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True to the Game Is What I’d Expect to Happen if Tyler Perry Directed an Episode of Power
I’m a Netflix black-movie connoisseur. I’ve not been shy about the fact that if a movie exists and has lots of black people in it, there’s a better-than-99 percent chance that I’ll watch it, no matter what. They don’t even have to speak English. I may not make it all the way through—some movies are…
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Why Saying ‘One Bad Apple Doesn’t Spoil the Bunch’ About Starbucks Misses the Point Entirely
I get it. You like Starbucks. You’ve been going there for, like, ever, and you really like your veni-vidi-vici triple-fat goose macchiato latte with a splash of waterfalls and shit. I get it. The fuckery at Starbucks right now, and even the company’s decision to close down for a day to “train” its employees on…
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I Flew 1st Class for the 1st Time as an Adult. I Feel Like a Different Person
I recently went out to Los Angeles on a company-paid trip to host an event called Urban by Nature. From Washington, D.C., that trip is about five hours. For this reason, I typically scramble to get a window or aisle seat, praying to never get stuck on a five-hour middle-seat journey into uncomfortableness. Well, since…
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I Had No Idea a Pulitzer Prize for Music Existed Until Kendrick Lamar Won One for Damn.
Seriously, I didn’t even realize there was a Pulitzer Prize for music. Be that as it may, Kendrick “Kung Fu Kenny” Lamar Duckworth has gone ahead and big-leagued every rapper to ever do it by winning a Pulitzer Prize for music for his album Damn. I don’t even know what to do with this information…
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If This Writing Thing Doesn’t Work Out, I’m Flipping Shoes for a Living
I’m not a sneakerhead in the conventional sense. I’ve never stood in a line in the cold (or hot, for that matter) for a crack at a shoe release. I’ve never entered a shoe raffle hoping to cop a pair of exclusives or waited up at night on the internet refreshing a page over and…
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Dear White People: If a Memorial Dedicated to Lynchings of Black People Makes You Uncomfortable, Good
On April 26 of this year, the Equal Justice Initiative will open both a memorial and museum in Montgomery, Ala., dedicated to the victims of lynching in America post-Civil War. The memorial is called the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, and the museum is called the Legacy Museum: From Enslavement to Mass Incarceration. Both…
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With ‘Nice for What,’ Drake Celebrates Some of Our Faves and Shows Us Why He Keeps Winning
I read somewhere that Drake had a song releasing on Friday night. We all know Friday as Cardi B Invasion of Privacy day, so it almost seemed rude for Drake to drop a song, but it’s Drake. After he just gave away almost a milli in the video for “God’s Plan,” I’m willing to give…
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Scholly Is Helping Howard University Students With Financial Aid Issues Get Their Money Right
While many of the stories about HBCU students being pulled out of line during graduation exercises for various reasons (usually financial or not having completed necessary coursework) skew hyperbolic, there is some truth to the narrative. At my own graduation from Morehouse College in 2001, I absolutely did see somebody pulled from our baccalaureate procession,…
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Black-ish Explores the Decision Between Attending an HBCU or a PWI That So Many of Us Had to Make
ALL THE SPOILERS ARE HERE. THIS IS YOUR SPOILER ALERT. Last night’s episode of Black-ish hit home. Junior’s waiting on college acceptance letters, and he gets two at the same time: an acceptance and full ride to Howard University (father Dre’s alma mater) and an acceptance—but not as much money—to Stanford University. For Dre, the…
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Why Howard University (and What’s Happening There Right Now) Matters So Much
A few weeks back, I attended a talk at Howard University in which my fiancee was guest-teaching a class on public relations and integrated marketing. Before I got to the class, I went to the bookstore and bought a Howard University crewneck sweater. I’m a huge advocate for and supporter of HBCUs—I make a monthly…
