Logo

Rub-a-dub-dub, Cardi B’s in the tub. Along with Kahh Spence, a celebrity hairstylist who often finds himself in splashy situations.

“Miss Cardi just wanted me to take her wig out, take her braids down, wash her hair and blow-dry it,” says the OGX Brand Ambassador, explaining that he perched on the side of the bath after her sink was deemed too small for a shampoo. “She was singing along to ‘Finesse.’ We were both dying laughing.”

OGX Aspen Extract Texture molding paste, $9 at Amazon.Kahh SpenceOGX Aspen Extract Texture molding paste, $9 at Amazon.Kahh Spence

Spence is only 23, but he’s hardly wet behind the ears. The Brooklyn-born-and-raised mane man has already toured the world with Kehlani, transformed Justine Skye for the red carpet and wrapped Cardi’s mane in a black leather turban for Alexander Wang’s February show. Versatile and inventive, Spence is known for his prowess with wigs — from the pink Anna Wintour-esque bob he constructed for Kehlani to the Lady Godiva locks he built for Cardi.

He estimates that he works with hairpieces 60 percent of the time, painstakingly sewing his own designs with human hair, a mesh dome cap, cotton thread and a curved needle.

“I get to create a masterpiece in my own time,” Spence tells Alexa from Kehlani’s tour bus. “I take their head measurements, sit in my own space, put all my energy into it. I can install it on their head and it’s done,” he continues. “I think that’s what separates me from other hairstylists in the industry: I’m able to create something new and fresh every single day.”

1 of 7
Spence has created a number of wild styles for Kehlani.Kahh Spence
Getty Images
Advertisement
Carl Timpone/BFA/REX
Matt Baron/REX
Mindy Small/FilmMagic
Advertisement

Spence hits the road with 50-plus pounds of hair accoutrements, including OGX products galore, a variety of flatirons, elastic bands, hairpins, blow-dryers and tons of brushes. Even so, occasionally he needs to restock. On a tour stop in Berlin with Kehlani last year, he and the songbird swung by a beauty-supply store to pick up some extensions for a new look. “We left and then didn’t have any phone service to call an Uber,” says the stylist. “No one spoke English,” he recalls. “We were stuck outside for an hour and one person threw change at us. I started crying and Kehlani thought it was hilarious.”

Waterworks aside, Spence says wigs are ideal for women who want quick, commitment-free style updates. “I definitely recommend them if you don’t want to damage your hair with color, heat and stress.”

To make faux hair look like the real deal, he uses a pair of tweezers to adjust the hairline, then blow-dries the roots straight with OGX Thermal Primer Cream and smooths flyaways with Molding Paste and Shea Sleek Smooth Style Spray. “If you don’t want something permanent, wigs can be your experimental tool.”

Comments
anonymous profile image
Powered by RoundtableBuilt on infrastructure designed for real-time media. Learn more at RTB.io.© Roundtable 2026. By using this site you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy