Fans Are Upset That Black Is King Was Snubbed at the Emmys
Beyoncé Fans Are (Rightfully) Upset That Black Is King Was Snubbed For a Hairstyling Emmy
This year's Emmy nominations were announced on 13 July, and while there were a handful of history-making nominations and category sweeps that left us with a lot to celebrate, there were also, inevitably, a few projects that were snubbed entirely. One in particular, Beyoncé's Black Is King, was shut out of every category, namely the award for Outstanding Contemporary Hairstyling, and fans of the visual album have rightfully been expressing their outrage over the snub via social media.
Black Is King debuted on Disney+ last summer, and was presented to the public as a love letter to Black and African culture. Aside from its catchy songs and jaw-dropping fashions, many fans who tuned into the project were instantly taken with the dozens of epic hairstyles bursting from each video — and for good reason.
Throughout the entire 90-minute project, the Queen and her collaborators squeezed in dozens of intricate, African-inspired braided hairstyles — like box braids and bantu knots — and over-the-top makeup looks. The film's lead hairstylist, Neal Farinah, revealed in an interview with Cosmpolitan last year that, alongside his team of other talented stylists like Xia Charles, Nakia Collins, Kendra Garvey, and Safiya Warner, he created over 40 wigs for the visual in just six days.
Kim Kimble, who also worked on the film told POPSUGAR in an interview last year that one of its more memorable styles, the 30-foot braided hairstyle Beyoncé wore in the "Water" video, took three days and six stylists to finish.
"That had to be the most challenging because we hadn't done 30 feet of braids [before], and we weren't sure how it was going to be used yet," Kimble said.
Among those nominated for the hairstyling Emmy are the styling teams for shows such as The Voice, Dancing With the Stars, Saturday Night Live, RuPaul's Drag Race, and HBO Max's Legendary, and while this isn't to say that the hairstylists who worked on these shows don't deserve to be recognised for their hard work, the Television Academy's failure to acknowledge the work that went into Black Is King is another reminder for many of how easy it is for Black beauty professionals working on Black projects to be shut out in Hollywood.
Many Black Is King fans have been voicing their opinions about the snub via social media. Read ahead to see what a few of them had to say.
