Stripping Away The Hype: The Truth Behind The Undercut’s Appeal

It was just another Friday afternoon and as I roamed the streets of Katips (a.k.a Katipunan Ave.), I suddenly came across a familiar sight: scores and scores of people sporting the familiar look of cleanly shaved sides with a thick, long wavy top of hair, all with their own personal variations. Similar, yet strangely unique in their own ways as the hairstyles which greeted my eyes ranged from the slicked back look popularized by famed rapper Macklemore, to the side swept bangs akin to the Bieber aesthetic, and even all the way to the sharply contrasting topknot, a manbun style known for its long overlapping locks which are then kept tied up exposing the typical shaven sides. From my standpoint then, I could personally see just how widespread the phenomenon known as the undercut was, a hairstyle whose soaring popularity has been sweeping through university students while giving rise to what is known as the “undercut nation,” a collective term for youths with undercuts. In the short span of years since its popular acceptance into Filipino society, a lot has already been said about the look with a number of people praising it as THE essential hairstyle while others have been more critical of its supposedly strange features and the image it cultivates.

Courtesy of fil.yelp.com.ph

Surprisingly, the roots of the hairstyle which would eventually become the undercut could be traced all the way back to the 19th century wherein people would wear long curtained hair at the top while keeping the sides short. It would eventually evolve throughout the years particularly during World War Two as soldiers from both the Allied and Axis Powers would sport undercuts on the battlefield. From then on the hairstyle would lay dormant up until resurfacing in recent times into the look we now know. When placed side by side with other popular haircuts, the undercut’s features certainly do seem to strike as eye-catchingly different if not strange to say the very least, almost as if it was the black sheep among the ever growing family of hairstyles; this hasn’t stopped many from getting it however. With the recent explosion of this hairstyle’s popularity, opinion about the undercut has been completely split down the middle and it has undoubtedly created a buzz of its own; notable personalities have even been spotted sporting the undercut, which is why amidst the media circus taking place, I have decided to go to the root of all this and see for myself just what about the undercut as a hairstyle generates so much hype.

“…Almost as if it was the black sheep among the ever growing family of hairstyles.”

In my quest to answer this profound mystery, I found myself wandering off into David’s Salon for an interview with Aris, one of the senior hairstylists present at that time and as we got down to business, he explains to me that a key component in the undercut’s current demand was its relatively low maintenance and practicality in lifestyle. Whether long or short, smooth or coarse, as long as one had the right amount of hair there would be an undercut style suited to his/her needs. Nevertheless despite its simplicity, there was great variety in the undercut’s styling options, variety which was not as commonly seen in other hairstyles. “Kakaiba kasi yung undercut eh kahit anong style pwedeng gawin. Pwede brushed up o side swept; pwede din nga undercut na fohawk (The undercut is unique because it can be made to do any style. It can be brushed up or side swept; it can even be turned into a fohawk),” says Aris as he ran his fingers through his own hair. With the undercut’s ease and versatility, it’s no wonder why he and his fellow stylists have taken an active role in recommending it to clients looking for something easy and appealing. Another factor which Aris pointed out was the importance of the undercut in the presentation of self, seeing as despite its unique and unorthodox look, it could still be made to look decent and presentable enough, a fact which was integral when one was concerned in creating a strong first impression. With all these factors in mind, in his opinion it is highly likely that the undercut trend will stay strong for the next three to five years or possibly even longer as long as people kept getting undercuts. “Kasi yung uso nagbabalik-balik lang eh. ‘Pag natabunan yung undercut babalik lang ulit yan (Whatever’s trendy usually ends up coming back. If ever the undercut disappears, it’s gonna come back eventually),” he adds as an afterthought while casually slicking his hair back one final time.

“Kakaiba kasi yung undercut eh kahit anong style pwede.”

Courtesy of Dgmanmila.com

As with anything in life however, the undercut also has its own fair share of detractors who take quite a different view on the hairstyle itself as I would soon find out after meeting Miguel Leonio, a legal management freshie from the Ateneo. Judging from his appearance, it couldn’t be more obvious that this was a man who preferred a more conventional hairstyle seeing as he sported a traditional men’s haircut which was evenly trimmed in all places. Upon sitting ourselves down on the nearby stone benches, he immediately makes his stance on the undercut clear as he begins citing many instances wherein people would get undercuts which just didn’t end up suiting them, as well as his experiences back in high school wherein students would get undercuts merely to rebel against rules, or feel in his words “pa-cool (feeling cool).” In taglish, he states that “Marami sa mga nagpapa-undercut mga f***bois who just want to feel that they’re in and copy what’s popular (Many people who get undercuts are playboys who just want to bandwagon on whatever’s popular),” bringing to light the certain stereotype that many who get undercuts merely want to project an image of trendiness and popularity, and although he believes that hairstyles are essential when it comes to expressing one’s self, he states that such expression can be viewed rather subjectively by others and in negative fashion. Due to this, he has come to perceive many people with this look as social climbers who were only trying to cash in on a popular trend. In spite of his strong words however, he clarifies that despite his abhorrence towards the hairstyle, he wouldn’t really bother antagonizing anyone he knew who possessed it. “I’d call them a f***boi,” he said once more although this time in a surprisingly more tender voice, “But I won’t resent them. It’s just an opinion I have.”

“Marami sa mga nagpapa-undercut mga f***bois who just want to feel that they’re in and copy what’s popular.”

Courtesy of maxmayo.com

After all this, it was now time to hear what an individual, who personally had an undercut, had to say about it; enter Gio Uson, an AB Psyche freshie from the University of The Philippines. After exchanging greetings I proceeded to get his take on the undercut’s significance, and with a tone of reminiscence, he recounts to me the reason why he left his old hairstyle in favor of the latter, a decision which was rooted on the fact that the hairstyle itself was relatively easy and manageable when it came to styling his thick hair. While his old haircut was generally plain with a tendency to just stay in place, the undercut, according to him, was able to give him many options when it came to fixing his hair, options which he desperately wanted and needed. “It was just more stylish. It’s kind of easy to make it look better than the old one. I just need to comb it a little and put wax,” he states. As for any other reasons that go beyond plain looks however, Gio is adamant that the only thing he really cares about is looking good with the hairstyle; in his words “I’m not one of those kinds of people who use their hair to express themselves. It’s just that it looks good,” he states. Looks were obviously the most important factor for him when it came to choosing a hairstyle, which was why he remained open-minded to the idea of leaving the undercut for another hairstyle if ever the time came. Nevertheless, he remains quite happy with his undercut as evidenced by his frequent vanity trips to the mirror. Ultimately though, Gio makes it crystal clear that while he values his undercut as a supplement to making himself look great, that was all there was to it; he didn’t really care about the kind of image it could help him cultivate. “It just makes me look better that’s it,” he says with finality as we eventually bring the interview to a close.

“It just makes me look better that’s it”

In recent memory the undercut has without a doubt taken on a life of its own as evidenced by its overwhelming demand and frequent discussions amongst the masses, and now that it is at the pinnacle of its hype, its constant exposure has actually given rise to a number of detractors who cry “oversaturation” while also building up stereotypes and accusations of “bandwagonning” against the increasing number who choose to get it. As with all trends however, there had to be a significant reason as to why it had the capacity to connect with so many people, and after stripping it down to its bare essentials, one can see that the formula in the undercut’s success as a hairstyle lay in its capability to provide easy versatility, a versatility evidenced by the plethora of styling methods available to those who possessed the haircut, all of which were relatively easy to maintain. Such quick fixes were blessings when it came to a lot of people and offered respite from the daily battle of maintaining one’s hair, and due to this it has become the go-to hairstyle for many; people crave for choices nowadays and the undercut offers just that. In the end, even negative exposure won’t be able to dampen the current appeal which the undercut possesses because ultimately in the minds of many who choose to get it, nothing matters but looking good.

Courtesy of yelp.com