Lupita Nyong'o Fronts Allure To Talk About The Culture of Hair

Lupita Nyong'o has made headlines in fashion once again as she graces the cover of Allure magazine to talk about The Culture of Hair.

On the cover, the 'Black Panther' star wore beautiful beaded braids styled by her hairstylist, Vernon François. The special hair issue which would be available at Newsstands by March, the 34-year-old Kenyan-Mexican actress told the editor-in-chief of the magazine, Michelle Lee how she maintains her hair and even mentioned her most memorable haircut - shaving it all off as a teen.

Nyong's told Michelle Lee that she “didn’t love” her hair when she was a child because “it was lighter than my skin, which made me not love it so much.”

“I was really kind of envious of girls with thicker, longer, more lush hair. In my tween years, I started begging my mother to have my hair relaxed,” she said.

“She wouldn’t allow it, though her hair was relaxed. She felt that that was a decision I could come to when I was maybe 18,” she continued. “Around 13 or 14, I had such a rough time with being teased and feeling really unpretty. My dad intervened and spoke to my mom about my hair, and she finally agreed. She took me to the salon in the middle of the school day, and I got my hair relaxed. I felt so much better because it was easier to tame. All the girls in my class had their hair relaxed. Very few had natural kink, so I felt a lot more acceptable.”

As she grew older, she said she learned to embrace her locks and her uniqueness. Today, she sees herself as someone with the responsibility to represent the diversity in Hollywood.

“I love my hair. I love it because I’ve also been able to really embrace the stuff it can do. It’s like clay in the right hands. Clay can be dirt in the wrong hands, but clay can be art in the right hands,” she said.

She also talked about some "little weird" feelings she has to endure because fame oftentimes gives people the illusion that they are familiar with her even though they have never met.

In the past three years, being in the Hollywood limelight, she said she has learned more about herself and how to balance her life. She does not want her career to over-shadow her she truly is.

'I have to be aware of that possibility, not imprisoned by it. It's like, how do I find freedom within that awareness?'

Fans of the star can't stop loving the amazing photos and inspiring interview.