Seen this in the L.A. Times.......
http://www.latimes.com/features/lifestyle/la-ig-hair-wars-pictures,0,2839283.photogallery
Inside Detroit's Hair Wars
By Kemp Powers, Special to The Times
Automobiles aren’t the only Detroit export that’s taken a hit due to the economy. The Motor City has also long been renowned as a creative center for avant-garde African American hairstyles, with its signature event for almost a quarter century the annual Hair Wars.
Started in 1985 by Detroit-area promoter David “Hump the Grinder” Humphries, Hair Wars isn’t a competition, but more of a runway showcase that allows stylists to show off some of their most cutting-edge hairdos. It was at an early Hair Wars that the “Hairy-copter” (yes, a hairstyle in the shape of a helicopter with actual rotating blades, thanks to a battery pack on the model’s head) first wowed crowds.
At its height in the mid-'90s, the show expanded to a 10-city national tour (including Los Angeles). But the struggling economy brought the national tour to a halt in 2006. Despite having to scale back, Hair Wars is still going strong in its home city, and last weekend more than 1,000 spectators packed the ballroom of the Ramada Plaza Hotel in Troy, Mich., for the 24th annual display of over-the-top hair fashion by such “hair entertainers” as Kevin Carter, Willie “Little Willie” Robinson, Tiffany “Tiff Da Barber” Brummitt and “Weaven” Steven Noss.
Pictured: The participating stylists spend weeks, sometimes months, preparing their signature styles for the show. The models must then show up hours before show time to have the elaborate pieces installed, as was the case with this peacock-style hairdo, shown here during an early phase and ...
... the peacock hairstyle as it appeared on the runway.
Though many of the hairstyles on display are practical, Hair Wars’ claim to fame is its over-the top tresses, such as the obviously titled “I-95” ...
... and “The Mercedes."
Women are the event's primary audience and clientele, but men’s styles were also on display.
A Hair Wars model prepares her makeup before hitting the runway.
The theme of this year’s event was “The Hair Wars Musical.” With the recent death of Michael Jackson, it was no surprise that many of the stylists chose to do musical dedications to the late King of Pop. The most extravagant was the show-stopping finale by Wishbone (a hairstylist from Little Willie’s Hair Salon in Detroit), whose cadre of models reenacted the dance routine to Jackson’s “Thriller.”
Hair Wars is ultimately about accessible hairstyles. While garish creations drew oohs and ahs from the crowd, the vibrant yet practical styles that consumers could request at any of the participating salons had attendees buzzing the most.
http://www.latimes.com/features/lifestyle/la-ig-hair-wars-pictures,0,2839283.photogallery
Inside Detroit's Hair Wars
By Kemp Powers, Special to The Times
Automobiles aren’t the only Detroit export that’s taken a hit due to the economy. The Motor City has also long been renowned as a creative center for avant-garde African American hairstyles, with its signature event for almost a quarter century the annual Hair Wars.
Started in 1985 by Detroit-area promoter David “Hump the Grinder” Humphries, Hair Wars isn’t a competition, but more of a runway showcase that allows stylists to show off some of their most cutting-edge hairdos. It was at an early Hair Wars that the “Hairy-copter” (yes, a hairstyle in the shape of a helicopter with actual rotating blades, thanks to a battery pack on the model’s head) first wowed crowds.
At its height in the mid-'90s, the show expanded to a 10-city national tour (including Los Angeles). But the struggling economy brought the national tour to a halt in 2006. Despite having to scale back, Hair Wars is still going strong in its home city, and last weekend more than 1,000 spectators packed the ballroom of the Ramada Plaza Hotel in Troy, Mich., for the 24th annual display of over-the-top hair fashion by such “hair entertainers” as Kevin Carter, Willie “Little Willie” Robinson, Tiffany “Tiff Da Barber” Brummitt and “Weaven” Steven Noss.
Pictured: The participating stylists spend weeks, sometimes months, preparing their signature styles for the show. The models must then show up hours before show time to have the elaborate pieces installed, as was the case with this peacock-style hairdo, shown here during an early phase and ...
... the peacock hairstyle as it appeared on the runway.
Though many of the hairstyles on display are practical, Hair Wars’ claim to fame is its over-the top tresses, such as the obviously titled “I-95” ...
... and “The Mercedes."
Women are the event's primary audience and clientele, but men’s styles were also on display.
A Hair Wars model prepares her makeup before hitting the runway.
The theme of this year’s event was “The Hair Wars Musical.” With the recent death of Michael Jackson, it was no surprise that many of the stylists chose to do musical dedications to the late King of Pop. The most extravagant was the show-stopping finale by Wishbone (a hairstylist from Little Willie’s Hair Salon in Detroit), whose cadre of models reenacted the dance routine to Jackson’s “Thriller.”
Hair Wars is ultimately about accessible hairstyles. While garish creations drew oohs and ahs from the crowd, the vibrant yet practical styles that consumers could request at any of the participating salons had attendees buzzing the most.
