Today we’d like to introduce you to Sophia Elise.
Sophia, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Since the age of three, I have had my hair permed. Growing up, I never thought twice about my hair being straight and going in for the occasional perms; it was my norm for many years. It wasn’t until age 12 that I had taken down some French braids and saw curly hair for the first time. At that moment, I began to fall in love with the idea of having coily curly hair. At 18, I decided to cut over six inches of my hair and officially become natural.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
When I had my big chop, the biggest struggle I had wasn’t a sudden change in texture, but not knowing how to style short hair. I always had decently long hair, but I didn’t properly prepare for learning how to style short hair. Before doing my big chop, I would watch hours of YouTube videos on natural hair. I got use to the look of the different curls and coil patterns, how to care for them, what products to buy, and even did porosity tests.
I was about to begin my college years in the midst of my awkward hair length phase. I felt limited in what styles I could do and would often switch between simple ones like high puffs, space buns, and the occasional curly wigs.
Having to juggle all of this while also being one of the very few people in my family with their natural curls was definitely a struggle. Fortunately, I was so infatuated with having my curly coily hair out and proud, I didn’t really care about what others perceived of me. The only person who has to like my hair is me. And I am in love with it!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Currently, I am proud of how far I’ve come in growing my social media platforms! I started posting TikTok’s recently, but It wasn’t until the beginning of 2025 that I started taking the platform seriously. Today, I’ve grown my TikTok page to over 6,000 followers! Most of my content is centered around natural hair tips, product recommendations, and hairstyles. I plan on expanding into other niches soon so I can show natural hair in many different settings!
I feel what sets me apart from other creators is that I am striving to not only continue normalizing type four curly hair but romanticizing it. I want natural hair care to be seen as a blessing, not a hindrance. I have other goals and aspirations in my life that I want to center in having natural hair while expanding into other niches. Things like fashion, beauty, and media. I want to be a visual representation of natural hair so that future generations of black girls and women can see themselves represented without feeling the need to change what is naturally theirs.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
My first mentors were actually on YouTube! Creators like Naptural85, Ifshesopleases, and GARSHELL helped me on my journey by teaching me to stay excited about caring for my hair. Finding those who either have similar hair to yours or represent a hair goal of yours is a great place to start. For those going natural or on the journey of having healthy natural hair, start falling in love with your hair care. Work on only positive affirmation when speak about your hair, even in a joking manner. I’ve given my head of hair a name and treated it like it’s my child. I get excited to take care of her on weekly wash days. The occasional remoisturizing and caring more about the actual care of my hair outweighs any concern of what others thought about my hair.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesophiaelise/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thesophiaelise
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@thesophiaelise
Image Credits
Laura Saenz at Cineography Artistry
Andrea Rubio
Jalen Robinzine
