08 maart 2018: Photo and words by @ninarobinsonnyc (Nina Robinson) | Tori Brown, owner of BRE Hair Studio, helps professional women in Louisville, Kentucky find a polished hairstyle uniquely their own. “I think hair is a statement, whatever your ethnicity is. You don't have to be put in a box. I try to encourage my clients to not feel afraid to live out loud," she says. “Every few weeks Ashia Powell, pictured here, comes into Tori’s salon to have her hair detangled, shampooed and conditioned. Then a foaming pomade goes on to add flexibility to her natural coils. Tori wants to strip away the exoticism and mystery often foisted upon African-American women’s hair, along with the stigma. “Hair is hair,” she says. It comes out coarse, medium and fine. It can be straight, curly or kinky. Coils can be tight or loose. Tori’s approach to styling has drawn a loyal following of professional women in Louisville. This photograph is from the #heramerica project Real Womens' Stories Across America produced by Lifetime.”
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