I am a fond believer in divine timing. I love a serendipitous moment where all the stars align and what may have felt like a delay was just a bit of re-rerouting, making the end goal even more worth it. For the final episode of Season Two it's a special honor to have my good sis, Nicole, in my home to discuss the transition I have born witness to over the past two years. From talking s**t about IG salons to gassing each others growth, she is the perfect person to reflect on the loc journey with a j in hand. The juxtaposition of us as two queer loc'd women smoking freely while in conversation is an important contrast the more serious subject matter we have also gathered here to discuss: her role in producing one of the first TV interviews with Brittany Griner's wife, Cherelle Griner. I'm grateful to Nicole for sharing and shedding light on the interview as well as allowing me to use this space to continue to elevate this issue. Black women are always going to show up for black women, and I am immensely proud to be apart of the nuanced community who will not stay silent.  More information on how you too can show up on WeAreBG.org. #WeAreBG

As a Real Housewives of Atlanta die-hard, I LIVE for a good read. I takes talent to deliver a shady, truth-bearing drag of caliber to my queens Phaedra and Nene. But my new friend Justin, the self-proclaimed King of Reads, has proven worthy. On what should have been my Pride episode, I sit down with the King to detail his experience as a Black Voice on Youtube with over 180k followers, unabashedly wearing his blackness + queerness on his sleeve. Justin's hair colors are about his bold as his opinions as we dig into what it means be unapologetic in his storytelling on the platform, especially as an HIV-positive gay man.  Any conversation where I have to pause to laugh and let the word sink in is a good one, once again grateful to be at all intersections of our community <3. 

Alignment is truly at play for our seminal 25th episode. Today I welcome creative powerhouse Sade Mims to the show who is undoubtedly the future of fashion that feels good for the soul. As someone with a deep appreciation for a quality bag and a statement earring, it’s an honor to converse with the Brooklyn-based accessories designer who is moving through the first five months of her loc journey with complete and utter grace. I’m so grateful for her ability to reflect on her journey with intentionality and share in her tenacity to cultivate a similar ethos within her line and now studio. Oh the joys of being a bad, brilliant black woman! Brooklyn watch-out, Sade and her brand Edas are nothing to sleep on. 

I challenge you to close your eyes and visualize for a second an archetype of the quintessential professional woman: What does she have on? What does she smell like? Where is she headed, to court? An office maybe? A production set or doctor's office? Now tell me what her hair looks like? Most of us probably imagined a slick back ponytail, an expertly laid silk-press, a gel'd up bun...locs and natural styles rarely come to mind first because black women have been told for centuries that their natural state of being is uncouth. I'm especially grateful for this conversation with LaCrai, because it reminds me that those tides are changing. An Emmy-award winning producer and former on-air reporter for CBSN, LaCrai knows a thing or two about the importance of not only delivering the soundbite, but looking the part while doing it. Today we unpack what it means to redefine professionalism for ourselves and our industries as loc'd women of color in media. Her bravery in starting her transition at the height of a public-facing career is essential to creating the representation necessary to keep pushing the narrative. We're pushing the limits of professionalism, either get with it or get lost.  

In 2022 we are welcoming in the New Year by first finishing what we started in the old. Today with my friend Aaron we revisit the conversation around what it means to be a black tattoo artist redefining an entire generation of artwork that has completely excluded black faces. I had the honor of stumbling across his very first residency in Brooklyn in 2020 and finally experienced what it should feel like to be welcomed into the a tattoo shop: safe, seen, and actually aligned with the artwork + artist. The atmosphere black and brown tattoo artists create for their black and brown customers is viewed as a sacred exchange and makes it even more imperative that we protect and uplift these tattooers where we can. You can likely hear in my voice how honored and excited I am by his commitment to representation and authenticity in his craft –– I mean a skull and crossbones with a retwist, I die! To follow or learn more about the Atlanta-based artist visit is IG handle @aarondavistattoo and as always find more from us at @a.loc.storie.

Growing up in the midwest, when I told people I wanted to move to go to New York for college they always replied back inquisitively,"You look like you would live in New York." I took it as a compliment then and happily take it as one now having made Brooklyn my home the last three or so years. What I didn't get is what was meant by that until recently: I'm a lifelong member of the Alt. Black (Gay) Agenda. Living in proximity to this community in Brooklyn feels like an honor, which is why meeting fellow members of my tribe–brown, queer, multi-talented, intellectual, adventurous, rooted friends like KiKi–is so damn special to me. It's the thing that makes you never want to leave. After a year of communing in my living room weekly, today I finally get to interview my friend about the things we've been conversing about for over a year: Chloe + Halle's immaculate loc-do's, locally-sourced rolling papers and her one-of-a-kind job as the Admin for several extremely talented black, femme tattoo artists in the city. I could probably talk about tattoos and equity all day, but I broke it up into two episodes where I'll be interviewing a queer black artist I had the privilege of being yatted by earlier this year.  BUT we'll save that exciting conversation for next week! In the meantime, please enjoy my lifted chat with Kiki ;)

Sometimes you just meet people who you know are going to set your soul back on track, Lateef is one of those people. In his presence you feel seen, nurtured, attuned to your...highest self? A fitness and wellness coach by trade, spirituality bleeds into all of his teachings. His practice encourages adornment and indulging in the aesthetics the serve your best self. As someone who often indulges in their appearance (more often than she probably should) it was comforting to hear that outward appearance is critical to divine self-expression. Here's to learning to wear our hearts and souls on our literal sleeves. 

Who here has seen Uncorked on Netflix? For those who know the reference, today I welcome a real life protagonist, Demi, who is devising a plan to make the wine industry blacker–and thereby cooler. While I was watching Niecy Nash support her black sheep of a son's dreams of becoming a Master Sommelier on my laptop, Demi was doing the real thing last year beginning a wine certification course with inclusive programs to pipeline women and POC's to get into the white, male dominated industry. I can honestly say that before this conversation I never understood the challenge black people face of bringing their authentic selves to work in the restaurant industry. Blatant sexism and racism are rampant and passed off as, "aesthetic codes" and "customer preference." I appreciate Demi for not only opening my eyes to the issues in the world of wine but also illustrating the resources for disruption.  You know me, just simping over black people constructing new spaces where we were once excluded :')

Welcome back to another installment of a series dedicated to the first 12 months of your loc journey, yes the Growin' Pains. Melissa couldn't have been a more perfect candidate for this conversation. She came with the wisdom, the facts and the candor when it came to discussing starting locs a later in life– a very vibrant 37 to be exact. There's this red thread I've noticed among black women that locs are your final resort. Once you've reached a certain milestone or exhausted all your other salon options that then and only then is the time to loc it up. In our conversation Melissa reflects on fully and finally embracing her texture as her locs grew through quarantine–the nappy, soft and in between. 

Nothing makes me happier than celebrating a black man for his art. This week I almost feel *honored* to speak with Detroit-based photographer + youtuber Vuh who captures black joy through his dream-like images. At the center of our conversation is the veneration of stories his hair now carries. His transition to becoming the man behind the camera and starting his locs timed out almost perfectly 8 years ago, since then both his following and tresses have done nothing but grow. Is this what it feels like to speak to an one the rise artist? I kid, but do check out his work @vuhlandes on Instagram and Youtube. Stay connected y'all.