In July, Blavity reported a story about 17-year-old Kerion Washington. The high schooler went viral after his mother, Karis Washington, posted the story about Six Flags Over Texas' refusal to hire him because of his hair. For those who don't know, the person who interviewed Kerion for the amusement park gig reportedly told him that his dreads were an "extreme hairstyle," and he could only be considered for the job once he removed them.
Though the situation is not a first for Six Flags, the shock of it all inspired Karis to post about the incident on Facebook, which attracted the local news station. Ultimately, the ordeal resulted in Kerion landing a deal with Jones Model Management (JMM), in preparation for a bigger deal with IMG Models. Talk about a come-up!
Took my son for an interview at 6 flag…he didnt get the job cuz he has locs (dreads)????????????…smh Update: my son…
Posted by Karis Washington on Saturday, March 23, 2019
Blavity caught up with Kerion and Karis to get the inside scoop on what happened and what's new.
Kerion, with his shoulder-length, blonde-tip dreads; and Karis, with her fresh, long braids, appeared to be your standard, Black son and mother — nothing stuck out as extreme. In fact, the two features that stood out most on Kerion were his striking, hazel-green eyes and bright smile. More than likely, both traits also helped catch the attention of IMG Head of Development Corrie Caster.
"One of [Kerion's] friends posted [his story] on Instagram, and it went viral on Instagram too," Karis explained. "So, a designer saw it on Instagram, and they told Corrie from IMG to contact us and she did."
Caster actually slid into Kerion's DMs to pitch the opportunity to him, and when he showed his mother the message, he found it hard to believe. Of course, the opportunity was legit. Caster connected Kerion with JMM, based in Austin, Texas, to help develop his modeling skills and prepare him for the fashion big leagues.
Essentially Facebook and Instagram helped turn a disappointing story into the beginning of a fairytale.
For those wondering why Kerion might have been hesitant about the modeling opportunity's authenticity, he has been around this block before. He even decided to give modeling a try in early 2018, as many people have encouraged him to pursue the profession throughout his life. Clearly, good looks are embedded in his family's DNA, as his uncle is also a model in California.
"We tried to get into modeling; we found out we had to pay. But now we realize that was a scam, so we ain't fall for that no more," Kerion explained. "But when [IMG] hit us up about modeling, that was my opportunity — and I wanted to take that opportunity."
What are the odds of getting a dream job without trying, after failing to secure that job while trying? Probably slim. Nevertheless, it happens and it happened for Kerion. After signing with JMM, his first big task was an appearance on ABC's Good Morning America.
"They called us up and told us we had to leave tonight to go straight to the airport. […] We was in New York, and then we had to wake up early in the morning to get ready for Good Morning America," Kerion shared. "As we was getting ready, all I was doing was shaking. I was so nervous."
While filming the morning show, Kerion got to speak with entertainers Keke Palmer and Romeo Miller, who helped him settle his nerves and "just have fun" with the experience. The young model shared that the show allowed him to do his fashion thing and showcased him on a jumbotron in Times Square. To top it all off, Kerion got a special offer from Miller.
"Romeo told me that I was gonna be in his movie," Kerion shared with an excited smile.
Though Miller did not share any details about the film, Kerion said they exchanged numbers, and both Kerion and Karis are highly anticipating the movie opportunity. (Come through Romeo!)
In addition to countless interviews and a cameo in Romeo's upcoming movie, Kerion has received growing attention among his schoolmates and on Instagram. Though he plays football and basketball, runs track and practices mixed martial arts, the strong safety said he wasn't well known in high school before his story went viral. However, now Kerion's popularity has grown, along with his IG followers, which he shared went from 900 to over 30,000.
"It was exciting and a little bit uncomfortable 'cause normally I don't want all the attention as much. I just want to still be me and not be all in the open for people to just notice me," he said, in regards to going viral.
Karis shared her feelings about the viral experience, as well.
"It gets overwhelming at times, but we just roll with the punches — good and bad. But it's been mostly good. The best part of it is Six Flags changed their policy, so they now allow people with dreadlocks to work there," she added.
As for the regular day-to-day, not much has changed for the Washington household, back in Texas. Karis focuses on work and Kerion concentrates on his junior year of high school. Both Karis and Kerion have full social media inboxes and have added photoshoots to their to-do list. Aside from these tasks, everything else remains relatively normal. The lessons they have to share?
"If someone tells you to change who you're supposed to be don't ever listen to 'em 'cause — you should always be yourself," Kerion said.
"If they won't accept you, somebody will," Karis added.
