Bald Headed Women (Blues Song & Hair Style Comments)

Written by Azizi Powell

The first time I ever saw a Black woman with a bald head was during the late 1960s in New York City, at a Black power rally. I’ve not seen any research, but it seems to me that more African American women are sporting this style now-and many of them are in their twenties and thirties. The number of African American women who go baldheaded or wear their hair closely cropped seems to me to be infinitesimal. But because hair is such a big deal among African Americans, to see such a huge departure from the norm is rather startling.

Some African American women go bald or wear their hair closely cropped because their hair is thinning or for some other health reason. Other African American women may rock this “hair style" in tribute to many African cultures where traditionally females shave their hair bald or wear their hair very closely cropped to their scalp. However, other African American women wear their hair this way because they like the way it looks. I specifically wrote “African American women“, though other Black women from the African Diaspora may purposely wear their hair bald. And I specifically wrote “women” because in the United States anyway-as is the case with the afro (natural hair style)-I’ve seen very few Black females under the age of 20 years old wear their hair bald.

Here’s the lyrics and video of a Blues song about a bald headed woman who wears a wig:

BALD HEADED WOMEN
(Lightnin Hopkins)

Give me - I'm gonna take it - back that wig I bought you woman,
oh Lord let your doggone head go bald
Give me back that wig I bought you woman
- I'm mad at you as I can be -
let your doggone head go bald
You know the special del'vry brought me a letter this mornin',
cryin', woman you don't need no hair at all

Special delivery man said he seed you on the corner last night -
You was talking with another man -
He said you was tagging all around with a -
Whiskey bottle in your hand -
I say give me back that wig I bought you, oh Lord let your doggone head go bald
Yes you know the news I got from downtown,
woman you don't need no hair at all

(what you want with a woman who ain't got no hair?
What's the matter with you girl?)

I'm just gonna tell you -
Po' Lightnin' is fair -
I'm just gonna cut out one of these -
Little locks of my hair
Cause don't be bothered with you no more
Yes I want you to have pretty hair here, hair every place we go.

Lightnin Hopkins-Baldheaded Women

Bald Headed Woman by Lightnin' Hopkins



Uploaded by Hoedje100 on Dec 8, 2009

**

Here’s a video of a beautiful vocalist from Benin, West Africa who wears her hair bald or closely cropped:


Angélique Kidjo 'Shango wa' Acoustic La 500ème TV5MONDE



Rass Assie Published on Apr 20, 2015
-snip-
This video replaces the initial one that I had embedded in this post. That video is no longer available.

**
And here’s a video of various Nigerian women, one of whom is beautifully baldheaded:

2Face Idibia : African Queen



Uploaded by officially2face on Jun 13, 2011

Video of award winning track from the album, "Face 2 Face". Song composed,written and composed by Innocent Idibia. Produced by OJB Jezreel & Innocent Idibia. This song is a celebration of the endowment of the African woman.

****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams!

Click on this post's title to read comments & to add comments. If you aren't sure how to add comments on this blog, follow the instructions found on this page Adding Comments