As a mixed woman, the expectation of people is always to see you with curly hair. It’s like that’s all you are, it’s your entire identity. Amelye is 27, she lives in Paris, France, she’s a dancer and a model, and she has a Central African and Romanian heritage. She started her modeling career when she was wearing her locks and quickly saw that it wasn’t fitting the French ideal of being Métisse.
“In this industry, your hair is super important, it’s part of your resume. France is still very close-minded on this matter compared to other Anglo-Saxon countries: locks are not seen as beautiful. At the time, I was dancing on TV sets and locks was not conform to the criteria of what could be on TV. I lost a lot of work opportunities because of them, I guess I was too black for them.”
She decided to cut her hair, just so she could embrace a new image that fits better in the magazines. Her new vibe seduced designers, brands, photographs, and allowed her to take her modeling and dancing career to another level. “I had blond short hair, I even did the mullet style as well and it gave me a more grungy look, more roots. It gave me a stronger personality for the type of jobs that I was aiming for.”
If you ever watch the new Greygoose advertisement, you will see her illuminating your screen!
“During the lockdown, I took care of my hair and let them grow. I was mostly tied in a bun as the length was not enough to be able to do anything! When the castings started again, I felt like it was the moment for me to stop hiding my curls. So when I got the job for Greygoose, I thought that it was time for me to show off my curls, show them my personality and who I was. Maybe they were looking for a mixed-woman with curly hair but for me, it was a personal achievement like the return ton myself!”.
What I love about this advertisement is that it truly reflects who she is, the true essence of the woman that I met: full of colors, bubbly afro, powerful, joyful, energetic. Most importantly, I love the fact that this was the moment for her to show to the world who she was now by embracing how much her hair was a strength. “I love my hair and I am so proud of it to the point where I often frizz them into a big afro!”.
Even though she thinks about cutting her hair again for professional reasons, she is willing to enjoy them to the fullest now. “Sometimes I feel like cutting my hair again so it could bring me more opportunities but it was so hard for it to grow back that I don’t know, now that they are here I want to enjoy the moment with them!”
When she put her Cali on, I could see how happy and beautiful she felt. “Ah J’aime trop! J’adore!”. Her smile and her eyes could say everything! During the shoot, she told me “I love the fact that you are capturing this moment: just me and my turban in my daily life! These photos are telling my story, they mean something special.”
