Not The Bayang!
Listen, it feels good to bond over our past hairstyles on the internet.
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On Monday, July 13th, @itsjustnyissa posted about the bayang and I couldn’t stop singing about it. It was a term I’d never heard before, and if admitting this means I lose a few cool points, I’m okay with that — because I still knew exactly what Nyissa was talking about.
What is a bayang? Stay Hipp refers to bayang or banyangs as “a slang term for bangs coined by TikToker @Itsjustnyissa in an original song about hating bangs.”
I’m going to take it a step further. A bayang is loosely defined as a cut style that’s between a full swoop and a freshly cut bang. I say loosely because bayang is also an attitude, I think, more than this very clearly defined bang style. It’s in transition, which is why Nyissa riffs:
Not the bang b*tch
That sh*t ain’t it b*tch
That sh*t is ugly as the f*ck
Take it out b*tch
“Take it out”, as in, you need to take out that tiny track of weave giving you a fuller bang, immediately. Sometimes there is a tiny track of weave, sometimes there is not. (I reached out to Nyissa for comment, but did not hear back.)
The rhythm and pacing of the song makes it easy to sing along and swipe your bayang to, so it caught on. When I did a Google Trends search on the term, you see search results skyrocketing after Nyissa’s video. But I was curious if there were other times bayang had been mentioned, or referred to, that I simply never caught.
Not really. It’s likely a term tossed around among friends. However, it’s important to note that “bayang” is a term in Indonesian and Filippino languages that can mean shadow.
People began creating TikToks with the greenscreen feature highlighting raggedy celebrity bayangs. Even Lil Yachty posted a TikTok with his hair pressed straight and a deep parted bayang. It (the bayang) went viral. He later said the video exposed his TikTok account, which was only meant for TikTokers, people who actively use and post to the site. “I am embaaaarrassed.”
2020 XXL Freshman Class rapper Mulatto
Regardless if your bayang was crusty or supreme, the point today is that it feels good to bond online over a similar style. Both when we nailed it, and when we thought we nailed it. It’s about reveling in and remembering the confidence that we showed in that moment — and honoring that.
So, what does a bayang *actually* look like? Here is Middle School Darian, grade 7 or 8. You can see here that my bangs hit my eyelashes, a clear indication that they had recently grown out.
However, there is certainly a version of the bayang that you swoop to the side. The bayang is not a full side bang as we see here:
The bayang exists on a spectrum. It can be a little shorter than a full side-swoop because again, it’s more of a transition style, and it gives the wearer the freedom to either wear their bayang fully to the front or off to the side. Here, comedian and actor Quinta Brunson, gives us a version of the bayang, off to the side:
Comedian Quinta Brunson
“Bayang” first came on my radar when comedian Quinta Brunson tweeted her own. The placement of the hand, the pursing of her lips. Others followed suit and quote tweeted Quinta with their bayang. The song ushers in this perfect mix of nostalgia and style that you want to take part in. Even if it means referring to a style you’d never wear now. Even if it means Nyissa is coming for you.
Apparently, I wasn’t the only one.
Denayja Reese, age 5 in 1995 with her mother.
Co-founder of A Very Good Job, Crystal Anderson in 2005.
I don’t think we’re done hearing or talking about the bayang. Nyissa just released the song officially on YouTube and it’s readily available to use in Instagram Stories.
Nyissa is selling merch. And there’s one thing I know: Black creators have a much better sense of how to capture and capitalize off of their own moments before letting brands do it first, and without permission. We’ve learned a lot since 2014, when Peaches Monroee ne Kayla Newman blessed the world with “on fleek.”
“Bayang” is a term that isn’t going away soon, because it’s likely existed for a while. Just because you or I haven’t heard it until recently doesn’t mean others haven’t been using it.
This tweet by @camerouninema, sent in good fun, prompted more Black girls to post versions of another style they’ve worn in the past: the “Farrah Fawcett” or simply, the wand curl.
Washington Post Audience Editor Nia Decaille
I am pretty sure the tweet was prompted by Rose Nora Anna’s TikTok, who posts 70s inspired videos.
I think we’ll continue to see people bond over styles and hair trends in good fun, or simply to feel seen.
Justice for the bayang. Blessed is the bayang solidarity.