Jayèma on working with England stars, a new look for Raphinha and forging a friendship with Lamine Yamal’s family
Jayèma has had a World Cup like no other. Who else but the London hair stylist has worked with footballers from England, Brazil, the United States and Canada, and hung out with Lamine Yamal and his family, while having no idea who Lionel Messi is until recently?
Who else but Jayèma has been to her first game of men’s football and left before the end of a tumultuous match between Mexico and England at the Azteca Stadium because the atmosphere was too “rowdy”? Who else has made so many footballers feel especially good about their hair and themselves, but the hardest-working stylist and male groomer in elite sport?
“Oh, I’m tired,” Jayèma says on the morning after flying back to Los Angeles from Mexico City. “All those early mornings, late nights and missed flights.” She could be leaving soon for Kansas City or Miami should Marcus Rashford or Noni Madueke “give me a call to retouch their hair” before England play Norway in their World Cup quarter-final on Saturday. “I’m always tired but my work ethic is next to none. I’m always available.”
Jayèma smiles in the California sunshine when I ask whether she enjoyed her fleeting break from work after accepting a ticket to last Sunday’s epic encounter. “It was good but I didn’t stay to the end. It was too much. There was someone in my ear, like literally shouting in my ear, and they were throwing drinks everywhere. The Mexicans were rowdy. I heard the [England] boys had a nasty welcome when they arrived. I was like: ‘God, I need you to let them win. Make them know they’re not alone.’”
After a draining match, Jayèma was bemused. “I still don’t understand football, like how it ends up with people crying,” she says in her London accent as her eyes widen at the extremity of emotion. “But I won’t lie to you. Even though I’m not big into it, I did feel proud when England won. I saw real joy.”
Did she jump up when Jude Bellingham scored twice – particularly as she had been joking with him earlier in the week? “No, but I was happy we won. It was my first ever game of football.” Jayèma pauses. “Actually I’ve been to a female soccer game as I work with some great women footballers.”
She was shocked by footage of Jordan Henderson breaking a wrist during the celebrations. Jayèma, who is warm and friendly, was stunned to discover Henderson was a member of the England squad.
“I didn’t know who he was and he helped me carry my bags when I got to the England house. He was such a gentleman and I had no idea he was a player. I kept going up to him when I needed help with the wifi. I was the only woman there but everyone was so gentlemanly.
“I didn’t even know Jude was a player. But we worked out my birthday was the same as Jude’s and [Eberechi] Eze’s. All three of us have their birthday the same day [29 June]. So it was mind-blowing to look them up and see their millions of followers.”
Jayèma, whose real name is May Jika, comes from Plaistow in east London. Her brand name combines the opening two letters from her brother’s, her mother’s and her first name and she has been on a successful business path since she was a teenager. “I was one of the first people to have an Afro-Caribbean salon in Vicarage Field [shopping centre] in Barking. I was only 17 and had the vision at 15. But I’m always focused. Even when my peers were having fun at university I was working on a plan. Things are happening now and it doesn’t surprise me because of the work I’ve put in. I’ve paid my dues.”
Her work was spotted by leading female basketballers in the WNBA, including the great A’ja Wilson who posted about Jayèma on social media and invited her to the Paris Olympics two years ago. Jayèma was introduced to LeBron James, Steph Curry and Kevin Durant. “Everyone was shocked I didn’t know who they were. They enjoyed me treating them like normal. I did their hair, ate with them, laughed with them. They were very down-to-earth and relatable – same as the Super Bowl guys I’ve worked with.”
Although based in London, Jayèma flies back and forth to America. Her work has been increasingly noticed by footballers, such as Raphinha, whose hair she braided again during Brazil’s World Cup. “I feel we launched a look for him. He’s such a lovely guy.”
Madueke and Rashford asked her to visit the England camp before their opening match against Croatia. “Noni is such a character. He’s so funny. I love both of them. Noni knows what he wants but Rashford told me he was new to braiding so he let me choose what I felt suited him. I looked at his face shape and aura and gave him something to boost his confidence.
“I remember the first day I finished working with them. They were about to go for their match and I was on a flight to LA. I prayed for them and went to sleep. When I woke up, and it was time to get off the flight, my phone was buzzing. Rashford had scored and, wow, I was happy for them. He told me he loved his hair and lots of attention was paid to his look after the goal. But I didn’t know how big the World Cup was then. I know we love football in the UK but I didn’t know to this extent – like all the love I’m getting, with people saying: ‘Thank you for looking after our boys.’ I’m like: ‘Wow! Give me another medal!’
“I told Rashford I’m the least sports person in the world but I’ve ended up in sports. Over the last year and a half I’ve been the only stylist who has covered most of the major sporting platforms. I feel like a lot of [sportspeople] are not really sure what they want and they’re also scared because their priority is to perform well. But they’ve seen my work and they know they can trust me to create a style that’s only going to enhance their game.”
Messi proved his greatness again at this tournament but Jayèma laughs when I say he doesn’t have the coolest haircut in football. “Do you know what? The England team told me about Messi. I don’t think I’d seen his face until a few weeks ago. I told one of the female soccer players I work with that if I saw Messi I wouldn’t recognise him. She was like ‘What!? He’s the only person I would ask for a picture.’ But I’d heard of [Cristiano] Ronaldo.”
Jayèma moves within the elite echelons of football without recognising many big stars – while forging a natural friendship with Lamine Yamal’s family.
“I was asked to style his mum’s hair and afterwards everyone was like: ‘Oh my God! You’re big time now. How do you know Lamine Yamal?’ I was like: ‘You mean her little son?’ It was then I realised he’s one of the biggest footballers in the world. I’d been in their house sitting around with the grandma, the whole family, eating chicken and fried rice and they were making me things. I didn’t know what it meant until I posted a picture and my friends went crazy.”
Has she worked on his hair? “No, he has his natural hair. I just do it for his mum and in the World Cup I saw them all together. Me and his mum are cool and Lamine’s [three-year-old] brother Keyne [who has become a viral sensation] is so smart. He loves African dancing and I say to his mum: ‘How does he know all the songs at his age?’ She just laughs.
“They’re so humble. His mum told me the story of their struggle and how she chose his name – because Lamine and Yamal were the two men who helped them when he was so small. I got goosebumps when they were telling the story. They’re lovely people.”
What about Erling Haaland? “I heard of him for the first time yesterday,” Jayèma exclaims. “He’s got that long blond hair and he’s big.”
Would it be an intriguing challenge to work with Haaland’s flowing locks? “It’s a possibility because I went through his profile and he’s done braiding before.”
There is no chance of that happening this week because, when the Ghana squad tried to book Jayèma before playing England, she felt duty-bound to refuse. “But [Haaland] could reach out after the World Cup because he plays in the UK, right? It could happen.”
As we look ahead to the possibility that England could make the World Cup final I ask Jayèma whether she knows what happened to Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho after the final of the Euros against Italy at Wembley in 2021? She shakes her head and then, hearing about the racist abuse the young footballers suffered after each missed a penalty in the shootout, Jayèma looks horrified.
“I don’t understand it. These [racist] people want them to play for England but how do they expect them to perform when they’re being abused?“I began to see [racism] when I started posting about the players. I was very surprised by some of the comments. Why are people so harsh on these young men who want to do well so badly? People don’t understand the sacrifices they make. They have such a work ethic and are so positive.”
Jayèma smiles when I say the England team, with their mix of ethnicities and hairstyles, are an uplifting antidote to racism and the politics of division. “Exactly. Football is meant to bring us together and give unity. With my work I just want to showcase the fact that these footballers are amazing people.”
