There is no argument in the fact that black men are blessed with unique hair texture. The thick and curly hair of African descendants gives several captivating styles to explore. From short hair close to the scalp to long hair with braids and dreadlocks, there are several hairstyles for black men.
Just run the iconic superhero movie Black Panther in your head. There is King of Wakanda T’Chala our protagonist and his nemesis Erik Killmonger the antagonist. They both showed huge variation not only in perspective towards life but also in the swag and style. Though T’Chala was royalty and Killmonger was mercenary, their looks were similar to any other black men in our day-to-day life.
One has neatly trimmed hair thick but close to the scalp and the other has long hair and decorated with captivating dreadlocks. These two styles are quite common among black men these days, so are the other styles the film director Ryan Coogler showed. The movie showed that the Afro black men styles are never going out of trend and there is always room for trying new styles to transform ourselves.
One style cannot be well-suited for everyone. There are a wide variety of trends, in short, medium, and long hairstyles. From short buzz cuts to curls and fades, from flat tops to frocks you can try on intriguing looks and experiment with them by applying tapering fade if you like.
Is It Possible To Maintain Afro-Hairstyle?
It is not rocket science obviously. But it is not easy either. But with patience and proper care, you can own the aesthetic afro-hairstyle.
- Limit hair washing to once a week for retaining the moisture.
- Apply conditioner every time you wash your hair to boost its strength.
- Protect your hair from the heat at any cost.
- Give your hair a mild oil massage frequently.
- If you want to use any trusted hair products use them on freshly washed hair.
- Use products that are rich in protein.
- Your diet also matters when it comes to the health of your hair. Make sure your diet includes a great amount of healthy protein and essential vitamins and other nutritions.
Selecting the style is as important as maintaining its health. You need to consider your facial features, the shape of your face, and the hairline. Your barber or hair specialist might give you great suggestions as they study your features from close. You can choose the style on your own but you need to conduct proper research about various styles out there and which one suits you better in all aspects.
This article lets you skip all that pain and brings the best-handpicked styles that are out there. Check out the styles below and use them as a reference while you make a visit to your barber or while grooming yourself.
Top Afro-Hairstyles That You Can Totally Rock
This article provides styles for both black adults and kids. Stick to the list after you finish going through the list for adults to explore kids’ styles.
15 Afro-Hairstyles For Men
1. Clean Shave
Several black athletes and celebrities are going for this style. As it makes them look intimidating and fearsome in their career. This style is also great if you are fed up with spending time grooming your hair or if you are going bald. You can also fancy a beard on it if you like or you can simply go for a clean shaved beard. It is pretty easy to get done and doesn’t take too much of your time.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Soak your hair
STEP 2: Keep your razor wet
STEP 3: Apply a good amount of shaving cream all over your head
STEP 4: Shave your head carefully using the razor. Make sure you don’t cut yourself.
STEP 5: Shave the beard if you like or check out the beard styles with bald if you like to keep your beard.
STEP 6: Check your head one last time to make sure you didn’t leave any traces.
2. Frohawk with Goatee
This is an incredible modification of mohawk and is very subtle with African hair texture. You can keep it short or long, either way, it is an intriguing style and very well blends in with all kinds of events and clothing.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Grow your hair to a medium or long length if you like.
STEP 2: Trim down the sides using a trimmer or you can shave a selective area above your ears and cut down the rest of the side with scissors for a more distinctive look.
STEP 3: Apply a good amount of best quality hair gel to the rest of your hair.
STEP 4: Style the hair using a comb either sideways or backward.
STEP 5: Shape the front part of the hair, the temples, and the sides uniformly.
3. Buzz Cut
This is yet another simple style for men who don’t want to deal with complex hairstyles. It is simple and low maintenance. This military-inspired style lets you carry an intriguing personality wherever you go. You can fancy a beard but you are advised to keep it short. Try out a goatee or chin strap beard that is thin and low length.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Use the trimmer to cut down the hair on top to a low level or ask your barber for a buzz cut.
STEP 2: Keep the sides shorter than the top section and give them a faded style.
STEP 3: Shape the hair on the forehead and temples uniformly.
STEP 4: Apply good quality gel after washing and drying your hair.
STEP 5: If you like to keep a beard then shape down to a small one for a classy look.
4. Pompadour with Strips
This style lets you flaunt your thick hair and looks great if your hair is straight or curls. This unique-looking style lets you own the funkiest style for any party you crash. This style gives great control over the shape of your hair.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Taper the sides and the back of your head leaving a good area on the top to grow.
STEP 2: Make a parting on either side on the top and give sharp edges on the temples and sideburns.
STEP 3: On the top, neatly shape the hair with the front being long and the back being short.
STEP 4: Apply the gel and use a rolling comb for further styling.
STEP 5: Also use hair spray to keep the style intact.
5. Afro Fade with chin strap
This funky style is often seen in young people and it fits perfectly on all kinds of attire. It is similar to boxed fade however you let the top area grow freely. Give yourself a thin chin strap for a meaner look.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Select a portion of the side and the back for trimming down the hair length.
STEP 2: Keep the edges sharp and neat for a well-groomed look.
STEP 3: Let the top area grow wild and free in a random direction.
STEP 4: Shape out the edges for keeping the hair healthy.
STEP 5: Use a good amount of the best quality gel to keep the hair neat all day long.
STEP 6: Keep the beard length low and match with the sides of your hair.
STEP 7: Make sure the beard does not exceed the jawline as we are trying for a chin strap here.
6. Afro Fade with Box
A box fade might be a little less often these days but you are mistaken if you thought that this style is no longer desired. This iconic style is easy to attain and a sure winner to grab attention. This is suitable for youngsters and adults alike.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Let your hair grow thick and long for this style.
STEP 2: Trim down the sides and back after you select the area you like to be a part of the top section.
STEP 3: You can trim down to the scalp but make sure it is with the machine not with a razor as you want to keep it rough.
STEP 4: Now use clippers to trim the top section into the desired box shape.
STEP 5: Apply hair gel to keep the style intact every time you wash the hair.
7. Dreads with Buzzed Sides
This style is popular among youngsters and has growing prominence after Michael B. Jordan gracefully embraced this style in his Killmonger role. You would medium length hair to pull this off. You can go for classic dreads with sides trimmed down to a low level or you can try different variations and pick the one that suits you the best.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Select the area you wish to keep as a part of the top section of your head.
STEP 2: Trim down the sides and the back as low as you can go.
STEP 3: On top, grab hold of the hair and start making dreads. Be patient or get a professional’s help.
STEP 4: If you fancy a beard keep the sides and sideburn low but visible so that the beard is connected with your sideburns.
STEP 5: Apply gel regularly to keep up the glossy look.
8. Long Braids
If you are a fan of long hair then braiding is the most common and best option you can go for. This style works great on hair that has strong texture and it has been proven that braiding boosts the strength of the hair. Even in this style, there are several variations, you can explore them patiently and choose the one that goes well with you.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: let your hair grow longer than usual.
STEP 2: Apply oil or any styling products that make it easy for you to braid.
STEP 3: Divide your hair into small sections and start braiding them.
STEP 4: You can braid your entire head or only the selected area depending on your taste.
STEP 5: Let your braids rest on the side or onto your forehead or pull them back completely.
9. Split Ends Black Men
This is a true display of the potential afro hair texture has. You can go for completely free hair without restrictions or modifications or you can make it more distinctive by adding curls to your long hair. You can either let it fall onto your face or keep your face clean and visible.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Let your hair grow to a really long length.
STEP 2: After soaking your hair apply a good amount of gel.
STEP 3: Blow dry your hair if you wish to keep it free and wild.
STEP 4: Style the hair either forwards on your forehead or pull it back to keep your face clean.
STEP 5: You can rock this style with or without a beard.
10. Dramatic Dreads
Just like we discussed earlier, this is a variation of dreads you can give a try. For this style, you will have a decent amount of hair left for dreads along with buzzed sides. Many celebrities graced red carpets in several events with unique dreads that are not only eye-catchy but 100% inspirational.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Give the sides a buzz cut or fade but make sure you leave the top as it is.
STEP 2: Apply a good quality styling product on the head and start making dreads.
STEP 3: You can try waves like Weeknd in the picture or try something new and unique.
STEP 4: Use hairspray to keep the hair in its perfect steady form.
STEP 5: If you have a beard match it with your sides and let them connect.
11. Tight Coils
This style definitely suits men with thick curly hair. This style not only helps your hair with ringlets forming in the hair but also lets you have a more funky and mean look altogether.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Select a good area wide enough to make a great number of tight coils.
STEP 2: Let the area below, sides, and the back, trimmed down to a low level.
STEP 3: Apply oil or any trusted styling product for easy maintenance.
STEP 4: Start curling the top section to make the coils tight.
STEP 5: You can fancy a pencil mustache and a goatee to elevate this style.
12. Naturally Long
Flaunt your beautiful hair as trendy and long as possible. This style lets you grow your hair to extreme lengths keeping it masculine and intriguing to match your lifestyle. If you can be patient and try to manage this huge volume this style is a huge win and you can also try a ponytail if you like.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Grow your hair to as extreme length as possible.
STEP 2: Wash your hair with regular conditioning and limit the shampoo usage to once a week.
STEP 3: Comb the hair so that it grows in a decent shape.
STEP 4: Try out different variations to embrace the long hair, with pony, with parting, with beads, etc.
STEP 5: Keep the beard length to a minimum a more compelling look.
13. Dreadlocks
This is one of the common styles you can see and it has been in existence for several decades. Every black man who maintains long hair for years-long must have tried dreadlocks at least once. If your hair gets dried often or if it can be easily knotted then you can go for this style. But the downside to this style is that after your hair is given dreadlocks then it takes time for it to get into a different shape.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Grow your hair long and strong as much as you can.
STEP 2: Apply good quality hair oil or styling product for better handling of your hair.
STEP 3: Give your hair equal partitions and start braiding them.
STEP 4: You can try different variations in this style. You can keep them away from your face or let a few dreadlocks fall onto your face or pull them all to the back and make a knot.
STEP 5: This versatile style can be attained with or without a beard.
14. Long Plaited Dreadlocks
This intriguing style is hard to get but it is totally worth the effort. You can embrace your long and strong hair with unique designs that make you stand out among thousands. This hard-to-attain style requires a professional’s assistance for making it look more appealing.
Styling Process:
STEP 1: Grow your hair as much as you can. Longer the better.
STEP 2: Make ext