Najwa Moses is striking. Najwa Moses is bold. Najwa Moses lives her life full speed ahead. She’s working hard towards making herself a brand, and from the interview we had a week or so ago, I’m convinced she knows what she’s doing. She’s a podcaster, a videopodcaster, a writer, a fashionista, a marketing maven, a…
Afrobella of the Week/Month
Afrobella of the Month — Nikki Giovanni
Brash, brilliant, brave, beautiful – Nikki Giovanni is all that and then some. You could run through a whole dictionary of adjectives on this proud afrobella of note. She was once known as “the princess of black poetry,” but now, she’s undoubtedly the queen. Nikki Giovanni helped to pave the way for today’s generation of…
Afrobella of the Month* — Farai Chideya
NPR junkies are a dedicated lot. I’ve known some who lull their latchkey pets with A Prairie Home Companion on busy weekends. I’ve known others who are utterly obsessed with Ira Glass. NPR fanatics drive to work with Diane Rehm and come home with News and Notes, hosted by the razor-sharp Farai Chideya. If you’re…
Add This to Your Record Collection
My Afrobella of the Week needed more cookin’ in the kitchen. This is a woman I have a whole lot of respect for, so I want to come correct. And I want her post to kick off the week right, so I’m making the editorial decision to hold off on Afrobella of the Week this…
Afrobella of the Week — Ayo
My appetite for new music is as insatiable as my appetite for makeup and hair products. Which is to say, I’m always on the lookout for the next big thing. I especially love female singers with spunk and sass and indisputable talent. Personality counts for a lot, and I admire a musician with style. But…
Afrobella of the Week — Afeni Shakur
No parent should have to bury their child. But on September 13th, 1996, Afeni Shakur had to do just that. Her son Tupac Amaru was at the height of his career. That year he’d released All Eyez on Me, a Diamond status double album phenomenon that spawned easily a dozen influential hip hop classics. An…
Afrobella of the Week — Alek Wek
I’m a sucker for a great biography. Give me any kind. I love the sex-drugs-rock-n-roll kind, (Anthony Kiedis’ Scar Tissue is enjoyable, I’m thumbing my way through Motley Crue’s The Dirt, and Lesley Arfin’s Dear Diary was one of the quickest, craziest, most addicting reads I’ve enjoyed in a while). My favorite kinds of biographies…
Afrobella of the Week: Odetta
If you’re a regular reader, you already know that I’m crazy about Afrobellas with guitar skills, who play music outside of the limiting circles of hip hop and R&B. In the vein of my Sister Rosetta Tharpe post, I’d like to pay homage to another legendary afrobella who laid the foundation and inspired legions of…
Afrobella of the Week — Michelle Obama
While I certainly have my own political leanings, my goal with this post isn’t to sway anyone. Although I do work for the “liberal media,” I actually have friends of all affiliations. So I know how bloody obnoxious it can be when someone tries to shove their beliefs down your throat, and I never want…
Afrobella of the Week — Bella, It’s You!
So I totally ripped off the widely lampooned Time magazine Person of the Year concept to make a larger point, I promise. I get endless Ask Afrobella questions about the same thing. It goes a little something like this — I can’t find enough cool natural hairstyles! Or, bella, I’m sick of my natural hair…