I miss the late 90's and the mid-80's sooooo much.....it seems like those were more definitive times for barbers and hair stylists...I remember what drew me to this profession 17years ago; I SAW SOMETHING.Let me explain......
It was 1986 Regan was the president,( I DID vote for shirley chisholm!)New York City was full of creativity and life. Hip-Hop was thriving and so was the barber profession....let me break-it down for those who were'nt there; because there seemed to be money everywhere...I was eyeing the barbershop because the lifestyle that I saw one of the neighborhood barbers, "KENZO" was his name. Everybody knew this dude! To me, he was one of the coolest dudes on my block. He always wore the latest fashons, was at all the cool parties, all the ladies knew him, the so called "live" dudes knew and respected him too. What really made me pay attention to him was the fact that I was a lil' bad ass kid, pulling pranks, getting into trouble in the neighborhood. One day one of the elders in my neighborhood caught me stealing from the fruit stand and my first mentor walked by. She told me one day I was going to jail if I did'nt stop misbehaving, and that I should try to be more like Kenzo! (It's kind of funny, because not too long ago, barbers were held in higher esteem, and credited with being good guys.It seems like the prestiege has been taken away, and elders only associate the barbershop with DRUGS AND NEGATIVITY)Well , that day changed everything for me because that was the day I put my latent talent in effect with help from the "Great Kenzo"!! He gave me the jump-start I needed because he was within ear-shot of the conversation, and he asked me if I wanted a job as a cleanup man at the shop he worked at. He told me I could make money from not only from sweeping and cleaning, but if I had the courage, I could possibly graduate to master barber some day.( We're adults now and when I see him I always thank him for saving my life.) I was cutting hair as an apprentice 4 months later, and I noticed that everyone started to recognize who I was; older people, older women, the "in" crowd, male and female. soon it was like that Mc Donalds commercial, " You got a job!!! Good for you!!!" As the time progressed I noticed that I became A PILLAR IN MY COMMUNITY. When I mentioned this to Kenzo, he just gave me a stern look and I'll never forget what he told me he said," Yeah kid, the whole world's watching..." that's something that I was'nt ever able to forget...
What happened?!?!? People now-a-days look at the barber profession as anything but that; like all we do isn't difficult at all, or does'nt take any skill at all.For a lot of us being persistant in the face of adversity is an everyday reality; Someone asked me as a matter of factly some time ago , "What made you even want to become a barber in the first place? Do you guys even work?" (My fellow barbers know exactly how frustrating this outlook towards us really is!) I say we just take it back. Our reputation is eroding quickly in our society, and those few who truly service our neighborhood are remembered.......back then though, ALL BARBERS WERE REMEMBERED BECAUSE THERE WAS A PRESTIEGE IN IT!!! I wonder what is it going to take to be remembered like they used to remember us.
THE WHOLE WORLD'S WATCHING.............
