When did your journey as a natural hair blogger and YouTuber start?
I have had natural hair for many years, but I was not documenting it like how I do now. I had natural hair until college years, then relaxed it, and later dyed it with normal hair box dye. The person on the box was not my skin tone lol.
My hair began to break off as I didn’t have good maintenance on my natural hair and I didn’t use the right aftercare conditioning hair products. So, I decided to chop my hair started afresh with my natural hair.
I started my Youtube channel Missybeelondon in January 2017, after leaving a job I was not happy in anymore. And just thinking let me try out this YouTube thing, posting videos and see how it goes. In the beginning my videos were on random topics, then I got into doing unboxing beauty box videos, shopping hauls, and makeup videos.
In middle of 2017 I started to do natural hair tutorials, because earlier on I used to wear wigs in videos. Then I was like, “I have hair on my head, let me do quick hairstyle tutorial videos, letting my hair out and being free”-and knowing that many people have a similar hair type to me, I wanted to inspire them too. I also wanted to give exposure to small UK black owned business, as my platform was all about sharing.
How important is representation in your field?
Representation is very important in this field when it comes to natural hair; natural hair is not the same as type 1 straight hair. You need patience and time with natural hair because we have an array of textures when it comes to our hair type, and all textures need to be represented on mainstream and social media platforms.
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
I would not say I have one particular highlight, I am just thankful for everything right now. The fact that I am still doing YouTube videos for almost three years later, I’ve seen how I’ve improved sooo much. I’m honoured that people are acknowledging me, asking for my advice and watching my videos; that gives me encouragement too.
With all the obstacles in my life including bouts of depression, low moods, and employment difficulties, I am still fighting strong today and doing what I enjoy.
What’s one thing that you want your followers to take from your platform
To smile! It sounds so cheesy I know, but a smile really does change a person’s feelings, and makes them feel better 🙂
Any advice to readers on how to build a successful platform?
Create content you enjoy doing!Be consistent, be real and don’t complicate things. It may take time, but you’ve just got to stick with it.
Catch up with Tanika on her IG page @missybeelondon
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