Don't Touch My Hair
by Solange (featuring Sampha)

Album: A Seat at the Table (2016)
Charted: 91
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Solange celebrates here the style and beauty of black hair. Speaking during an interview with mother Tina Lawson and journalist Judnick Mayard for her website, Solange said:

    "Hair is incredibly spiritual, and, energetically, it really encompasses and expresses who we are. Obviously, my relationship with hair, being that I grew up literally in a hair salon, is very deep and very complex. I think that one of the things that I'm also trying to communicate through that song is the way that people see us through our hair.

    I feel like when I cut my hair and I decided to wear my hair natural, I didn't feel any more pro-Black or like I identified any more or less in my walk as a Black woman. That just wasn't my personal journey."
  • The song title refers to a small but insulting act where a Caucasian pats a black woman's hair. Though intended as a compliment, the action is viewed as demeaning as it makes them feel like a pet dog.
  • English singer Sampha joins Solange on the song. The London crooner also sung on Drake's Nothing Was The Same tunes "Too Much " and "The Motion" and Kanye West's Saint Pablo title track.
  • Solange performed this song during her debut appearance on Saturday Night Live on November 5, 2016. She also brought out Sampha to join her on the hook.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Meshell Ndegeocello

Meshell NdegeocelloSongwriter Interviews

Meshell Ndegeocello talks about recording "Wild Night" with John Mellencamp, and explains why she shied away from the spotlight.

00s Music Quiz 1

00s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

Do you know the girl singer on Eminem's "Stan"? If so, this quiz is for you.

Alice Cooper

Alice CooperFact or Fiction

How well do you know this shock-rock harbinger who's been publicly executed hundreds of times?

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Glen Burtnik

Glen BurtnikSongwriter Interviews

On Glen's résumé: hit songwriter, Facebook dominator, and member of Styx.

Michelle Branch

Michelle BranchSongwriter Interviews

Michelle Branch talks about "Everywhere," "The Game Of Love," and her run-in with a Christian broadcasting network.