We caught up with the brilliant and insightful AJ White a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

AJ, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Is there a lesson you learned in school that’s stuck with you and has meaningfully impacted your journey?

I have so many but the main one that sticks out to me was around October of 9th grade. I attended a private PWI highschool, so I easily stuck out. This was around basketball tryouts and I had been workingout nonstop just so I could make Freshman A team.

I remember it so vividly lol. A group of us black kids were huddled around talking stuff about how eachother did at tryouts and who was going to make which team. “Awh, AJ you not gonna make JV , you’re gonna be on freshman. Im gonna be JV/Varsity”. Just everyone going back and forth. Then out of nowhere our PE teacher comes around talking playful trash too. But when he gets to me, all of a sudden he got a little more serious than everyone else.

“Bro, you not gonna make the team. You really should play football lol you would have a better chance at that.” And everyone laughed. I can still see his face and hear the laughter.

That next week the team assignments came out. I was 1 of 4 freshman that played (started) on JV and 1 of 3 that actually sat Varsity.

Still to this day I’ll think about that. The amount of betrayal, embarrassment, rage, motivation, and “watch me then” still burns in me today. Everytime i doubt myself or here someone else, I think of that moment. If I believe in myself and God’s behind and I put in the work, aint nothing stopping me.

AJ, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’ve lived my whole life on the north side of Kansas City, MO. When my brother and I were younger, our dad used to cut our hair on his bathroom sink. Halfway through 5th grade, with me getting a little older and starting to care about my appearance more, I asked our mom to take us to a “real barber”. She took us 5 minutes down the street to The Edge Barbershop where I met Jeremy. Little did I know that the relationship that I would build with him would change my life forever.

As a highschool graduation gift, Jeremy bought me a pair of clippers so I could cut my own hair and MAYBE make some pocket change while playing basketball in college. Determined, I began messing myself up all summer, to then cutting a couple teammates during Freshman and Sophomore year (90% of them free), and eventually I had gained a small clientele of other students at school by Junior year. For about three months after moving back to KC for my Senior year, I started cutting out of my apartment and was working the night shift at FedEx loading boxes on trucks for 4-6 hours. I was tired of my life at that point and was ready to start making decisions for money that I shouldnt have. That week, Jeremy called and told me they had someone leave and a chair opened up in the shop. Three years later, I am as excited to tell people that now, as I was back then.

I like to tell people I don’t just “cut hair”, I provide an “experience”. I’m punctual, yet flexible with my people as well as adaptable. My people love coming to me because they can safely bet that whatever uncomfortable situation/feeling they came in with, they feel lighter walking out. My extensive networks of tradesman, mechanics, educators, and community leaders and builders are also all accessible to anyone that I meet.

I’m also very proficient with all ethnicities and textures. I generally specialize in trending cuts like the “Blow out taper” and “Wolf cuts/Mullets” right now. I provide blurry tapers/fades, clean lines, ready-to-go styling, and customer satisfaction all within 30min-1hr depending on the service.

If God had not put me in Jeremy’s chair back then, Lord knows what my life would be like right now. Through him I was given confidence, guidance, and companionship. I’ve been able to take our conversations from the chair and turn them into reality; whether that’s relationships, school/career opportunities, and life experiences itself. I know what a blessing it’s been to have a Barber in my life, and that’s all I want to provide for every person that I am blessed with to sit in my chair.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I went into college as a Biology major with a Psych minor. I wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon since like, 10th Grade. I was always injured from sports and I liked my highschool physical trainer alot. He’s the one that got me interested in sports medicine.

I started cutting hair in college but that part was easy. The hard part was going to practice everyday to get verbally/emotionally/ and physically abused for 3-4 hours a day, still maintain A’s and B’s while taking 15-17 credit hours of bio and psych classes, and hold onto dearly the last few shreds of self-confidence I had due to only playing a total of 30 “in game” minutes during my 3 years there. Life was tough.

I remember coming home during one of my breaks at school, pulling up to childhood barber/mentor/brother’s house and just said “I’m dropping out”. That’s when we had a real heart-to-heart about life after college and what being a barber looks like.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Just because times being put in, it doesnt mean time well spent.

My first two years in the shop was no joke.the first 1.5 years being a barber i was in the shop 50-70 hours a week while still completing a 15-18 hour course load to finish my Bachelor’s in Psychology. Overlapping with graduation in Dec ’23, I started attending barber school the same month (i was taking my online finals for Psychology while physically sitting in my barber school classroom). From that point, I was doing 40 hr/wk at barber school as well as 30-40 hr/wk at the shop before and after school. I was always “in the gym”.

It’s really hasnt been until this past year for me to realize that all the energy spent and running around doesnt make me feel accomplished, it’s what i did during that time. Now, i try to emphasize what and why i’m doing something and what is the return (personally or for the good of others). That shift has helped me learn how to prioritize time better and also prioritize my own mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health as well.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.theedgebarbershopkc.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bigsouls.life?igsh=MWhqNmhkaTAxd3B0eg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr