Source: Keysus / Keysus Like its hip-hop counterpart, Dancehall is evolving. Trap beats are replacing traditional dubbing but, the raw and unfiltered lyricism continues to keep our attention. See Also: Black Music Month: Afrobeats Bangers For Black Music Month, we’re introducing you to a new class of dancehall artists that include Shenseea , Koffee and Rygin King. Press play below.
Source: Aurelien Meunier / Getty The impractical shoes, the resolute gait, the single mindedness, you can spot a Black fashion girl from a mile away. They march annually straight from the halls of FIT, LIM, and the school of life into an industry that is at its best indifferent and begrudgingly democratic and at its worst deeply racist and openly hostile. Black fashion girls grew up eyeing the fantasies erected in the hallowed pages of W , Elle , and Vogue . They learned terminology from The Hills , they searched for internships on Media Bistro , they scoured Women’s Wear Daily for an edge that would allow them to join the few non-melaninated people at the top rung of the traveling circus. As they envision the change they will enact when they finally claim their seats at those exclusive tables, Black fashion girls rarely consider how their power can be limited by not only their skin color but also their job title. Sadly, when Black women reach their coveted jobs at fashion companies, it’s as an intern on entry level employee. The few that make it higher than this, retention then becomes the issue as microaggressions infiltrate the day. Change is not created by mere presence alone. It happens when the voices in the room are empowered to speak up, and no one is more empowered than Rihanna. Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty Meticulous about her image from the very beginning (she notoriously sued a British retailer for using her image without her permission), her place at one of the world’s most powerful companies is one of unprecedented control. Rihanna converting her influence as a pop star turned style icon into tangible results has the potential to create a shift in culture that could upend the pervasion of offensive key chains and bubble coats. Her celebrity has taken her somewhere that apprenticeships and assistant gigs have not yet been able to go and she leaves the door so much as slightly cracked it will change many lives. Provocative ad campaigns and reactionary diversity councils aside, leadership in the fashion industry is still overwhelmingly white and male. The height of perceived luxury is governed by stakeholders who do not include island girls from Barbados with the balls to rock doobies on the red carpet, pilfer wine glasses, and flip off the paparazzi. Source: Jason LaVeris / Getty That is why what Rihanna has done with Fenty matters even if she has done it with the support of a major conglomerate. Using an inclusive strategy that rejects ageism and mommy shaming while embracing sex and body positivity she has already set standards in the beauty and lingerie spaces that are spurning growing investment into black models, executives, and designers. Rihanna is forcing companies to invest and expand in what they don’t have. Her partnership with LVMH for Fenty Beauty proved to be a success, utilizing new selling models and turning the industry on their head. Naturally, fashion is next. Rihanna will now force the industry to support what they haven’t for a long time: Black women (whether in size or color). For a (undisclosed) price, Rihanna is using her influence and changing how we know the fashion game. One can hope, in this moment, she’ll use her profits to invest in other Black women or this moment to give Black women a seat at the table. Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty LVMH is a company that controls the trends you’ll be wearing all summer, the bottles you cling to at brunch, and the endless selfies you snapped at Liberty State Park this weekend. Their autocratic leadership being destabilized by Rihanna will have a ripple effect throughout the entire industry. It is easy to dismiss her accomplishments because she has done it by partnering with LVMH but to do so would be to ignore the potential of her impact. If her expressing her agency as a designer means clients, contracts, and steps forward for even one Black woman then it is a win for our community. And that should matter, to the gatekeepers, to the ambitious newcomers, to us all because it’s one small step for a multinational corporate giant but it’s a leap for Black fashion girls. DON’T MISS: Dapper Dan’s Designs At The Met Gala Make The Ultimate Play On Camp By Representing High Fashion Harlem This Black Financial Blogger Helped Create A Bill To Teach Middle Schoolers Money Management MODEL MONDAY: Bianca Golden Wants Everyone To Get A Top Education [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”2981964″ overlay=”true”]
Photo Credit: Kia Caldwell Name: Phylicia Gilzene IG: @phylicia_theplusmodel_ Agency: Self-Represented Seven years ago, Phylicia Gilzene understood how items got on shelves. But as for what went on the sets of the photoshoots held to promote those items, she had no clue. Despite her extensive experience in advanced retail operations and striking beauty she had never thought she would end up in one of the ads that she was once oversaw the distribution of. Her foray into the limelight started on a dance floor. “It’s kind of a funny story, I was at a party dancing and having a good time and this lady came up to me and asked if I ever thought about modeling,” she told HelloBeautiful in an exclusive interview. View this post on Instagram I've always been in Love with myself , and to me that's the only thing that ever mattered !! Photo shot by @josepaganphotography , MUA @viva_glam_lorac , Wig made by @adore_lamour_ Creative director and Mentor @plusmodjeannief , My Look is from @byashleystewart . #ModelMondays #PlusModel #PhyliciaRene #CelebrateMySize #Curves #PlusModelMag #IAmAshley #CurvesAreSexy #GoldenConfidence A post shared by Phylicia Rene (@phylicia_theplusmodel_) on Mar 13, 2017 at 8:37am PDT The thought had never occurred to her even though she was confident about her appearance. Photo Credit: Kia Caldwell “I’ve always been into fashion and thought I was cute, but I had no idea about this plus community,” she explained. She said her connection to the body positivity movement was limited to, “only what I saw on TV.” The candid conversation led to Gilzene enrolling in a runway course. “I met Jeannie Ferguson while doing a runway class. At the time there was a big plus size modeling casting coming up and she told me to go for it.” View this post on Instagram She’ll be here before we know it [[ The dream team always makes it happen]] A post shared by Phylicia Rene (@phylicia_theplusmodel_) on Apr 8, 2019 at 5:14am PDT She put action behind the words of encouragement right away without waiting for additional training. Gilzene was ready to be a star even if she didn’t have all the tools to shine just yet. “I had a friend of mine who was a photographer take some pics and I went for it,” she said.Her nerves didn’t hold her back from going for it the way Ferguson suggested and her assured energy is transferable. “All my onset experiences have been amazing fun and relaxing. I do get nervous sometimes believe it or not in front of the camera but every photographer I’ve ever worked for made me feel very comfortable and gave direction if needed,” she recalled. View this post on Instagram Confidence is #PlusModel #NYC #FashionWeek #PhyliciaRene A post shared by Phylicia Rene (@phylicia_theplusmodel_) on Sep 22, 2016 at 6:56am PDT Chuckling she added, “Looking back on those pics now I can see I’ve come a long way.” She’s not only come a long way as a model but as a mother. She balances pursuing her modeling dreams with raising her sixteen-month-old son and newborn daughter. She’s already begun thinking about how her career will give her an entry point to talk to her children about societal beauty standards – after they get that whole ABCs thing down. View this post on Instagram The Gilzene-Grady Clan @levue_ A post shared by Phylicia Rene (@phylicia_theplusmodel_) on Apr 14, 2019 at 6:46am PDT “I want my kids to know that beauty isn’t everything! Everyone’s definition of beauty can be very different,” she said. She also doesn’t want them to feel appearance disqualifies them to work in any atmosphere. “I never want my kids to feel like they have to look like whomever to be considered beautiful or to be considered for that particular job,” she added. Restrictions that she doesn’t want placed on her children are rejected by her as well. She is not intimidated by the slender models stalking the catwalk. View this post on Instagram Fingers Crossed #FFFWEEKCASTINGTOUR2016 A post shared by Phylicia Rene (@phylicia_theplusmodel_) on Mar 12, 2016 at 7:42am PST “I would love to grace some runways during fashion week and to model for some designers who don’t normally hire plus size models.” She’s prepared to hit the ground running in high heels in between midnight feedings. DON’T MISS: MODEL MONDAY: Aba Forewa Is Going Full Force MODEL MONDAY: Christina Mendez Kept Her Children First On Her Climb To The Top MODEL MONDAY: Ifeoma Somiari Is A Bio Student Selling Bundles And Closures Between Classes [ione_media_gallery src=”https://hellobeautiful.com” id=”3027813″ overlay=”true”]
Source: Randy Shropshire / Getty You can’t say Ray J isn’t a good salesman. The R&B crooner, reality star and Kim Kardashian porn co-star is investing $5,000,000 of his own money to start a marijuana company. Reports TMZ : Our Ray J sources tell TMZ … he’s already poured in $5,000,000 to fire up a cannabis company in Cali, and the first rollout will feature pre-rolled joints, dubbed, “Ray Jay’s.” As you see in the video, Ray J ain’t playing around when it comes to his plants … he’s already got a greenhouse stocked with rows and rows of dank, and the flowers look like the stickiest of the icky!!! The company is called MADDVIBES, and Ray J’s assembling a top-notch gang of ganja experts specializing in growing, branding and marketing herb … and he’s going to put his stamp on the biz with his own personal knowledge and expertise. See, smoking pot has tons of benefits!!!! Reportedly, Ray J’s company will focus on alternative marketing strategies in media, music and entertainment. Considering how too many Black people are being boxed out of the legal marijuana biz, we are all for Ray J getting his, and bring more people like him into the fold. — Photo: Getty
Source: KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / Getty R. Kelly’s Former Employee Says He Gave Feds Multiple Underaged Sex Tapes One of R. Kelly ‘s former cronies testified to a grand jury that he had MULTIPLE video recordings of the singer having sex with underaged girls. According to TMZ , the ex-employee said he had possession of the tapes but they now belong to the federal investigators who want to put Kelly in the bing. We’re told the former employee told grand jurors R. Kelly paid a large sum of cash to the employee and in return, the employee handed a tape over to the singer. We’re told somehow the tape in question ended up in the hands of Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. The walls are closing in on R. Kelly and his time of reckoning is right around the corner. Can’t. Wait.
Source: KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI / Getty R. Kelly’s Former Employee Says He Gave Feds Multiple Underaged Sex Tapes One of R. Kelly ‘s former cronies testified to a grand jury that he had MULTIPLE video recordings of the singer having sex with underaged girls. According to TMZ , the ex-employee said he had possession of the tapes but they now belong to the federal investigators who want to put Kelly in the bing. We’re told the former employee told grand jurors R. Kelly paid a large sum of cash to the employee and in return, the employee handed a tape over to the singer. We’re told somehow the tape in question ended up in the hands of Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx. The walls are closing in on R. Kelly and his time of reckoning is right around the corner. Can’t. Wait.
Source: MAURO PIMENTEL / Getty Per a police report, Paris Saint-Germain star forward Neymar has been accused of raping a woman last month in Paris. The document was filed by Brazilian police in Sao Palo on Friday (May 31). However, Neymar claims he’s been set up. Reports the Associated Press : A Brazilian police document says an unidentified woman has accused soccer star Neymar of raping her in Paris last month. After the revelation, the player used Instagram to publish a 7-minute video that includes WhatsApp messages he says he exchanged with the accuser in a friendly way days later. Neymar calls the incident “a setup” and insists it is an attempt of extortion against him. The document obtained by The Associated Press on Saturday says the incident took place May 15 at 8:20 p.m. in a hotel. The woman went to police Friday in Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo state’s Public Security Secretariat, which oversees police, confirmed in a statement that the complaint was registered, but did not offer details. You can peep some of the alleged receipts below. Actually, it’s in Portuguese, but he does share a series of elicit WhatsApp messages between him and the alleged victim, while continually maintaining it is all part of an extortion plot. — Photo: MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP/Getty Images
Source: MAURO PIMENTEL / Getty Per a police report, Paris Saint-Germain star forward Neymar has been accused of raping a woman last month in Paris. The document was filed by Brazilian police in Sao Palo on Friday (May 31). However, Neymar claims he’s been set up. Reports the Associated Press : A Brazilian police document says an unidentified woman has accused soccer star Neymar of raping her in Paris last month. After the revelation, the player used Instagram to publish a 7-minute video that includes WhatsApp messages he says he exchanged with the accuser in a friendly way days later. Neymar calls the incident “a setup” and insists it is an attempt of extortion against him. The document obtained by The Associated Press on Saturday says the incident took place May 15 at 8:20 p.m. in a hotel. The woman went to police Friday in Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo state’s Public Security Secretariat, which oversees police, confirmed in a statement that the complaint was registered, but did not offer details. You can peep some of the alleged receipts below. Actually, it’s in Portuguese, but he does share a series of elicit WhatsApp messages between him and the alleged victim, while continually maintaining it is all part of an extortion plot. — Photo: MAURO PIMENTEL/AFP/Getty Images
View this post on Instagram Any age is the right age to get healthy & fit. Start now with my sexy body program. Download my workout app NicoleMurphyfitness.com only $9 a month. #fitat51 #stayfit #shape #healthy #fitness #nicolemurphy. Photo by @krishphotos #nicolemurphyfitness #adidas A post shared by Nicole Murphy (@nikimurphy) on Jun 1, 2019 at 12:11pm PDT In case you forgot, Nicole Murphy is one of the baddest baddies of all time. Sure she’s a bit older now, but that doesn’t mean a single damn thing. she’s still out here killing the game. Remember how Shannon Sharpe has been on TV lusting over her for months on end. The above pic is one of the snackiest pics she’s ever put out. View this post on Instagram #tbt me as cat-woman #meow #catwoman #nicolemurphy A post shared by Nicole Murphy (@nikimurphy) on May 9, 2019 at 8:57pm PDT So isn’t this a perfect time to give you some of the baddest pics in her catalogue. Take a look…
View this post on Instagram Any age is the right age to get healthy & fit. Start now with my sexy body program. Download my workout app NicoleMurphyfitness.com only $9 a month. #fitat51 #stayfit #shape #healthy #fitness #nicolemurphy. Photo by @krishphotos #nicolemurphyfitness #adidas A post shared by Nicole Murphy (@nikimurphy) on Jun 1, 2019 at 12:11pm PDT In case you forgot, Nicole Murphy is one of the baddest baddies of all time. Sure she’s a bit older now, but that doesn’t mean a single damn thing. she’s still out here killing the game. Remember how Shannon Sharpe has been on TV lusting over her for months on end. The above pic is one of the snackiest pics she’s ever put out. View this post on Instagram #tbt me as cat-woman #meow #catwoman #nicolemurphy A post shared by Nicole Murphy (@nikimurphy) on May 9, 2019 at 8:57pm PDT So isn’t this a perfect time to give you some of the baddest pics in her catalogue. Take a look…