My name is Alissia Smith but everyone knows me as "Snoop DaBarber." I currently work at Shear Junkies Barbershop in Orlando, Florida and have been a barber for exactly 10 years this year! Whoo hoo! So, to break the ice, I'm going to share my story with you!
Barbering was not my ideal career path! I stumbled upon it after I was forced me to cut my hair in the US Air Force. Weeks after cutting my hair, I was medically discharged for having an asthma attack. I never got to graduate.. The day my Flight graduated and walked, I was sitting in the doctor's office preparing to take an asthma test. I failed it.. I was sent home with a $2,000 check, a foot in the ass and no plan on what I was going to do. My dream of serving 20 years and retiring with full benefits just became a nightmare.
Coming home to the same old situation as a completely changed individual was the hardest thing I had to adjust to. I lost friends because they said "I wasn't the same person." For months, all I did was cry, eat, sleep and gained almost 20 pounds. With a new hairdo, I had to maintain it and had no idea as where to begin because it was my first time ever having short hair.
I asked myself, "What barbershop do I go to and what products do I use?"
Getting a haircut was a true mission! Almost every shop I stepped in, it was as if they were afraid to cut a woman's hair! So, I decided to take matters into my own hands!
Again, I had no idea what I was looking for! I just went for a pair of clippers that "looked" like what I needed. I went home and got to work! Even though it took four hours just to do a simple cut that looked pretty amateur, it was the best cut that I had yet! Over the years, I got better and soon had people asking who was cutting my hair and it took off from there!
For a novice, my work was rather exceptional. Sitting in barber shops for hours studying the barber's techniques, studying YouTube barber instructional videos and practicing them on myself helped me become aware of the Barber life. I gained a high respect for the craft itself. Primarily taking an attachment to the "traditional hot towel shave" for its elegance, precision and how it made clients feel relaxed afterwards. Yet, cutting designs in my clients hair is what really made me stand out from the rest. Using my basic skills of being an artist, assisted in the designing department. During the time that others saw as "my greatest moments" when I was winning barber battles, traveling and gaining nationwide exposure, that I was personally at my lowest. Battling court cases, going to jail, becoming homeless and sleeping out of my car and losing personal relationships due to alcoholism and pride. I felt barbering was all I had, at that time.. While I was "on duty," it was the only time that I felt alive! I was sober, I had people around me that loved me..even if it was just during a haircut and best of all, I was making my own money!
As a mobile barber, I go to my clients in their homes, offices, jobs, hotels, photo shoots, weddings, birthday parties, even nightclubs. None of my clients, during that phase, never knew of my discretion. I remained professional even if I didn't know where I was going to sleep that night or if I had not eaten that day because I used the last of my money to put gas in my car to get to them. I never planned on taking this career seriously. My friends and family told me time and time again to go to school and get licensed but I came up with every excuse as to why I couldn't.
Eventually, I got low enough.. I was so tired of how I was living and took everyone's advice so I moved back to my hometown in my mom's house to go to Barber school. I went and blew through the barber course but I was not attentive to the full course. To become a barber in Florida it takes 1,200 hours of barbering, shaving, nails, and skin care. I only wanted to study one thing and my teachers jumped down my throat to take everything seriously. I am blessed that I actually paid attention because I use much more of that information from the other courses than I had ever thought!
Finishing school was a very big deal to me, because of my personal situation. Graduating should have been a very elating feeling but it was more bittersweet than anything. I was always getting in trouble and well, this time was the finale! A simple battery court case that I was battling for almost five years settled with me having to serve time in the county jail.
This was the very last thing I had to take care of before I became a professionally licensed barber in the state of Florida. The judge put out a warrant for my arrest and I refused to go to jail so I was on the run!
Months had passed without incident until I ended up breaking the fourth metacarpal bone in my dominant hand! No hand = no work.. So, here I was as a graduate with a broken hand and a warrant for my arrest, the only option I had was to turn myself in and let my hand heal properly. I had no idea how much time I had to serve.. I was pretty much walking into the county jail blind with no idea of when I would walk out..
Six months was what the judge gave me and the doctor said I needed three months for my hand to heal so I had no choice but to take each situation in stride. See..most people see jail as "the worst place to be" but it's not. It's an unfortunate place to be but not the worst. For me and some other people, it is the only place you can really find your peace and sometimes yourself. I actually had time to focus on what it was that I was actually seeking within and what I wanted for myself. I took that time to write my goals and the barbering information I had remembered. Other days, when my moral was not the best, I wished I could have changed a lot of things, wrote about it and evaluated why I was in that predicament to begin with. It was very humbling.
Four months later, I was released early due to good behavior and participating in the programs they offered. I came home to a clean slate! No broken bones, no court issues, a brand new apartment with the love of my life and a welcoming and understanding clientele!
Finally, I was happy! Motivated beyond words and ready to hit the ground running! I worked low key in a barbershop until I was ready to take my Barber State Board test. When I was not cutting, I was studying. The time came for me to take my test. I had all odds against me: my school had a 45% failure rate of on the barber state boards, I had spent so much time away from my curriculum because of my time in jail so remembering was a task, many people doubted that I would pass and I was so nervous that I almost psyched myself out. I walked in a wreck and walked out with the word "PASS" below my black and white photo they snapped of me when I walked in. Standing in shock with tears in my eyes..I DID IT! 10 years later, here I am. The mastermind behind "InFamous Cutz By Snoop DaBarber" and a multi-award winning, professionally licensed barber that has traveled the country by way of a pair of clippers! I've cut celebrities and clients that I make feel like celebrities. From cutting on front porches in the blazing heat to 5 star hotels, "Snoop DaBarber" has become a household name and my life has changed before my eyes. And I have so much farther to go! Stay tuned!
Thank you for reading my very first blog ever! I hope to have your continued support. Leave your questions or comments and share your thoughts with me. I hope you continue to read "From Behind the Chair!"
