Although Kim Kimble is technically the star of the WE tv series “L.A. Hair”, Anthony Pazos steals the show every week. From his command for Black colloquialisms (bye Felicia), to his perfectly timed one-liners, it’s hard not to fall in love with Anthony. As a successful hairstylist in his own right, Pazos has coiffed the locks of celebrities such as Gerard Butler, Leighton Meester, and the Kardashians. We recently sat down with Anthony to talk about reality TV, laying edges, and his life as a busy salon owner.
Interview: T. Cooper
How long have you been doing hair, and what inspired you to start?
I helped raise my sisters, so I have been doing hair since I was a kid, but officially I started doing hair professionally at 18. It’s been over 10 years now. While doing hair for my sisters, I realized that I had a natural talent for it. I’ve always been inspired by pop culture, especially in high school; I would look at celebrities hairstyles and it was always so easy for me to figure out how to do them. It all happened from there.
Are you from L.A.?
Yes honey, I am born and raised in L.A. It seems like no one in this town that lives here is from here, but I am.
How did you get your start at Kimble Hair Studio?
I’ve always known of Kim’s work because she’s a huge stylist in L.A. and internationally. I was formally introduced to her by a producer, and we hit it off. She had just signed on to do “L.A. Hair” and all of her stylists were already cast, but she still needed an assistant. She offered me the position, and since I love and respect her work so much, I accepted.
What are your thoughts of your on screen persona?
Oh my God! I think I’m a hot mess, but I see people really entertained by it. I must say that how I come across on “L.A. Hair” and my day to day personality are a bit different. I promise you in real life I’m much more professional. Although that’s my personality, on TV it comes across so much more big and grand than in person. I just try to have fun with it, and not take myself too seriously.
What’s your favorite thing about being part of the cast of “LA Hair”?
Interacting with all of the stylists. We all genuinely love each other to death, and we’re all a hot freaking mess together. We have so much fun on set – beyond fun, I feel like I have a whole new set of sisters and brothers…literally! I love that I have an extended family, it’s really cool.
Is all of the drama that we see on TV real?
Yes. The show is not fake at all, it’s all real drama. We’re living a certain way on camera, but all of our arguments and all of our reactions are absolutely real.
We saw you get your “Black card” on the show, are you doing more African American clients now?
Oh yes! I’m probably one of the only “white looking” hairstylists that can lay some edges [laughs]. I’m like yes honey; let me get that kitchen together. People just can’t believe it! Now with the publicity firm that I work with, I’m their go to hairstylist for African American clients, they don’t have anyone else that can do them. It’s definitely a totally different way of doing hair; a lot of Caucasian stylists do not understand the time that goes into doing African American hair. There are so many textures, levels of textures, kitchens (a slang word in African American culture, used to describe the very curly hairs at the nape of the neck), and edges. They just don’t understand that, I freaking love it, I’m all about it. I’m like, if you want a lace front girl, let’s do it. You want a weave, you’ve got four bundles, let’s do it. It gives me so much life that I’m able to. It trips people out sometimes that I can braid them down, and I’m like yes I can honey. I’m so grateful!
Photo by WisePictureGroup
What are some of your stand out moments in your career?
Obviously being on the show [“L.A. Hair”] is first. Working with Khloe Kardashian, I love Khloe, she’s my girl. She pops by the salon, and talks to me in a baby voice that I just love. Styling One Direction was huge! Another thing that was really big for me, was working on America’s Next Top Model. It was one of my favorite shows to work on, because it was nice to be part of that creative space.
What tips would you give to women who say that either styling their hair is too hard or that they have no time to do their hair?
One option is to wear their hair natural, natural hair is really in right now. I’m talking about any natural texture, I don’t care if your hair is ridiculously curly or ridiculously straight, wear your natural texture it’s huge now! People are really embracing it. You can add natural hair color to it in an ombre effect, which means only the tips will be highlighted in a way that is mimicking the sun; that looks really nice on natural textured hair. Natural hair is effortless, it’s literally get up and go. Another easy style is a top knot. Top knots are also really fun and effortless, braid your top knot to give it a little extra something. You could also curl your hair at night, sleep on it, and then put dry shampoo at the roots in the morning to create messy texture; it’s really pretty.
What’s next for you?
A lot of people don’t know that aside from working at Kimble Hair Studio, I have my own business. I own a three chair salon called Anthony Pazos on Sunset Boulevard, and have a few stylists working under me. It’s nice and quaint, and because I’m on set a lot, it’s perfect for me. We do everything there: haircutting, color, extensions, makeup, eyelashes, waxing, and facials. I’ve got a nice little set up. I’m working on a line of customized lace front wigs that will soon be available on my website. They’re custom colored and hand made to fit by me. They’ll be offered internationally and domestically. You’ll even be able to send us a picture of the hair look that you want, and we’ll recreate if for you on a full lace front. I’m going to be doing more television, beauty expert type hosting, and just the daily grind on set doing hair and makeup for my fabulous clients [laughs].
Can you give us any spoilers on what’s coming up this season?
WE tv gave us three extra episodes, because so much was going on. We were done with our usual ten episodes, but there was so much drama that they extended our season. I will say that Angela and I are not getting along, and that the stylists are kind of venturing off away from Kim and doing their own thing now. In the final episode we’re all crying – it’s so messy, and the crazy thing is that it’s so real too. You have to watch the show and see!
To learn more about Anthony Pazos visit www.anthonypazos.com