Sebastian Professional’s WHAT’S NEXT AWARDS (WNA) is the premiere hair styling competition for Student and Professional talent who dare to take their creativity to the next level. The What’s Next Awards contest allowed those working in the salon industry to express their talent through a one-of-a-kind hairstyling competition. Each year, Sebastian releases a hair collection to inspire contestants. This year, that collection is ECLECTIC.
To become what’s next in the world of hairstyling, stylists from United States and Canada uploaded a picture of their “Eclectic” inspired look, as well as a description and title for the look. In addition to the online entry process, stylists had an opportunity to enter one of the two regional competitions held in New York and Los Angeles for a chance to be a finalist. In January, nine finalists were selected to compete live, a total of three finalists in each category; Student, Professional and Affiliated Artist.
Finalists will compete live in Dallas, Texas on March 5th. Competitors will showcase their unique sense of style and creative artistry for a panel of esteemed judges. This year’s judge’s panel includes, Robert Lobetta, 2016 Affiliated Artist WNA winner Gianpaolo Colombo, 2016 Professional Artist WNA winner Damaris Earlewine and Sergi Bancells of Estetica USA Magazine. Judges aren’t the only deciding factor for these finalists, this year will also include a People’s Choice Award, where fans can vote for their favorites on Sebastian’s What’s Next Instagram page @sebastianwna
People’s Choice Voting begins at 5 pm PST /7 pm CST / 8 pm EST
In addition to the competition, Sebastian Professional International Top Artists Diva Poulos, Omar Antonio, Marylle Koken and Anthony Cole will present the SS2017 RE-CHARGE collection, plus a sneak-peak of Sebastian’s next product innovation. But that’s not all, in celebration of WNA’s five year anniversary, the evening will also include a special appearance from the band Sixx:A.M.
The 2017 What’s Next Awards and special appearance by DJ Klever & DJ Ashba of Sixx:A.M. will be broadcast live from the Wella Education Facebook page @ 6:30 PM PST/ 8:30 PM CST/ 9:30 PM EST
#sebastianprofessional #whatsnext #wna2017 @sebastianwna @sebastianpro_official @wellaeducation
2017 FINALISTS
Many artists set out to change the industry, but these nine are one step closer to becoming #WhatsNext
Professional Category
- Laura Rocha @l_v_r_; The Harlot Salon - Venice, California
- Alisha Jurkevicz @alishavalen; Red Stella Salon - Austin, Texas
- Danielle June @madamepomp; The Harlot salon - Venice, California
Affiliated Artist Category
- Luis Maldonado @luis_maldonado_1; Beyond Salon, Puerto Rico
- Sabrina Cayer @propagandecoiffure; Propagande Coiffure - Trois-Rivières, Québec
- Tonya Cuozzo @tonyacuozzo; Cuozzo Studio for Hair - Madison, New Jersey
Student Category
- Beverly Iwuala @beverlyeze; Ogle School - Stafford, Texas
- Kelsey Ronan @kelseyjoyhair; Avenue Five Institute - Austin, Texas
- Jaimie-Lee Keyes @jaimie_kaay; TG.Co Hair Studio - Kingston, Ontario
TODAY IS THE DAY: TO PUSH BOUNDARIES. TO CREATE THE UNIMAGINABLE. TO BECOME WHAT’S NEXT IN THE WORLD OF HAIRSTYLING. RESTRUCTURE, REDEFINE, AND RECREATE THE PACE OF STYLE. #SEBASTIANWNA