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Lauren LaRosa
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.
Jacob Goldstein
Hey, it's Jacob Goldstein from Business History. In our new series American Genius, we tell the stories of three great writers who changed the way business works in America. Our first episode is about Benjamin Franklin, who among many other things, was a best selling business writer. Take a listen. He's writing this much later in his life, consciously creating this image of himself. And I do want to emphasize how unusual this model is at the time, this self made man myth, because you don't want to be self made. It's low class to be self made. You know, this idea that we have today is the opposite, right? And it comes from Franklin. Today there is the derisive term nepo baiting. Well, exactly right. And these days it's if you are a billionaire, you had better have a Benjamin Franklin story about starting in a garage, coming up with the idea from nothing. And here is Benjamin Franklin inventing it right before our eyes. This has been brought to you by Odoo. To listen to more of our American Genius series, listen to business history. New episodes release every Wednesday on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Hey, guys, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called hey Jonas.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
We invented a podcast.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Well, we didn't invent it, we just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
We get to ask other people questions
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it, but you know, tired and sick. Tired and sick. Listen to hey Jonas on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it.
Isaiah Thomas
What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas.
C.J. Toledano
And I'm C.J. toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game, the playoffs.
Isaiah Thomas
We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season and I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was fine.
C.J. Toledano
You just understood.
Isaiah Thomas
That's how personal it get.
Lauren LaRosa
Wow.
Isaiah Thomas
Then after that, game seven, Marip coming to you. He's like, you know I love you, dog. You know it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball.
C.J. Toledano
So listen to Point game on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
Every family has its secrets, but what happens when you Discover that your dad has been living a double life.
Letty (Hairstylist)
That is not the look of an innocent man.
Sanjanah Bhasker
Is everyone lying to me about who they are?
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
I felt such desperation. I felt it was what I had to do. Listen to Deep Cover the family man on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Steve Nash (voice or reference)
Let's get to it.
Isaiah Thomas
Time to do it.
Lauren LaRosa
I'm the homegirl that knows a little bit about everything and everybody, you know,
Letty (Hairstylist)
she don't lie about that.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Lauren came in hot.
Lauren LaRosa
Hey, y'.
Jacob Goldstein
All.
Lauren LaRosa
What's up? It's Lauren LaRosa. And this is another episode of the Latest with Lauren LaRosa. This is your daily dig on all things pop culture, entertainment news, and all of the conversations that shake the room, baby. Now, y' all know, normally when I'm doing interviews, I go into the studio, but we have been on the go all weekend. Shout out to Roots Picnic and Live Nation and everybody over there. We've been bringing you guys some of the content. It has not stopped because right now, we are about to do an exclusive. A lot of conversation around Jay Z and his hair and his afro, and how do we go from the locks to the Afro? So joining me here on the Latest with Lauren LaRosa, I have Letty, who is a. I don't know if you call yourself a hairstylist. A locksmith. Yes, A hairstylist here in New York at a salon here in New York. I'll also let you talk about. I go to that salon and, you know, people have a lot of questions, girl. They're like, was the dreads or. Sorry, were the locks even real? Because how does this work?
Letty (Hairstylist)
Very much real. It was like a process of eight years that he's been growing his hair. And, yeah, it was a collab with this lady. Her name is Marie. She goes. Her Instagram name is Houston Locks, I think.
Lauren LaRosa
Yes. Yep, yep.
Letty (Hairstylist)
And it took a day. It was like six days to take out all of his locks.
Lauren LaRosa
So, okay, like, walk me through it. When you say take out all of Jay Z's locs, how are you combing it out? Or, like, what is the process to actually do that?
Letty (Hairstylist)
It was. She had used the sacred conditioner with combination with the detangler sprayed.
Lauren LaRosa
And then when you're putting it on there, then like, I guess for people who don't know and who don't have locs, it's like, we're trying to understand because you spend so much time growing them and they mat together. Right? So how do you just so it mats together.
Letty (Hairstylist)
So it's like a combination. You have to remember your hair. Natural hair intertwines with one another when you leave it alone. It's just what it does. And in the process of that of like years of just intertwining with one another, it just. If you not maintenance by like doing it individually, which is a different style, but he had more of like a freeform wicklock.
Lauren LaRosa
Mm.
Letty (Hairstylist)
So it was much easier to take out because it's just not as so many little locks that you have to comb through. So his was like, you know, you just have bigger sections, right. And just like let the product penetrate the hair. And the more it penetrates your hair, it just gets softer and you just gently go through it and just gradually get to the root of the hair.
Lauren LaRosa
So I'm a little tender headed, right? So if it was me, I'm like, like, is that something that's happening in real time too? Like, is. What is he like, this hurts because you're used to people not picking in your hair.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Exactly. So it's like, yeah, it's. Everybody is. You haven't touched your head in like, you know, so many years. So you have to be gentle. So you just have to take that in consideration as you're doing that. You know, you just have to gently, like separate the hair and just go through it. You have to take care of the hair like it's a cashmere sweater. You're just gonna throw your cashmere sweater in the washing machine.
Lauren LaRosa
How many people worked on it at one time? Was it just one person at a time?
Letty (Hairstylist)
It was, what's Marie? At first, just like, you know, going through it and then, you know, it was like a team of us just making sure that it was properly taken out.
Lauren LaRosa
And then. So when you talk about the sacred detangler and the product. I know that first night when he did the preview show, he had the hoodie on and a lot of us were like. I mean, we just figured the dreads were there, but because it was a preview, he just popped out, you know, just in and out like he just incognito. And that's why the hoodie was on. But what did he had a twist out at that time?
Letty (Hairstylist)
No, it was a braid out. So I.
Lauren LaRosa
It was.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Yeah. So I braided his hair. I used some. I used the foam mousse. A combination with the bomb from Sacred from All this was all Sacred products.
Lauren LaRosa
So now. Right, so. So what's the process? So that's the night before. So you do a braid out in his hair. How long does it take for you to do the braid out once the locs are out and his hair is washed?
Letty (Hairstylist)
So we took the braid, the locs came out like a week prior to that, so.
Lauren LaRosa
Oh, okay.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Yeah, yeah.
Lauren LaRosa
This was like.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Yeah, this was not just a one day thing. This was like, you know, definitely anticipated. He definitely has a method to his madness. Yeah, so, yeah, so he definitely did this process, like, I believe, like a week. It was like the 20 something. And then I did that so that
Lauren LaRosa
his scalp can, like, breathe and like.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Absolutely, yes, it was definitely taking care of his. Giving him a lot of TLC on his scalp, using the sacred drops, you know, and just massaging that into his hair and just making sure that his scalp, which is, you know, the most important part of your hair, you know, just taking care of that before we greeted him because, you know, it was a week of just, you know, pulling and tugging and this and that, you know, I just don't wanna put nobody in pain like that either.
Lauren LaRosa
I got you.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. And guess what? We have some big news.
Jacob Goldstein
What's the news?
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Huge news. We created our own podcast called hey Jonas.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
We invented a podcast.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Well, we didn't invent it. We. We just contributed to it. First people to do podcasts. Pretty. Yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts, but this one's extra special. So how did we. How do we actually come up with the name hey Jonas? Guys, I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it and, well, we were thinking. I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing a bit for the podcast where people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, hey, Jonas. And offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that. Guys, listen to hey Jonas on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast, just listen. We don't care where you hear it.
Isaiah Thomas
What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas and I'm C.J.
C.J. Toledano
toledano. And our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds.
Isaiah Thomas
Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luka and Austin Reed and finding ways
C.J. Toledano
to win no matter what.
Isaiah Thomas
He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen. Before. And he knows without Luka and Austin Reaves, I gotta manipulate the game.
C.J. Toledano
We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs.
Isaiah Thomas
I think Joker's gonna be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reed, he has to guard Julius Randle, and then he has to give us everything. He gives us on a night to night basis on offense.
C.J. Toledano
And when it's friends stop by like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too.
Steve Nash (voice or reference)
Steve Nash would get that thing, that man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers while he got the ball. Like you go through a training camp with that. Isaiah, you figure it out real quick. Oh, yeah. Get your ass up and down the court and you gonna get the ball.
C.J. Toledano
So listen to point game on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Sanjanah Bhasker
Why is everyone obsessed with romance right now? Like everyone your co worker who quote unquote doesn't read, is reading romance your mom. Book talk the entire Internet. I'm Sanjanah bhasker. I'm Tyler McCall and this is Radio831, a romance podcast. The books, the tropes, the adaptations, the drama, the discourse, and what all of it says about how we actually love, yearn and obsession. We're going to Wuthering Heights, which for the record, is not a romance novel. And yet it has haunted the romance genre for 200 years. We're getting into dark romance, age gaps, certain Russian hockey players and sentient objects in love, which is a thing. That's the kind of conversation we're having every episode. Listen to the Radio 831 podcast on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is Saigon, the story of my family and of the country that shaped us.
Jacob Goldstein
The United States will not stand by and allow any power, however great, take over another country.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
From iheart Podcasts, Saigon.
Lauren LaRosa
Please allow me to introduce Joseph Sherman. You don't think I'm serious about a free Vietnam?
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
I should stop talking so much.
Letty (Hairstylist)
I like hearing you talk.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
One city, a divided country and the war that tore America apart.
Letty (Hairstylist)
This is for Vietnam.
Jacob Goldstein
I've taken a hit from Japanese brown fire. Do you read?
Lauren LaRosa
They're pouring petrol all over him. He's holding matches.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
I'm on a landmine.
Lauren LaRosa
For freedom.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Let's get out freedom from it now.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
Saigon. Starring Kelly Marie Tran and Rob Benedict.
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Sting. Here's madness.
Lauren LaRosa
The world should should hear about this.
Sanjanah Bhasker
There's A fire coming to this country,
Lauren LaRosa
and it's going to burn out everything.
Narrator/Host of Deep Cover and Saigon
Listen to Saigon on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Lauren LaRosa
Oh, my God. I can't imagine all of the. It's like when you take out braids and you. And you've had them in for a while. Oh, my gosh, guys, y' all will never understand the pain. I mean, Jay Z does now, though, right? But, guys, like, yes, it is a very light, tender scalp feeling. But okay, so he has the braid out, huh?
Letty (Hairstylist)
I say he's a thug. He took it.
Lauren LaRosa
I mean, yeah. So then you have the braid out. The braid out is in his head. So it's there, I guess. Like, what, for a few days, 24 hours? Like, how long is the braid out in for?
Letty (Hairstylist)
Left it in for a week.
Lauren LaRosa
A week. So then when you remove the braid out, is he doing products every day with the braid out? Like, to make sure that the braid out is not getting dry and matted?
Letty (Hairstylist)
No, I mean, before I put the braids into his hair, I made sure that I properly took care of it. So like I said, I was using the sacred drops first, and then I used the moisture seal, and I put all of that into his hair, put some of the shield, which is the new product line, just to make sure that while I was blowing it out, I, you know, take care of the heat process. And then I braided his hair and then put some of the foam on top once the braids were in, and then just a durag.
Lauren LaRosa
Gotcha. So he just had, like, straight backs.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Correct.
Lauren LaRosa
At that point. Okay, so then. So now we're at the preview show that he did, which is that went viral because everybody saw B on the side, right? Beyonce on the side. So then that night, do you start. Do you leave it alone at night? And early the next morning, do you take down Jay Z's braid out? Like, how does that work?
Letty (Hairstylist)
So we just put some foam in his hair and then just took it out. Make sure that the foam, of course, was, you know, dry completely. And then I used some of the high of the. The balm as I was taking it out, just to keep that moisture in his hair.
Lauren LaRosa
Got you. And then. So. Because another thing, too, is, is like, when you have the dreads in your hair for a while, even people that do braids for a while, if you try to go lower because. Because the rumor is he's going to go lower if he tries to do that. Will there be lines in his scalp? Because I'VE seen that before, too. Like, how do you prevent that?
Letty (Hairstylist)
No, there's no lines in your scalp when you have braids. I mean, just your hair is kind of like, you uniformed it so it would just move towards a certain way, but there's no permanent lines in your hair.
Lauren LaRosa
Got you. Is there anything? Because I feel like I just got all up in the hair business. Is there anything I haven't actually that you think is important for people to understand when it comes to, you know, loc removal? Because there's so many myths online right now?
Jonas Brothers (Joe, Kevin, Nick)
Because.
Letty (Hairstylist)
No. Yes. It's the key point to it, which is really important, is just taking your time and making sure that the hair is properly hydrated. And, like, just make sure that you putting enough moisture into the hair. Because once you put moisture in the hair, it kind of just, like, helps that process to, like, dissolve it and, like, soften it and makes the comb out process easier. And just take your time. There's no rush, especially if you're trying to preserve the link.
Lauren LaRosa
So are we. Are we going to see locks again? Like, what happens now? Like, is it just the fro? Like, Jay Z fro forever? Like, what happens now? I don't know.
Letty (Hairstylist)
That's all my guy. Like, whatever he does, he wants to, you know, do his thing, then he could lock it up.
Lauren LaRosa
I heard you. All right, well, thank you for joining me. I really appreciate it, and I appreciate all the information. I think we all learned. I mean, I knew that you could take down locks, but a lot of people did not know. They think that this is, like, a clone.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Oh, no, girl. And it's not a lace front, so cut it out. No wigs.
Lauren LaRosa
That was another myth that I saw as well, too. It's crazy that you have to let people know that Jay Z would not put on a lace front. I mean, that. That's nothing about that is giving Marcy at all. Thank you.
Letty (Hairstylist)
And it's beautiful, healthy, and it's thick. Shout out to Sacred because y' all gotta go and y' all got something going on. His hair is beautiful, and it's really healthy and thick. That's all I could say.
Lauren LaRosa
Was that your first time using the Sacred products?
Letty (Hairstylist)
No, I've been using Sacred since it first launched.
Lauren LaRosa
Got you. And then, like, when you. When you took that. So, like, when Jay Z's dreads are. Are taken out, right? And you're about. You're prepping it to do the braids for the braid out. Are you cutting? Is there a lot of dead hair? Like, are you like, do you clip the ends of it? Like, because I just can't imagine, like, the transformation. I guess, like you said, it's healthy.
Letty (Hairstylist)
It's healthy that actually listens. Beautiful, thick, healthy hair. Like, the hair gods was definitely on his side.
Lauren LaRosa
Yeah. Because, you know, some people take down things that have been on there, like, whether it's locs or even if you have twists, braids, or whatever. And there's a lot of dead hair because you leave it for some time. But, yeah, okay, that's it. I promise. I'm done.
Letty (Hairstylist)
He ate that.
Lauren LaRosa
Well, look, I know you're headed back from the roost picnic. I know you're tired. We ain't got no voice. If anybody is done, listen, my voice is none. No voice. And the weather was all over the place this weekend, too. That didn't help, right? Yes, but, yeah,
Letty (Hairstylist)
not it.
Lauren LaRosa
And I appreciate you for clearing all the things up. Shout out to Sacred, though. I feel like people about to be trying some things now.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Shout out to Sacred. And them drops, baby. Them drops is hot.
Lauren LaRosa
So it's really like that.
Letty (Hairstylist)
No, it's really like that.
Lauren LaRosa
I've seen.
Letty (Hairstylist)
I've seen some things. I got some clients that they be
Lauren LaRosa
on it and they like what we see. We saw. It's so nice to meet you, though, and I would say congratulations, but I seen that. I've seen the page. You've been working for a while now.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Yes.
Lauren LaRosa
Glad to be able to have this conversation with you and honestly, this educational moment with you when it comes to, you know, locs in our hair. So thank you. I'll talk to you soon.
Letty (Hairstylist)
Thank you. Bye.
Lauren LaRosa
I'm Your host, Lauren LaRosa, and I tell you guys every single episode. Y' all could be anywhere with any old body talking about all of the things, but you guys choose to be right here with me, my lowriders. I appreciate you guys. I'll see you guys in my next episode. This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.
This exclusive episode of The Breakfast Club dives deep into the viral topic of Jay-Z’s recent hair transformation—from his iconic locs to a newfound afro. Lauren LaRosa sits down for an in-depth conversation with Letty, a New York hairstylist directly involved in the transformation process. Together, they dismantle myths, explain the highly debated removal of Jay-Z's locs, discuss the state of his hair, and provide insight into afro-textured hair care.
“Very much real. It was like a process of eight years that he's been growing his hair.”
— Letty (03:58)
“It took a day. It was like six days to take out all of his locks.”
— Letty (04:16)
“She had used the sacred conditioner with combination with the detangler sprayed.”
— Letty (04:31)
“He had more of like a freeform wicklock. So it was much easier to take out...you just have bigger sections...”
— Letty (05:19)
“You have to take care of the hair like it's a cashmere sweater. You're just gonna throw your cashmere sweater in the washing machine.”
— Letty (05:55)
“He definitely did this process...like a week...it was like the 20 something. And then I did that so that his scalp can, like, breathe...”
— Letty (07:25, 07:46)
“Giving him a lot of TLC on his scalp, using the sacred drops, you know, and just massaging that into his hair...”
— Letty (07:48)
“Before I put the braids into his hair, I made sure that I properly took care of it...put all of that into his hair...then put some of the foam on top once the braids were in, and then just a durag.”
— Letty (13:03)
“Oh, no, girl. And it's not a lace front, so cut it out. No wigs.”
— Letty (15:50) “It's crazy that you have to let people know that Jay Z would not put on a lace front. I mean, that. That's nothing about that is giving Marcy at all.”
— Lauren (15:56)
“It's healthy that actually listens. Beautiful, thick, healthy hair. Like, the hair gods was definitely on his side.”
— Letty (16:47)
“Key point...is just taking your time and making sure that the hair is properly hydrated...helps that process to, like, dissolve it and, like, soften it and makes the comb out process easier. And just take your time.”
— Letty (14:54)
“That's all my guy. Like, whatever he does, he wants to, you know, do his thing, then he could lock it up.”
— Letty (15:31)
On the Loc Removal Process
“You have to take care of the hair like it's a cashmere sweater.”
— Letty (05:55)
On Myths About Jay-Z Wearing a Wig or Being Cloned
“Oh, no, girl. And it's not a lace front, so cut it out. No wigs.”
— Letty (15:50)
On Jay-Z’s Hair Health Post-Locs
“Beautiful, thick, healthy hair. Like, the hair gods was definitely on his side.”
— Letty (16:47)
On Why Patience Matters
“Take your time. There’s no rush, especially if you’re trying to preserve the length.”
— Letty (14:54)
The conversation is candid, playful, and educational. Lauren asks the direct questions circulating on social media, while Letty answers as both a professional and someone with firsthand experience, giving listeners clarity, reassurance, and a peek behind-the-scenes of high-profile hair transformations.