43 Comments

Alex, you’re so gifted - hot damn. Everytime I read your essays I understand why you call your publication “Feels like Home.” Your work is something not only to be read, but felt. Thank you for gifting us, and letting us in.

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I’m honored, bro. Thank you for making time to read my work and always showing love. Grateful for you always, fam!

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The old family photo and seeing the men before you have similar hairlines is powerful!!! Thanks for being vulnerable fam, this one was special.

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My little brother sent me that photo the other day and was saying my dad kinda looked like Jayson Tatum 😂 roasting as an act of love

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this is so beautiful 💜

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Thank you, Alexis! I appreciate you making time to read it!

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that was beautiful, and the story of self acceptance with our hair tangled into it was just such a sweet reflection. thank you for putting to words what a lot of us feel with our hair!

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I appreciate you making time to read, Zariel! Your message of acceptance affirms a lot of what I felt writing this essay

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Integration of Saba throughout is such a gift. I'm gonna hear the song even more intimately now.

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Just peeped you’re from Ohio, lfg! And I had to do it to ‘em. That’s been my favorite song this year

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ha I get that. It took a while to get into. Some people had to go 🧹 looking forward to watching USA next!

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Saving this for after we watch USA— we had already started UK when I heard how good USA was this season 🙃🙃

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We’ve pretty much stopped watching UK this season 😭😭 it wasn’t doing it for us

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As someone who’s finally embarking on growing my hair back out after postpartum hair loss, I needed to read this, thank you always!

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I'm grateful this connected with you, Carrington. Thank you for making the time to read. Your support makes me happy 🥲

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i’m not caught up on this season yet but will save to read later because i just watched the boys come back from y’all had a time casa and …..uf

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Yeah….. casa was unfortunate

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Substack needs to feature this YESTERDAY

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Y’all sleepin on me, huh? Had a good snooze????

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You blessed me with this one bro. Black men don’t normally talk about their hair journey, something I didn’t even realize was absent in the convo until your piece, so I felt seen.

I’m going to write about my own hair journey one day, but until then, thank you for putting yourself and your brilliance out here my guy.

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I had the same realization while writing. I don’t often see men talking about their hair journeys. I think that’s why “head.rap” really stuck with me when I heard it for the first time. I could see myself and so many of my homies in it. Looking forward to seeing where this conversation continues to go. I appreciate you bro, thank you.

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eam Serena & Kordell all the way!!!! I love love loved that time that they shared and it was a form of intimacy that wouldn’t be understood by most of their villa mates. Kendall’s not slick and Aaron & Kaylor can kick rocks! This was such a great read, thank you for sharing

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Kendall is not slick!!!!! And I’m so ready for Kaylor & Aaron to go – they irk me 😖😖 thank you for reading, Kathleen! I’m a Sordell stan I fear

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Team * 🤦🏼‍♀️

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not me crying at a substack at 6:59pm

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*hands you the Kleenex box*

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As someone who also has his own hair story, I REALLY appreciated this one. Fun fact, I used to run an afro-centered male hair care blog for YEARS.

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No way!!! Omg what sort of moisturizer(s) did you typically recommend for Black men?

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It's so not for men but my hands-down favorite leave-in conditioner to this day is Kinky Curly's Knot Today. My hair LOVES it.

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I mostly keep my hair short nowadays, but I always want to keep my hair nourished as it grows fast between haircuts. I’ll check this out, thank you!

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You’re very welcome!

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This was so beautiful!!! The pic of Grandma Gwen got me a little :')

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Thanks, Claire! I wish I could’ve included the whole photo because she’s looking down at her birthday cake about to blow out the candles and it’s so precious 🥹🥲

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This is so intimate and so beautiful. I know I’ll be reading it through a few more times before the day is finished. Brought up all sorts of complicated feelings for me about my own black hair journey. Feelings that make me cry but oh so needed to be felt. Your essay helps me make room for them.

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It makes me happy this essay connected with you so intimately. Holding you in my heart as you work through those feelings. Thank you ❤️

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