Serena and Venus Williams in Africa

Serena and Venus Williams visited Africa to inspire young women to unleash their potential, achieve success and reach their potential. 

The sisters champion “Breaking the Mould” – an initiative aimed at recognising women who have risen above adversity to succeed and inspire others.

This was Venus’ first visit on the continent but not for Serena who already been to Africa for other philanthropy projects.

In South Africa, Serena defeated her sister 6-4, 6-3 during an amicable match at Ellis Park's Indoor Arena.

In Nigeria, Lagos, the sisters visited the Government College Ikoyi. During the visit, sponsored by the Procter and Gamble brand Always, the sisters answered the students questions during a Q&A session.

Venus said: "Some people say I have an attitude, maybe I do, but I think you have to. You have to believe in yourself when no one else does. That makes you a winner right there."

Celebrity style: Janelle Monae

Have you ever wondered why Janelle Monae is always dressed in black and white like a waitress or a maid? You may even have thought that her style is annoying, been there, done that, why don't you try something new for a change?

The American singer explained the reasons behind her fashion statement at the  in her acceptance speech for the“Young, Black and Gifted” award at the Black Girls Rock, Inc. awards ceremony on Sunday 4 November. Her style is a statement, a way for her to always remember her background and honor her family's: 

"When I started my music career, I was a maid. I used to clean houses. My mother was a proud janitor. My stepfather, who raised me like his very own, worked at the post office and my father was a trashman.  They all wore uniforms and that’s why I stand here today, in my black and white, and I wear my uniform to honor them.

This is a reminder that I have work to do. I have people to uplift. I have people to inspire. And today, I wear my uniform proudly as a Cover Girl. I want to be clear, young girls, I didn’t have to change who I was to become a Cover Girl. I didn’t have to become perfect because I’ve learned throughout my journey that perfection is the enemy of greatness.”

The Black Girls Rock, Inc. awards took place on in the Bronx, New York. The ceremony, hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross and Regina King, is to honor the achievements of women of color who are rising stars and veteran trendsetters in entertainment, culture and more.

Tracee Ellis Ross launches a website

Actress Tracee Ellis Ross launched her new website, with a very personal tone and a blog layout. What is it about? Of course, hair, but also fashion tips, beauty, wellbeing...
http://traceeellisross.com/

Jill Scott hijacked the cover of Essence magazine with her natural hair style

Jill Scott is on the cover of the October 2012 Essence magazine. 

But this cover slightly differs from the black woman's average cover. Jill is wearing her hair 'au naturel'. No weaves, no wigs, no extensions. Just her.

The singer said: “This is the simplest form of myself. I look in the mirror and it’s like, ‘Hey, there you go. What’s up, girl?’

One could think that things are changing but this did not happen so easily. 

In fact, Jill Scott had to give the magazine an ultimatum: cover 'au naturel' or no cover at all. 

There's still a long way to go until natural black beauty becomes mainstream.

IBWO: Michelle Obama

With her moving speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, Michelle Obama is definitely our IBWO, Inspiring Black WOman of the week.

Best bits:

"And every semester, he [Michelle's dad] was determined to pay that bill right on time, even taking out loans when he fell short. He was so proud to be sending his kids to college . . . and he made sure we never missed a registration deadline because his check was late. You see, for my dad, that’s what it meant to be a man."

 ". . . because for Barack, success isn’t about how much money you make, it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives."

"And I didn’t think it was possible, but today, I love my husband even more than I did four years ago . . . even more than I did 23 years ago, when we first met."

"I love that we can trust Barack to do what he says he’s going to do, even when it’s hard – especially when it’s hard."

"And I love that even in the toughest moments, when we’re all sweating it – when we’re worried that the bill won’t pass, and it seems like all is lost – Barack never lets himself get distracted by the chatter and the noise."

Full speech transcript in the Financial Times and video on Youtube.

Celebs that don't age: Brandy Norwood

Brandy in the 90's vs 2012

Meagan Good on marriage, celibacy and confidence

Actress Meagan Good who recently played the role of Mya in the romcom Think Like a Man revealed that she gained confidence before her marriage to preacher DeVon Franklin thanks to celibacy. 

"One of the things I noticed right off the bat is I had more clarity, I had more self worth, I had more peace of mind and I just was a lot more relaxed and sure of myself" she said in the interview with Voice of Hope.

Back to the roots: Alek Wek

Alek Wek just visited her native country South Sudan. The top model left the country as a teenager with her parents and siblings to escape the second Sudanese civil war, a conflict that lasted from 1983 to 2005 and made millions of victims. Wek visited the refugee camp where she lived before fleeing the country for the UK. She said in: 'Whenever I feel I am going through my own 'little' challenging moment, I just think about my mom.'

Alesha Dixon covers LOOK magazine, August 2012

Preview the magazine here.

Inspiring Black Woman of the week: Jessica Ennis

Jessica Ennis is on the cover of the August UK edition of Cosmopolitan magazine. She is the current British national record holder for both the heptathlon and the indoor pentathlon. She is also the face of numerous Olympic Games advertising campaigns including BP and Olay (along with actress Thandie Newton). Jessica was born in 1986 in Sheffield, UK from a Jamaican father and a British mother.

Fro of the day: Inna Modja

Name: Inna Modja (real name: Inna Bocoum)
Job: Singer
From: Mali
Date of birth: 19 May 1984
Favourite hair products: Mizani, shea butter, natural oils

Celebrity hairstyle: Leela James

Leela James is a singer born in 1983 in California. She is also known as a natural hair inspiration. She's never relaxed her hair thanks to her mother's influence and hasn't felt any pressure from the music industry to do so. However, she's not an afro activist and believes that one shouldn't give too much importance to somoene's hair style:


"Hair politics are so stupid. I wish somebody would say that if I straighten my hair, I'm not as "Black" as someone with a natural. A hairstyle doesn't have anything to do with how conscious you are. India Arie said it best with her song "I'm Not My Hair." And listen, some people wear afros and loc their hair, but they're just as Uncle Tom as they can be. Everybody knows somebody that's like, "I burn my incense, I'm so righteous, I'm so spiritual..." Give me a break!" (source: essence magazine)

She maintains her hair with a very simple hair regimen including shampoo and braids as a protective style: "I usually wash and condition in the shower, but I've been known to flip my hair over into the kitchen sink too... old school style, LOL! It all depends on my mood. I deep condition and apply hot oil treatments regularly. I recommend everyone do this, at least once a month."

Here's how she creates the mega afro above: "On wash day, I apply a leave-in conditioner and create 5 or 6 braids or plaits. I braid on damp hair and allow it to air-dry. Once it's fully dry, I take the braids down, comb them, and then tease it out using a pick or a wide tooth comb. Sometimes I'll lightly blow it out with a dryer, but that's really it! In between styling sessions, I dampen the hair, re-braid and repeat." (source: curlinikki.com)

Read her interview in Essence magazine

First posted on 28 July 2010.

Celebrity Hairstyle: Cassie vs Jada Pinkett-Smith

 The shaved head is still in. When Cassie did it first in 2009, we thought it would be a craze but she hasn't gone back since then. Jada Pinkett-Smith also adopted that extreme style on a regular basis and her daughter Willow is following the path.

The challenge with shaved hair is maintenance and options. Having long straight hair makes it easier for Cassie and Jada to hide the shaved part and switch back to a conventional look for work or formal events.


Cassie, the young hipster, and Jada, the mature woman, have two very different approaches. So who wears the shaved head better? Cast your vote below:

Jada tends to leave more hair and often hides the shaved side for a classic look. She revealed her shaved side last night at Sean Penn's fundraising for Haïti in Cannes with bare make-up, a sparkling dress and elegant earrings (see above).

Cassie's hair is shaved very low which gives her a more drastic look. She is not afraid to look edgy and goes all the way with large hipster glasses, high ponytails and gigantic accessories.

Hair of the day: Halle Berry or Tia Mowry?

Today's battle is between two curly actresses. It looks like Halle Berry is going natural and letting her light brown curls out. Meanwhile, Tia Mowry is doing the dramatic look with long, straight, dark locks and a bang.

Thumbs up to In Style Hair magazine for normalising black hair care

If you haven't bought the Spring/Summer issue of In Style Hair, it's time to get your hands on it. We were only after braiding ideas when we bought it so you can imagine our surprise when we found out that it was full of resources for black hair and skin care.

A full spread on relaxed hair tips; three double spread pages with tips from natural hair celebrities Yaya Da Costa, Solange Knowles and Corinne Bailey-Rae; tips to style curls and flat iron; make-up advice for dark skins. AND the distinction was made between warm and cold skin tones!

When it comes to integrating black beauty in mainstream magazines, the UK press is definitely more advanced than in other european countries. In Frace, Femme Actuelle, a popular female weekly magazine just launched a Special Issue dedicated to black beauty entitled 'Femme Actuelle Beauté Noire'. This is so rare that all afro blogs are talking about it. Meanwhile, in Itally, Vogue is about to publish its second special issue dedicated to Africa.

As far as we're concerned, we prefer the 'silent revolution' approach that's taking place in the UK. Black beauty is slowly being integrated in mainstream publications so normalised that it doesn't even need 'special' issues.

Gabrielle Union to star in Being Mary Jane on BET

Gabrielle Union is to star in Being Mary Jane, a new BET movie from Mara Brock Akil, producer of cult tv shows The Game, Girlfriends and romcom Jumping the Broom.

Storyline: Mary Jane Paul is a one-woman show: a successful TV news anchor, entirely self-sufficient — an all-around powerhouse who remains devoted to a family that doesn’t share her motivation. As Mary Jane juggles her life, her work and her commitment to her family, we find out how far she’s willing to go to find the puzzle pieces that she, and society, insist are missing from her life as a single Black female.

Union who is rarely seen in public 'au naturel' surprised her fans when she twitted pictures of her real hair during a trip at the hair salon in 2011:

Celebrity style: Marsha Ambrosius

Marsha Ambrosius slowly drifted away from natural styles over the years. Remember her natural hair styles back in the days of Floetry? She traded them for straight or textured straight hair. In her newly released video 'Day Alone', featuring Daley, she wears what looks like a bantu knot out. So what suits her best?

Hot or not? Alicia Keys at Paris Fashion Week

Academy Awards 2012 - The top 4 black hair moments

Zoe Saldana with beach waves at the Vanity Fair Oscars party; Viola Davis wearing her hair natural for the first time at an Oscars ceremony, Esperanza Spalding singing What a Wonderful World and Octavia Spencer picking her Best Supporting Actress Oscar.

Hot or not? Blonde hair

Many celebs are now dying their hair blonde. There is an infinite number shades, textures and lengths to choose from. What style do you prefer? Rihanna's wavy locks with dark roots; Emeli Sandé's sharp side cut and a long fringe or Brianna's peroxyde blonde fishtail?