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KIERNA MAYO

KIERNA MAYOKIERNA MAYOKIERNA MAYO

A STORY TO TELL

A STORY TO TELLA STORY TO TELLA STORY TO TELL
my story

hello, good people.

the intersections

BITS & PIECES


•writer.

•vice president + executive editor 

roc lit 101/one world. (penguin random house)

•host of culturati, the podcast.

•executive producer. showrunner. screenwriter. cultural commentator. public speaker. 

•maker. entrepreneur. interiors girl.

•mother. lover. feminist. global citizen. 


the ebony x cassius years.

my old speaker reel. kierna mayo

style & beauty (i've directed countless shoots)

the drama of wendy williams

the drama of wendy williams

the drama of wendy williams

As EIC, I lead the style and beauty team on all feature and cover shoots. (I also wrote this story on Wendy Williams.) 

kierna mayo, ebony magazine

the fire of kendrick lamar

the drama of wendy williams

the drama of wendy williams

Kendrick has a very specific, chic sense of style. Worked with him for our Black music month cover. 

what had happened was...

honey is born

come over, beyonce

come over, beyonce

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.

come over, beyonce

come over, beyonce

come over, beyonce

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.

hearst magazines

come over, beyonce

hearst magazines

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.

cassius is born

the lena horne prize

hearst magazines

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.

the ebony impact

the lena horne prize

the lena horne prize

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.

the lena horne prize

the lena horne prize

the lena horne prize

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.

POV

first CNN appearance

the EBONY Cosby Show cover was quite controversial.

on Hot 97

promoting the launch of the CASSIUS "born unapologetic" brand.

how I made it

had I really made it by 2012? i'm still making it now.

TALK THAT KIERNA TALK.

YO! A whole song about me.

from a soon-to-be doc about hip hop journalist pioneers. check out the dope mc kamilah white. 

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