Source: Sesame Street video ‘love my hair’ becomes a big hit on YouTube, ibtimes.com

By IBTimes

By IBTimes Staff Reporter | October 19, 2010 10:48 AM EDT

A Sesame Street viral video of a brown muppet singing ”I really really love my hair’, has garnered over 300,000 hits on YouTube.

The video was made by Joey Mazzariono, head writer at Sesame Street for his adopted daughter Segi from Ethiopia.

The little girl seemed quite unhappy with her hair when she compared it to the sunshine blonde of her favorite doll, Barbie.

“She was going through this phase where she really wanted like the long, blonde hair. … She would look at Barbies and really want the hair, “said Mazzariono in an interview to an entertainment daily.

The video shows the muppet wearing different hairstyles like braids and cornrows, singing about how she loves her hair and does not need to go to a beauty salon. The whole idea was to educate little girls to like themselves as they are, according to Mazzariono. A lot of Afro-American girls can now identify themselves with Segi.

Chris Rock, the comedian and movie actor made a documentary movie called ‘Good Hair’ when his daughter questioned him about her hair.

The black hair business according to him is worth $9 million.

All vintage ads concerning black hair advertised smooth straight hair. Obsession for sporting straight hair did not wane even after the sixties when the Afro style came into being.

Hollywood has seen a number of movies based on this theme such as Barbershop I and II, and Queen Latifa’s Beauty Shop. Talk show hosts like Oprah Winfrey and Tyra Banks have routinely devoted whole programs to this bane of Afro-American women.