of things she will need to style my freshly washed hair into braids. I will forever cherish a weekly routine I shared with my mother as a child. I land on a memory in particular and smile. In fact, as an African American woman, I cannot help but to travel down my own memory lane with spiraling thoughts of moments where Black art and tradition have brought me restoration. As I reflect on this year’s theme of Black Health and Wellness, I think about how deeply artistic expression is woven into the fabric of Black history as a source of wellness. There is healing in African American spirituals and in praise dance in African drums and in beatboxing, in storytelling, and in rhythm and blues. Historically, African Americans have turned to art for its inexplicable healing powers. Ashley Tucker, Public Affairs Specialist (detailee) crowned in “knotless braids.” Braids styled by Dan McDonald who also authors the photograph.īlack history tells powerful stories of innovation, perseverance, triumph, and celebration but also stories of loss, tragedy, trauma, and pain.
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