In xoNecole's Finding Balance, we profile boss women making boss moves in the world and in their respective industries. We talk to them about their business, and most of all, what they do to find balance in their busy lives.
Stepping out of the shadow of two well-respected and highly accomplished parents in the music industry can be tough. Especially when they're Xscape member, Tameka "Tiny" Harris and Grammy-award winning rapper, actor and podcast host Tip "T.I." Harris. However, Zonnique Pullins has managed to quiet the noise of the haters and step into her own limelight as a solo artist.
Recently releasing two singles, "Winner" and "#FTCU", Zonnique has made a name for herself since her days on BET's Tiny and Toya and as a member of the OMG Girlz with besties Bahja Rodriguez and Reginae Carter. The Atlanta-bred princess is now recognized as a soulful songstress with the ability to throw a vibe to anyone who is willing to catch it. From her trap-inspired single "Nun For Free" with Young Thug to sexy R&B vibes in "Should've Been", Zonnique is a name for you to watch out for in 2020 if she hasn't been already.
The Growing Up Hip-Hop: Atlanta alum shares with xoNecole about how she finds balance between music, family and relationships with thanking God for seeing another day, journaling and working out with bae, Bandhunta Izzy.
xoNecole: At what point in your life did you understand the importance of pressing pause and finding balance in both your personal and professional life?
Zonnique: Taking the break I just took from putting out music was something that I didn't plan, but realized it may have been something I needed. I've been making music since I was 8, so stepping back for a while and taking time to myself to grow was helpful for me.
Courtesy of Zonnique
"Taking the break I just took from putting out music was something that I didn't plan, but realized it may have been something I needed."
What is a typical day in your life? If no day is quite the same, give me a rundown of a typical workweek and what that might consist of.
A typical day in my life is different, but I try to combine a little bit of work and family time together. I usually start my days off with what I have to do first, whether it's filming, studio, interviews, and/or meetings. I like to record at night, but I've been getting into doing it earlier in the day and when I finish I'm not so tired. I [also] go visit my family or my friends, who are really family.
What are your mornings like?
My mornings are always chill. [I] always thank God when I open my eyes, maybe just lay there, look around and think about my dreams for a minute. [I also] see what notifications I have on my phone and take it to the bathroom with me. When I open my eyes, I thank God first, do the regular routine of brushing my teeth. I honestly don't wash my face every day and I usually eat a bowl of cereal because I don't enjoy cooking. If I have nothing to do, I lay and watch something good to start off the day like Cheaters.
How do you wind down at night?
I love to watch a good movie or show until I get sleepy, then I turn on something I don't care to watch until I'm in a deep sleep - just to wake up in the middle of the night and turn the TV off.
When you have a busy week, what’s the most hectic part of it?
When I have a busy week, the most hectic part of it would just be the [act of] moving from place to place to get everything done [because] then you don't get a good amount of sleep because my nights end late and mornings start early. Probably, the most hectic part is traveling from one place to another [and] not being able to eat or rest except in between the little car rides. Especially on a press day in New York! I don't have an assistant but a person from my team is always with me to keep me on schedule.
Do you practice any types of self-care? What does that look like for you?
I never looked at it as practicing self-care until maybe a month ago when someone made me realize how much joy I get in writing in journals and reading. I've always enjoyed doing both since I was a little girl and still enjoy it now. I would say that is a form of self-care for me.
What advice do you have for busy women who feel like they don’t have time for self-care?
The advice I have is to just find time even if it's for five minutes. Sometimes it's just taking a breather and giving yourself the tiniest moment to step back from everything.
Courtesy of Zonnique
"Sometimes it's just taking a breather and giving yourself the tiniest moment to step back from everything."
How do you find balance with:
Friends? Family?
I find balance with my friends by visiting them when I'm not busy and talking to them on a regular basis. I honestly have such a big family and sometimes it can be difficult to make time for everything and everyone. I visit my family a lot as well but my friends and I like to meet up at least a couple of times a week.
Love/Relationships? Dating?
My boyfriend and I live together, so we're always together and do a lot including visiting my family. I don't really have to find a balance between being with him and doing my own thing and when we both have a free day we'll do stuff together and we also work together sometime.
Exercise?
I usually start my day off by going to the gym (before quarantine), so that's how I make sure to exercise. [My boyfriend and I] also work out together!
What about health? Do you cook or find yourself eating out?
When it comes to health, I like to work out as much as possible and I drink mostly water. Those two are the easiest things for me to keep up with, but the eating part is the hardest. I don't really eat pork or beef and in quarantine, I just learned how to cook. I still eat UberEats and DoorDash almost every day.
When you are going through a bout of uncertainty, or feeling stuck, how do you handle it?
I just take time to myself. I don't really like being around people when I'm feeling down, so I sit with my feelings and think of ways to solve my problem and then get back up again. I went through a lot of uncertainty while starting my career as a solo artist coming out of a group, and I just continued to work on myself and find myself more. When I have a creative block, I step back from the situation for a second to give my mind a break from overthinking and come back to the idea when it feels right.
What do you do when you have a creative block when writing music or creating in the studio?
When I have a block, I always ask the people around me for input. I love to create with other people and that helps me get back into the groove whenever I feel really stuck.
And honestly, what does success and happiness mean to you?
Success to me means being happy with the things you have done and/or accomplished [and] simply doing things you're proud of. [Being] happy to me is loving yourself, being happy with the person you are within, loving your own pretty and ugly side.
For more of Zonnique, follow her on Instagram.
Featured image courtesy of Zonnique
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While speaking to xoNecole, Eva shares that she’s a lot like the beloved 1994 character in many ways. “Lyric is so me. She's the odd flower. A flower nonetheless, but definitely not a peony,” she tells us.
“She's not the average flower you see presented, and so she reminds me of myself. I'm a sunflower, beautiful, but different. And what I loved about her character then, and even more so now, is that she was very sure of herself.
"Sure of what she wanted in life and okay to sacrifice her moments right now, to get what she knew she deserved later. And that is me. I'm not an instant gratification kind of a person. I am a long game. I'm not a sprinter, I'm a marathon.
America first fell in love with Eva when she graced our screens on cycle 3 of America’s Next Top Model in 2004, which she emerged as the winner. Since then, she's ventured into different avenues, from acting on various TV series like House of Payne to starring on Real Housewives of Atlanta.
Je-Caryous Johnson Entertainment
Eva praises her castmates and the play’s producer, Je’Caryous for her positive experience. “You know what? Je’Caryous fuels my audacity car daily, ‘cause I consider myself an extremely audacious woman, and I believe in what I know, even if no one else knows it, because God gave it to me. So I know what I know. That is who Je’Caryous is.”
But the mom of three isn’t the only one in the family who enjoys acting. Eva reveals her daughter Marley has also caught the acting bug.
“It is the most adorable thing you can ever see. She’s got a part in her school play. She's in her chorus, and she loves it,” she says. “I don't know if she loves it, because it's like, mommy does it, so maybe I should do it, but there is something about her.”
Overall, Eva hopes that her contribution to the role and the play as a whole serves as motivation for others to reach for the stars.
“I want them to walk out with hope. I want them to re-vision their dreams. Whatever they were. Whatever they are. To re-see them and then have that thing inside of them say, ‘You know what? I'm going to do that. Whatever dream you put on the back burner, go pick it up.
"Whatever dream you've accomplished, make a new dream, but continue to reach for the stars. Continue to reach for what is beyond what people say we can do, especially as [a] Black collective but especially as Black women. When it comes to us and who we are and what we accept and what we're worth, it's not about having seen it before. It's about knowing that I deserve it.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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Maybe you feel the same way I do about getting braids in the spring and/or summertime — or perhaps March through September being your favorite months for this particular style is due to something else. Either way, if you’re gearing up for a braid appointment, I thought it would be cool to share 12 things that can help you get the most out of the time that you spend, along with the money that you invest to get those bad boys put in.
This way, not only will your braids look absolutely bomb until it’s time to take them out, but your own hair can remain healthy throughout the process too.
1. Choose Your Hair Brand Wisely
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With articles out here like The Guardian’s “Over 3,000 beauty products targeting Black women contain health hazards, study shows,” Harvard’s “Uncovering the dangers of hair products marketed to Black women, girls” and, as it specifically relates to today’s topic, Essence’s “A New Study Finds Carcinogens In 10 Synthetic Braiding Hair Brands” — now, more than ever, it’s important to be hypervigilant about doing research on and reading the labels of the beauty products that you buy.
When it comes to braiding hair, specifically, a braiding hair brand that’s made from repurposed banana stems isRebundle; it’s not the cheapest on the planet yet it is pretty quality stuff. Thankfully, Essence has a list of some other options here while Byrdie also features some here that you can look into too.
2. Go with Smaller Instead of Larger
When it comes to the shelf life of braids, once you hit somewhere around the six-week mark, it’s usually time to put on a movie and get comfortable for a couple of hours, so that you can take them down. However, if you want to try to squeeze even more time out of them, first, make sure that you tie your hair up (or put it into a bonnet) every night with a silk or satin scarf (in order to reduce frizz and tangling more than anything else). Also, consider going with smaller braids. Sure, it’ll take more time to install and it will probably cost a few more bucks as well — but if you can get 2-3 more weeks from the style, it’s actually worth it.
3. Try Dry Shampoo on Your Braids
Whenever I have braids in my hair, the thing that I hate the most is wash day. Why? Because that’s when the opportunity significantly increases for my braids to get looser and for frizz to transpire. Typically, my workaround is to cleanse my scalp with a good ole’ bottle of Sea Breeze and then rinse my hair while in the shower every couple of weeks (so that I’m not spending a lot of time rubbing on the braids themselves). However, something else that you might want to try is a dry shampoo (you know, a cleansing product that absorbs dirt, oil, and sweat without any water being involved).
One brand that gets a lot of praise in the braided hair department is Batiste Sweat Activated Dry Shampoo. Another is Amika’s Perk Up Talc-Free Dry Shampoo. At the very least, it can buy you some time until you have the time to cleanse your braids oh so very carefully with “regular” shampoo.
4. Apply a Lavender/Jojoba Oil Blend to Your Scalp
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If one of the things that you absolutely don’t look forward to when it comes to having braids is the fact that your scalp flakes up, something that you can do to reduce the chances of that happening is to keep your scalp well-moisturized. One way to do that is to apply a mixture of lavender oil and jojoba oil. Lavender is good for your scalp because it contains antimicrobial properties that help to keep fungi and bacteria from irritating your scalp (which means that it can help to prevent dandruff flakes).
Jojoba oil benefits your scalp because it is able to deeply moisturize your scalp while helping to prevent itchiness. Plus, the combo can help to keep your braids smelling really good too.
5. Use Sunscreen on Your Scalp Too
SUN. FREAKIN’. SCREEN. When you get a chance, check out “Your Scalp Ages Six Times Faster Than Your Face. Why It Matters.” so that you can get a good understanding of why it’s important to slow down the aging of your scalp. For now, I’ll just say that skin that isn’t protected by sunscreen is skin that is definitely going to age faster than you would like it to. Not only that but since braids cause you to have so much of your scalp exposed (due to all of the parts that are on your head), you definitely need to make sure that the UV rays don’t work overtime to irritate or damage it. Travel + Leisure has a few sunscreens for the scalp that are worth giving a shot. You can check them outhere.
6. Use a Leave-In Conditioner on Your Braids
Something that you definitely need to keep in mind if you’ve got longer hair tucked inside of your braids is you should wash your braids with a sulfate-free shampoo and you should apply a leave-in conditioner while your braids are air-drying. That way, your own hair can have some additional moisture added in which will also reduce frizz and fly-aways. Oh, and speaking of leave-in conditioner, don’t be afraid to refresh your hair with some of it one day a week.
It’s another way to smooth the cuticles of the braids and help to keep them flexible and shiny. For this tip, my two cents? Use a leave-in that comes in a spray rather than a bottle. It tends to be thinner in texture, so you don’t have to worry so much about residue and build-up.
7. Keep Gels to a Minimum
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Honestly, I’ll be glad when the super long lashes and the baby hairs that look more like bangs decide to take an indefinite hiatus (#lesigh). In the meantime, at least this article gives me a solid reason for discouraging huge baby hairs: gels can cause product build-up and, at the very least, that can make keeping your braids as fresh as possible hella challenging. So, if you do like to lay your edges down, try and take the minimal approach — both with the amount of hair that you use and how much gel that you apply to them.
Oh, and look for a flake-free edge control brand. One that I personally like is She Is Bomb (here). It’s super affordable, lasts a long time, holds really well, and nope, no flakes for me.
8. Dip Your Ends to Keep Them Smooth and Frizz-Free
Whether you want to reduce frizz or you want to add some waves or curls to your braids, you can do this by dipping your hair in hot water. I will say that if you don’t want to run the risk of burning yourself, you might want to enlist the assistance of a friend to help you out. However, if your braids are really long, you should be able to dip them on your own without any issues.
Whenever I want to add some waves to my box braids, I will section them, braid them, dip them, let them cool a bit, and then take the braids down. The waves last for weeks. Perfect! As a bonus, dipping your ends can actually keep them smooth and fresh-looking. For tips on how to DIY dip, check out this video tutorial here.
9. Steam Your Braids Every Couple of Weeks
Something that I’m surprised doesn’t come up more often is how beneficial it is tosteam braids. Not only is it a great way to give your scalp some relief if your braids are too tight when you first leave the shop, but it can also help to keep your scalp hydrated with as little hair manipulation as possible. Plus, steaming your braids can help to keep your braids looking shiny and new for a longer period of time. InStyle has a list of steamers that benefit natural hair mosthere. Best Products Reviews also has its own listhere.
10. Refresh the Front of Your Hairstyle
I remember a few years ago, I watched a YouTube video of a woman who said that her (originally) knotless braids lasted for almost four months because she would “simply” (SMDH) tie her braids into a knot once there was enough new growth to make that happen. Lawd, please don’t follow her lead. Not only does that lead to unnecessary tension (and weight) on your hair follicles, but it can make it complete and utter hell to take the braids (and knots) down without pulling out quite a bit of your hair in the process.
Instead, if you want a couple of more weeks with your braids, make an appointment with your braider to get the first couple of rows around the front of your head redone. You’d be amazed how this one step can do wonders for a braided hairstyle — not to mention that it’s better for your hair and (usually) a hella cheap approach to making your style last longer.
11. Try Not to Over-Style Your Braids
There is nothing like having some long, knotless, medium-sized box braids that were done right and well. Honey, it’ll have you out here acting like you should try every hairstyle you can find! Thing is, the more that you manipulate your hair, the quicker that your braids will come loose, the more frizz and fly-aways that will pop up, and the sooner that your new style will age. Am I saying not to play around with some looks that you like? Damn well you should. Just try to avoid doing a different style multiple days of the week.
Wearing them down, tying them up in a scarf, or putting them in a top bun (although you should move that bun around in order to not put tension in the same spot all of the time) will make enough of a statement because braids are beautiful…all on their own.
12. Take a Break from Your Braids
Final one. Braids are so damn pretty and convenient that I’m sure a lot of us would pull a “Moesha” (if you’re a real one, you caught what I mean by that) and have braids in constantly. Thing is, that’s not healthy for your natural hair because the tension and weight of your braids can lead to hair damage and even hair loss if you’re not careful. So, if you plan on going all spring and summer with some sort of braided style, try to at least take out a couple of weeks in between braid appointments to deep condition your own hair, pamper your scalp, and give both of them a break.
That way, you can be confident that your hair is ready for your next batch of braids — whether that’s for a summer vacation or some other time that you have in mind. Enjoy!
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