“It Pissed A Few People Off, And I Figured It Was Worth Doing” — Willie Nelson On Why He’s Stuck With His Iconic Braids

I guess that's how you know you're doing something right. Of course, Willie Nelson has been rocking his iconic braids for decades now, and he first started wearing the style around 1972, after he left the Nashville scene and went down to Austin, Texas. He was very clean cut early in his career, though now seeing old pictures and videos of him like that are barely recognizable. In an interview with Larry King over a decade ago, a fan asked why he kept the braids for so long and made them such an inseparable part of his legendary brand, to which he had a very Willie answer, saying simply: "Well, it pissed a few people off and I figured it was worth doing." Aside from the fact that I'm sure he felt much more like himself with that hairstyle (clearly he's kept it so long for a reason), I know it made it all the more fun for him knowing certain people were actually mad about it. Always the contrarian, that Willie Nelson... a man after my own heart, to be honest. Willie also recalled Billy Joe Shaver seeing him like that for the first time, and he was NOT a fan of the braids at all, telling Willie he looked "outrageous": "I remember one time, the first time I started wearing braids, I saw Billy Joe Shaver in a studio in Nashville, he said, 'You look outrageous.' I said, 'thank you.'" He also talked about his friendship with Waylon Jennings, which was famously spirited and at times, a little competitive , though they were ultimately "the best of friends," Willie explained: "Well, Waylon and I were the best of friends and we were like an old married couple, you know? We didn't agree on anything, but we loved each other and we loved to argue. And when we went out with The Highwaymen, and Kris and me, and Waylon and John, that was the most fun in the world. Just arguing with Waylon and listening to Kris and Waylon argue." I can only imagine the discussions those four got into... to have been a fly on the wall for just an hour, my goodness. You can watch the short interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNMsM3IaSgI And since we're on the subject, I'll leave you with my favorite performances from The Highwaymen during their iconic 1990 Nassau Colosseum concert: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybs59DTTlVU