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Clara Amfo Celebrates Afro Hair as Pantene Ambassador

Clara Amfo on Beauty Bias: "I'm Not Interested in Taming Hair — I Want to Celebrate Hair"

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Clara Amfo absolutely loves her hair. But like a lot of people, especially those growing up in the UK with afro hair, it hasn't been without its ups and downs — and that's exactly what makes her the perfect Pantene Power Hair ambassador.

The BBC Radio 1 host, TV presenter, podcaster, and Barbie (yep, Amfo is a Barbie!) has been announced as the newest ambassador for Pantene, joining Katie Piper and Lucy Edwards on a mission to celebrate hair and the role it plays in our identities. "However much hair you have and however you choose to style it, the power of hair and a good hair day has an enormous impact on our identity, confidence, and self-esteem — regardless of age, race, class, sexuality, or gender," Amfo said following the announcement.

"I'm not interested in taming hair — I want to celebrate hair."

The radio host has joined as the brand's ambassador for the Gold Series, a range created by a team of Black scientists catering to Afro hair, whether it's relaxed, natural, or transitioning hair. To Amfo, this is more than just a hair range: it's a partnership that means a lot to her. "I love my 4C hair. I love it in all forms, and I want it to be healthy," Amfo tells POPSUGAR. "It's changed a lot over the years and will continue to change." But she hasn't always loved her hair. "I remember growing up and feeling excluded from certain beauty narratives just because I didn't see anyone who looked like me in prominent media or [ad campaigns], especially in the beauty space."

Amfo vividly remembers her mum having to travel to take her to specialist shops just to get hair products. "I remember in high school, every time me and my friends would see an Afro hair product in a major high street retailer we'd be like, 'Oh my God, can you believe it?' Now there's this fabulous range of products, and I'm genuinely so proud to rep the 4C hair girls and guys."

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As part of her role as ambassador, Amfo will work with Pantene's Power of Hair Schools Programme, which has been developed in partnership with the Ideas Foundation, a nonprofit organization that facilitates workshops in schools. Amfo will play an integral role in raising awareness of hair discrimination and encouraging confidence and celebrating the beauty of Afro hair in all of its textures. "Not feeling included in any narrative and the things you take in as a little kid can really have an effect on you. The thought of young Black children, or children of mixed Black heritage who have got 4C hair, feeling any less than their counterparts at school makes my heart hurt," she says.

"It's not only for them, either. The programme is also to educate their friends who don't have 4C hair. It's to educate their white friends, their Asian friends, people of other backgrounds to learn about their school friends' hair — I think it's empowering," Amfo adds. "The phrase 'knowledge is power' exists for a reason, because it's true. Letting all these kids know, especially when they're at such a formative age, that their hair isn't wacky or wild or needs to be tamed. There's a lot of dangerous language that gets used around Afro hair, particularly 4C-type hair. I'm not interested in taming hair — I want to celebrate hair." Resources from these workshops for teachers will be free to download from the Pantene website by the end of June.

"The coded language around what is considered presentable is quite antiquated and short-sighted."

Eliminating hair bias is something that's "super important" to Amfo. "I've had personal experience with comments made towards my hair and comments on how 'professional' it can look. I've been on projects before where the hairdresser who has been brought in clearly has no idea what to do with my hair. I've been left feeling not as confident as the next person involved in the same project, and that's not fair," Amfo reflects. "I've got friends who work in law, medicine, offices, in those environments, and the coded language around what is considered presentable is quite antiquated and short-sighted. When you think about it, different hair textures have to be managed differently, and you need to question who is deciding what is presentable, and who has decided that this standard is what looks good?"

Amfo explains how friends of hers have worn box braids so their hair doesn't seem "unruly" and "wild", just to be taken seriously. "We shouldn't be having to put ourselves through that to be given the same respect. Little kids are being told they can't have their Afro out in school. I find it quite bizarre."

Hair bias is unacceptable, says Amfo, and it's everyone's fight to fight. It's important that brands get on board with challenging this damaging narrative. "I'll continue to say this: we can't as a community, as a nation, as a country, feign ignorance towards the experiences of others. Certain conversations can't be ignored. It's really empowering that Pantene has the Gold Series range, that it was developed by all Black scientists, which is important because it's people who have got lived experience and understand the intricacies around Afro hair, which I think that's fantastic."

When it comes to her relationship with her hair, like many people, it hasn't been linear. "I love my hair, I absolutely love it. But for a long time, particularly in high school, I struggled with it. I went to school with a lot of white girls who had blond hair flowing in the wind. I definitely used to put a towel on my head as a kid and sway my head from side to side to feel the swish. Because no matter how much your parents try to instil a sense of pride, a sense of being who you are, loving yourself as an individual — which I did feel to a certain extent — the politics of how you socialize [takes over] when you step into that high school situation. It's both so subconscious and so conscious, how you interact with each other. When you feel othered, there's a propensity to want to fit in. I definitely had a conflicting relationship with my hair," Amfo admits.

She reflects on her mum taking her to Tooting and Brixton to get her hair braided at the weekend, or her mum giving her a traditional Ghanaian plaiting style or rainbow beads. "I'd come to school with a sense of pride knowing I'd get loads of attention," says Amfo. "But at the same time, it could other me. I'd have kids make fun of me. A boy would make fun out of a very traditional Ghanaian braiding style my mum used to do. I felt really hurt by that because I liked my hair [in that style]."

For this reason, Amfo explains that she had a "conflicting relationship" with her hair. "Personally, I don't relax my hair. I haven't relaxed my hair since I was a teenager. Again, everyone's journey with their hair is different. I chose not to, I like the texture of my hair unstraightened. It's been a really lovely journey."

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"I've had a huge Afro; I've had a pixie cut; I've had a TWA, which stands for teeny-weeny Afro. My hairdresser Gin Moreira gave me the undercut after chopping my huge Afro, and I haven't looked back. The possibilities are endless [with Afro hair], and that's what is such a joy."

"It's not about just hair: it's about making people feel confident, comfortable, and respected in whatever spaces they choose."

Of course, we needed to know more about Amfo's hairstylists. "I'm loyal to a few because they're all so busy," she says. "I've got my lovely friend Afi Attipoe, who is currently on tour with Dua Lipa at the moment doing the dancers' hair. She is a brilliant and an amazing Afro hairstylist. And my friend Gin, who gave me my signature undercut, pixie cut, and my big Afro. They're just brilliant. There is such a gorgeous community feel around Afro hairdressing, which I really love."

As far as favourite products go, "at the moment, it's the Gold Series Intense Hydrating Oil (£10)," says Amfo. "I'm absolutely obsessed with the oil because I'm obsessed with having a really nourished scalp. With braiding styles, you've got to be quite careful, and I'm what they call tender headed, so I like to keep my scalp really well oiled.

I love the Gold Series Hydrating Butter Crème (£10), that's really gorgeous. My hair is super porous, so I have to lock the moisture in to keep it looking smooth and lovely. And I love the Gold Series Leave-On Detangling Milk (£10) because my hair is super coily."

When it comes to Amfo's role in helping to boost hair confidence with her Pantene partnership, "I just want to see more inclusivity in everything that we see: children's books, TV shows, music videos, the arts, me being part of this ad," she says. "It really means a lot to me because I know that there's going to be a little girl or boy seeing [me in this campaign]."

"I want guide books to be rewritten in schools and in workplaces about what is 'presentable'. I think there should be cultural training around that. For me, the most important thing is schools and workplaces, because these are the places we spend a lot of our time and want to thrive and do well," Amfo explains. "It's not about just hair: it's about making people feel confident, comfortable, and respected in whatever spaces they choose to be — and hair plays a big part of that."

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Image Source: Pantene
Gold Series Intense Hydrating Oil
Gold Series Intense Hydrating Oil
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Gold Series Hydrating Butter Crème
Gold Series Hydrating Butter Crème
£10
from boots.com
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Gold Series Leave-On Detangling Milk
Gold Series Leave-On Detangling Milk
£10
from boots.com
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