Never give up! Meet the man who has been Obama's barber for 20 years (photos)
He invented the 'Obama' cut, and for 20 years he has been the barber to one of the most powerful men on earth. His name is Zariff and he is Barack Obama's personal barber.
Meet the man who has been Barack Obama's barber for 20 years
In this interview with Complex, he speaks about his life and what it means been Obama's barber for such a long time.
Zariff is from Chicago and he dreamed of being a hairstylist. After he graduated from cosmetology school, he applied for a position at Hyde Park Hair Salon, not realizing it was actually a barbershop.
He was hired and has been there ever since, the Hyde Park Hair Salon has played host to everyone from Muhammad Ali to Spike Lee.
Now, he has served as Barack Obama's barber for years including the past eight years he was in the White House, flying back and forth from Chicago to Washington.
Speaking on how he first started cutting Obama's hair, he said:
"There was another gentleman cutting his hair, named Wahlee. Barack came in one day and he said:
“Where is Wahlee?” I said, “He relocated down the street.” It was probably about half a block away, but Barack was very loyal to the shop.
He said: “What you doing?” And I said, “Well, I’m cutting you hair, I guess. I’m not busy.” So I started cutting his hair."
Meet the man who has been Obama's barber for 20 years
Speaking about his background, he said:
"A long time ago, my school went on a class trip to D.C. At the time, my parents couldn’t afford for me to go and I didn’t feel too good about that because I really wanted to go.
"I didn’t know that down the line I would actually be making that trip on a very regular basis and cutting the future President’s hair. I say that to say you never know your path. You just have to live life, do right and stay prepared for anything."
When he was asked what his best moment with Obama was, he said:
"It’s a really simple one: When he used to bring his girls in the shop every now and then when they were very young.
"Of course, they were so little they’d sit in the chair and their feet wouldn’t even hit the floor. They would watch him get his haircut.
"I think it was Malia who asked him one day, “Dad, why do you get your hair cut all the time? It looks the same.” And he said, “That’s the point.”
Speaking about his plans for after Obama leaves office, he said:
"I’m going to take a nice break after this. I’m pretty sure everybody will try to decompress and go from there. But I’m still his barber. That’s it."
Here is a video of Obama's barber shop: