- I grew up in a salon
with hairspray and flat irons and
the smells. I love the smell of a salon
there's nothing like it.
It was always like, man, I wish I could get in the chair
and do what all these beautiful women are doing.
♪ Don't touch my head ♪
♪ No, no, no, no, no. ♪
- [Jay] Keya Trammell is like a lot of aspiring singers,
loads of talent and big dreams.
But for years, Keya had a secret.
When she was two, she started losing her hair.
- I have something to call alopecia areata,
which is I bald in spots. So if I allow my hair to grow,
it would grow, but it would just be super patchy.
Like I'll let you like, see, I don't know if you really,
you should be able to see.
♪ Cause it's the feeling I wear ♪
- [Jay] Today Keya shaves those patches
and wears her alopecia proudly.
♪ Where I had to go ♪
♪ What maged to me ♪
- [Jay] But that bold bald pride was a long time coming.
When she was young, Keya hid her bald or patchy head,
but she couldn't hide it completely.
Kids laughed at her and adults thought she had cancer.
- What's going on South Suburbs, Hazel Crest, Homewood,
Markham
- [Jay] With her larger than life personality, easy laugh,
and great singing voice, Keya was still
pretty popular in school.
But that didn't protect her from bullying.
Even from her first crush.
- He was just like going at it, baldheaded, ugly.
You know, this, that, nobody'll like you.
♪ I finally found what, where I'm ♪
- [Jay] Keya is lucky to have family
who always worked hard to keep her positive.
- My parents have always instilled this,
you're still beautiful to me
and not even still beautiful.
You're beautiful to me.
I accept you for who are.
- [Jay] But that didn't mean she was ready to wear
her bald head.
- I always say to people like, yeah, I'm Keya.
I have alopecia. I always said it vocally.
But I was not willing to show it.
♪ Hello. Hello. Hey now ♪ - [Jay] And even when
she started performing, it was always in a wig.
It was her grandmother who encouraged her
to stop hiding her head.
But she wouldn't listen until about four years ago
when she was getting ready to record
a singing video at home.
- I was trying on different wigs.
And I was like, nah, I'm just not feeling it.
♪ We were made in ♪ - [Jay] And so finally
she took her grandmother's advice.
♪ Until I still not believe in God ♪
♪ But they fear us just the same ♪
- [Keya] And it went viral, like 1.3 million views viral.
- [Jay] The thousands of comments included people
loving her look and trashing it.
♪ I go aw, aw, aw, nah nah no, no ♪
- [Jay] That was hard. But she had found a mission.
♪ Oh no, no, no, no, no ♪
I feel like I should take on the responsibility
to walk the streets bald, to walk the streets
as an alopecian.
♪ I was going under water ♪
♪ With three dollars and six dimes ♪
And the moment I did that,
I felt like myself for the very first time.
It was just like, this is me and I'm good with me.
And when you're good with yourself, you know,
other people are like, Hey, why are you bald?
And I'm like, Oh, I got alopecia.
- [Jay] Soon after that, Keya was performing bald
in Central Illinois and saw a little bald girl
in the audience.
- And I saw her mother crying. And I was like,
I think that little girl has alopecia.
- Hi. - Hi.
Of course I started crying right away
because that was the first person besides Zion
that I've ever seen with alopecia.
- [Keya] Now, Zion and I have made a relationship.
I go visit her.
- I just want Zion to know that it's okay.
This is who she is.
And that she is gonna still be amazing.
And then to meet Keya and to see that she's actually
walked in the same shoes as Zion.
That was just, that was a major load lifted off me.
- What's up?
How are you feeling?
- [Jay] Now, Keya mentors and inspires
lots of girls with alopecia.
Like sisters Jayla and Denise Winkfield.
- Come on Jayla, let me see what you got.
Let me see, don't be acting bashful now
Come on, girl. Come on.
Come on. Come on. Come on.
Ey. Ey. Hey. Hey.
Get it, get it with the shout outs.
- Well, I think she's a good role model to like
children like me because
she's not stopping what's she doing.
She's not stopping life, trying to be sad and stuff.
♪ I just want what she has ♪
- But she moved on and going to bigger places and
doing greater things with her life.
- She should be like a poster girl for alopecia.
You know what I'm saying.
She's human. I'm sure she has sad feelings
about this disease.
I'm sure any human would,
but she doesn't stop.
♪ How can I love somebody else ♪
♪ If I can't love myself enough to know ♪
Having alopecia gives you the incentive to really dig
deep down within yourself and not have
to put so much emphasis on your outer exterior.
And when you do put emphasis on your outer exterior,
you better know you, the baddest,
baldest thing, walking, okay.