Document Journal

For Jawara, hair is art. Beginning by assisting at his aunt’s salon, the Jamaican-American hairstylist has become one of the most sought-after creatives in the industry who’s worked with legends like Beyoncé, Naomi Campbell, and Erykah Badu. A commitment to hair as a medium for redefining beauty standards, challenging the status quo, and accessorizing the self links his far-ranging work.

A collaborator with Document since 2019, Jawara is joining the magazine this winter as its first-ever Senior Beauty Editor. In conversation with Document’s Editor-in-Chief Nick Vogelson, Jawara reveals the spirituality, personality, and care that goes into hairstyling.

“Hair isn’t just a thing that comes out of your head. It’s so much bigger than that. It’s a place of solace and a place of reverence for me.”

Nick Vogelson: We’re very very excited and honored to have as our Senior Beauty Editor. I want to get into what your vision is for hair and what it means in terms of identity. What does hair mean to you? How and why does it manifest as a form of creative expression?

Jawara: Hair, first and foremost, is a spiritual thing. I was raised by Rastafarians, who basically take a spiritual vow not to cut their hair because it brings them closer to a god. For me, hair almost touches every aspect of life because it’s such an extension of yourself. It’s a way to identify; it’s how you see yourself, and the way people see you. It’s also a way people have been policed and governed. There are so many political things about hair—we can go on for days about that. Hair isn’t just a thing that comes out of your head. It’s so much bigger than that. It’s a place of solace and a place of reverence for me.

Nick: How do you connect beauty with identity?

Jawara: I think identity has to start with the beauty that you see within yourself. A lot of times we connect ourselves to the way we feel, the way we look, the way we present ourselves—but outside of that, I think the way we view life has a lot to do with our own personal beauty, and what we feel beauty is to us. I also believe in reclaiming the idea of what the standards of beauty are and creating beauty within yourself—taking that power back. That has so much to do with the future identity of the beauty industry, which I’m very excited about because it’s time for that shit to change.

Nick: As an established hair artist who’s paved the way for new conversations around hair, how would you like to see the conversation evolve in the future?

Jawara: I would love to see the conversation evolve to be more outside of just editorial creativity, but more so initiatives to engage new audiences on how important hair and hair care is towards wellness, how we can fuse that idea into tech, and many other [sectors] economically. In fashion, I would love to commission younger hairstylists, have them come be a part of the conversation.

There’s so much personality in hair. It’s the accessory that we wear on us, outside of all of the things that wear off, like fashion or makeup. I think that is such a personal thing. I want to dive into that more and really dissect it. Why do we feel how we do if our hair isn’t done a certain way? Why do we see ourselves differently if we don’t have what we’d like on our heads?

“I fell in love with what hairstylists made people feel once the end result was there. I remember seeing my aunt do hair, and when people left happy, I saw that doing people’s hair could really change someone’s day.”

Nick: How has the rise of digital platforms changed the hair styling industry to you, both positively and negatively?

Jawara: First of all, there’s more visibility. We can see so many people’s ideas that we probably wouldn’t have ever seen if there wasn’t that much visibility from the internet. It’s also opened up a whole new world for people. I like to think about this TikTok world, where it’s individuals sharing their own experiences. There’s a lot of education there, as well as a lot of misinformation that happens there as well. All of these platforms that we’ve seen grow over the years have definitely made people want to engage more with hair conversations.

Nick: So you feel like there’s more information, but also more transparency.

Jawara: There are a lot of people who have had issues with hair care and products, and now we can go online and see someone with a texture similar to yours, and it’s like, ‘Oh, this product worked for me.’ Then it’s a bit more like, ‘Okay, let me go try that,’ which works for the brands involved just by people giving their testimonials, how they feel about their hair, what they want to change or enhance about it. On all these platforms we’re seeing how that visibility can inform a lot of people’s decision making around products based on engagement, and I think that’s really cool.

Nick: The majority of your career has been championing new beauty standards in the industry, and now your influence can be looked at as cross-cultural in a way. What was your goal when you first started doing hair?

Jawara: When I first started doing hair, I fell in love with the idea of creating with my hands, and I fell in love with what hairstylists made people feel once the end result was there. I remember seeing my aunt do hair, and when people left happy, I saw that doing people’s hair could really change someone’s day. So that was my first objective. But as I went into it and did more, I realized that there are so many beauty standards and there are so many different things around hair that I wanted to change, to change the idea of what’s considered beautiful. There’s so much variety in beauty, and particularly working in fashion, I remember being one of the only people backstage at shows when I was an assistant that could handle certain hair types. I wanted to lean more into letting people see the beauty of what it’s like to try this or this with different hair types. Just to open up that conversation. I feel like we’ve started to do that.

Nick: What’s a pivotal moment in your career that has shaped you?

Jawara: Working with Diana Ross.

Nick: Incredible.

Jawara: Looking at the tenacity of her and seeing how she viewed herself and her beauty, it definitely opened my eyes and really made me want to create.

Nick: You’ve done the biggest campaigns and editorials, worked with top celebrities of our generation. What’s next in regard to expanding your practice?

Jawara: The next part is growing as a brand, but also growing in the different aspects of what I do. That pertains to hair care and education, as well as more exhibitions, more initiatives. I want to get into the philanthropy side of hair with brands, and I definitely want to have more talks. I’m realizing conversations around hair are so political and sometimes so emotional and spiritual, and that there’s much to be done. I’m excited to do it all.