Let Hair Down - I dance for you.
Kanami Kusajima

“Let Hair Down” is Kusajima’s handle as a street performer, who does a series of daily street performances mainly at Washington Square Park in New York. Let Hair Down was born when NYC was still going through the darkest time right after the lockdown caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. She started to perform on the street to remind people of the warmth of human connections and the beauty of emotions we have, which cannot be replaced by online activities.

Her unique performance style, where dancing and painting are combined together, has drawn a lot of attention from different media. Her articles were published in New York Magazine, AM New York, Mainichi Shimbun (Japanese Newspaper), The Villager, The Village Sun, Arc’teryx official website, among others. Also, in summer 2021, she was featured in a NYC recovery promotional project “No Stopping New York” led by NYC government, which highlighted the resilience of NYC after the highest peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

About the Artist

Kanami Kusajima, a native of Japan, is a dancer, choreographer and performing artist. She started her dance training at the age of 6 at a local studio in Japan, and graduated Summa Cum Laude with BFA in Dance from SUNY Purchase College. She has performed in dance works by various choreographers, including Martha Graham, Francesca Harper, and Ana Maria Lucaciu. She is currently performing daily in Washington Square Park and known as “Let Hair Down,” who paints and dances in an improvisational way. Through her dance movements and expressions, Kusajima hopes to articulate the true humanity that cannot be captured in words.

For more information on Kanami visit her website and follow her on Instagram.