THE MALE BRAID:

Get the look

Staying ahead of trends, the new age quintessential man is all about trying out new styles, one of them being the way in which they wear their hair. Whether choosing to go bald or have cornrow plats, the influence of both western lifestyle and pop culture has seen vast growth in the male grooming sectors.

One that is making its rounds on the heads of metrosexual men across the globe is the Samurai bun, which was made popular by well-known footballer Gareth Bale and award-winning actor Colin Farrell.

However, it was not until the likes of American pop singer Miguel and hip-hop trap artist Travis Scott started donning it that the plat/braid version took off.

The look involves cutting off the hair on the sides of the head, then either braiding the top part into styled cornrowed plats or twisted faux-lock dread braids.

Stepping in to accommodate the trend, local hair salon franchise Candi & Co is meeting the high demand for the male braid.

Co-founder Candice Thurston explains the culture behind the samurai braid/plat for men. Fitness and sports student Adam Cook, 19, is a young man on the move. His hair, along with his personality, is funky and edgy.

Being mostly inspired by the hip-hop pop culture music scene, Cook enjoys looking good and staying fresh, even during his long training sessions. Kudzai King, 25, is a Zimbabwea-born model and photographer based between Johannesburg and Cape Town, having to balance being both in front and behind the camera.

Having taken inspiration from the Black Panther movie, he wanted to relive his experience of the city of “Wakanda” which is found in the film.

The first step was to wash and dry the locks with shampoo and conditioner. The next step was to twist and lock the hair using a dreadlock locking product, before having to style and plat the locks in a bun-updo.