culture

Dear Demetria:  I’m single. A lot of my friends are married. I’ll suggest getting together, and they’ll say yes, only to hit me at the last minute with, “Hubby will be with me; is that all right?” Is it unrealistic of me to expect to still see my girls without their men tagging along? —Anonymous…

Harriette Cole is the author of the book of meditations 108 Stitches: Words We Live By and a contributing editor at The Root. Follow her on Twitter. 

Who is Drake? Drake is a Jewish-Canadian Instagram model who’s known for dating Serena Williams and other women so thick that everyone else in the room is so uncomfortable. He also records and releases songs about Toronto and Spanx, apparently. One question in and you’re hating already! Why couldn’t you just say, “Drake is a…

What is going on with Empire this season? Last year’s glorious guilty pleasure left things on a high note but came back flat. It shouldn’t have. Not when the finale set the stage for the next chapter: After a season-long competition to determine which of Cookie and Lucious’ sons would be heir apparent to the…

Howard University President Wayne A.I. Frederick is considering auctioning WHUT—the university’s public television station, and for 35 years the only black-owned public television station in the United States—to the Federal Communications Commission for anywhere between an estimated $100 million and $500 million, according to a universitywide memorandum released Friday. The channel’s broadcast spectrum, containing both…

I vividly remember the day my homegirl announced that she was marrying a maintenance worker. We were all enjoying a nice dinner, and then it was as if a hush had fallen over the crowd. She has a master’s degree and had purchased a house, while he was not bringing the same to the table.…

President Barack Obama is known for his singing mic drops. Remember “Amazing Grace“? And Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together“? But who knew that first lady Michelle Obama had singing skills, too? Never mind that it was just the “Happy Birthday” song—they performed an awesome duet. The two recently surprised R&B crooner Usher with a birthday…

“Belief is a heart project” —Oprah Winfrey Very few of us can connect people the way Oprah can. She has a gift for helping the rest of us look deep within and challenge ourselves. She has the ability to push us to go higher. To dig deep within. And to want to live more authentic…

Lamar Odom’s condition continued to improve Saturday, days after he was discovered unconscious in a legal Nevada brothel with cocaine and other substances reportedly in his system. The former NBA athlete was making steady improvement, a person close to Odom, but not authorized to speak publicly about his condition, told the Los Angeles Times. Odom,…