Meet Jay Infinity

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jay Infinity.

Hi Jay, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.

Hey I’m Jay, the Lead Barber behind Queer Cutz. I currently operate in west Houston. The idea of Queer Cutz began to take root when I was a graduate student in Northeast Ohio, which was about 5 years ago. I was in the midst of my social gender transition, and a way to affirm my gender was to get my hair cut short, as opposed to wearing it long and flowy. I began teaching myself how to cut my own hair to help myself save money in between paying for professional cuts. To be honest, those first cuts humbled me!! They weren’t that good! Cutting hair was way more complicated than I realized, but I kept pushing myself to grow and learn the craft. I took advantage of every opportunity to practice, and after enough time had gone by I started offering to cut local queer folks’ hair in the Cleveland area. The more I cut, the more I realized that a lot of us desired more regular haircuts, but just weren’t comfortable stepping into our local barber shops for fear of ridicule, rejection, harassment, or a combination of all 3. I left Northeast Ohio in 2017 and eventually made my way back to Texas in November of that year, where I started my journey of pursuing a barber license. It took me almost 2 years to complete my classroom hours and both parts of my state board exams – constant harassment about my being trans from peers and clients alike, sabotage from barber school owners, and my own financial instability made the journey very difficult.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?

Traditionally, the barber industry and barbershops are hyper-masculine places. This comes with problems such as: harassment of queer people, downright humiliation, and/or threats of violence that could turn from threat to action in an instant if left unchecked. Insecurity in others often gets projected onto openly queer people like myself who are (relatively) comfortable with ourselves and puts the brunt of the conversations about queerness, trans identity, etc., on us. My main challenges are remaining motivated, consistent, and maintaining respectful boundaries.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?

I’m most proud of the success that I’ve been able to obtain in a field that I never, ever saw myself pursuing! I was originally working towards a doctorate degree in psychology when Queer Cutz was first formed. I’m proud that I’ve found a way to take skills I obtained and put them to work behind the chair for my clientele to feel safe and comfortable. I specialize in shorter cuts, designs with razors, bald fades, and spa facials. I consider myself a luxury barber and strive to go the extra mile to provide top-tier service and leave my clients feeling refreshed and charged once they get up from the chair.

Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?