(Image: Thinkstock)

Yaki. Mongolian. Chinese. Indian Remy. Once a hush-hush taboo, hair extensions have become the must-have accessory among women. From celebrities to everyday professionals to top CEOs, many proudly spend top bank on what they consider an investment—hair—with a price tag that can range from a couple hundred dollars to thousands per installment. The hot commodity is so coveted, it’s hit the black market, with thieves swiping thousands of dollars in inventory from supply stores across the nation.

In the multimillion-billion-dollar beauty market, African American women account for a major portion of hair extension buyers and wearers, yet Asians and other ethnicities control much of the production and sale of the product.

Despite the odds, these two African American trailblazing entrepreneurs have been able to gain a strong foothood in the industry, taking their passion for beauty and turning it into high dividends. BlackEnterprise.com talked with Ericka Dotson, co-founder of Indique Virgin Indian Hair, and Karen Mitchell, founder of True Indian Hair-–each boasting a client list that includes Ciara, Lady GaGa, Kelly Rowland and Jill Scott—on how they were able to find success in the industry, what it takes to remain viable, and why beauty is such a popular, and profitable, industry to invest in.

Videography and editing by Kahliah Laney

Over brunch at Michael White’s Ai Fiori restaurant at Setai Fifth Avenue hotel, Jill opens up to PR Expert and Brand New You host Karen Taylor Bass about her take on the business of music, what’s next for her in life and love, how she hopes to flip the script and what’s next for her as she steps into the The Light of the Sun.

Makeup for Karen Taylor Bass by Vera Moore Cosmetics

Filmed on location at Michael White’s Ai Fiori at the Setai Fifth Avenue, a Capella Managed hotel

As the owner of The Chamber Group–a boutique public relations, image marketing and special events company in NYC–the PR veteran of 21 years helps guide the careers of some of the biggest names in showbiz, among them Wendy Williams, Jill Scott and Drake.

So it may come as a surprise to hear that, outside of Chambers’s current roster of entertainment-industry clients–which have also included Keri Hilson, Outkast and Ne-yo–he’s not interested in repping artists anymore.

“The goal is to move further away from entertainment and do more brands and sports,” says Sony BMG’s former Senior Vice President of Publicity & Artist Development, who has designed the marketing campaigns of brand heavyweights like Armani, Versace, Ford and Belvedere.

“I don’t find that pushing the whole celebrity PR thing is lucrative,” explains Chambers, who spoke to BlackEnterprise.com as part of our continuing coverage of the Business of Music this month. “A lot of young PR folks are about that because it looks good on paper…but business-wise it’s not as attractive as working [with large corporations].”

“I’m 41; not 21,” the one-time Arista exec confides. “I’m not pressed to say ‘I rep so and so.’ So if you come to me it’s about you wanting us to put together a strategic media campaign. I am not the party publicist.”

The seasoned rep and marketing expert says he built up the confidence to strike out on his own in 2006 and form his own agency after so many years in “the industry” watching his mentors–music svengalis slash business titans like L.A. Reid, Jimmy Iovine and the legendary Clive Davis–run superstar record labels. “[Clive] taught me a lot on the business management end, so when I did decide to leave [Sony BMG] I was able to take those management skills and apply them to my own company,” he says.

“People say I left the music industry at the perfect time,” the Jamaica native continues, referring to the biz’s now pay-per-single I-Tunes format. “I left [Sony] five years ago because I felt I had reached a plateau and needed to be challenged. Even though it was scary…I figured, for years I have worked very hard for others, why wouldn’t I do the same for myself?”

When it comes to offering advice to aspiring entrepreneurs or publicists wanting to follow in his footsteps, Chambers offers: “Your word should be your bond,” especially when it comes to building and maintaining relationships. “If someone trusts you because of the work relationship you’ve established over the years, they may very well work with you on projects you’re fighting hard to get coverage on.”

Second, he advises, don’t think that simply doing your job correctly means you’re going the extra mile. “Good publicists take the time to put together professional campaign proposals as well as prepare official reports updating their clients on their progress. Being organized is key,” he suggests.

Lastly, Chambers says, if you’re just starting out in the business, intern several places before you go solo. “Interning is critical,” he says. “A young person fresh out of college should become well-versed in different mediums of PR–whether that’s corporate, crisis management, fashion, sports or entertainment. It’s best to feel out each work style to figure out where you best fit in.”

Hip-hop star Common performed at the White House Poetry night Wednesday (Image: File)

• Common Performs at White House Poetry Celebration

Conscious rapper Common took the stage at the White House Poetry night Wednesday amidst the controversy fueled by conservative politicians from Sarah Palin to Karl Rove earlier in the week.

The hip-hop star was a part of a larger initiative celebrating American poetry and prose. The festivities kicked off with the White House poetry workshop, hosted by First Lady Michelle Obama. It wrapped with the evening showcase featuring artists such as Jill Scott, Billy Collins and Aimee Mann.

Watch Common’s performance at the White House:

• African American Teens At a Lose for Summer Employment Opportunities

As the academic year ends, the number of teens looking for summer jobs increases, however, job opportunities are few and far between for underprivileged African American teens, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

Poor African American teens trail Hispanic and White teens when it comes to securing a summer job by over 10%. In fact, 36% of white and 31% of Hispanic underserved teens—between the ages of 16 and 19—were able to find employment, while only 20% of Black teens in that same age bracket were as lucky. Middle-class African American teens were only slightly more likely to find work in comparison to their white counterparts.

• Survey Reveals 7.5 Million Facebook Users Are Under 13

Consumer Reports’ 2011 State of the Net survey released Tuesday shows children younger than 13 are infiltrating Facebook’s screening requirements, making up approximately 7.5 million of the network’s active users. Among this preteen demographic, over 5 million are under 10.

“Despite Facebook’s age requirements, many kids are using the site who shouldn’t be,” Consumer Reports technology editor Jeff Fox said in a statement. “What’s even more troubling was the finding from our survey that indicated that a majority of parents of kids 10 and under seemed largely unconcerned by their children’s use of the site.”

• Microsoft Acquires Skype for $ 8.5 Billion

Microsoft makes the biggest deal in its 36 year history, attaining the widely-used phone and-video dialing service Skype for $8.5 billion.

Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer will attempt what other companies have failed to do: make money off the Internet phone company. The computer technology company plans to incorporate Skype into everything from it video game device such as Xbox and Kinect to its Office software suite.

Tony Bates, the chief-executive-officer of Skype, sees the deal as an expansion opportunity for both parties. “Microsoft and Skype share the vision of bringing software innovation and products to our customers,” said Bates, in a press statement. “Together, we will be able to accelerate Skype’s plans to extend our global community and introduce new ways for everyone to communicate and collaborate.”

• Michael Steele on Staff at The Root

The former and first-ever African American Republican National Committee chairman has entered into the first media deal since resigning from his position at RNC. Michael Steele is the newest member on staff at The Root, a division of The Washington Post Company.

As contributing editor, Steele will supply a monthly column surrounding major political topics, including the 2012 presidential race.

“At The Root I’ve found a place where I’ll be able to express my opinion. In the past my candor hasn’t been appreciated, but now [at The Root] I’m expected to say what I want without pulling any punches. I look forward to hearing the readers take and public reaction to my commentary” said Steele.

Jill Scott on motherhood, music and much more

This week on Our World with Black Enterprise, host Marc Lamont Hill sits down with singer, songwriter and actress Jill Scott, who speaks passionately about motherhood, the music industry and the youth in her hometown of Philadelphia. A Grammy Award winner, poet, author and philanthropist, Scott is also an entrepreneur and the visionary behind the Butterfly Collection Inspired by Jill Scott for Ashley Stewart, a bra line for plus-size women.

Also, in this week’s On The Record segment, Hill talks with Republican political commentators Lenny McAllister, Vanessa Jean Louis and Armstrong Williams about the rise of African Americans within the G.O.P.

Our World with Black Enterprise is the award-winning weekly 30-minute program, hosted by Marc Lamont Hill, providing a fresh mix of interviews with today’s top newsmakers and celebrities, eclectic roundtable discussions concerning the hottest topics affecting African Americans, and profiles of some of the world’s most intriguing people.

Click here for times and stations where Our World with Black Enterprise airs in your area.

Here, Karen catches up with singer Jill Scott at a fundraiser for Scott’s Blues Babe Foundation in Philadelphia. The two, joined by Blues Babe Executive Director Aisha Winfield, talk about juggling their careers and their families as moms, and how they plan to have it all in 2011.

See more with Jill Scott on Black Enterprise’s TV show Our World.

Nourishment for the mind: Terry McMillan's next book, "Getting to Happy"

As we approach my favorite season, fall, my plan is to ratchet up the to-do list with passion, persistence, favor, and balance. You?

A mere three months left before another year, and the great news is there is still time to make this your best year yet. Continue to plan strategically; make that money call to a potential client or employer; talk up your brand like a rock star; be your authentic self and know that you are talented; and, most importantly, find the time to do you.

Here are my favorite people and products/brands to help capture the best in mind, body, heart, soul and hair for fall 2010.

Mind/Inspiration
Live your passion like today was your last day and create what is essential and missing in the market place:

Dr. Willie Mae Hawkins, needed support as a single mom so she created a movement, SPRING, Inc. SPRING, Inc. provides spiritual encouragement for those who are currently single parents or who will soon become single parents through separation or divorce; those who have been widowed; those who are adopting, are foster parents, or are involved in some other custodial arrangement.

Max L. Siegel, one of the most influential executives in the entertainment and sports industry, was once the highest ranking African American executive in NASCAR. Now he can add producer to his impressive credentials with a 10-part docu-series titled Changing Lanes, which will premiere on the BET network Sept. 1.

Hawkins created SPRING Inc. to provide spiritual encouragement to single parents.

As you know, books can transform your mind and set your ideas on the fast track. My favorites to capture the entrepreneurial spirit, provide spiritual balance and transform one’s mindset as it relates to debt, disaster, divorce, deceit, disease, and depression is Facing Your Giants by Max Lucado. And if your mission is to over-stand, leverage social media, and learn how to monetize your blog, then purchase Crush It by Gary Vaynerchuk.

Get ready for Getting to Happy, Terry McMillan’s sequel to Waiting To Exhale, which is set to arrive on Sept. 7.

Body
Don’t believe the hype! There are no potions and magic pills to reverse the aging process. However, you can get the blood pressure, cholesterol, joints, muscles, mind and stress all in check with a four letter word – yoga. Bikram yoga is the most intense and worth a try to achieve serenity.

Spadium, New York: No need to find your passport–you can eat, love, pray and spa in your own backyard. If you live nearby a major city, there is a Korean district close by. For a mere $110 you can have a traditional Korean body scrub, massage, facial, get your hair washed and conditioned, and enjoy a sauna, steam room, and green tea.

Soul
Music can heal thy soul and transform thy inner being. Our favorite brand new mommy, Jill Scott, is in the studio putting the finishing touches on her fifth studio album, Light of the Sun. It’s scheduled to be released late this year.

Newcomer and unsigned talent Abby Dobson is a gifted jazz and R&B singer with a debut album, Sleeping Beauty: You Are the One You Have Been Waiting On: Volume One.

Mommy Power
As we get ready to send our children off to school, the mommy brand takes center stage. Regardless of how you came to be a mom, you know that this job has the best benefits and the greatest stress:

The Juiceboxx is a blog for modern parents, giving moms and dads what’s hip, happening, and helpful in the world of parenting.

The Brand New Mommy is the digital destination for black women renewing and redefining their personal brand post-childbirth.

Hair
Whether your mane is textured, weaved, locked, or natural, a service/product is always needed to get one’s hair healthy. After a few mishaps, I have stumbled upon the potion and pros that will save and enhance your hair:

Brownstone’s Feng Shui revitalizes hair and scalp, stimulates hair growth, relieves dandruff, and leaves your hair smelling delicious.

Indigofera.com offers premium plant-based products and solutions for your hair and skin while offering an interactive hair blog for your burning questions.

Duafe Natural Holistic Salon is a celebrity haven in Philadelphia that provides premium haircare services and Shea butter-enriched homemade products.

Loving Your Natural Hair workshop, conducted by Felicia Leatherwood, is a must to understand how loving your hair and not cursing it will make it thrive.

What will you do this fall to produce different results for your mind, body, soul and hair?

Karen Taylor Bass, The PR Expert, provides entrepreneurs, corporations, and mompreneurs with essential branding, marketing, and public relations coaching; www.karentaylorbass.com and www.taylormademediapr.com. Follow her on twitter @PREXPERT to read her daily tips on boosting your brand and @TheBrandNewMom for strategies on renewing and re-defining.

Jill Scott share tips on balancing motherhood and career.

As you move and groove in life and embark on motherhood in your 30s, the balancing act of family, career and maintaining your personal brand can become a daunting task.

How does one renew and re-define oneself post mommyhood– at age 37– and still maintain top status in the entertainment industry? By being authentic and forgiving for not being perfect.

Jill Scott, our favorite homegirl, multiplatinum, Grammy award-winning  singer, poet, author, actress– and now mommy–shares how she balances and enjoys life’s golden moments. “Being a mom is better than I thought because of the way I love it and experience how much my son loves me. I wouldn’t trade it, however, its work and exhausting.”

Scott stresses the importance of having a good support system when raising children. “All women must implement what I call their Operation Village. This is where you assemble your team of family, friends, neighbors and girlfriends to give you a hand and minute to heal. Without my village I would not have made it,” she says.

Balance is one of those words that all woman grapple with and allowing yourself to be human is key to understanding the gift of motherhood.  “Women feel like they are supposed to hold it down – that’s true to an extent; holding it down does not mean doing it all yourself. Look for people who love and trust you and love your child. You will need time for a walk, replenish your being, and adjust to all the nuances of the mommy-hood. Next to maintaining good health it is essential and mandatory to establish your village for support, ” Scott says.

Mommyhood can present older first time moms with a reality check when schedules are no longer theirs and we can easily lose ourselves post delivery. Jill emphatically shares, “I’ve always done what I wanted to do – If I want to walk, I walk; after 37 years of doing Jill, having a baby threw me – responsibility, sleep deprivation, and exhaustion was r-e-a-l. If you can afford to hire help such as a babysitter and nanny — give yourself that gift — your baby will thank you.”

Here are Jill Scott’s ‘brand’ new mommy tips:

Know thyself. I am a sleeper and if I can squeeze in 10 hours I am happy. Take charge and put your baby on a regiment so you can breathe.

Work out. You will feel better and get your body back.

Make love. The physical connection reminds you that you are still a woman and a sexual being and that is equally important as being someone’s mommy.

Take time for self. Get out the house and enjoy life – your baby will appreciate a calmer mommy.

Give self a lift. Change hair, change makeup and style to usher in the mommy-hood season.

Forgive self. We are not perfect, and because you want to enjoy life does not mean you are not a good mom – you are a wo-man and must be cherished.

Let me know what you did to renew and redefine your self after mommyhood.  Is your Operation Village in full effect?

Jill Scott is currently co-headlining Maxwell’s spring/summer tour and is scheduled to perform at Lilith Fair. Her fourth studio album, “The Light of The Sun,” is scheduled for a late fall release. She also stars in Tyler Perry’s “Why Did I Get Married Too?,” still in theaters, and her critically acclaimed BBC/HBO show, “The No.1 Ladies’ Detective Agency,” goes back into production in late 2010.

Karen Taylor Bass, The PR Expert, provides entrepreneurs, corporations, and mompreneurs with essential branding, marketing, and public relations coaching; www.karentaylorbass.com and www.taylormademediapr.com. Follow Karen’s tips and Caviar & Chitlins moments at Twitter, twitter.com/prexpert.

Scott unveils the Butterfly Bra Collection

Grammy award-winning singer, actress, poet, author, and philanthropist Jill Scott is perhaps best known for her inspirational and seductive lyrics. But she’s also an entrepreneur, unveiling the Butterfly Collection Inspired by Jill Scott for Ashley Stewart, a bra line for plus-size women. Proceeds from the collection benefit Scott’s Blues Babe Foundation based in North Philadelphia, which encourages young people to excel artistically and academically.

Black Enterprise recently caught-up with the 37-year-old Philadelphia native about her foray into entrepreneurship, the importance of diversifying her revenue stream, and her recent role as series heroine Precious Ramotswe in the new HBO show The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency filmed in Botswana. Scott is the first African American woman to star in a series on the network and is set to be honored by the country with her own postage stamp.

How did the Ashley Stewart joint venture come about?

I never understood why department stores and boutiques don’t pay attention to this market. They are homeowners, they pay taxes, and they have money to spend. So it didn’t seem farfetched or odd to want to go into an area where I see that the need is great.

Every woman in my family is pretty voluptuous. They all have these dark marks and have suffered shoulder pain from bras. I spoke with my business partner and told him that I wanted to create a bra line and that Ashley Stewart would be a great place for it. We met with the company and I brought in bras, fabrics, and materials that I thought would work well. I explained the need and gave them my designs.

What were some of the challenges you faced creating the line?

It’s hard to find a bra that will give both support and shape. We went back to the drawing board many times. There’s a specific plate to make each cup. We went from foam to gel to a type of padding. It’s very intricate and specific. I would go into Ashley Stewart and say, “OK, this is good. This isn’t going to work. Let’s try this.” There was lots of starting over. There’s a science to it all. Making a bra is difficult.

The line faced some criticism because the sizes weren’t expansive enough for some women. Are you looking to expand the line?

Right now it’s a great bra, but it’s not for everybody. I’m going to do my best to take it from a 60th percentile to at least the 90th percentile in terms of meeting the needs of more women. So I’ll need to do bigger and smaller sizes, more colors and styles, as well as maternity bras and girdles.

What you’re doing is a reflection of artists diversifying their income streams. How important is that for artists?

You have to diversify because nothing is guaranteed. I learned this from my mother. She can sew, lay down hardwood floors, perform acupressure, and is also a dental hygienist. All of those things make her happy. That’s how I’ve wanted to live my life. If it happens to become something financially beneficial, then great. I sing, write, and act because I can’t help myself. I love being creative. Of course I want to make money to take care of my family and myself, but I want a livelihood that gives me internal pleasure.

In addition to redesigning bras, you’re also reshaping the mold for leading actresses. How did your new HBO series come about, and why is it important to see plus-size women on TV?

The more roles, the more diverse we can be, the better. The character I’m playing is a traditionally built woman. There are no hang-ups about her size in Africa because there’s a different mentality in terms of standards of beauty. She’s normal. She’s beautiful.

This story originally appeared in the May 2009 issue of Black Enterprise magazine.