I LOVE this video! I am so happy that Sesame Street has taken notice and decided to help our girls feel better about their hair. I definitely try hard to instill a love of hair in my daughter. I try to make hair time enjoyable. I allow her to choose different styles (many were shown in this video) and I make hair time a special time we spend together bonding and talking about different topics. Lately, she has been learning to read, so she reads to me while I finish her requested style. She loves to show off her finished hair to her dad and her brothers when she’s done! I work hard to ensure she remains in love with her hair in it’s natural state.

We watched this video together and the smile on her face drove home the fact that this video is special. I asked afterward if she loved her hair and I got a shy smile. My 2 year old son even enjoyed singing the song and wanted to see the video again and again. I was always a huge fan of Sesame Street, since I was a small child. Videos like this just serve to remind me the reason why I love them so. I think everyone should enjoy this video with the little girls in their lives. It wouldn’t hurt to share with some bigger girls as well 🙂

The Story Behind the Video

Joey Mazzarino, the head writer and a puppeteer at Sesame Street, wrote this song in response to his daughter. Joey and his wife have an adopted Ethiopian-born daughter named Segi. He noticed that she was beginning to experience hair issues (issues that most Black women can identify with).

“She was going through this phase where she really wanted like the long, blond hair. … She would look at Barbies and really want the hair.”

Mazzarino decided he wanted to do something to help other young girls appreciate their beauty and embrace their differences. He wrote the song and, with the help of Sesame Street, created this adorable Muppet character. She showcases the variety of ways she can wear her hair while singing its praises and dancing.

“I just want kids to know their hair is beautiful,” Mazzarino said. “I just hope little kids, little girls see this and really feel positive and great about themselves.”

Lyrics

Don’t need a trip to the beauty shop,
’cause I love what I got on top.
It’s curly and it’s brown and it’s right up there!
You know what I love? That’s right, my hair!
I really love my hair.
I love my hair. I love my hair.
There’s nothing else that can compare with my hair.
I love my hair, so I must declare:
I really, really, really love my hair.
Wear a clippy or in a bow
Or let it sit in an afro
My hair looks good in a cornrow
It does so many things you know, that’s why I let it grow
I love my hair, I love my hair
I love it and I have to share
I love my hair, I love my hair!
I want to make the world aware I love my hair.
I wear it up. I wear down. I wear it twisted all around.
I wear braids and pigtails too.
I love all the things my hair can do.
In barrettes or flying free, ever perfect tresses you’ll see
My hair is part of me, an awesome part of me
I really love my hair!