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Deepica Mutyala and Model Malyia McNaughton Make Amends for ‘Today Show’ Hair Fiasco

The beauty “expert” gets a much-needed tutorial on Black hair in new video.

Last week, we all bore witness to Deepica Mutyala butcher model Malyia McNaughton’s perfect natural locks on The Today Show with the frizziest (nee: scariest) side ponytail the world’s ever seen.

However, after getting roasted by the internet, Mutyala didn’t get defensive; instead she issued a heartfelt apology, promising that she would do better. Perhaps part of that promise was appearing in a new natural hair video with McNaughton, where the beauty expert not only gets a much-needed tutorial on natural hair, but also pokes fun at herself.

Joining McNaughton and three natural-hair experts — Tiarra Monet, Akilah Hughes and Kamie Crawford — Mutyala is clear that she’s there to learn about styling natural hair. 

“It’s something that I’m not every familiar with,” she admits. “Education is the first step,” Mutyala later stressed.

During the 4-plus minute video, Mutyala is schooled on the importance of taking your time with our complex tresses (because “a minute” is never really enough to perfect a style) and the importance of having products and tools on deck.

While this video did in a way vindicate Mutyala for her beauty faux pas, it also served as a safe space for McNaughton, Monet, Hughes and Crawford to be honest about their natural hair, sharing where and how they’ve learned to style their own coifs and how their hair has affected their careers. 

“I didn’t feel comfortable showing my natural hair at times because people would comment, ‘Oh my gosh, is your hair done? What are you doing to it?’” McNaughton admitted.

“One day, I said, ‘I want to show my natural hair,’ as I should, and so I became more comfortable to go and do other things where there were a collective of other Black women who also embraced their natural hair,” she added.

The video ended with a hilarious reenactment of the sistas giving Mutyala a similar messy ponytail that she gave McNaughton. Hey, it’s all in good fun!

And the response to the video was pretty positive with people commending Mutyala for her ability to take a lemon and make lemonade.

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