BAMBOOZLED...Why Didn't Ya'll Tell Me? | Vlogmas Day 5

[@antoinettechevalier2453]

I was a little kid in the 1970s (watched Soul Train every weekend, etc) and the way the teens and adults I knew achieved those huge, beautiful, iconic Afros of that era was through hair *stretching* - much like we do now! Folks would braid-up their dampened, and greased hair (like preparing for a braid-out), tie a satin scarf around it, then take-down in the morning. It’s then easy to pick the ‘fro up to the heavens and have it be big, round, and shiny. Of course, they also had to get it shaped every month or so at barber/hairdresser. But I don’t remember the folks w Afros buying lots of texturizers- definitely purchased lots of grease though, lol, and begged their girlfriends to “plait my hair up for me” so Afro would be fire the next day.

[@tammygant4216]

Thank you for sharing this. I was around in the 70's (born early in 1970), but I didn't remember this detail. I just thought I was missing something or doing something wrong. Fixin' to go get my fire Afro right now! PS, my younger sister and one of my good friends are both named Antoinette. And my sister Tonette had a best friend with the same name when she was in middle school!

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

I believe you and you experience for sure…however the company was grossing 12.6 million annually by 1970. SOMEBODY was buying them 👀

[@zakiya1635]

I'm with you. I plaited my hair every night to get that fluffy look. You also had to have your pick on hand as well.😀

[@outb4thecount]

@@LaToyaEbonyHair I was a preteen to late teen in the 70's. It's possible that Johnson's Ultra Sheen and Afro Sheen was responsible for the bulk of that 12.6 million, we used A LOT of that grease. All of the girls and guys I grew up with worked that hair pick and while I heard about the blow out kit, I don't know anyone who used it. Not everybody had the Sylver's or Jackson 5 fros but most everyone in my orbit had an afro, short, curly, coily, big, cottony, shrunken, round, floppy, bent to the side etc. etc. My age group was using a hot comb to straighten the hair for holidays and such, relaxers came later in my 20's. My mom, aunties and older female relatives had relaxed hair.

[@MsCheesygirl]

Exactly, that's how we did it too. No one in my family or friends used texturizer. It was braid at night, tie it up, take it down in the morning, and pick it out.

[@lauramurray7155]

I’m a Baby Boomer so I proudly lived that era of natural hair. Maybe Blowouts were for some, but for the most part, in college we simply used a little hair grease to soften, braided ( or what you’d call plaiting) our hair, wrapped the ends around strips from brown paper bags so they wouldn’t stick straight up, and went to bed. In the morning, we uncurled, unbraided, picked, shaped, patted and spritzed (yes, with Afro Sheen oil spray for shine) and voilà. Keeping the hair shaped was the key. I have always remarked on how much more is done to our hair these days. Today my hair is gray, still have a great shape for my style, do a wash-and-go using Uncle Funky’s products because I like the curls and it’s necessary to stay contemporary as we get older. But, to wear an Afro from back in the day, it’s all about the shape of the cut. If that’s not on point, neither is your ‘Fro.

[@leticiajohnson3428]

I am so glad you are talking about this and that you are still one of the OG KZbinrs that still shows natural hair content so the younger brown skin baby girls can see a positive message regarding our hair and a beautiful black woman who loves her natural hair. I am concerned about the new trend of black women going back to relaxers even with the health concerns surrounding relaxers. They are sending a message that it is so difficult to care for the hair that grows out of their head and we must conform to European beauty standards

[@Timetrae]

Great video!! Thanks for the insight!! I had no idea but I did notice all the fros had a certain soft and fluffy look.

[@Meloyadina]

I'm a born in the late 60's flower child 😊, all your points are very valid‼️ Every movement of empowerment takes place in stages... the 60/70's afro was for power & community identification against a backdrop of us not yet fully embracing our tighter coils. I think that's why the ancestors then brought forward this new generation of Natural Hair content creators. You have been the upgraded Phase 2 of black self-love, without even realizing it!! Who knows in another decade there may be a Phase 3, we know not the ways/plans God has already established 🙏🏽. Vlogmas is GIVING 🌟👑🥁

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Melanie, thank you for your insight! I definitely think phase three is coming. The majority of naturals still toe the line of wearing our tight coils and stretched styles. The versatility is beautiful but I wonder if in ten years we’ll opt for our natural texture most days….or locs 👀

[@avemaria390]

LaToya: I am past 80 years. One of the ones whose father said “you’re not going out of here with your hair standing up on your head “, and I kept walking. I was proud! The products were mostly moisturizing with oils in them to make the hair easier to pick and comb . Remember, most people didn’t know what to do with coils, etc. Fortunately for me, my hair was easier to manage, but the products were a god-send nonetheless. The naturals were REAL!

[@PoeCommunicateATL]

Born in 1963. There were several ways to get a "big fro:" 1) Use a blow out comb, 2) wash, grease, plait, and sleep on it, 3) use a "blowout" relaxer or 4) grow out and shape your own hair which had the texture to achieve the ideal fro naturally. I will add that I happen to feel that people of Black, African descent should uplift each other for navigating European standards in any way that works for them. I support the natural fam but I also support sisters who chose to relax, wear braid extensions and, even, wear lace-front weaves and more. Peace. Love. And hair grease!😘

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Well said!

[@MsMockingbird06]

This makes sense now! My hair is very similar to yours and I’ve never been able to pick out my hair to look like that. It’s too coily and if I tried it would break off. I never understood how other did that until now. Thanks so much!

[@ossier2796]

I was 20 in 1970 and I wore a fro, went to UCLA where Angela Davis was a professor. Our hair was a symbol of Black Pride. I never texturized my hair and never used that blowout kit but had a full beautiful Afro.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

😳Thoughts?

[@cheshiredj]

I knew about the Super Blowout Kits but no one ever really thought about what it was. It was something to help you get the look you wanted. And of course your fro had to be shaped! Can't be walking around with a lopsided fro 😱

[@phonecharger6789]

Love u ,love ur content ,I wanted that Micheal Jackson perfect fro but didn’t know they used texturises 🤦‍♀️

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

I don’t think everyone did, but it was definitely common.

[@Iwasonceanonionwithnolayers]

I could be wrong but I'd imagine it was looser curls patterns buying this because as far as I know, 4c is the perfect palette for a fro 🤔

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

I think everyone was. Even today people with all hair textures but relaxers. I’ve never met a person with texture hair not complain about how “hard” it is to deal with. The tight curls and the loose ones. I think they were selling ease more than anything.

[@zheahra]

Hi LaToya! Great vid and info! I always wondered how some across were so polished and perfect. That's how these companies make their money.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Oh they’re gonna figure out how to insert themselves in EVERYTHING. Lol

[@carencurrybeauty]

Wait a minute, I was just asking on another thread what the blow out kit did and no one answered me! 😂 BUT here I came across your video and I am shocked!!!! Not in a bad way but a good way because I never understood (as a preteen) how Soul Train & Afro Sheen people had big, nice afros! No matter, I appreciate the info research you gave us. 😊

[@memefree3101]

My mom told me that she used to be so upset bc she couldn't do the fro look. Because of her hair texture it would never stand up 😄

[@lillybianca4185]

😂😂

[@MarkHurlow-cf2ix]

I loved watching soul train and their was an Afro sheen commercial before every show...

[@MissGinaTree1]

I grew up watching Soul Train and using the Ultra Sheen it was my family’s hair grease I’m glad you did this video to help the younger to understand and hair grease didn’t kill me still here 😉😂

[@kgill8485]

One of my favorite series is "I Was a Soul Train Dancer" on the Soul Train channel. The dancers talk about their fashions, their moves, meeting the performers, etc. It's amazing to hear how they put together their looks and how they experienced the whole scene in real life. It's a bit of history I think we need to preserve.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

I’ve seen that! It’s SO cool!

[@sabathegodis]

Black people were absolutely achieving Afros WITHOUT chemicals. The soft fluffy fro is more about technique. Thankfully, my mother passed down some tips. If you have type 4 hair like I do ladies, wash, condition, detangle, and braid the hair down first in 4 large braids. Once it dries, it’ll be soft and you can use an Afro pick to pick out the hair until it takes some form. Use a spray mist bottle for THE ENDS ONLY and start to shape your hair to the desired shape. As it dries you’ll see that Afro come alive! A little patience and a little holding spray goes a long way. Keep your pick handy for touch ups. ❤ We still LOVE afro sheen and what it did for black communities! They relaunched the line in 2020, not sure if it’s still in production but you can find some of those products online!

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Of course they were! Thanks for the tips!

[@speerrituall1]

We texturized to make it easier to maintain.

[@ericasuzy]

My mother told me that they used to blow out there hair to get the big fro. She used to braid down her and my fathers hair nightly.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Yes! That’s how to achieve it today too. Idk why this company made so much money!

[@esthertjones]

!!! 😮😮😮 I never knew any of this. My sibling's hair can be naturally molded into a round afro just like this, but mine is still very curly.

[@gloriaa.4858]

Hey, wait a minute! I had to wash my hair in Tide (the powder back then,) grease it, plait it, roll up the ends on "rat tail" curlers, and tie it up for the night. THEN, in the morning, I would pick it out, which took about 20 minutes so that there wouldn't be any parts showing. But my hair grew really fast in those days because I didn't need any heat. Why did I ever start perming it in the 80's?

[@ShantellJ]

Thanks for your energy ❤

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

🥰 You are so very welcome!

[@VictoriousVernita7850]

I have been natural for over 12 years. I can get a soft rounded afro puff without a blow out or texturizer. My mom could do the same thing also in the 60's and 70's and she never used afro sheen.

[@asapolen]

It's the same type of ppl out here with looser textures from silk presses and ain't telling nobody!! I figured this out when I got one myself and went from 4c to 4a! I don't even make videos and I wanna make one on this!! We still out here lying to the people!!!

[@PiklizTafia]

I didn’t know either 😮

[@ossier2796]

None of my friends used that blowout kit, might have used some Afro Sheen, a pic and shaping. I lived through it.

[@apara2005]

This is the most mindblowing thing I ever saw on KZbin!!!!!! THIS MAKES SO MUCH SINCE!!! Here I'm thinking something was wrong with my hair because I could never achieve the perfectly round shaped afro from the 70s...come to find out, they were chemically treating their hair to be that way. Well I'll be damn 🤯

[@YllonaRichardson]

Again, no. To achieve the full round ‘Fro: Get a good cut, then we plaited our hair at night, slept in a do rag/cap, unbraid in the morning, pick-out, and carried an Afro-pick at all times - everywhere 😜! And of course, regular “shape-ups” at the barber shop/salon.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

There are many ways to go about getting the 70s Afro, but many used texturizer to make the process of getting one easier. I don’t think it was necessary. 😊

[@apara2005]

@@YllonaRichardson I've only been natural for 2 years now. The afro look was my dream when I first started. I tried the cutting, but basically my stylist at the time told me I need to have my hair cut super short (which i dont want) in order to have the look...and my afro would only be tiny. I quickly realized that I don't have the texture (my hair is like 4a, but wavy like 4b). So I gave up with the afro look after 6 months and accepted my hair for what it is 🤷🏾‍♀️. Then I just let it grow out. It grows mostly left/right and down not up. It's a semi-afro 🤣

[@taylorwaylor8965]

I knew Afro sheen blowout kit was a chemical because my mom always tells the story because of my cousin’s hair turned a brownish red tint from black hair after he got his 6 week blowout😂😂. I was definitely bamboozled too because I was amazed at how no one had shrinkage!😂

[@Chromagens]

✨Marketing ✨ I find this fascinating. I know my mother couldn’t do an Afro with her hair and she said it frustrated her 😆 I don’t think it’s just looser curls that could achieve it easier. Some hair just fros great and of course coarser (strand size) hair likely helps a lot. I think we’ll always have styles and trends and that’s great.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

I agree! I used to wear afros all the time when my hair was shorter. We can achieve them but it takes a decent amount of effort.

[@Chromagens]

@@LaToyaEbonyHair yeah and I think for the afro, shape may be even more important than the wash and go. It's a great style tho

[@marquita1636]

Very informative! Fros are hard to do! I don’t feel misled by what they did in that time period. They still set the ground work for the natural community today. Their are naturals who color treat (chemicals)or chose to use heat to straighten their hair. Even doing twist/braid outs still manipulates curl textures. Natural has a range . I don’t feel the blow out kit was presented in a harmful way such as relaxers where. Hope I mad sense , love your content

[@mary6134]

I did not know.

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

You and I both 😳

[@danafisher8613]

Ma’am not everyone in that time frame were using those boxed blow out kits/texturizers. As a person who grew up in the 70’s. All the people around me who had afros used a blow dryer to blow out their hair without the box kit. Depends on who and where you were I supposed. Not my experience 🤷🏾‍♀️

[@carencurrybeauty]

@Dana Fisher Did the people you knew use a blow dryer with the pick on the end?

[@quidagis33]

Mind. blown.

[@STP255]

Great video !!!

[@jeanninegorden8142]

Day 5!

[@noelmccarty8480]

Soooo madam CJ Walker's granddaughter came out and said that her grandmother did not invent the perm!! 😐

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Oh I know! She practically stole the recipe 🤦🏾‍♀️

[@SoundBlackRecordings]

For real?

[@aquafina6544]

Not all of us texturized. My west Indian father was not with it. No chemicals at all. He didn't even want us to press our hair.

[@confessionsofajadedoptimist]

These are the same people that founded bet

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Oh wow. Now I need to look this up!

[@jidoorifalcon]

Your channel sounds cool. Are you going to upload content. I am curious about your confessions.

[@tigerlilly9038]

No offense as a person of a certain age, I HAVE NEEEEEEEEEEEEVER encountered a single one of these kits in the wilds of the 70s.......so. uuuuhmmmm

[@vcurls5951]

To me it shouldn't be surprising that there was an ideal type of afro advertised to black people. This is capitalism. Nothing new. Plus every community has cared about grooming in one way or another. Every community uses or is advertised hair products.

[@erejo3274]

I agree

[@Gary_Jaffe]

I'm uncertain as to exactly what you’re concluding here. I would think it would be obvious that selling any beauty product containing a lot of chemicals is anything but "natural" and that the term "natural' was being used to market the empowering fact that black people finally had a company catering to their unique hair needs (vs. the previous non-choice - to purchase the products on the market that were geared toward the majority of white woman's hair needs). You acknowledge the importance of this message of empowerment, and the fact that this was the first black-owned company to trade on the American Stock Exchange. You seem particularly taken aback by the fact that Afro Sheen advertised on Soul Train, implying some sort of nefarious collusion between the program and the advertising. Yes, many of the young men and women who appeared on Soul Train sported afros - it was the "in" look in the 70s. The powers-that-be at Afro Sheen realized the product was a natural fit to advertise on the show (and they were the first black-owned company to advertise on a nationally broadcast tv show), so they came on board as sponsors. I see nothing mind-blowing or unusual about this. Soap operas were called soap operas because the majority of advertisers during those programs were selling soap and laundry detergent to mostly-female, mostly-housewives who watched five afternoons a week. It's fair to assume Soul Train had a high percentage of young African Americans tuning in, wanting to look "hip" like the dancers and crowd on the show and would very likely be buyers of Afro Sheen's products. You say at the start you feel "personally attacked" and that the public was "bamboozled" (to be fooled or cheated) about Afro Sheen's "let your hair be natural" message. I suppose you're implying they should have been transparent and said “Introducing Afro Sheen - a product that provides you the option of wearing your hair in a style that is true to our unique African American heritage. A product that understands your hair and gives you what you need to create beautiful, exciting, modern hair styles that represent African-American women in all their resplendent glory" and not make the focus on the idea of it being "natural." Perhaps even toss in ""product contains harsh chemicals that could potentially damage your hair. To expect that, one has to also expect Coca-Cola to mention in ads the health danger of high amounts of sugar in one's diet, or car companies provide the statistics of highway deaths when creating commercials. If that's what you mean, more full truths and less cherry picking would create more buyer awareness, you of course have a point but, again, I don't find it shocking that many ads contain misleading, carefully chosen language for the purpose of gaining higher profits. I used over 50 words above in an attempt to be more transparent. The buying public doesn’t have the time or attention span for that. Sponsors want “Where’s the beef?” “You deserve a break today” and “Just do it.” Short, catchy phrases that can get into the public's collective psyche. Also, the use of the vague word “natural” is very much like the large number of products that are labeled "organic" to the point where the word has all but lost its meaning. The history of advertising is chock-full of deception, trickery and sleight of hand. It's not realistic to expect that corporations will automatically do the right thing. Fighting for laws that ensure companies tell certain truths in advertising is important. But, it's also important that individuals should proceed with caution when making purchases and not accept at face value information they've heard in wildly expensive advertisements. Do some basic research before giving a company your hard earned cash. We now have the luxury of googling anything we wish and fact-checking advertising - and in the centuries prior to the 21st, that was not the case, and advertisers took advantage of this to sell nearly everything the way a used car salesman would - the chief goal not being to provide a complete truth to the buyer, but instead to convince the buyer "THIS is what you need and you need it now!” *Operators are standing by! *While supplies last! *Don’t delay, act now! Are there questionable ethics at play when a company manufactures urgency and/or engages in half truths to drive sales? Yes. Is it shocking? No.

[@SamriBliss]

That’s interesting- the iconic look that the civil right activists had was because of texurizers… it definitely bring more context

[@LaToyaEbonyHair]

Not everyone, but enough people to make the owners of Afrosheen millionaires!

[@carencurrybeauty]

@Samri Bliss Right!

[@Autumn938]

Agreed, I don’t recall ppl getting texturizers back then. Most ppl used grease and water to put their hair into small plats at night then took down the plats in the morning, picked their hair into a fro then sprayed it with Pro Line Oil Sheen.

[@GregBoyd-qg3il]

Putting it down really

[@mbe2533]

Wait ... did you actually imply that Black folks not wanting their hair to be "unkempt" (quote) was a bad thing? Your take on the topic seemed uninformed and often ignorant. Not YOU, but your take.