Today we’d like to introduce you to Love Saint Laurent
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Growing up in Los Angeles, CA, I always loved singing and performing. I grew up in a very musical family, and I guess you could say it runs in my veins. My mother, Donna, is a singer (she sang in the choir that can be heard during the ‘It’s a Small World’ ride at Disneyland, and my father, Bruce, is a drummer who used to tour with his mentor Andre Fischer (the drummer for the band Rufus feat Chaka Khan.) My older brother Sean is also an amazing singer as well. The two of them are my earliest musical influences for sure.
My favorite memories are of singing with my mom and siblings on long car rides to pass the time. I have two older sisters (Quana & Cynnamon), two older brothers (Pierre & Sean) and a younger sister (Fev.) My older siblings are 8-12 years older than me, so between them and my mom I got a little bit of everyone’s musical taste.
Some of my favorite artists that they listened to were: Stevie Wonder, Anita Baker, Toni Braxton, Garth Brooks, Reba McIntyre, Michael Jackson, Prince, Queen…and then as they got older my brothers were into stuff like Green Day, ICP, Metallica…I love love loooove Mariah Carey, Britney, Janet, Madonna…so there’s a wide range that I was exposed to, which I’m very grateful for.
Music was always a fixture in our household so I think that fuels my desire to perform. From a very young age, I think maybe the first grade, I entered talent shows where I would sing–usually to Colors of The Wind from the movie Pocahontas. I remember composing songs very early on this little electric keyboard I was given as a gift. I was maybe 6 at the time.
In second and third grade I was on the Drill Team. From ages 10-12 I was part of the Los Angeles Children’s Choir, and later in high school joined the All Male Dance Team where we also participated in Cheer. At 17 my mom paid for my first professional recording session with a producer by the name of Robb Vallier, who worked with artists like Sublime, who I was very into back then, he also worked on a project called Spamalot! That was huge in LA. I recorded three songs with Robb, the first being called Thank You which I wrote myself. The second is a song called Kick Back, which I wrote along with a friend of mine named Jason Greer. The third was probably my only ballad called Be Mine.
After high school I moved in with my Aunt Joyce near the Fairfax District who really helped me develop my entrepreneurial side. After getting fired from job after job (I’m not great at following rules), she encouraged me to start my first business called D’Lish. We would wake up early on the weekends and make sandwiches, salads, cut up fresh fruit and then pack them in this huge cooler. Then she would drive me around all over the city to different hair salons and barbershops where we would sell to all of the hairstylists and barbers.
So I guess it’s no surprise that shortly after that, I enrolled in cosmetology school. I figured I needed something to fall back on, in case my dreams of being the male Janet Jackson or Britney Spears didn’t come true. Plus, my uncle Louis owns a barbershop, called Showcase, so I was somewhat familiar with that world. What ended up happening though, was that I put my musical aspirations on the back burner.
Instead, I focused on my career as a hair and sometimes makeup artist. 15 years later, I have finally found my place in the beauty industry as a Luxury Hair Extension Specialist. I love it because it lets me focus on creating the types of looks that I want as a hairstylist while at the same time allowing me to do what I really love, which is: music.
My goal is to one day be able to focus 100% on singing, songwriting, and performing, and to be able to make a living from that. I love Dance music, specifically House music, so that’s what I’m really passionate about creating right now. I’m very grateful for the years I spent doing hair though. I’ve been able to meet so many different people through that experience, and it’s made me more of an empath because people really open up to you when you’re doing their hair. It’s made me really appreciate this thing we call the human experience, and without it, I would never have figured out what I was really put here on earth to do: connect with others and let them know that they matter. I hope to inspire people, and motivate them to keep getting back up no matter how many times they may fall down. Even if it’s just with this article.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
From a very young age, I knew that I had a responsibility to this world. It stems from my lore, (my mother had her tubes “cut tied and burned,” eight years before I was born) and the way certain people in and around my family–specifically the elders like my grandmothers, and people of the same generation–treated me. Sort of like they knew something about me that I didn’t, but that one day I would understand it. It was this sort of assured expectation that I was meant to do something pretty important that I would cling to. So, whenever I felt the world around me being cruel or dismissive because they didn’t know what box to put me in, I would just think to myself “It’s okay…they may not understand yet, but one day they’ll see.”
I identify beyond the scope of binary, as genderfluid, which to me means that some days I lean more into my male side and some days I feel more feminine. So growing up I got a lot of “are you a boy or a girl?”…that actually just happened yesterday as a matter of fact. Being gay right before it became more widely acceptable also presented its own challenges. Then of course there’s the matter of ethnicity. I’m black, but all my life people have asked “what are you?” which just made me feel insecure and like an outsider.
It gave me a real complex, because I’m obviously not white, not hispanic, not Asian, but then I also didn’t feel like I was black enough. But because of my work in the beauty industry, I’ve got tons of experience connecting with people from all walks of life. Through that, I’ve learned that none of us are very different from each other at all. Everyone really just wants to feel seen, heard, and understood. We want to know that they matter, and I believe, we want to feel loved for who we really are. We as humans have so much more in common than we do things that divide us. The main thing being that: we all just want love.
It’s why I gave myself the name Love (my birth name is William). One, because for a long time I didn’t really feel like I was deserving of love. Because that’s what the world was telling me. Everything about me was in some way deemed sinful, or less than, or undesirable. It made me push people away for a very long time, and build a wall around myself. I would pretend that I didn’t need anybody, or that I was just a private person. But really I was just shy and afraid of rejection. All I ever really wanted to do was give and receive love. I really believe that my purpose in this life is to embody and show others that unconditional acceptance and love that we as humans are all deserving of. If there’s one thing I want to be known for, it’s for helping people to feel loved. If a person feels loved, then they too are given the freedom to discover, share, and fulfill their life’s purpose.
It has not been an easy road, by any means. I, like every other person in the world, has had their share of setbacks and struggles. For me, my biggest obstacle has been being able to look at myself honestly and say: “Hey, you haven’t been the best version of yourself. You’ve done some pretty sh*tty things. You haven’t always been a good friend, a good son, a good brother, uncle, nephew, cousin, spouse, lover…and you haven’t always been the protagonist.”
For a long time, I pretended like the mistakes I made didn’t happen. I have been in denial that my actions could have hurt another person. I have had impostor syndrome, and that is something I still struggle with to this day. But speaking openly and honestly about these things that plague me, whether it’s anxiety or depression or not feeling like I am doing enough, helps me realize that it’s something a lot of us go through. It’s another way I’ve been able to develop and strengthen connections with others. The worst thing you can do is to be a victim of your mistakes, or to act like they never happened. Because how can you grow from that? The worst thing you can do to another human being is to humiliate them or make them feel small. We are all here to share our experiences and learn from each other.
The best thing you can do, is to show up authentically as yourself in this world and share your gifts with others.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
So when I’m not working on music, I run a website called www.thehollywoodhairstylist.com. It’s part blog, where I share my experiences working as a hairstylist–either freelancing or behind the chair in the salon. I also share some personal moments as well. For example, one article I’m working on is about how my divorce made me a better person and, subsequently, a better beauty pro. The website also serves as a resource for hair & makeup artists who are interested in becoming freelancers. I share products that I use in my freelance kit, give pro tips on how to conduct yourself in someone else’s space, work opportunities or advice on how to find clients, market themselves, etc. In the future I plan on having an online course for hairstylists and DIY tutorials for clients, and guest blogs from my friends who are also experts in their field. I’d like to develop a podcast too but that still needs more fine tuning…and who knows, maybe even a book!
But at its core, the website is where I send future clients to learn more about my services as a Luxury Hair Extension Specialist. I’ve been doing hair extensions since 2016. At the height of the pandemic, I decided to slowly transition into focusing on just offering hair extensions. I just love the way I’m able to transform a person’s outside appearance in a relatively short amount of time. More than that, I love the way I’m able to help increase my client’s confidence.
Especially because, even in Los Angeles, there are so many people who don’t believe they have access to glamour. I’m able to change the stigma that hair extensions are only for a certain type of client, because of the brand I offer, Hair Lingerie. It’s priced so reasonably that it’s really bridged a gap between the ultra famous celebrities like Madonna (who also uses Hair Lingerie, and ONLY uses Hair Lingerie), and my clients–everyday people who want to feel fabulous too! …and why shouldn’t they?
I think it’s ridiculous that people tell me, every day, that they’re having to save up just to visit the salon once or twice a year. Of course, it is an investment in yourself so I’m not going to say it’s cheap. Hair Extensions are a luxury, after all. But getting your hair done should be something you look forward to, instead of dreading like another bill.
Besides the price point, another reason why I only use Hair Lingerie is because it’s the only extension brand on the market that does not damage the hair. That’s because they were specifically developed with people who experience hair loss, like those going through chemotherapy, in mind. The only types of hair extensions I do now are tape-in, and if you’ve ever experienced those then you probably know that the backing of tape-extensions are made of that hard plastic. That plastic backing warps and breaks down over time, plus doesn’t offer very much mobility for the hair which causes breakage. With Hair Lingerie, that backing is made of lace. That lace not only allows the hair to breathe, but also helps the extensions to be more flexible. That flexibility means the extension will conform to the contours of your head. On top of that, it won’t break down over time. That, mixed with the quality of the hair means that the extensions themselves last way longer than your traditional tape-in.
Speaking of hair quality, the hair we use at Hair Lingerie is ethically and sustainably sourced. The hair you’re getting is from people whose job it is to grow hair for this purpose. They get paid very well for this service, and you can trust that you’re getting healthy hair–because it comes from healthy people. I was shocked when I realized some of the ways other brands obtain their hair (if it’s even real human hair in the first place). But that’s a separate conversation. The hair extension panels themselves are also wider than our traditional tape extension. So where you might need 20 extension bonds in your hair for a traditional install, with me, you’ll only need about 8. That means less time in my chair. The average install takes about 15 minutes.
As far as what sets me apart from other hairstylists who offer extensions is that i’m a Luxury Hair Extension Specialist. So everything is going to be different, because this is all I do. I was trained, by the owner of the brand I use, on how to install, remove, maintain, and educate my client on these hair extensions. I make sure that the hair moves the way it should move. I make sure that they blend with your hair, because I include a blending haircut. When you are in my chair, you’re being pampered. When you leave my chair, you’re leaving with all of the information you need to maintain your extensions at home, and you’ve got all the products you need to do so. My clients have my personal cell phone number so they can call or text me whenever they need if they have questions. When you have your hair extensions done with me, it’s like you’re buying a luxury car or a designer handbag. Except it’s even more important, because you’re living your life in them.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
The biggest risk I’ve taken was giving up a comfortable life that I probably could have spent the rest of my life coasting through, in order to live a life where I could completely be myself. I had a husband who took care of me. I worked, but because I did not have to, I did not take it very seriously. I did not need anything, and leaving that life behind cost me everything. I have had to rebuild from the ground up, though I have had help along the way. But being able to live my life on my terms, though it isn’t as safe and comfortable as before, makes everything worth it. Even when life is difficult and I have bad days, they are my bad days. I am in control of my own life now. That’s something I don’t take for granted.
I hope to continue to take risks. A recent one that I’ve taken was becoming involved in the pageant world as a competitor, instead of a hair or makeup artist. I’ve entered two so far. The first was Mr Gay California America in August 2023, where I placed as the third runner up. Then I competed again in December of the same year where I placed as the Second Runner Up for Mr Western Elegance Continental 2024. Through that I was able to qualify to compete in that system’s national pageant, Mr. Continental 2025 at the end of next month.
I had no idea what I was doing when I first entered the pageant system. It was actually a suggestion from my friend Michael. At first I was like, yeah right! But once I began learning more about the pageant systems and their mission, I thought wow…this could be a way to really impact my community in a positive way.
I’ve also been fortunate to meet so many amazing people through the experience and be included in a real brotherhood which is something I didn’t expect but am so grateful for. So…you know..take risks, try something new, get out of your comfort zone. You never know what it could lead to!
Pricing:
- The average price of a full head of extensions ranges from $800-$2000 depending on length, color, and amount.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thehollywoodhairstylist.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollywood.hairstylist/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thehollywoodhairstylist/
- Twitter: https://x.com/hairextensionLA
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheHollywoodHairstylist
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/thehollywoodhairstylist
- Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/lovealwaysandforever
Image Credits
Photo credit: Rita Maria Photo www.instagram.com/rita.maria.photo
