Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Jessi Ngatikaura has always been the “Utah Curl” queen.
“I bring the Utah curls with me everywhere I go,” Jessi, 33, told Us Weekly exclusively while promoting her upcoming appearance at the “LadyGang” podcast’s upcoming LadyWorld festival — and day passes are still available. “It’s funny, because I’ve been doing hair like that forever. It definitely is, kind of, a Utah look.”
However, when Secret Lives of Mormon Wives premiered via Hulu in September 2024, the hairstyle took on a mind of its own.
“Everyone just gravitated towards it and gave it that name. We just capitalized on it and ran with it,” Jessi explained, telling Us that she’s “excited” to bring her hairstyling skills to Destin, Florida — where the three-day event is taking place.
Jessi also told Us that LadyWorld is the “perfect platform” to bring her JZ Styles business (which she’s had for nine years) to the masses.
“I can’t, obviously, teach everything I do,” she explained. “But this is a chance for me to help women style their hair at home and teach them how to gain that confidence on their own. I’m excited to do that because everyone can take a little piece of it with them.”
Jessi added, “It’s really cool that a lot more people are interested in it, and we get opportunities like this. … I feel like hair is something we all have, and we can all relate to. So I’m just excited to be a part of it.”
While the “Utah Curls” took the world by storm thanks to Jessi’s reality show, there are more beauty trends in the state for people to try.
“Utah in general is, kind of, a vain state,” she joked. “We love our Botox, our lashes, our hair, all of it. I feel like Utah in general, we just take care of ourselves because we do want to look good and feel good.”
Jessi wants more people to embrace the “do things for yourself to feel better” mindset.
Aside from bringing JZ Styles to LadyWorld, Jessi is also gearing up to bring “a little friendly competition” to the weekend by hosting “LadyGames,” a pop culture showdown.
“One of my goals in the industry is to host things. I teach educational classes in front of big groups. I’ve been doing that for eight years now. So public speaking is something I feel super comfortable with,” she told Us. “I’m excited to expand that, especially in such a fun setting. I think it’s going to be amazing.”