Jefferson Street Barbershops

In North Nashville lies historic Jefferson Street home to Tennessee State University, and fourteen barbershops scattered along it as you make your way down. It is located in a predominantly African American neighborhood and is home to Nashville's R&B scene. In addition, the street played a huge role in the Civil War. Today, you can find groups of kids playing on the sidewalk, regulars at bus stops and depending on the day, food trucks with fried okra and people gathered around cooking out.

I used to live near Jefferson Street, always passing the 14 Barbershops hosted there in as I drove by. I wanted to have a closer look at this street to really understand how special it is to Nashville. Nashville Barbershops is a body of work that is my way of navigating a more close up view and discovering its community. Its purpose it to preserve, and give dignity to the individuals I would see as I drove by.

Growing up as an only girl, I would frequent barbershops with my dad and brothers on errand runs. Those intimate memories drew me in to this community. As I frequented Showtime, along with others on the block I would oftentimes bump into the same regulars in ways I might at my University. As I connected with barbers like Chris from Showtime, and my own nostalgia of revisiting my childhood routines, I got to develop friendships with those I never thought I could.