Magic Unfiltered

Nia Franklin aka Miss America 2019 had an awesome convo with Sophia and Rechelle about all things self-esteem, beauty pageants, and faith in this inspiring sit-down! All your misconceptions about beauty pageants will be shattered and you can grab some of the best advice about building your self-confidence like the queen that you are and encouraging others around you too! Get ready to adjust your crown, sis! Use #MagicUPodcast to tell us what you think of the episode!

Life is too short for us NOT to do what we really want to do! That’s Ashlee Wisdom’s (@ashleejwisdom) story. She pivoted in her career path (against what her family wanted her to pursue - shout out to first geners!) and is now a leading Black woman in public health technology as founder of HealthInHerHue and she’s not even 30 yet! What does it take to do that? Ashlee breaks down her passion for what she does and what it took for her to bet on herself. Also? She drops MANY gems about healthcare that EVERY Black woman and girl needs to know! Use #MagicUPodcast to let us know what your dream career path is!

We ignore glass ceilings over here. We're all about cutting our own path and rejecting anything that boxes us in. At ESSENCE's own Fashion House - Rechelle and Sophia chopped it up with singer Justine Skye ( @justineskye) about everything from finding yourself as a young artist to smashing the boxes and labels that hold so many of us hostage. Jump into this convo and let us know what you think using #MagicUPodcast!

Have you ever felt like everyone else in the room knew something you didn’t? Have you ever been interested in a field that seemed completely unrelated to what you knew or where you were? Do you feel more disconnected from people than ever even with so many social media platforms? Most people stick near and dear to their comfort zones but then there are others who break free from comfort to create the life they want. That’s Isa Watson’s story. With a background that spans finance, engineering, and music, she’s broken through her comfort zone to live life on her own terms - and she’s not even 30 yet! She’s the founder of Squad -a platform that allows young people to make genuine connections regardless of job title, location, etc. She's also a classical pianist, and multi-degreed engineer with lots of gems to share with Gen Z. Get into it. Use #MagicUPodcast to let us know what you think of the episode!

(Originally released on Gen Z is tired of being silenced politically and no one represents this truth better than today’s guest, Nupol Kiazolu (@nupol_justice). She’s Miss Liberia 2019-2020; listed on Teen Vogue’s 21 Under 21; the President of Black Lives Matter Greater New York; Founder/CEO of Vote 2000, and a Hampton ℅ 2022 student. On this episode, Nupol gets all the way real about the trauma and triumphs of putting action into activism. She details how the death of Trayvon Martin pushed her into activism and what it was like to be on the front lines of the historic Charlottesville protests. She also gives the best advice to other young people who want to get involved and stand up for what they believe in. Check out Nupol on @bet’s CopWatch America. Use the #MagicUPodcast hashtag and @ us: @essencegu_ to let us know what you think of the episode!

Women and girls around the world experience having their period but in 2019 it's a topic that remains hush-hush. How do we end the taboo? How do we make sure that every girl and woman who needs menstrual products get them? Ileri Jaiyeoba (@ileri_jaiy14), founder of Code Red Co., stopped by Magic Unfiltered to talk about the importance of breaking the taboo and the important work she's doing to provide menstrual products to homeless women and girls. Let us know what you think of the episode using #MagicUPodcast and follow ESSENCE's Girls United platform on Instagram: @essencegu_.

What do you do when you don’t see yourself in ANY of the books you read? 14-year-old Marley Dias (@iammarleydias) created the #1000BlackGirlBooks hashtag and is making books with Black girl protagonists! Rechelle (@rechellealyse) and Sophia (@phiadennis) kick back with Marley and learn all about how she created a social media movement that has gained international fame! Listen to the episode and hit us up using #MagicUPodcast to let us know your favorite Black Girl Book! We’ll feature our favorites on our social media!

[This episode originally aired on 10/11/2019.] Young Devyn (@youngdevyn) is the 17-year-old Brooklyn-born rap phenom who is very clear on where she comes from and where she’s headed. Having BODIED the 2019 BET Hip Hop Awards Cypher, Devyn visited Magic Unfiltered to rap (no pun intended) with Rechelle (@rechellealyse) + Sophia (@phiadennis) about her career as a young M.C., how she got the nickname “Baby G.O.A.T.”, and that time Nicki Minaj shouted her out! And she's got a new video dropping this week for her single, "Drip Ain't Free". She’s #GOALS. Listen to the episode and hit us up on social media to let us know what you think using #MagicUPodcast! Don’t forget to subscribe, comment, and share!

Do you love makeup but you’re not really sure how to do your own? Do all the YouTube beauty gurus intimidate you and you don’t know where to start with a beauty routine? Well, Tiara Willis (@MakeupforWOC)is the 18-year-ol esthetician with over 200,000 followers who is schooling ER’BODY on how to look and feel beautiful the RIGHT way. No more glue masks, and you BETTER be using sunscreen! Tiara joins Rechelle and Sophia on this episode to blow up the beauty myths that are ruining skin and to drop some gems on how to get glowing, beautiful skin and awesome makeup techniques. You do NOT want to miss this episode! Let us know what makeup tips have been saving your skin lately using #MagicUPodcast! And Apple listeners: Don't forget to leave a review!

Ebonee Davis (@eboneedavis) is a POWERHOUSE. At Essence Fest 2019 we chatted her up the model, businesswoman, mother, activist, and friend-to-the-brand about creating space for ourselves and girls and women who look, think, and live like us. Ebonee gave a gooooood word about how she learned to accept herself as a Black woman and how she decided to make the modeling industry accept all her features - including her beautiful Afro. She also has words of affirmation for Black girls everywhere! Visit her organization: Daughter Org (daughterorg.com) to learn more about about her amazing initiative to mentor and bring girls to Ghana. What do you love most about your Blackness? About your natural hair? Let us know on social media using #MagicUPodcast!