Global Television is hoping the promotional muscle it has put behind ‘da Kink in my Hair will pay off when the homegrown comedy premieres Sunday at 7:30 p.m., leading into The Simpsons.

Global VP of original programming Christine Shipton says she’s ‘thrilled’ with the timeslot, and adds that rolling out Kink in the fall gives it a greater chance of reaching more viewers.

‘In the fall we have an opportunity to promote [Kink] through other big shows, like House and Survivor,’ Shipton tells Playback Daily, adding that the net chose to launch the 13 x 30 comedy on Oct. 14, even though it was ready earlier.

‘We wanted to give Canadian audiences time to sift through all the new American stuff… to give them a chance to relax into their rhythms. There’s no point in trying to launch anything in the middle of that bombardment [in September],’ she explains.

Kink, based on the award-winning play by Trey Anthony, who also stars and exec produces, centers on a beauty salon in Toronto’s Caribbean community, owned by the vivacious Novelette (Ordena Stephens-Thompson), who is joined by her wacky sister Joy (Anthony) and a quirky family of stylists.

Exec producers include Ngozi Paul, also one of the show’s stars and co-creators, Damion Nurse of Toronto’s Defiant Entertainment, Laszlo Barna of Barna-Alper Productions, and showrunner Shelley Scarrow, formerly of Degrassi: The Next Generation.

Shipton says the show will play especially well to women 25-54, and insists it’s not targeted at black audiences specifically.

‘It has broad, universal appeal in that it’s about women and female experience in a hair salon,’ Shipton begins. ‘If you look deeper into the show, there’s a huge element of diversity… It’s not just about the Jamaican community — it also features a black woman who was raised in a white community, and a young boy trying to fit in as an outsider,’ she adds.

Kink had originally been slated for development through CBC and Vision TV, which aired a one-hour pilot in 2004. Shipton says she moved to pick up the show when she learned that it hadn’t landed an order.

Promotion for Kink included a massive off-air campaign — in addition to TV spots and star appearances on ET Canada — with posters in bus shelters and shopping malls such as Toronto’s Eatons Centre, while the grassroots campaign focused on special screenings for the hairdressing community and clips on YouTube.

Kink will also feature special guest stars throughout the season, including Canuck R&B stars Keshia Chanté, Jully Black, and Jarvis Church.

The show will face competition from another new homegrown drama, CBC’s Heartland, which premieres Sunday at 7 p.m.