By Michael Haag | Sports Editor
If there’s one thing Look At Me Now Barbershop in Waco wants people to know, it’s that the shop’s doors are open to anyone in the community. Just don’t be surprised if a high-profile Baylor athlete is sitting in the chair next to you.
From blue-chip, NBA-bound basketball recruits to star football players, Look At Me Now Barbershop has consistently been a hot spot for Baylor athletes to get their haircuts. Every barber in the shop has their own clientele of standout athletes or coaches, but one barber in particular stands out in that regard.
Lawrence Love, who goes by “Lunechi Da Barber,” has been cutting hair at Look At Me Now Barbershop since 2013. Lunechi, a native of Waco, has a cousin who played on the Baylor football team several years ago, which gave him a family connection to the program.
Over the years, Lunechi built his reputation as the barber most of those athletes wanted to go to. He said “word of mouth” helped keep his name circulating as athletes move on and new ones enroll at Baylor.
“They’re like, ‘Man, who gives y’all haircuts?’ And they say, ‘Man, go to Lunechi at Look At Me Now Barbershop,’” Lunechi said. “So they get Lunechified.”
That continued to spread, and Lunechi began stacking clients. Even when athletes graduated or got drafted to the pros, the 34-year-old barber said his customers would stay in touch or come back to the barbershop every now and then.
“We have a clean environment,” Lunechi said. “With me, it’s always been consistent. … They know Waco is the other home for them.”
The dynamic is just as gratifying for the customer, as redshirt sophomore guard Langston Love said Lunechi’s been his go-to barber ever since he stepped foot on campus.
“Lunechi’s been there for me whenever I need a haircut,” Love said. “Anytime I text him, he’s always going to be there. A couple of us go to his shop — really most of the team goes to that shop — so we’re just really happy to have a guy like Lunechi helping us out and being there for us.”
Finding time to get a haircut can be a challenge for the athletes given their jam-packed day-to-day schedule. Lunechi makes sure to stay at the barbershop late into the evenings to accommodate not only his customers but also the athletes he has built relationships with.
Love said that plays a key role in why the basketball team continues to book with Lunechi.
“It’s really important to have chemistry with him, just because he’ll always be there for us no matter what time it is,” Love said.
On top of that, Love said when you look good, you feel good — and when you feel good, you play good. So even if that taper fade is just cosmetic, it helps Love feel confident when he’s out on the court.
In fact, Love got a haircut the morning of No. 9 Baylor men’s basketball’s blowout win over Nicholls on Tuesday. Love went on to score a career-high 23 points off the bench, and he credited looking fresh as a factor in his success.
“Just being out there makes you feel more free knowing that you look good out there,” Love said.
Lunechi, a graduate of Waco High, said he loves nothing more than to give an athlete like Love a fresh fade and watch them perform at a high level throughout the season. He’s given haircuts to just about any star Baylor athlete you can think of from 2013 to now, including four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Xavien Howard, NBA All-Rookie Second Team (2023) forward Jeremy Sochan and Keyonte George — who was 16th overall pick in the 2023 Draft.
All of the friendships Lunechi has built with his customers and athletes are a product of the work he’s put in since he was a little kid. Growing up, he used to sweep the floors for Matt Harvey, the owner of Look At Me Now Barbershop, before getting the chance to work on his craft.
Lunechi said being a barber comes with a great deal of expectations, as “it’s not just a barber thing; this is a career.”
“We’re role models in the community,” Lunechi said. “We’re like a big brother to anybody. So when you get in that chair, it’s just me and you. Whatever you need to talk to me about, we’re going to talk about it, and we’ll go from there.”
Look At Me Now Barbershop is located at 2401 W Waco Drive. Lunechi said anyone interested in a haircut can swing by for a first-come-first-served walk-in or set up an appointment with any barber. The shop is open from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 6:30 a.m. to noon on Saturday and it’s closed on Sunday and Monday.
When you walk inside, there are several TVs mounted on the walls all over the shop, and Lunechi always makes sure to keep up with his Baylor athletes.
“Every time a football game or basketball game comes on, we’re tuned in,” Lunechi said. “We’re big Baylor fans over here.”
