Tastemaker: Scotty Cunha

Meet the celebrity hair stylist Scotty Cunha.

How did you end up in the career that you have now? I started out wanting to be in fashion but didn’t want to do textiles and all the boring classes! I hated school and got my GED early and I knew I was very artistic and I just wanted to be a fashion designer right away! I knew that wasn’t going to happen so I decided to do makeup and was going to go to Esthetics school but didn’t want to sit in a quiet room and do facials all day because I knew I needed  to be loud and talk!

One of the counselers at the Paul Mitchell beauty school said to try cosmetology because I would be able to learn a little make up but also learn hair! I fell in love with it right away and since I grew up on the east coast and hated the cold I always had a dream of living on the west coast and being warm and in the sunshine! SO I moved to Los Angeles and worked at Starbucks! I’M ALWAYS NICE TO MY BARISTA! I couldn’t get a job in a salon with out my hair license and it took about 6 months for me to get it and then I started working at Jonathan Salon as an assistant and assisted him and Jason Low for 4 years and was on the reality show blow out as the gay shampoo boy… I thought I was so cool! 

Then I heard about the most amazing hair stylist of all time opening his own salon his name was Andy Lecompte he was my role model and exactly who I wanted to be in the hair world! Me and one of my friends found out where he was opening while it was under construction and broke in to see the space I knew I had to work there he was actually on tour with Madonna when it opened! His business partner who is like my second mother Leanne Citrone interviewed me and I was so nervous! She later told me she recognized me from blow out so I was so thankful I even had 5 minutes of air time on that awful TV show!

I don’t know where I would be with out Andy or Leanne today!!!! They made me do a trial client and I got the job! I was SO HAPPY!!! Working at Andy Lecompte was really where my career took off. One of my friends I worked with Jen Atkin recommended me to go on tour with Miley Cyrus I said YES RIGHT AWAY I was with her everyday for basically a year it was such an amazing life experience and I will never forget it! It was my first major “celebrity” I had ever worked with and it opened so many doors for me  through Miley’s stylist Simone Harouche who is still my friend to this day and introduced me to her agent Kent Belden who also changed my life and took care of me and guided me to my other major clients like Lucy Hale and of course the Kardashians and Jenners!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where do you look for inspiration to continue to keep things fresh and new with your clients? Blogs? Social sites? Fashion shows? One of my favorite designers right now are Saint Laurent and Gucci whatever they are doing for hair I ALWAYS COPY STYLE WISE! I also love love love going back and looking at old photos of Kate Moss from my Kate Moss photography book and of course WHATEVER MARY KATE AND ASHLEY OLSEN DO

What is your spirit animal? Why? Unicorn because I’m magical and everyone loves me.

What’s the most POPULAR moment in your career so far? I HAVE TWO! Most recently I was on the cover of Cosmo with Kylie Jenner! And I was in Paris for Kim’s wedding which was epic!

What advice would you give to anyone pursuing the same career path as yours? Be yourself! I can’t stress it enough be yourself! be happy and it’s not that serious!

What POPULAR moment made you feel you finally made it? I feel like I finally made it when someone at Coachella asked if I was “thescottycunha”‘ and asked to take a selfie with me! I LIVE FOR THOSE MOMENTS!