In hair and beauty culture, “edges” usually means the styled baby hairs along the hairline, and this look does not have a single inventor but a long evolution led mainly by Black women.

Quick Scoop

  • The modern laid or “slayed” edges style grew out of African‑American hair fashions that became especially visible in the 1990s, popularized by artists like Chilli from TLC, Missy Elliott, Brandy, and others.
  • The deeper roots of edges trace back to the sculpted “kiss curls” and finger waves of the 1920s, especially associated with performer and style icon Josephine Baker, whose slicked, gelled hairline and swoops around the face are widely cited as a key inspiration.
  • Because this is a cultural style, historians describe edges as a tradition created and developed collectively in Black hair culture rather than by one single person, even though early pioneers like Josephine Baker are often highlighted.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.