Apple is Finally Releasing Emojis With Curly Hair and I’m So Pumped!

Yesterday was World Emoji Day and Apple celebrated by announcing that they have developed a ton of new emojis including those with a variety of different hair colors and textures. There will be bald emojis, red-headed emojis, grey-haired emojis, and finally…emojis with curly hair!

It only seems fitting that Apple has made an effort to further diversify its emoji options — we know the technology is available. Several months ago Bitmoji added tons of new skin tones, facial features and hair textures to its options and we’ve had a variety of emoji complexions to choose from on both Samsung and Apple platforms for a few years now.

I proudly rep the natural hair movement and it’s always annoyed me just a little bit that my cute brown emoji has straight hair. Apple’s new rollouts won’t cover the entire spectrum, but it’s a huge improvement that will allow users to choose from a variety of hair and complexion combinations to achieve a look that represents them better than ever.

Jeremy Burge, the founder of Emojiopedia told NBC News that Apple developed the new emojis in response to user requests, noting that red hair has been a big request, but he thinks the curly hair emoji will be popular too.

“I’m sure that will be one of the most popular, although the curly hair options might give them a run for their money,” Burge told NBC News.

My kids are emoji-obsessed and inherited my super-thick curly hair, so I’m excited to show them emojis that look more like them. It’s these little changes and improvements that make me happy to be raising them in the time we’re living in despite the political and societal struggles people of color in America are experiencing. It might just be an emoji, but representation matters and even these little things can go a long way in helping to normalize diversity.

The emojis aren’t available just yet, but will be released via free updates to Apple devices including iPhones, iPads and Apple watches by the end of the year.