7 Powerfully Beautiful Things That Should Be On Every Black Woman’s Radar This Week

    Solange on racism, how to rock an Afro puff, life lessons from Luuvie, and more.

    Essence Gant
    by Essence Gant

    BuzzFeed Staff

    1. Solange writes a seriously real piece on racism and how she handled a recent encounter at a concert with her son.

    @saintrecords / Via instagram.com

    Author: Solange Knowles

    Outlet: Saint Heron

    In "And Do You Belong? I Do", Solange Knowles gets real and personal about her experiences with racism, recalling multiple instances—like the time an officer told her that her neighborhood was blocked for residents only, despite the residents tag on her car. The artist goes on to share a very recent event in which a group of women yelled to her "Sit down now, you need to sit down right now" and threw a half-eaten lime at her because she was dancing ... at a dance concert. "You know that you cannot speak to them with out it escalating because they have no respect for you or your son, and this will only end badly for you and feel it’s not worth getting the police involved. So, you are hoping they will hear you this way," Knowles writes. She admits that her reaction would have probably been much different had the incident taken place at an earlier point in her life, but this time she realizes that "the biggest payback you could have ever had ... was dancing right in front of them with my hair swinging from left to right, my beautiful black son and husband, and our dear friend Rasheed jamming the hell out with the rhythm our ancestors blessed upon us saying… We belong. We belong. We belong. We built this." Read the full story here.

    2. Ambrosia Malbrough shows us a fail-proof way to achieve her high Afro puff.

    Ambrosia Malbrough / Via youtube.com

    Channel: Ambrosia Malbrough

    Outlet: YouTube

    We can always count on Ambrosia Malbrough to give us LIIIIIFE! The YouTube and social media star does a quick and easy tutorial for achieving this chic Afro puff. She applies a little oil and edge control to an old braid-out, stretching her hair up into the direction of where the puff will be. She secures it with a hair hook, but naturals can also use any elastic hair band. The size of the band will vary depending on how full your natural hair is. Watch Malbrough get the quick and easy style here.

    http://mirandabarnes.com/Doubles
    http://mirandabarnes.com/Doubles

    Photographer: Miranda Barnes

    Outlet: MirandaBarnes.com

    Photographer Miranda Barnes captures twin sisters in her portrait series, Doubles. The photographer tells Broadly, "I find the need to challenge misconceptions of people of color in America as a black woman, highlighting themes of friendship and sisterhood in black communities." She was inspired by her grandmother, Joyce, and her grandmother's twin sister, Jean. Barnes says her grandmother passed before she got the chance to photpgraph her with Jean, but the relationship between them imparted in her feelings of love and sisterhood. Check out the beautiful photos here.

    *Click each photo to scroll to the next.

    4. Saying goodbye to the sun is a little less sad, thanks to Jackie Aina's bomb smokey eye and berry lip tutorial.

    Jackie Aina / Via youtube.com

    Channel: Jackie Aina

    Outlet: YouTube

    Fall is here, y'all, and this Jackie Aina look is getting us kinda turnt about the cool weather. The makeup guru does a step-by-step tutorial for her fall makeup and berry lips, listing every single product she uses. You can substitute her faves with your own and follow along in the video. Aina is quite the pro, so there are a lot of products involved. You can definitely cut back on the products, tho, and stick to the basics for your own take on the look. Watch and copy here.

    5. This corporate career woman turned SoulCycle instructor is inspiring us to follow our passions.

    Jupiterimages / Getty Images

    Author: Kiah McBride

    Outlet: xo Necole

    Before finding her passion as a SoulCycle instructor, 27-year-old Dani Roberts had a career in ad sales at Nickelodeon. In a feature for xo Necole, Roberts tells the author Kiah McBride that she was unhappy with what most would consider a "good" job and felt as though she was just "settling for a steady paycheck." After a friend invited her to attend a SoulCycle class, she was challenged, physically and emotionally, and began crying in the session. Robertson was instantly hooked and became a regular until she was recruited by a scout who happened to be riding next to her in a class. Read Roberts' inspiring story here.

    6. So Lauryn Hill's daughter isn't a baby anymore, and she's modeling for Vogue.

    7. Magical and HILARIOUS black girl Awesomely Luvvie shares 10 life lessons she's learned over the last decade.

    @luvvie / Via instagram.com

    Author: Awesomely Luuvie

    Outlet: AwesomelyLuuvie.com

    On the tenth anniversary of her very popular blog, Awesomely Luuvie wrote 10 lessons she's learned through the decade. Some of those lessons include letting your work evolve, standing in your worth, and looking back without dwelling on the past. In letting her work evolve, Luuvie writes, "Honor all parts of yourself and let the work that you do grow. When I first started, I wasn’t writing about race and politics." She shares how her blog has grown and matured with her as a person, and how embracing that change is okay and healthy. Get schooled on the rest of Luuvie's lessons here.

    Have a lit week, and stay magically beautiful ❤.

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