When my daughter Alyssa was six, back in 2018, she asked me why her hair was different to her friends’ at school.
We began to talk about textures, and how her hair worked. That her afro was beautiful, and could do amazing things.
It was about this time that Alyssa was into dress up games, too. She loved all the typical doll brands and avatar style dress up apps.
Except, no one in her favourite games looked like her – offering very few afro hair styles and textures for her beloved characters.
Black representation simply wasn’t there.
It was something I was determined to change – and with her by my side as my mini co-founder, we founded and launched the UK’s first afro hair championing game.
See, I come from a creative family, and I’m a self-taught graphic designer by trade, so I wasn’t going to let this slide.
‘How about we create our own game?’ I asked Alyssa. Truthfully, I had no idea where to start, but I knew how important it was to help other little girls like her.
I was determined to create an app that featured young Black girls, with an array of afro hair styles to pick and choose from.
To help them feel seen.
Shockingly, I also found out that only 2% of game designers in the US are Black, with Black characters being mis- or underrepresented – directly having a negative impact on the self-esteem of young girls, like Alyssa.
Children naturally want to express themselves when playing dress up games or personalising avatars – experimenting with their hair, makeup, and outfits, especially as they begin to form their own identities.
But, sadly, for a lot of young girls, it isn’t that straightforward.
This can lead to a lot of heart-breaking questions about why they’re not featured in their favourite games.
Unsurprisingly, the excitement from Alyssa was real – and so our app, Frobelles, was born, targeted towards young people aged between four and 12. Except, we never expected our little project to become such a gamechanger in the app world.
Every day after school, Alyssa would spend hours designing characters, hair styles, textures and clothes for her new in-app avatars. Basing them on herself, family, friends and her favourite trends.
She gave them all personalities, imagining what they’d look like – giving them stories, and drawing out what the app would look like.
It made me think of my own upbringing, how I didn’t truly realise until my teens that none of my toys had ever looked like me. That I thought it was just the norm for all toys, or representations of young girls in the media, to be white – and I had to just accept it.
But now, I’m a firm believer that it’s important to expose children to diversity from a young age, and be sure that they feel represented. That they have the chance to express their true selves.
Giving Alyssa the opportunity to be my business partner – my co-founder, in fact – helped serve that much-needed representation.
Though I’m a creative and I love apps, app design was a whole new world to me. It felt like a whole new language, so it was a huge learning curve for me, too – one that didn’t come without its challenges, especially being self-funded in the first instance.
But with help from an illustrator and developer, we brought the app to life for the first time in November 2020 – Alyssa was, of course, a key part of every single stage.
She’s even the voice of every character, instruction and expression, too. It’s been so funny to hear her voice change over the years, and how she’s grown up since the idea was born.
Upon launch, we had one character with a few different hairstyles – now, we have three Black sisters, with roughly 30 hairstyles and texture options to choose from.
There’s also a story mode with challenges to play, as well – and we have a website with a supportive online sisterhood, merch and our own online magazine.
Alyssa has also had the incredible idea to introduce an educational section of the game, too – with articles on how to care for and look after afro hair. We’re hoping to release it soon in an upcoming update, and it was something I wished I’d had when I was her age.
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Now, Alyssa is 11, and she’s the best colleague. She’s honest, talented and determined. I’ve never seen a drive or willingness quite like hers, and I know she’ll move on to big things.
She keeps up with trends and styles too, making sure that our Frobelles’ hairstyles and outfits are always looking fresh. She’s even teaching herself animation, to help with future versions and runs a YouTube channel.
It’s a constant labour of love, to say the least – but she’s the hardest worker I’ve ever met.
I’m sure she’d rather be the one running the show, though – and when she’s old enough, I’ll let her take the reins. I have no doubt she’ll mould it into something really special.
It’s been quite overwhelming just how well the game has been received, too. There’s been thousands upon thousands of downloads, which is something I never imagined.
Numerous families have messaged me, thanking us for setting up the game, and it really makes my heart soar. That scores of children have characters they can finally relate to.
Now, Alyssa is confident in herself, her identity and knows how to style her hair, while keeping it healthy, on her own. I believe it’s helped her self-esteem, too and it’s been so positive to see working on the app together change that. To nurture her, and help her grow.
To be the change she wants to see.
You can download the Frobelles app on the Google Play or Apple App Store, or for more information, visit https://www.frobelles.fun/
As told to Emmie Harrison-West
Age is Just a Number
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