Talk of The Salon
If you are obsessed with hair like I am, then you always want to know when
celebrity stylist and spilling the latest frontal tea. Or when they are inspiring others by
sharing their journey to fame and fortune. Celebrity hairstylists are the gifted brains and hands behind our favorite celebrity looks. Without stylists, A-listers like Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, and Kim Kardashian would be at a loss. It is time for us to take a moment and give all the attention to the amazing and talented stylist behind our favorite celebrities' best looks.
Kim Kimble
If you are a hairstylist or you are in
cosmetology school, then you've heard about Kim Kimble. Kim Kimble is a celebrity hairstylist from Chicago Illinois. She is famous for her starring role work on WE TV's L.A. Hair. Some of her A-List clientele include Beyonce, Brandy Norwood, Kelly Rowland, Mary J. Blige, Halle Berry, and Shakira. As a young child, Kim Kimble knew just what she wanted to do with her life. Follow
cosmetology school graduation, Kim started attending hair shows which inspired her to do hair without being confined behind a chair. This is when Kim says she first "fell in love" with being a stylist. Kim took her first job at Rodney Brimberry's barbershop near her home. Though it was a barbershop and Kim had little experience barbering, she gladly took the experience and developed her hair cutting skills. She is so happy she did because this is where Kim got her first film job cutting hair for the theatre version of The Five Heartbeats. This was her opportunity to network with great leaders like Robert Townsend, who directed The Five Heartbeats. In 1995 Kim Kimble opened her salon and was contacted by Robert Townsend's assistant, asking if Kim could create wild and crazy hairstyles. Fast forward to 2018, Kim Kimble has an estimated net worth of over 1.5 million dollars. Even with the fam and the fortune, Kim Kimble wants to remind aspiring stylist that the fashion industry is pretty rough. In her #HairStory interview with BET, Kim reminisces on racism in the industry. She recalls being disrespected and undermined for being a young black woman. It wasn't until she built a solid brand for herself that people began to respect her. All the struggle was worth it because now Kim Kimble gets to use her most creative ideas on top artist like Nicki Minaj's long pink cornrows in Motorsport and Beyonce's many hairstyles in Lemonade.
Tokyo Stylez
If you have an Instagram account or seen Kim Kardashians long
ash blonde hair, then you've seen the masterful works of
Tokyo Stylez. Tokyo Stylez is a celebrity hairstylist from Omaha, Nebraska. Tokyo Stylez knew hair was his calling once he started doing his little sister's hair at age 11. Yep, that's right, age 11. Tokyo was never interested in doing hair before; he was simply stepping up to the plate while his mother was in prison. Once he realized his talent, he started building a substantial clientele base. Now he is an A-List celebrity stylist with clients such as Naomi Campbell, Cardi B,
Beyonce and so much more. You may have seen some of Tokyo Stylez work on television and award shows like Good Morning America, The Real, BET Awards, The Soul Train Awards, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, the entire Love and Hip Hop franchise, Wendy Williams, The Soul Man, K. Michelle My Life, and more! On Instagram, Tokyo Stylez is popular for his amazing wig work. With countless post of incredibly long and fabulous lace wigs, it is no wonder why he has earned so much fame. Tokyo Stylez encourages others to stay inspired. "If you stay inspired, you will always just keep going and striving for new things."
Cliff Vmir
Cliff Vmir is the crazy talented young celebrity stylist hailing from Philadelphia. His celebrity clientele consists of Cardi B, Jazmine Sullivan, Joseline Hernandez, and Tiffany Pollard. Cliff Vmir came from humble beginning practicing on Barbie Dolls, to owning a business with some 600,000 followers. Cliff Vmir only started doing hair about five years ago when he was 14, practicing new techniques on his little sister and his other family members. Taking advantage of his calling, Cliff entered cosmetology school and learned the basics of relaxers and color. At just 19 years of age, Cliff Vmir owns a best
selling edge control, a hair care line, and a hair salon in Philadelphia, and a soon-to-open hair salon in Atlanta. Don't think this all came easily; Cliff launched his product line using the money he diligently saved from working at Bliss Element hair salon in Delaware. His brand has grown to include eight products,
Indian hair extensions, and cosmetics are next to come. Cliff Vmir began to attain traction on Instagram when he started posting transformation videos. In his #hairstory interview with BET, Cliff reveals that his Instagram marketing strategy is what allowed him to be a millionaire at age 19. Now Cliff Vmir enjoys styling Cardi B and Joseline Hernandez's hair, traveling the world and just enjoying his life. Cliff has branched into education, with his touring frontal boot camp. In the Bootcamp, Cliff teaches women industry
secrets to lay frontals and
bundles. The boot camp ends with a big graduation ceremony including cap and gowns, leaving students inspired and prepared to take on the world. He dreams of doing "upscale" clients like Beyonce, Kim Kardashian, and Nicki Minaj.
Yusef Williams
Yusef Williams is the hair stylist behind some of
Rihanna's best looks. He met Rihanna back in 2004, and since then it has been history. Yusef Williams started out as a performer in Miami as music and dance was his original passion. Performing from age 5 to 18, Yusef realized he wanted to do something different. He started shadowing his mother as she styled hair on the weekends. His mother taught him techniques and allowed him to practice with her clients while she was there. At age 18, Yusef left Miami to live in Paris. While in Paris, he made many friends who were models, and he would style their hair for castings. In an intimate interview with Rochell E and exclusivelyfashionmag.com, Yusef reveals, "Well, I was like; if I wanted to do hair this is the type of stuff I want to do. I wanted to do fashion shows and be the best at it. I wanted to be the lead guy." Yusef left Paris to live in New York, and soon discovered he needed to assist the best stylists in the city to be recognized. He started assisting Lise Mitchel, a top stylist in NYC. She styled Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks to name a few. During fashion week, he went back to Paris to assist Odile Gilbert with Chanel, and Karl Lagerfield, a top stylist in Europe. Yusef believes to become a great hairstylist; you have to invest your time. He encourages aspiring stylists not to look at the seemingly instant success some have on Instagram, and to humble yourself. He highly recommends assisting in learning everything you can.
Get Inspired
If you don't feel inspired after all of that, I don't know what to tell you! Kim Kimble, Tokyo Styles, Cliff Vmir, and Yusef Williams all came from a completely different background, but they all have one similarity; hard work and determination. Their stories prove that if you want to be successful at anything, not just hair, that you must be dedicated and truly work hard for everything you want. It doesn't matter where you come from or how much money you have, if you work hard and stay consistent, the money and fame will come. Their stories also prove that just because you
want to be a hairstylist doesn't mean you have to confine yourself behind a chair. If working in a salon is your calling, that's perfect, and you can make a great living doing that. But if you enjoy traveling, meet new people, creating, and hate doing the same thing every day, being a hairstylist is something you may consider. You can style models for hair and fashion shows, or even design a product line. The possibilities are endless! Now that you've inspired by these amazing stories practice a new technique or google the
best cosmetology schools in your area! Be sure to comment below and let us know who your favorite celebrity hairstylist is!
