Emmy nominated actress Vanessa A. Williams, best known for her roles in New Jack City, “Melrose Place” and in the Showtime series “Soul Food,” discusses her latest role as an ambassador for the Family Dollar Fabulous event, shares her beauty secrets and breaks down good hair.
What’s your favorite beauty secret?
Oh my goodness, well I go nowhere without my lashes and I see you don’t either diva. Pop the eye, work the eye, a little lip action always, liner. You know, you’ve just got to sparkle.
We were talking about good hair and bad hair.
Oh, honey what is that? It’s good I’ve got some. It’s all good. It’s good that I’ve got some and good if you don’t too cause I ain’t mad at working the bald either.
I had one.
Did you? I know that’s right. Glorious. I think that whole good hair thing … you know black women, we really pay a lot of attention to our hair and rightly so. You know your crowning glory. But I really feel like we need to just stop this sort of idea of judging ourselves and judging each other. It’s about keeping yourself on point, really being good to your hair, being good to yourself, being good to each other. I just feel so much camaraderie when I look at another sister. I’m just filled with love like, “oh you worked it like that. That’s fierce.” Whether it’s natural, in its natural state which is good and glorious and wonderful or whether you’re rocking a weave or a little wig action. It’s like, ain’t nothing wrong with however you want to play your accessory.
So it’s just an accessory?
It really is. I think it’s like a fashion statement. It’s like sometimes you feel like rocking some waves, locks down your back and sometimes you want it tight and curly. I really think we can stop making it such a political thing and really, really embracing just our innovation with how many looks we can give. How many brands and variations of beauty and blackness there is in the planet.
How long have you been natural?
I’ve been natural all my life. I mean, I’ve rocked locks on the silver screen and television for about ten years.
Were you one of the first?
I think, if not the first. I mean, you know somebody else can do the research but you know, (I) popularized it. I loved being natural, rocking my locks. And then as an actor, because it’s about really presenting a whole a lot of different kinds of characters and different kinds of expressions. I never wanted any kind of Hollywood producer to get a sense that I had stayed in one place … that I can do whatever the character requires. I had to comes to terms with, was I like selling out or doing some sort of … I feel like I really made a statement about natural and nappy is happy and beautiful. For me, I’m best in my natural setting. In my natural sort of like, can I get it wet? Can I jump in the water and out? Get my sweat on, however I want to do that. I really like giving myself permission as I said to rock whatever kind of hair I wanted to rock.
We imprison ourselves with our hair.
Let us not forget that there was this master narrative that we were trying to fit ourselves into. There was a whole colonization of everything about us, everything that was said about us when we came over here in chains and on ships. So, it’s not without that sort of implication on our mind. But we have freed ourselves, we can free ourselves, continue to free ourselves. So words like “good hair” is sort of like beckoning back to that wanting some outside approval from some outside source from some European aesthetic that’s not who we are. I didn’t mean to get all political, all historical.
You better give us that history lesson.
We’ve got to sometimes tell it like it is because it doesn’t happen in a vacuum. Even our ideas about beautiful. I mean that’s why it’s so wonderful and fabulous. Fabulous, key word fabulous, to be a black woman right now because there are so many companies who are catering to our needs, to our beauty essential, who realize what a wonderful and strong voice we are, financial voice. We spend about a trillion dollars in the beauty industry and folks have got a clue. Companies like Family Dollar who really care about a consumer and their customer whose coming with a discerning amount of money to spend and having to sometimes decide is it going to be milk for the family or can I treat myself to some lip gloss. It is really, really serious and they have such a strong heart. I was really moved by the CEO of the company, Matt, who was speaking last night at our VIP mixer about how they really care about the consumer and they understand what that issue is, every woman at every financial level wants to feel fabulous and wants to be able have a choice and that’s what we’re here to provide. It’s so great that all these leading national brands in black beauty, in black hair and cosmetics are here and available at Family Dollar and that’s what so fabulous about it all.
What’s your favorite Family Dollar find?
Oh man, there’s so many. I love going in and getting some great makeup products. Like there is a lip, we call it a chubby, that’s over at one of the counters. Again, some mascara, you know I love a lash. Tools of the trade, brushes, a little brush kit, all at affordable prices. All that really, really give you the tools that you can really bring yourself out, bring out your glory and your beauty.
As a natural sister, favorite brand to use, go to brand?
My go to brand, I really think about the functionality of it. I love just finding something new so I can’t really speak to one particular brand but I know that what I’m looking for is going to be at Family Dollar.
Check out photos of Williams learning to belly dance at the Family Dollar Fabulous event.
