Believe it or not, braiding hair might just earn someone the million-dollar prize on ‘Survivor 47’

What’s one of the benefits of having so many female contestants outwit, outplay, and outlast their male tribemates on Survivor 47? Besides exemplifying some serious #GirlPower, there are more people to braid hair (of course).

Heading into Survivor’s unprecedented two-part finale — with part two airing tonight, Dec. 18, on CBS — either Rachel LaMont, Sam Phalen, Sue Smey, or Teeny Chirichillo will take home the title of “Sole Survivor” and the million-dollar prize at the Final Tribal Council. While anyone could bring home the bacon, as superfans of the show may know, you typically need to play a strong social, strategic, and physical game to emerge victorious.

Luckily for Rachel LaMont, her game is arguably the most well-rounded of them all.

The Michigan native played a strong strategic and physical game, but believe it or not, her social game was equally as exceptional. Sitting down with longtime Survivor writer and reporter Dalton Ross for an exclusive interview with Entertainment Weekly, she was asked “What was your favorite non-game related interaction you had with someone over your first 24 days?” and Rachel’s response proves her social game was even stronger than we saw on our television screens, and likely contributed to her current place in the finale.

“I think my favorite interactions were with so many of the women, and it all seemed to revolve around braiding hair,” Rachel spilled.

Kicking off the conversation, she took us back to her time in the Gata tribe:

“On Gata, we would wake up early and sit on the beach, and Anika [Dhar] and I would braid Sierra [Wright]‘s and each other’s hair and just take in the most beautiful sunrises I’ve ever seen while chatting and laughing together.”

Lucky for Rachel, the Survivor salon continued after the merge as well:

“On Beka, hair braiding continued to be this daily bonding time with many of the women. Sierra still, of course, but also Tiyana [Hallums], Caroline [Vidmar], and Genevieve [Mushaluk] too… Hair braiding was one of those times where you just sort of left the game for a few minutes and took in connection with others and the simple fact that your home is outside and you’re dirty and tired, but that someone is there that cares enough to help you look and feel your best when you’re often at such a low mentally and physically.”

She added that once she began feuding with Genevieve — as both women were obvious frontrunners on Survivor 47, wanting the other to get her torch snuffed — “there was something so poetic about how Genevieve and I would go to challenges, battle it out for the win, and then go back to camp and braid each other’s hair,” adding that these are moments she will cherish for eternity.

With many members of the hair braiding squad sitting on the jury — from Sierra to Caroline to Genevieve and beyond — were these moments as meaningful to them, prompting them to cast their vote for Rachel to take home the title of “Sole Survivor” and the million-dollar prize at the Final Tribal Council?

There’s only one way to find out. Promised by host Jeff Probst to be a “tremendous finish to a great season,” the two-part finale airs tonight, Dec. 18 on CBS, with next-day streaming via Paramount Plus as well. Needless to say, we are on the edge of our seats…