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

Alright, Daëlle thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to start by getting your thoughts on what you are seeing as some the biggest trends emerging in your industry.

One of the biggest trends I see in the natural hair community is the focus on hair growth, especially among those just beginning their natural hair journey. The most common question I get is, “How do I grow long natural hair?” And honestly, I get it, I was the same way. When I first started taking my natural hair journey seriously, my YouTube search history was filled with things like, “HOW TO GROW WAIST-LENGTH NATURAL HAIR IN 10 DAYS.”

While wanting long hair isn’t inherently bad, this fixation can sometimes be harmful in the sense that it creates unrealistic expectations, and makes people believe there’s this universal formula for hair growth. In reality, no two natural hair journeys are the same. What works for CurlyGirlie123 might not work for you, and that’s okay. It’s important to not go into it with the expectation that you’ll have it all figured out by tomorrow.

Personally, I think there is an opportunity here to instead of focusing solely on hair length, I always encourage people to prioritize health because healthy hair, in whatever form it takes, is beautiful.

Daëlle , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Growing up in a Haitian household, there was a lack of representation for embracing & protecting curly hair. The women in my family all had relaxers, so I did not have a solid mentor that guided me in the proper way of taking care of and loving my hair, As I grew older, I quickly began to note the different ways to embrace & love my natural hair by going through trial & error.

I’ve always had a passion for educating and expressing creativity whether through art, video editing, presentations, or school projects. Creating hair content allowed me to explore this in ways I never imagined. I started content creating on TikTok in 2020 during the pandemic where my first video was actually a “Wash Day tutorial on how I wash my naturally curly hair during the pandemic.” That did numbers so I figured why not continue and give it a go by posting more videos. I dabbled in other niches like dancing, but I was quickly humbled when I realized I wasn’t a good dancer.

In 2023, I took a semester-long Startup Incubator course, where I pitched DearCurlz, an online subscription service delivering curly/natural hair products along with personalized tutorials/hair routines catered to each customer’s specific needs. The point of this proposal was to empower customers with curly/natural hair by teaching them not just how to use specific products/tools but also why. Through that experience, I learned how to create business plans, conduct market research, and develop a brand identity. But more importantly, the overwhelming support I received made me realize just how many people were eager to learn more about natural hair care specifically through me. Even though I didn’t move forward with the business (at least for now who knows!), the experience gave me the push to take content creation more seriously.

Now, I primarily focus on educating people on social media on hair care tips, hacks, hairstyle inspo, as well as relatable content where I can showcase my humor and my personality. I love connecting with people based on shared experiences and being able to do so by creating hair content has been a blessing. Something I am most proud of has been my resilience and unwavering spirit. Starting from scratch and not knowing a clue where this could take me wasn’t something that is easy, but I am really proud of the amount of confidence in myself I’ve gained along the way. If there’s one thing I want potential followers to know, it’s that I’m always happy to answer any questions whether about content creation or your natural hair journey.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I love this question because it’s the number one thing my friends ask me. The best advice I can give to anyone starting their social media journey is this: do it for yourself—not for friends, not for family, not for anyone else. When I first started creating content, I made a conscious decision not to follow anyone I knew. I let those close to me find me on their own, and if they wanted to support me, great! I think many of us get caught up on what our friends & family (or people in general) are going to think about us, especially when we’re first starting out. But ultimately, this your journey and yours only.

Another piece of advice I have is, it’s hard to fake passion. If you are genuinely not passionate about the content you’re sharing, it will show and it will almost start to feel like a job. Do it for the right reasons. Share content you are passionate about and it won’t feel laborious. I personally have chosen not to monetize on some of these platforms for the simple fact that I started content creating because I was passionate about hair, educating, and video editing. The last thing I would want is for it to feel like a job.

Lastly, have fun with it! You do not need the perfect background, the perfect camera equipment, or the perfect script. If we always waited for things to be perfect before we started anything we would never start. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself and just learn as you go. You’ll have moments of “failure,” and it is important that you embrace all of those different phases and keep going.

This mindset is definitely one of the main things that I think helped me build my audience on social media.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Yes! When I graduated in Spring 2024, I was convinced I’d land a full-time job right away. I did everything—networked with alumni, tailored five different versions of my resume, and applied to countless positions. But four months post-grad, with no job offers, I figured, why not take content creation seriously at least for now? At the very least, I could share something I’m passionate about and make some income in the process.

This experience has taught me to embrace the unknown and uncertainties in the best way possible and that has been an absolutely privilege. There’s so much pressure in your early 20s to have it all figured out in terms of career, lifestyle, next steps, etc etc. I thought I would have it all figured out and I don’t. Ultimately, while I don’t see full-time content creation as my long-term path, I can’t wait to see what my next career chapter brings.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/itsdaelle
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/da%C3%ABlle-coriolan-a90132210/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@itsdaelle
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@itsdaelle