Source: Marc Piasecki / Getty
When it comes to Kim Kardashian‘s braided hairstyle, singer Brandy Norwood does not see them as a form of cultural appropriation.
“I don’t think that she’s guilty,” the actress and singer said during a recent appearance on The Talk. “I definitely believe in that, but I think it’s reaching a little bit for people to say that. she’s uhh…yeah.”
It’s interesting to note how Brandy struggles to actually say the words “cultural appropriation” as she defends Kim.
“I mean, it’s great. I love braids,” she went on. “I think everybody should have braids but I think we’re going a little too far with that with her.”
Ray J, who was also present for the interview and has a well-documented history with Kim, also defended her decision to wear the hairstyle. According to the reality star, Black women should take it as a compliment when women of other cultures adopt their style elements.
“Here’s what I think. I just think that if you paying homage to another culture by rocking the braids, I think it’s a compliment. It should be looked at as, ‘It’s going global,'” he said. “I think where you get up and you look good and you feel good, and other people are like, ‘Hey, I wanna look like that, I wanna feel like that,’ it should be a compliment and a plug.”
There’s not enough time in the day to truly pick apart how deeply problematic this “take it as a compliment” ideology is and how the Kardashians have built their careers on the erasure of Black women. But what we will say that if erasure is not the goal, why did Kim fail to even credit Ciara Costenoble, the Black woman who braided her hair for Paris Fashion Week? Instead, when Kim uploaded her look to Instagram, she tagged her personal hairstylist Chris Appleton. If that’s not blatant erasure, we’re not sure what is.
