Hollywood heavyweights and the Atlanta beauty community alike are mourning the death of Emmy-nominated hairstylist Charles Gregory Ross, who succumbed to complications from COVID-19 weeks after announcing his diagnosis on March 25, when he warned others to take the pandemic seriously.
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Ross, a veteran hair and makeup expert who, in addition to owning the popular Charles Gregory Blow Dry and Beauty Bar in Atlantaโs Buckhead community and acting as former artistic director for Mizani/Softsheen, also worked on memorable productions like Remember the Titans, Drumline, Lackawanna Blues, Idlewild, Survivorโs Remorse, the Academy Award-winning Vice, and many more, earning him the fond moniker of โthe renowned.โ Most recently, Ross was the hair department head on the upcoming films Zola and Lee Danielsโ The United States vs. Billie Holiday.
Danielsโ was among many celebrity tributesโincluding condolences from Taraji P. Henson, Kerry Washington, and Ava DuVernayโthat have poured in upon news of Rossโ death. The writer/producer/director shared an endearing anecdote about the โBRILLIANTโ hairstylist on the set of The United States vs. Billie Holiday.
โWhenever l complained about anyoneโs hair heโd say โlemme just slap some grease on it.. itโll be okโ! ๐...and it was!!!โ
Fellow hairstylist Kim Kimble was Rossโ partner in hair design for the film and commemorated her friend and colleague in what she admitted was โa hard post to write,โ saying โNothing but respect.โ
Actress-producer Viola Davis also memorialized the artist, who was well known for his flawless wig work, on Instagram, writing: โRIP Charles Gregory. He did my hair for the Academy Awards, Lila and Eve and Madea Goes to Jail...Rest well. May Godโs peace be with your family. You were a jewel.โ
Tyler Perry, for whom Ross was a crew member on countless TPS productions, also trusted the artist to transform him into Colin Powell for 2018's Vice. In addition to recalling Ross as โwarm, loving and hilarious,โ Perry, who has been heavily engaged in philanthropy during the COVID-19 crisis, also used his massive platform to echo Rossโ warning, urging the black community to take the pandemic seriously, protect themselves and remain vigilant in the face of a disease that is disproportionately infecting and killing us, writing:
While everyone can contract this virus it is black people who are dying from it in much larger numbers. This thing is real, black people.
I heard a black person say, โBlack people donโt get it.โ That is a lie! You can get it, and you will get it if we donโt do what weโre being told to do.
A 26 year old black woman died the other day, a 44 year old black man died the other day, not to mention the hundreds of people that are dying every few minutes. Your age does not matter!! Your health does not matter. You could be totally healthy, and you could die!
Now listen to me. You have been right by my side since I started in this business, so please hear me with your heart. I LOVE US. I love our humor. I love our culture. I love our hair. I love our skin. I love everything about who we are. All of us. And I love us all too much to watch us die on the vine because we are the last to know and we are not taking this pandemic seriously.
Black people, we are at a disproportionately higher risk of dying from this virus. Please, please, please, I beg you to take this seriously. You have to socially distance yourself. That means stop hanging out, stop congregating, stop doing anything that will put not only your life in danger but also the lives of so many others.
STAY HOME!! Socially distance yourself and stay alive! If you wonโt do it for yourself, do it for someone you love, and for those who love you.
Lastly, Tichina Arnold, who both worked closely with Ross on Survivorโs Remorse and considered him a close friend, paid tribute to the artist and the others we are losing daily to the coronavirus with an emotional a capella rendition of โThe Lordโs Prayer,โ writing: โIt makes you feel so helpless. It hurts..but we MUST not give up. We must keep fighting. Keep praying.โ
Our thoughts are with Rossโ family and friends. May โThe Renownedโ rest in power.
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