A STORY TO TELL

This iconic image of Lauryn Hill is the preview cover of Honey magazine. It was the late '90s and I was the young, founding editor in chief. I tell more than I should about the great and terrible Honey story on the Longform podcast. It is still my most prideful work. It was the prequel to today's #blackgirlmagic. A resounding cultural moment. Honey is legend.

I wrote this Q & A in '03. Beyonce's very first Essence magazine cover. For the interview, Bey actually came over to my house in Brooklyn. A woman on my block did a double take but thought to herself, "Nah." Beyonce was at the precipice of global superstardom, still, we sat in my living room, ate jerk chicken falling off the bones, and talked about life for hours.

In the early aughts, I was part of the creation of Hearst Magazine's first diversity leadership group. I was senior editor of CosmoGirl for four years, and, at one point, the only African American editor on the team. The Jessica Simpson cover story above is by me. Fun fact: I pushed back against this problematic title but it ran nonetheless.

As iOne Digital SVP of Content & Brands, I directed multiple platforms. The mural (in-progress here) is one I commissioned for the CASSIUS "Last Supper" launch 2017.  The tag line was, "Born Unapologetic." The cultural leaders depicted represent multiple generations of unapologetic Black thought. Find your fave.

At the venerable EBONY magazine, I was recognized for a maverick, signature approach to  storytelling both in print and online. At a fast-changing time in American journalism, I centered the work of young reporters and opinion writers covering the Ferguson uprisings and the inception of the Black Lives Matter movement.

I was head writer and showrunner for the Lena Horne Prize for Artists Creating Social Impact. A live, award show production, we shot the pilot in February 2020 at NYC's famed Town Hall. Solange Knowles received the inaugural prize. It was a magical night spent with social justice luminaries and passionate celebrities like Common and Dolores Huerta.