Welcome to Lioness Mane

Hey everyone it’s Levina (Lei) otherwise known as LeiLei08 on YouTube 


I decided to begin a blog in addition to my channel as it will be easier for me to make a note of where I buy products, how my hair journey is going and any additional things that I cannot show you on my YouTube channel.

I started my YouTube channel years ago with the intention to watch other YouTubers videos ONLY! Up until very recently, there was absolutely NO WAY that you would ever catch me recording myself let alone putting videos of myself on the internet!

“So what changed Levina?” I’m Glad you asked!! For years and years growing up I felt completely isolated and uncomfortable with my identity. I did not feel like a black female as I was not accepted into their group as I had white in me. I did not feel like a mixed race/biracial female as I was told that mixed race/biracial girls were pretty and had nice hair. I was not made to feel pretty and was made fun of because of my black features and thick hair. Feeling embarrassed and insecure about myself became the norm after years of accepting these negative interactions as a part of my life!

It was only years later in my adult life that I began to feel angry about the way that I felt about myself and the way that I allowed other people to treat me. I began to question why I felt that it was normal for people to speak negatively about my hair or features. I questioned why I felt that I deserved it every time a hairdresser made a negative comment about how un manageable my hair was. I began to question why people felt that it was ok to tell me that I needed to relax my hair.

“Why must I be made to feel so ashamed about myself that I have to pay to get my scalp burned each month and then when my scalp burns, I am told that it is my fault for scratching my hair or for washing it!” I questioned myself.

I mean can you believe that! Not being allowed to scratch or keep your own hair clean so that you can go and get some chemical poison placed on your hair so that it straightens out and you will become more socially acceptable.

I truly felt like harsh chemical relaxers and texturizers were stamping out all of my hair’s life and character. Something just changed within me and I just knew that this process wasn’t right. I was sick and tired of spending money on burning myself every couple of months leaving puss and blood on my scalp making my hair clump and stick together on my head. I was also sick and tired of feeling embarrassed and degraded by comments made when my roots began to grow back.

I knew nothing about black history or my roots or identity as a black woman but all of the sudden I was desperate to learn about it. I began to research on the internet and I watched roots and other videos concerning black history and tried my best to re-educate my mind set. It was here that I stumbled across hundreds of videos made by other women who had similar experiences to myself and that’s when I decided that there would be no more relaxers for me. I feel so much better about myself since I made the decision to love and accept myself the natural way that God made me without feeling ashamed or embarrassed.

Therefore It is my aim with Lioness Mane to promote awareness about the beauty of natural hair. Lioness Mane aims to encourage and inspire women with naturally kinky, curly, coily and/or afro hair to be proud of the mane that they were blessed with! Lioness Mane aims to provide insight to those who wish to learn.
I hope that you can gain some insight and inspiration through joining me on this blog.





If you are not already, feel free to join me on my YouTube channel Lion Who Unites at www.youtube.com/leilei08
You can also join me on Twitter on www.twitter.com/lionessmane


Thank you for joining me, I truly appreciate it!!


One of my first youtube videos: My Mixed Race/Bi-racial Hair Experience