Barbers and Experts Explain What’s Going On
Man, the hits just keep coming with J.D. Vance, don’t they? It’s hard to anticipate what each day will bring—or what will come out of his mouth—but one thing we can count on: It’s going to be weird. A recent campaign stop at a Georgia donut shop was no exception. While the whole thing played out like a scene straight out of Veep (is Vance a real life Jonah Ryan?), we couldn’t help but notice something very specific. X user Rob DenBleyker noticed it, too. Something looked very off about Vance’s hair.
It’s almost definitely not intentional. But the unstyled shelf of hair atop his dome, with no gradation to the rest of his hair, is not a great look for anyone and most certainly not a Vice Presidential nominee. So what exactly is happening to Vance’s coiff? We called up a few hairstylists to find out.
“It looks like someone just plopped a toupee on top of his head,” said Kevin Baker, a hairstylist at Material Salon in Tampa, FL, who went on to note that it seems like Vance went to an unskilled barber. Taking that idea further, another barber we spoke to (who wanted to remain anonymous) said it looked like either a DIY cut or a rush job—or both. “That’s someone who thought ‘something is better than nothing,’ which is obviously incorrect,” they said.
Vance is probably the type of guy who would look down his nose at paying for an expensive haircut, but you don’t have to pay a lot to get a good haircut provided you go to a good barber. Either Vance actually did try to DIY his hair (or maybe asked an aid to trim him up on the campaign bus—while it was moving) or he didn’t vet his barber properly to make sure they give a good cut regardless of how much he’s paying for it. A good rule of thumb is to always check out a barber’s work before going to a new one, either on their own social media (or the shop they work at) or with real life referrals so you know the quality of their work before sitting down in their chair. And if you’re going the DIY route, make sure you or whoever is cutting actually knows what they’re doing.
Another thing could be the styling, or lack thereof. “I don’t see signs of product at all,” said the anonymous barber. “If the whole thing was pushed inward and held there with product, he could probably fake that it was a wearable haircut.” It’s a good example to show how much of a difference a good styling product makes. A haircut is just the first part; pretty much all haircuts should be styled in order to really look their best. Vance is also a good reminder to always make sure you apply product to the back of your head when styling your hair. In fact, many hairstylists we’ve talked to over the years advise to actually start in the back and work forward when applying things like pomades and gels. It not only helps to ensure you don’t put too much up front, but also that your whole head is covered. Remember, just because you can’t see the back of your head, doesn’t mean everyone else can’t.
In fact, that’s a good reminder for the hair cut, too. “Always ask to see the back,” advises Baker. And while Vance’s policies certainly want to take us back (in time), it’s clear that in this case, he forgot about his back.
link