Multimedia Storyteller and Cultural Critic.
At Essence Fest SheaMoisture Canada Doubles Down On Unapologetically Serving Black Women
During a ridiculously sweltering day at the end of June, I found myself sitting on the stoop of a Harlem brownstone. Across the way was a bodega with bouquets of fresh flowers outside, and I watched a group of beautiful Black women laughing as they linked arms and walked out the door.
The funny thing is, I wasn’t in Harlem — I was in New Orleans for the 29th annual Essence Festival. And it wasn’t a real bodega — it was a pop-up activation created by SheaMoisture. What was authentic was the en...
5 Black Businesses Win Big With SheaMoisture Canada's Dream Fund
What does it look like for a brand to move beyond “product” to “purpose”? For SheaMoisture and SheaMoisture Canada, it takes the form of supporting Black-owned businesses on both sides of the 49th parallel.
The 2023 Essence Festival was the perfect setting for the premiere of SheaMoisture’s docuseries called The Next Black Millionaire, which highlights the journeys of the three recipients of the brand’s Next Black Millionaire Fund.
Launched in 2021, the Fund set out to support three Black ent...
Meet The Black Woman Who Revolutionized Rum
Photo: Will Twort.
A quick Google search of “women drinking alcohol” will render thousands of images: smiling collegiates clinking beer bottles at a pub, sultry Carrie Bradshaw-types holding a cosmo with manicured hands, pregnant women declining a glass of wine until they become one of the memed mamas announcing that “the kids are gone to bed, now it’s wine o’clock.” The acceptance of women as liquor enthusiasts has shifted societally over the years, but change has also come from within the s...
Texture Talk: Why Black Beauty Supply Stores Will Forever Be Sacred Spaces
This is Texture Talk, a column that deep dives into the dynamic world of curly hair, from crowns of curls that are free flowing to strands that are tucked away in a protective style.
My first visit to a beauty shop is one I’ll never forget. It was in Detroit, during one of many family day trips. That afternoon, my dad and brother were visiting their own grooming hub: a barbershop around the corner, where the bass of hip-hop, the boom of laughter and the buzz of electric razors blended into an...
James Bond's fantasy-driven history with Jamaica
Ian Fleming created Bond in Jamaica, and romanticized the country. Did he ever reckon with its realities?
Why We Need To Rethink The Way We Talk About Resilience
Who could we be if we didn’t need to spend energy protecting ourselves against things we shouldn’t have to face in the first place?
10 must-try Caribbean dishes from Toronto restaurants
Toronto and surrounding areas have the best Caribbean restaurants in the country, giving you an easy way to country-hop without using your passport. Go beyond patties and doubles at local restaurants, bakeries and food trucks that showcase the region's culinary diversity.
5 Things Travel Taught Me With Trey Anthony
The award-winning creator shares the ways travel has made her better
“Travel has always been my fun place and where I find fun. I was notorious for jumping on a plane almost every five weeks,” she says. “I’ve been to so many places - Bali, South Africa, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Dubai, just to name a few.”
4 Ways the Pandemic Has Taken a Toll on Our Bodies
The pandemic has added so much more stress to our lives, and our bodies are reacting to it in many different ways. Here's what to look out for, and what to do about it.
The tenderness and tenacity of Black motherhood
'There are not nearly enough images that depict Black motherhood and joy,' says photographer Solana Cain. Her new photo series captures uniquely intimate images of Black moms with their babies. This feature highlights Cain's work to document the joy of Black motherhood.
The Caribbean Vacation 2.0: Traveling Responsibly Through Paradise
Four easy ways to be a more conscious Caribbean traveler - and ways that we can rethink decolonization of the travel industry.
Black History Month: The Self-Education Of Bee Quammie
Neither Blackness nor anti-Black racism is exclusive to the country to the south. Stories about the brilliance, beauty and complexity of Black Canadians might be ignored, but they aren’t hard to find. All you have to do is try, like I did
As a Model, I Was Being Judged by the Very Foundation of Myself
Why Bee Quammie’s experience as a model went from being a dream scenario to a reality check.
Freedom ships and the little-known history of resistance
Black history is both deeper and more diverse than what we are taught, and many dedicated and impassioned people are doing the work to reflect that. Enslaved aims to be part of that education. The fifth episode, "Resistance," details the ways freedom seekers pushed back against the evils of slavery and shines a light onlittle-known Black Canadian history and the role so-called freedom ships played in that struggle.
My 15 Minutes With Viola Davis Yielded A Lifetime’s Worth of Advice
Take it from me: a conversation with Oscar/Tony/Emmy award-winning actress, producer and L’Oréal spokesperson Viola Davis has all the range of any one of her iconic performances. When we Zoomed together during TIFF ’20—where she and her husband/business partner Julius Tennon held a masterclass on film production—our chat touched on lipstick, sex, self empowerment and more.