“In The Chair With” spotlights the incredible hairstylists in our community who are giving us major inspiration. Each week, they discuss their personal hair and career journeys, what they’ve learned from their clients, and their top hair care tips.
Erinn Courtney’s “God-given gift” of hairstyling was revealed to her when she was just nine years old, braiding the hair on mannequin heads. “A passion came out of that because I realized how good at it I was,” Courtney tells ESSENCE. “I didn’t think I was good at anything. So it was this thing that I could do in my big family of six.”
Even with being tasked to do her young sisters’ hair and making a name for herself as a budding stylist at her all-girls high school, Courtney still fought the idea of doing it professionally. But after an ACL injury put her dreams of becoming a dancer to rest and shuffling through odd jobs, the Baltimore native finally enrolled at Empire Beauty School. She completed her studies, skipped getting licensed in Maryland, and moved to California one week later.
“When I got to L.A., the transition was difficult,” Courtney says. “I knew one girl who was from Baltimore. She had just moved there two or three weeks prior, had a cheap little apartment, and let me rent out the second room. I didn’t have a job. I didn’t have anything. It was a super struggle.”
The move to Hollywood was absolutely destiny. Courtney frequented hair stores and started booking clients. Later, a chance meeting with Future’s management team would lead to her styling the Atlanta rapper’s locs. “It was kind of cool for me because at the time nobody in L.A. was really doing natural hair, and I come from a place where everybody has locs. I had a crazy advantage that I didn’t realize at first,” says Courtney. She went on to build a roster that included other men in the music industry like Rae Sremmurd, Big Baby Dram, Gunna, Playboi Carti, Rich the Kid, and Miguel.
Courtney credits the three years she worked under Dr. Kari Williams, a trichologist, celebrity stylist, and CÉCRED Director of Education, with expanding her natural hair knowledge and establishing herself as a respected stylist throughout the city of Los Angeles. She’s since added Trevor Noah, T-Pain, Eva Marcille, Big Sean, Ava Duvernay, Questlove, Willow Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, and many more to her roster of celebrity clients.
“I like to be trusted and to help people. I like to solve problems, be innovative, and efficient,” says Courtney. “And I like when people are satisfied with all of the things about my service, whether that is how long it took or how good of a conversation we had or whatever it is. I also like being a traditional hairstylist — the people who do it for pride and people’s experiences.”
Below, Courtney debunks myths about people with locs, shares the products she swears by for the slickest edges and more.
Her favorite hairstyles:
I honestly enjoy coming up with styles for people that fit them. I am one of those stylists that can do a lot of things well, but I can look at your face and say, “Oh! This will look good on you.” One of my clients had a photoshoot for her Emmy nomination. She sat in the chair and was just so frustrated because she didn’t know what style she wanted. She said, “I wish I could just get straight backs and call it a day!” And I’m like, “Why can’t you?” We did that style and it came out super cute and she was comfortable. That’s the type of thing I like to do.
Her current favorite products:
My go-tos, especially right now as far as shampoos and conditioners, is Cécred. That may sound like an ad, but I really, really like it. I use Cécred’s Hydrating Shampoo, and I love the Moisture Sealing Lotion and Nourishing Hair Oil.
As far as my natural styling goes, I stick with what I know works with my client’s hair. There is an edge control by The Roots Naturelle called their Virgin Lacquer Gel Pomade. I mix that with the olive oil gel. It gives the slickest, slick edges! I also like Lottabody Wrap Me Foaming Mousse for braids and to set styles. It’s still one of my favorite things to use.
Her top tip for healthy hair:
My top tip for healthy hair is to pay attention to your hair because a lot of people will get tips and tricks from other people. But the problem is everybody’s hair is like a fingerprint. You have to really pay attention to your hair, your body, how your system works. You’re not living in the same environment. You’re not drinking the same amount of water. You’re not eating the same foods. You’re not sleeping on the same pillowcase.
A hair myth she wants to debunk:
People still have this thought about locs and, especially on women, that they’re unprofessional, dirty, or they can’t wash them. And all of that is so very untrue. Locs is hair that is in a specific style but you still treat it as hair. You still wash it. You still protect it. If your hair is loced is still gets split ends. It does all of the things that hair does so you need to treat it as such.
What she has learned from her clients:
That it is important for them to feel secure and that lies in your professionalism. Your ability to speak to their insecurities and hear what they are asking you for because they are not hair professionals. It is important for you to be able to listen to your clients, decipher it, and give them what they need.
How she uplifts her clients:
I am a healer. I am an unlicensed therapist and I love it. It’s one of my favorite things about being a hairstylist. I realized that God put me in this position because it’s a catalyst to what I can do for people’s hearts and minds. When you are at people’s heads, you are at their crown chakra. That is a really important place to be and you have to handle that with care.
