OWN:Oprah Winfrey Network and Disney’s Onyx Collective just released the trailer for their upcoming collaborative series, “The Hair Tales”. In the new docuseries, Tracee Ellis Ross and Michaela Angela Davis will explore the unique hair experiences of six successful Black women. The show seeks to uncover how different societal and historic themes relate to the way these women have learned and unlearned different ideas relating to their own hair.
Writer and journalist Michala Angela Davis initially came up with the idea for the show. “There is a story in every curl, coil and kink of our hair.” Davis explains, “This show will be a dynamic adventure through these stories of ancestry and innovation, politics and pop culture, ritual, resilience, and revolution but mostly reveal humanity. It will affirm Black women, inform others and inspire everyone.”
“The Hair Tales” is structured as individual interviews conducted by Tracee Ellis Ross. The women who will be opening up about vulnerable stories and experiences are Issa Rae, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, CHIKA, Marsai Martin, Chloe Bailey, and Oprah Winfrey. In addition to the subjects, the show’s entire creative team is composed of women of color.
The docuseries seeks to celebrate Black women’s identities through the metaphor of hair. The show hopes to evoke grander conversations and inspire women who may have struggled with the way that society has reacted to or perceived their hair. In the trailer, we can see a clip of Oprah discussing the perm she was forced to get early on in her career, and how it affected her sense of self.
“The Hair Tales’ ‘ will release its first two episodes at once on Hulu and OWN on October 22nd at 9pm ET. After that, there will be two episodes released weekly on Hulu, and one episode weekly on OWN.
