What Being a Naturally Curly Redhead Taught Me About Confidence

Growing up with naturally red, curly hair was funny. People would call me “Little Orphan Annie” at the park, or ask my mom whether she dyed and permed my hair as a child. Why would she do that?

Hi, my name is Miss Alex White, and I am a musician and entrepreneur based in Chicago, IL. In 4th grade, I wanted to play the electric guitar, then started a band when I was 13 years old. At age 25, I became a full-time, professional musician in the rock band, White Mystery!

White Mystery: the sound and the style

White Mystery is a candy flavor and my last name is White, so the concept fit well. I am sweet and mysterious. 3 words I would use to describe my personal style are: flower, boss, Cartoonland. You can see a diagram of my influences, which includes Tina Turner, the MC5, and Marc Bolan from TREX, here. Even after performing on NBC Last Call With Carson Daly, serving as Vice President of the Recording Academy for the Chicago Chapter, self-releasing seven full-length albums, producing the feature length film, That Was Awesome, being one of the few women endorsed by Orange Amplifiers, attending DePaul University School of Commerce, and modeling for Levi’s Jeans, the accomplishment I am most proud of is being from the city of Chicago, and graduating from Chicago Public Schools.

How my personal confidence came about

Growing up with naturally red, curly hair was funny. People would call me “Little Orphan Annie” at the park, or ask my mom whether she dyed and permed my hair as a child. Why would she do that? Sometimes the attention was a little too much, so as a teen, I shaved my head, then straightened my hair when it finally grew back. Finally, when I was about 20 years old, I realized how cool it was to have very different hair from most people. Now I pick my hair out to make it as big and in-your-face as possible. Embrace your curls!

If I could tell my younger self one thing about life and love, it would be, this too shall pass.

White Mystery is an official South By Southwest Artist (SXSW”> and will perform a showcase in Austin, Texas this March. The band releases a new album every April 20, and this year marks the 8th release! Visit the band’s official website, WhiteMystery.com and click here for our upcoming show schedule. Listen to White Mystery Music on Bancamp or Spotify.

Follow White Mystery Band on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook