Segun Gele…a phenomenal talent
When preparing for Remi’s wedding, I advised her to use one of Mac’s freelance artists for her make-up. I was comfortable with them and trusted their products but Remi insisted that she wanted Segun Gele, he would do her hair make-up and Gele; he did one of our friends’ wedding in Texas and Remi was very impressed. I did not attend the wedding so I had no clue and because he was a dude…I was more than skeptical.

























Well I’ll be damned! My first encounter with Segun was a text message I got from him on the day of the engagement. “Ms Odegbami…Remi needs you! You NEED to check your voice mail and free up space so others can leave urgent messages for you” folks don’t usually tell Queenb what she NEEDS to do so right off the bat I was a fan!

I was very impressed with the man I met, so full of life, so much personality, a huge goofball and he is the life of any party!

I took one look at Remi and my eyes welled up! Anyone that knows her will testify that make-up is not her forte....get my girl some chapstick and she is good to go! But on this day...Good Gawd!! She looked so beautiful and it was just right, the colors Segun chose enhance her natural beauty without being obvious....I stand corrected...this man got skills! And then the Gele....OMG....one word.....FABULOUS!!!!





























I watched mesmerized as ladies lined up to get their Gele tied. He effortless tied each one different from the next yet equally fabulous. He was two steps behind Remi the entire time touching up her lip-gloss and ensuring she was in high spirits.

One the wedding day Segun tied my Gele....it was outrageous to say the least but the kind of outrageous that guarantees all eyes are on you....yall know my attention deficient ass was loving every minute of it!































So I called Segun up and asked him a few questions:


So why Gele?
I will say Gele is just an aspect of what I do and since Yankee is a land of opportunity i just had to take it to the next level from where I started in Naija. I've always done hair all my life, if u know anyone that went to LASU they will tell u how good I handled the hair from braids to twist to weaves to dredz u just name it I did it all and I actually trained quite a number of people b4 God chose to situate me here. Back to the Gele business in Yankee; it all started in Atlanta at a friends wedding where I saw this beautiful woman well dressed with a mans hat on her head and her Gele in her hands so I figured she needed help in tying it and approached her to do it when she laughed at me and say she'll wait to see if she could find a lady that will help out in doing it and she said thanks; I looked at her and said to her "let me do this; if u don't like it I will pay u $5” and she said if I do it right she will make it $7, right there at the car park on this faithful day 26th April 2003 I made my debut with Gele having my First client as the IYA ALAJE of ATL herself and I made $265 that very day after which I left for Naija the next day.
Coming back to Yankee just paved the way for me to start my own little way of making money with the necessity of having any "paper" or "license" to do any type of work.



How long have u been doing this?
Like I said earlier I started doing business in 1996 when I became a saloon owner on campus and I've always done hair for weddings and later graduated into doing makeup for brides, I later added Gele to it when I could no longer coupe with the way my brides look at their engagement parties so I can proudly look back and say I've being in business since 1996; 10 years now to be exact.



Any future plans to expand?
Expansion is a major part of growth so I Will say yes I have plans to expand; I would like to have a school where can teach Nigerian women in America the DIY of Gele and how to enhance their beauty as a true African woman and also I'm looking into having a brand or two of my own Gele fabric and lace for now I'm also looking into having my own line of makeup suitable for women of color.
Is the bridal service a full time gig? If not what is your 9-5 job?

How I wish I can have a 9-5 job LOL, I have never had the opportunity of working for anyone my entire life, I have always had to provide for myself even through the University, not for the reason of lack by my folks but I’ve always wanted to be able to reach for whatever I desire to have and time I feel like having it.
So yes the bridal service is my full time Job and I will say I'm proud of what I do for a leaving it is really paying off BIG time; thanks to my BAD habit of savings.



What else do you do for fun?
hmmmmm what else apart from hair, makeup and Gele?
COOKING of cause yes cooking is another aspect of my life that people don't know I'm good at; well if u see how healthy I look, I know u will not doubt my skills in the kitchen, talk about the most tedious job food to those of u who know how to cook IGNORE is the bomb and mine is to die for and guess what if there is no ogre no ignore shirking.
I also like to dance a lot as that is the only form of exercise I "pretend" to do when I have the chance to.



Do you have any sisters?
Yes I do have a sister my elder and only sister, if u think I learned anything form her that will be the greatest joke of the year cus she knows nothing but cooking aside from that all I know today is borne out of my innate talent and the curiosity to find out how things are done in a different way, I never really went to school at first until I know these were the things I wanted to do for a leaving, I went to Jones Int'l Cosmetology college, went to Last looks makeup Academy, have a Diploma in Bridal Consulting from PCDI (school of professional services) in GA and of cus I fly to anywhere there is a new technique for makeup all in the effort to continue to improve myself and provide a better service for my clients.



How much will it cost to grace an occasion with your presence?
My prices are the same in-state or out-of-state, my services includes doing the brides hair, makeup and accessorizing the bride in readiness for the ISLE , I stay to give touch-ups all day and help with the brides wardrobe for the night party (owanbe as the yorubas call it) all of that for the whole day attracts a $500 fee . Now if I have to fly out of my terrain to service a bride, all she does is transport me there and accommodate me which I think is not too much if she plans way ahead of time to find great flight deals for says $180 round trip. helllllllllllllllllllo! And of cause leaving he rest to my expertise. And I must say I have had the pleasure of working with well over 200 brides from the time I started to date I have being friends with them all and I must say I appreciate u all for giving me the opportunity of being a part of your life's journey cus I know whenever u remember the day u got married u surely will remember and pray for me and God in his infinite mercy will grant all ur hearts desires. Amen



Check out his website

I grew the balls to ask Segun if he was gay…I was scared cause this dude don’t play but I was dying to know! Not that his sexual orientation has any effect on his talent but inquiring minds want to know.
i hope this answers your question. if the people needs further clarification as to my sex life they should please address me in person my number is 832xxx-xxxx and my name remains the same oluwasegun olaleye.

Shegcy


and well..sorry to disappoint yall nosy MOFO but HE IS NOT GAY! He is so at ease with women and they flock him like bees. I can understand why though, he is an absolute joy to be around and he funny as hell not a dull moment when Segun is in the building. It was an absolute pleasure meeting you Segun and when I get married you will be the one to hook me up no doubt!





- posted by Queenb @ 10:52 AM
13 Bullets