Armpit Hair Is Back
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A Hollywood sampling: Miley Cyrus, Janelle Monáe, Jemima Kirke and Lourdes Leon, daughter of early adopter Madonna. In a 2019 Harper’s Bazaar article, model Emily Ratajkowski wrote that, “Sometimes letting my body hair grow out is what makes me feel sexy,” and appeared in lingerie with visible armpit hair.
Armpit hair is increasingly trickling down to the masses, as well. Growing up in rural, conservative North Carolina, Jada Mackenzie Travis did not know that refusing to shave was an option. The florist and singer, now 24, had never seen a woman with armpit hair. A trip to New York that exposed her to different gender expressions inspired her to grow her armpit hair out, and now she sees it as a way to live more authentically.
“In modern history, women have always had smooth armpits in the public eye, so it’s hard to undo that,” said Rachael Gibson, a hair historian in London. Ms. Gibson said that people of all genders have been removing body hair since prehistoric times, with devices as crude as tweezers made of shells in Roman days. Revealing flapper dresses ushered in razors and depilatory creams marketed toward women, such as 1915’s Gillette “Milady.”
or some, armpit hair is a statement. For others, it’s simply more comfortable or more efficient, less irritating to their skin, or in keeping with cultural or religious beliefs, such as the Sikh mandate not to tamper with the hair one is born with.
According to many of those who are taking a stance on body hair, it’s as much about hair positivity as it is about autonomy over their bodies. “For me, body hair is another opportunity for women to exercise their ability to choose,” Ms. Ratajkowski wrote. As for Ms. Travis, who writes songs about her newfound liberation, she said that taking control over your body hair has larger ramifications for your life: “It’s about allowing people to be what they want to be.”
Hair-removal companies are following the zeitgeist, framing armpit shaving as a choice rather than a necessity. Billie, a hair-removal start-up launched in 2017, bills itself as “the first brand to show body hair in the 100 years of shave advertising.” Its merry, millennial-friendly advertising shows a range of diverse body types and different amounts of body hair. Gillette Venus has also recently shown models with unshaven armpits. Compare that to an early 21st-century ad for X Bazin depilatory powder, which read: “Summer dances and modern dressing combine to make necessary the removal of objectionable hair.”Ajani Russell, 24, an artist and actor who appeared on HBO’s drama “The Skate Kitchen,” told me she’d always hated shaving, so she doesn’t do it anymore. She said, “I’ve always wanted to have a beard that I could stroke while I ponder my existence, and I think armpit hair is a close second.”
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No, no, that's fine. We don't need pictures. Nope, no, no pictures necessary, not at all.
