Rihanna's Unapologetic Refusal To Be One-Dimensional Should Be All Of Us
Don't @ me, but Rihanna is one of the baddest there is. In a world that loves to put women in a box, Rihanna has become the epitome of artistic versatility and professional ambition.
It's no secret that RiRi has been making some serious career moves lately — Fenty Beauty has recently expanded its line to include over 50 concealer shades, with the brand selling over $100 million dollars worth of products in its first few months. Savage x Fenty, her skin tone and body inclusive lingerie line, is heading into its second year. She serves Barbados as an ambassador for educational and tourism initiatives and has worked with the French President, Emmanuel Macron, to improve global education efforts, leading Macron to pledge 200 million euros to the cause. Plus, there has been recent buzz regarding an exclusive partnership deal with Louis Vuitton, making her one of the first black women to do so, and there are now rumors of her launching her own high-end Fenty clothing line.
Rihanna is an entertainer, makeup mogul, fashion designer, and noted philanthropist. Moreover, she's authentic, independent, dynamic – she's a BO$– and it's time to put some respect on her name.
Despite her laundry list of achievements, many of her closest stans have been vocal regarding their impatience for the release of her latest album, R9, which is rumored to launch before Summer 2019. Particularly on Twitter and Instagram, this impatience has turned hostile and downright unacceptable.
I've said it once and I'll say it again: leave Rihanna alone.
In a society dominated by male business leaders, across a wide majority of industries, Rihanna should be our entrepreneurship and career development goals.
Many of us are spending far too much time critiquing Rihanna's contributions to the music world (which are undeniably considerable) but are not hyping up her financial independence and numerous efforts to better our world and some of the most vulnerable communities within it.
While we all certainly cannot wake up and magically have access to her angel investors and musical talent, we can learn a lot from and aspire to reinvent ourselves professionally as Rihanna has done over the last few years.
Rihanna came onto the scene as an entertainer, and over the past decade, has now broken barriers and redefined our expectations in a number of completely different capacities. She has refused to be limited to a one-dimensional career path and so should you.
Take this moment to sit down and reflect upon what side hustles and career goals you have been sitting on for a while. Where do you want to see yourself in the next 10 years? What dreams have you continuously pushed aside? Speak your dreams into reality, and like Rihanna, refuse to be one-dimensional. Where you start does not have to be where you finish.
In the words of Robyn Rihanna Fenty: "Keep your eyes on the finish line and not on the turmoil around you."
Featured image by Andrea Raffin / Shutterstock.com
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Lydia is a recent Ivy League graduate and lifestyle writer based out of NYC. Storytelling her way through her 20-somethings, her lens is all things career, self-care, and #BlackGirlMagic. Meet Lydia on Instagram @hello_lydia.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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You've Never Seen Luke James In A Role Quite Like This
Over the years, we've watched Luke James play countless characters we'd deem sex symbols, movie stars, and even his complicated character in Lena Waithe's The Chi. For the first time in his career, the New Orleans-born actor has taken on a role where his signature good looks take a backseat as he transforms into Edmund in Them: The Scare—a mentally deranged character in the second installment of the horror anthology series that you won't be able to take your eyes off.
Trust us, Edmund will literally make you do a double take.
xoNecole sat down with Luke James to talk about his latest series and all the complexity surrounding it—from the challenges taking on this out-of-the-box role to the show's depiction of the perplexing history of the relationship between Black Americans and police. When describing the opportunity to bring Edmund's character to life, Luke was overjoyed to show the audience yet another level of his masterful acting talents.
"It was like bathing in the sun," he said. "I was like, thank you! Another opportunity for me to be great—for me to expand my territory. I'm just elated to be a part of it and to see myself in a different light, something I didn't think I could do." He continued, "There are parts of you that says, 'Go for it because this is what you do.' But then also that's why it's a challenge because you're like, 'um, I don't know if I'm as free as I need to be to be able to do this.' Little Marvin just created such a safe space for me to be able to do this, and I'm grateful for everything I've been able to do to lead to this."
Courtesy
Them: The Scare, like the first season, shines a light on the plight of Black Americans in the United States. This time, the story is taking place in the 1990s, at the height of the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles. While the series presents many underlying themes, one that stands out is Black people and the complicated relationship with the police. "For the audience, I think it sets the tone for the era that we're in and the amount of chaos that's in the air in Los Angeles and around the country from this heinous incident. And I say it just sets the tone of the anxiety and anxiousness that everybody is feeling in their own households."
James has been a longtime advocate against police brutality himself. He has even featured Elijah McClain, the 23-year-old Colorado man who died after being forcibly detained by officers, as his Instagram avatar for the past five years. So, as you can imagine, this script was close to his heart. "Elijah was a soft-loving oddball. Different than anyone but loving and a musical genius. He was just open and wanted to be loved and seen."
Getty Images
Luke continued, "His life was taken from him. I resonate with his spirit and his words...through all the struggle and the pain he still found it in him to say, 'I love you and I forgive you.' And that's who we are as people—to our own detriment sometimes. He's someone I don't want people to forget. I have yet to remove his face from my world because I have yet to let go of his voice, let go of that being [because] there's so many people we have lost in our history that so often get forgotten."
He concluded, "I think that's the importance of such artwork that moves us to think and talk about it. Yes, it's entertaining. We get to come together and be spooked together. But then we come together and we think, 'Damn, Edmund needed someone to talk to. Edmund needed help... a lot [of] things could have been different. Edmund could have been saved.'
Check out the full interview below.
Luke James Talks Ditching Sex Symbol Status For "Them: The Scare", Elijah McClain, & Morewww.youtube.com
Featured image by Getty Images