Kenny G is 65 years old! He seems both older than that and also like an ageless vampire? Like, he’s been around forever, playing his saxophone and being generally unproblematic. If you like smooth jazz, you enjoy Kenny G and if not, well that’s fine too. Kenny G has always had very curly hair, as you can see. I’ve always seen him with this longer hairstyle as well, and I would imagine he’s always fought off frizzy hair. As it turns out, Kenny G has a unique haircare system: he’s only washes his hair once every three weeks? Hm.
Kenny G has the secret to saxy hair. The legendary saxophonist only washes his hair once every three weeks, he exclusively told Page Six at the premiere of his documentary, “Listening to Kenny G,” at the SVA Theatre in Chelsea on Wednesday evening.
“It doesn’t get dirty,” Kenny, 65, said of his luscious locks, adding, “I’m a clean guy.”
And the affable musician doesn’t use pricey products on his hair, as one would suspect. “Unfortunately, I don’t have any endorsements,” he lamented. “So, I don’t gain anything by using them, other than they’re the right thing.” He divulged that he turns to Pantene shampoo and conditioner and MOP defining cream to accomplish his famed ‘do.
The documentary shows just how much the “Songbird” musician practices every day — a lot — and also delves into why his success infuriates many in the jazz community. Kenny, whose real name is Kenneth Gorelick, is puzzled by the ire, explaining that he’s been dealing with the criticism since the mid-’80s.
“I’ve also seen the reaction when I perform,” he said. “I know how much I’ve practiced. So I’ve got 99 percent all great things telling me that, that what I’m doing is great. And that little tiny 1 percent, it doesn’t mean a lot to me. And it hasn’t since the ’80s. It’s never really meant anything. It’s nothing I haven’t seen, and I’ve already ignored it for almost 40 years.”
Kenny, who has sold more than 75 million albums worldwide and was one of the first investors in a little coffee chain called Starbucks, never suffered the fate of so many musicians who are swindled by shady money managers. Perhaps that’s because he majored in accounting at the University of Washington in his hometown of Seattle.
“I never understood how people got screwed over,” Kenny said. “It’s like, just pay attention. It seems pretty easy. A plus B equals C. … You should have about this much. And if you don’t, then there should be a problem. It’s like … like most artists, just want to say, ‘I’m gonna let them handle this.’ I like to be hands-on.”
He’s got an HBO special coming out in December and a new album, by the way. I had no idea he was an original investor in Starbucks, holy shhhhiiiiit. My man Kenny has StarBUCKS. As for the hair thing… as with the Great Bathing Debates of 2021, I’m struck by the fact that many people don’t realize when they do smell, and they also tend to believe that other people can smell them. He clearly doesn’t believe his hair smells or gets dirty enough to wash it semi-regularly. What I thinking about is… he’s a performer, he’s on stage or in a recording studio with a lot of regularity. There’s just the daily “dirty” of being outside and all of that, but surely his hair gets sweaty and dirty given his job and lifestyle? Who knows though – I’ve tried to cut back on my hair washing but the longest I can go is 48 hours, but I have very oily, Indian hair. Different hair textures can withstand (or not withstand) different things.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.
I am paranoid about being stinky so obviously I shower on the regular. But I have dry skin and a dry scalp so I wash every other week and co every week. He does have beautiful hair tho.
I only wash mine every few weeks too. But, and this is a big but, my hair is extremely thick, coarse, and not at all oily. I recognize that not everyone has this hair type (my wife has to shampoo every other day as her hair is very thin and tends to oily). Every stylist I’ve ever been to has commented on the health of my hair (I don’t blow dry it or use product in it), so let’s hold off with the “that’s just nasty” comments. Peace out my fellow Celebitchers.
I am on this side of things also. My hair is SO dry, so thick, and would really take a couple before actually being visually greasy (i dont leave it this long obvs, but every few weeks is plenty for my hair, or it starts stripping the small amount of natural oils i actually have. Also can’t use a hairdryer. You can shower and bathe without washing your hair guys!
Yes I also have friends who must wash their hair every day and that’s fine too.
Same @Sister Carrie. Mine is coarse as well and not oily and I wash it every 2 weeks.
I also have very dry hair/scalp. I do rinse with water after doing a sweaty workout (otherwise the salt from the sweat builds up and causes major irritation/itch, but a full-on wash is only happening once a week at most.
That is how my 2 year old sons hair is too. I wash it maybe once every other week. He has thick, course, wavy/curly hair. It never gets oily! And it doesn’t stink. It’s the complete opposite of my hair which is fine and straight and gets oily by the end of the day, I have to wash it every day unless I am putting it up in a ponytail. I envy my sons hair.
I wash my hair once a week. I don’t sweat-my exercise is walking-so it doesn’t get dirty or greasy. It is thick and wavy-the wavy started when my hair turned gray-so by the end of the week it doesn’t look so great.
My hot water bill is relatively low, and I have fewer issues with mold in my bathroom–I live in Seattle, the home of mold!
I was going to say curlier hair comes with dryer scalp, truth. Mine’s only 2c-3a but I can go for a week if need be. I do like to do a co-wash every few days for a scent refresh.
I am so jealous of every single one of you. I have fine, thin hair that gets gross after 18 hours.
Add me to that jealous list. Each morning I awake with hair which most closely resembles a used Q-tip. Fortunately, as a guy, my hair is short so it’s no problem to wash daily.
This morning was the first time I washed my hair in a few weeks. Washed as in “shampooed”.
I am firmly in the “no-poo” or “co-poo” camp and my hair looks all the better for it.
Unless I’m dying my hair the next day (I’ll use a clarifying shampoo) or have too much product in it, there no reason to use shampoo (for me).
I have read and been told that oil tends to clog the follicles, which is not good. I try to go a few days without shampooing but then I begin to feel “dirty” if it’s been too long since shampooing.
Different hair, different scalps and body makeup add so many variables to what works for each one of us. But I can’t imagine three weeks without a shampoo. I love the feeling of a good thorough scalp massage and shampoo.
There are just certain people or rather races that can get away with talking about how unhygenic they are, POC simply cant divulge such info and it be taken lightly.
Funny cuz many POC also wash their hair every few weeks. It’s fairly common for people with curly hair, there’s a bunch of products dedicated to it too.
I have curly hair, and I know exactly what Kenny means. Curly hair tends to be drier (especially the tighter the curl pattern). Curly hair experts agree that we shouldn’t wash our hair often. Now, by “wash” I mean with shampoo (and I think that’s what Kenny means too). I shampoo my hair once a week, but I get it wet and condition it every other day. Kenny almost surely does something similar – it’s hard to achieve good second- and third-day curls and beyond without getting it wet and conditioning it. So, I think when he says “wash” he means shampoo. And curly-haired people do not bat an eye at that timeframe! Also, shower caps are amazing – not washing or wetting your hair every day doesn’t mean you don’t shower.
You’re welcome for this PSA. 🙂
Honest question for those who don’t use shampoo, do you use conditioner or wet your hair?
Cowash with conditioner and they apply styling products when it’s soaking wet.
Yes, I rinse my hair every time I take a shower (daily) but don’t use shampoo or conditioner every time.
I use shampoo but sometimes I also do what you’re describing. (I wash every 2-5 days.)
Kenny G’s HBO documentary is really good. He seems like an interesting dude, funny too.
Standing up for the curly haired population here. As someone who has curly, dry hair: You delay washing your hair for as long as possible! Otherwise, you’ll dry out your hair and it turns into a brittle, frizzy nightmare. I’ve never gone 3 weeks (more power to you Mr. G) but I definitely go a week plus without washing if I can. For normal, daily 21st century activity: your curly hair does not need to be washed that often. Don’t let people with straight, oily hair control the narrative on hair care.
I only shampoo (wash) my hair once a month or so. It is fine. Also, I wash it when I’m at the shore and use lots of sunscreen on my face. It gets into my hair, so I wash it. Otherwise, not so much. My hair is wet daily from the shower. I use no conditioners because I have thick curly hair.
Meh. It just depends on hair texture and oiliness. My mom has thick, wavy hair and a dry scalp. Even when she was younger she only shampooed her hair once a week. I inherited my dad’s fine, mostly straight “baby hair” — it’s super-oily and I can’t go more than two days without looking like an oil slick. My kid has oily scalp too, but his hair is really wavy so it doesn’t look as greasy as quickly. My nephew’s hair looks a lot like Kenny’s, and he also has to be careful to moisturize and not overwash.
I don’t view washing your hair the same as convos about not bathing regularly or something. Everyone has different hair types. Mine is straight and thin, and I wash it every other day – with dry shampoo I can make the second day hair look better, but since March 2020 I just throw it back in a ponytail and don’t care if its a little oily. Once in a while I’ll stretch it to three days but not that often. It does get really oily and washing it less often has helped with the oil, so while my second day hair does not look great, my “first day hair” looks SO much better and healthier than it used to before I started doing this (10 years ago now, omg.)
During pregnancy I had the best hair. Full and shiny and could easily go three days without washing. Sigh.
All that to say – I believe Kenny G isn’t washing his hair that much but is still a clean person.
I’m sure he doesn’t stink. He didn’t say he didn’t shower, just that he didn’t wash his hair. I’m nearly 100% sure he rinses his hair often and may condition it too. I’m one of the fine and oily haired people who must wash their hair no less than every other day or it stands on its own and visibily looks dirty and greasy. But not everyone has my hair. My son has thick curls (when he doesn’t buzz his head) so he goes longer without washing his hair (when he has it), else it turns into a frizzy messy clown wig (Which is why he buzzes/shaves, he doesn’t have the patience to deal with it normally). Different folks, different strokes. You do you Kenny.
Oh god could we PLEASE not open up more ill-informed personal hygiene discourse. Curly and kinky hair textures often do best with minimal washing. That’s it. Moving on: I have a soft spot for Kenny G from my early 90s soft jazz phase and I’m happy to see him looking so well.
He was a Grade A douchebag on Dancing with the Stars, so he’ll always be that to me.
When my hair was curly I washed it once a week and could even push it to 2 weeks in the winter. Now that I do keratin treatments I can only get away with 4 days between washes. My hair is now easier to manage and dries faster, but looks oily for the first time in my life.
I ‘wash’ my hair with shampoo once a month. But that works with my hair type and texture. I’m wetting it and using conditioner more often and really getting into that scalp. It’s different than not showering or bathing
Three weeks?!?!? LOL
i wash mine sometimes twice a day-3 weeks? ohhhh
Very curly hair is usually somewhat textured. Washing that more regularly will damage it. My hair is only wavy, and I only wash it once a week because it dries out easily. It’s likely he wet washes it sometimes in between when he showers, but I’m not surprised he can go awhile without shampooing it. You need that oil to keep it soft.
Curly hair here. I absolutely must wash it every 2-3 days or my scalp gets oily and grody feeling. I get flakes and itchiness if I don’t wash it often enough. I use very gentle shampoo and rich leave in conditioner to eliminate dryness. You can have dry hair and still keep it clean.
Ummm yes it does get dirty. If you are walking outside exposing your hair to dirt, dust, pollution, or if you work out, etc. your hair gets dirty. Regardless of how it feels. Not to mention that our hair gets moisture from WATER. Nothing else. So if he’s not washing his hair – not only is it dirty but it’s dehydrated too.
Totally legit. I had a good friend with very, very dry, curly hair. She rinsed daily and conditioned weekly, but only washed once a month or so. Worked for her.
Mine is visibly dirty by day 4, but I’m not gonna judge anyone else for living a different experience.
Black person here. I don’t see anything wrong with what he said. When I had locs I washed my hair once a month when I twisted it. Relaxed, maybe 2 weeks. No that it’s short, whenever I feel like it.