black girl magic
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Greek Life: Founders & Pearls Custom Sorority Boxes Have the Swag You Want
Editor’s note: Since we published this article, Founders and Pearls has informed us that it has unfortunately shut down its business. Celebrating its first year in business, Founders & Pearls is a bimonthly subscription box service delivering fly-girl African-American sorority-specific swag to your doorstep. Created by Ngozi IzE Ahanotu, a member of Theta Nu Xi,…
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Defying Gravity: 5 Pole Dancing Athletes Debunk Stereotypes—and Dare You to Try Something New
Ballet dancer Misty Copeland once said: “You can do anything you want, even if you are being told negative things. Stay strong and find motivation.” Two years ago, I applied this same perspective to pole dancing. I transitioned from joking about having two left feet to signing up for a pole dancing course; I left…
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Real Love: Mary J. Blige Is Getting a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Well, here’s a reason to be happy: Just in time to coincide with her Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild and Critics’ Choice best supporting actress nominations for the film Mudbound—as well as a Golden Globe nod for best original song for “Mighty River”—the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce has announced that Grammy Award-winning artist Mary J.…
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She Ready! The Glow Up Is Live on Facebook!
OK, ladies, now let’s get in—well, you know the rest. Five short weeks ago, we introduced you to The Glow Up, a new section of The Root intended to empower, inform and inspire all iterations of black women through the lens of beauty and fashion. And week after week, our audience has continued to grow…
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#ThrowbackThursday: Last Night, Cardi B and Bruno Mars Gave Us Our Entire Lives—in Living Color
It feels so good to be us. For those old enough to remember (*cough* me), In Living Color was the sketch-comedy hallmark of our adolescence—in fact, its run spanned my entire high school career. The (elder) Wayans-brothers vehicle was a revolutionary counterpoint to Saturday Night Live, remixing comedy for the hip-hop generation—replacing the blues of…
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Finally, a Seat at the Table: Jay-Z’s ‘Family Feud’ Makes a Major Statement About Who Belongs in the Family
Because of Jay-Z, this New Year’s Eve, I found myself thinking about families and feuding. When he released 4:44 in June 2017, the reception was mixed, not because the music wasn’t good or poignant—no one who understands hip-hop can deny Jay’s lyricism or his ability to catch our attention with interesting melodies. But men and…
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From Broadway to a Dynasty to a Legacy: All Hail Glow Up Goddess Diahann Carroll
Inspired by the growing number of black female leads on television and film? Thank trailblazing performer Diahann Carroll. Sixty years of striving and of stunning audiences have earned her a 1962 Tony for No Strings, the 1969 Golden Globe for the television series Julia (plus two subsequent nominations), a 1975 Oscar nomination for Best Actress…
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Queen Quinta: Why Quinta B. Is Everything—and Every Woman
Quinta Brunson—better known as Quinta B.—stole our hearts years ago as a video content creator for BuzzFeed Motion Pictures, with her dry wit and deadpan delivery. In the three years since, we haven’t been able to get enough of her reliably hilarious, always relatable videos. She hasn’t disappointed, inking deals with YouTube Red, among others,…
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Wish You Were Here: Afropunk Was the New Year’s Eve Party We All Wanted to Attend
#HolidayEnvy is real, y’all: While the mercury is barely cracking zero degrees in many American cities, it is summer in South Africa, and we can’t think of a better way to ring in 2018 than with the beautiful people at Afropunk Joberg! And the beauties did not disappoint, bringing unparalleled style and statement to Johannesburg,…
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Real Talk from #TeamNatural: Fay the Comedian Has All the New Year’s Resolution We Need
Liberian-born Fay Nelson—also known as Fay the Comedian—has a straight-talking, irreverent style and real-life relatability we just can’t get enough of. But as we strut into 2018, this recent video is exactly the spirit we want to take with us.In the clip, Fay recounts conducting a social experiment: daring to hit the streets completely natural—no…