
How Kesha McLeod Went from Working In Retail to Styling The Biggest Names In Sports

The truth about purpose is that sometimes you have to let it find you.
It doesn't follow a strict timeline, and the aha moment often hits you when you least expect it—maybe...
in your teens or your early twenties, just in time for you to decide which career path to pursue and what jobs to send your resume to. It may lie dormant while you move and shake within your industry, building up a Rolodex of clients that will make the average person do a double take.
Or in the case of celebrity stylist Kesha McLeod, it might not hit you until long after you've built a respectable career, and are looking for the next part of your legacy.
“I'm figuring out my purpose and my values and my core values," says McLeod. “But [in the meantime] I can speak on [it] to a younger generation that wants to do what I want to do."
Photo Credit: Majorie Preval
We're ducked off of the streets of Melrose in a minimalistic store for high-end streetwear brand, Daniel Patrick, where McLeod is teaching me “How to Build a Bomb Wardrobe: 101." First lesson—start with the basics. White tees, colored shirts, denim jeans, these wardrobe essentials are how a good foundation is built. She skips past monocolored clothing displays and flicks through a rack of brightly colored options, pulling out a long yellow shirt that would be a dress on me but fits perfectly for one of her many athletic clients. Chris Bosh, maybe? Serena Williams? James Harden? Andre Iguodala? She's a little tight-lipped on the details, but there's a guarantee that the threads will end up on any one of those style icons.
“I usually talk to them in the beginning of the season since it's athletes predominantly," she says. “We talk about where we're going and how we're styling them, what we're going to work with, what are their inspirations, and things like that."
For McLeod, style has always been innate. The Jamaican-Trinidadian was seemingly born with the ability to piece good looks together, a skillset that faired well for her in her various retail positions where she started from the bottom, only to be promoted to supervisor within a few weeks.
“Styling, to me, is basically psychological and it's common sense within. I just bring the person that's inside out."
Around the age of 19, shortly after receiving her associate's and prior to her pursuing a fashion marketing degree, she worked a dead-end job as a telemarketer for just a month before spotting a H&M ad that led her to walk out the door on her lunch break.
“I don't mention it because it's not significant, but if you think about it, it is because if I would've never opened that paper, bored out of my mind, I would've never taken this route."
Working in the H&M showroom was enough to open her mind to the possibilities of styling as a career, and gave her a vision for her life. She didn't just want to be in the retail stores, she wanted her work to appear on the red carpets, on the backs of athletes and entertainers. Taking initiative, she researched out to companies that aligned with her goals and found work at a boutique agency before transitioning over her talents to work with notable stylist Rachel Johnson, founder and CEO of the Thomas Faison Agency.
“I wanted to be bigger and better and she was the biggest in her field, especially in sports. So I went and worked with her for seven years and then I went out on my own."
James Harden | Photo Credit: Kesha McLeod
Risk.
Not something new to McLeod, and definitely something that has been a staple throughout her career. Branching out on her own was one of her best mistakes. At the time it seemed crazy, stupid even—it meant that she had no guarantee of income, no steady clientele, no big name to back her, and no comfortable cushion to catch her if she fell.
“How am I going to pay my rent? How many more roommates am I going to have? Do I move back to my grandmother's house?
Do I get a steady job, because a lot of people do that in this industry, and now you're freelancing at a retail store, or you're bartending? And there's nothing wrong with that until you it figure out, but it could be hard to balance because then you get discouraged a lot. You're the one to push through to get yourself there, and it's a lot of self-care and meditating; it's a lot of figuring it out and I've reached a lot of dead ends in the beginning, and still to this day."
Andre Iguodala | Photo Credit: Matt Edge
Of course, she landed on her feet.
She tapped into the relationships that she built over the course of her career, many of which came during her three-year hiatus from the agency she worked at when she went into styling for music artists such as Rick Ross, Young Jeezy and Jadakiss, and that spread through word-of-mouth to everyone from athletes to CEOs to politicians.
“For you to think and get dressed is a whole other part of your brain that you've got to use, that's why Steve Jobs always wore the same thing," she explains when I asked about the latter of her clients. “It's a part of your brain that you have to use to get dressed—it's a lot when you have to focus 100% on the game or the company that you're building or even yourself or what you're doing, it's a lot to get dressed."
For McLeod, styling is a form of storytelling. One of her biggest client's, Chris Bosh, is a carefully crafted narrative written through style. Yes, he can rock a good suit, but he's also constantly evolving—even the books that he reads hints at a shift in his mindset, and it's McLeod's job to make that reflective in his style.
“You basically start chapters with all of your clients to try and finish a book, and you tell these stories through these garments and through these different threads."
Her own style, she tells me, is a story of growth and confidence. Today, she's rocking black Topshop jeans, a cutoff Yeezus t-shirt, and a blunt bob-cut that screams, “I'm bold and I'm confident," which ironically wasn't always the case.
Photo Credit: Kesha McLeod
“It's not always one thing when you're not confident. It always stems from somewhere else," she says. “You can be unconfident about the way you look, so now you're afraid to do certain things and you think you're going to always fail. And you're going to fail because that's the mindset you're putting into it. "
"You have to always think with the right mindset, and now you dress better, you look better, your skin is glowing, you're happier, and everybody wants to be around you. Now your career is booming and you're a great person, and positive will attract positive."
As with any true master of their craft, evolvement never stops, and neither does teaching.
While McLeod crosses accomplishments off her list of 2017 goals, including getting placement in Forbes and Vogue, she now finds herself at a point where she can begin passing the baton to the next generation of stylists through workshops and panels, and use her gift and her platform for something beyond herself and her clients.
“It doesn't have to be anything super prolific. What we're doing now can change somebody else's life. I can speak to a younger generation that wants to do what I want to do, but one day I'm going to transition out, so I'm at a crossroads right now trying to figure out where I'm taking styling and where I'm taking me as a brand, my career, and where I'm going to be bigger and better in the next five years."
Perhaps that's a part of her purpose. Not just dressing celebrities in fancy threads, but also inspiring others to fearlessly go after their dreams—and to do so with strength, poise, and authenticity.
“[Styling] is my gift and my talent and it's what I want to do, but it doesn't define who I am. You don't ever want something that you do to define who you are; you always want to still be true to yourself."
Kesha McLeod's 3 Tips for Dressing Like a Celebrity
Organize Your Closet Before Spring Cleaning. “If you start purging with a messy eye, you're going to throw away something that you could've used that you could apply later on. So you've got to clean it up and go from there."
Find Your Staple Item. “I have this black tweed jacket that I got from H&M in Paris in 2005 that I would never get rid of. It's crazy looking but it's me and I can't get rid of it."
Load Up the Accessories! “Every little detail makes sense—every chain. Now it's two chains. And then it's all of these little details that make the outfit what it is."
Featured image courtesy of Kesha McLeod
Claudia Jordan, Demetria McKinney & Jill Marie Jones On 'Games Women Play' & Dating Over 40
What do you get when you mix unfiltered truths, high-stakes romance, and a few well-timed one-liners? You get Games Women Play—the sizzling new stage play by Je’Caryous Johnson that’s part relationship rollercoaster, part grown-woman group chat.
With a powerhouse cast that includes Claudia Jordan, Demetria McKinney, Jill Marie Jones, Carl Payne, Chico Bean, and Brian J. White, the play dives headfirst into the messy, hilarious, and heart-wrenching games people play for love, power, and peace of mind. And the women leading this story? They’re bringing their whole selves to the stage—and leaving nothing behind.
From Script to Spotlight
The road to Games Women Play started over 20 years ago—literally.
“This script was written 20 years ago,” Jill Marie Jones said with a smile. “It was originally called Men, Money & Gold Diggers, and I was in the film version. So when Je’Caryous called me to bring it to the stage, I was like, ‘Let’s go.’” Now reimagined for 2025, the play is updated with sharp dialogue and modern relationship dynamics that feel all too real.
Demetria McKinney, no stranger to Je’Caryous Johnson’s productions, jumped at the opportunity to join the cast once again. “This is my third time working with him,” she shared. “It was an opportunity to stretch. I’d never been directed by Carl Payne before, and the chance to work with talent I admire—Jill, Claudia, Chico—it was a no-brainer.”
Claudia Jordan joked that she originally saw the role as just another check. “I didn’t take it that seriously at first,” she admitted. “But this is my first full-on tour—and now I’ve got a whole new respect for how hard people work in theater. This ain’t easy.”
Modern Love, Stage Left
The play doesn’t hold back when it comes to the messier parts of love. One jaw-dropping moment comes when a live podcast proposal flips into a prenup bombshell—leaving the audience (and the characters) gasping.
Demetria broke it down with honesty. “People don’t ask the real questions when they date. Like, ‘Do you want kids? How do you feel about money?’ These convos aren’t happening, and then everyone’s confused. That moment in the play—it’s real. That happens all the time.”
Jill chimed in, noting how the play speaks to emotional disconnect. “We’re giving each other different tokens of love. Men might offer security and money. Women, we’re giving our hearts. But there’s a disconnect—and that’s where things fall apart.”
And then Claudia, of course, took it all the way there. “These men don’t even want to sign our prenups now!” she laughed. “They want to live the soft life, too. Wearing units, gloss, getting their brows done. We can’t have nothing! Y’all want to be like us? Then get a damn period and go through menopause.”
Dating Over 40: “You Better Come Correct”
When the conversation turned to real-life relationships, all three women lit up. Their experiences dating in their 40s and 50s have given them both clarity—and zero tolerance for games.
“I feel sexier than I’ve ever felt,” said Jill, who proudly turned 50 in January. “I say what I want. I mean what I say. I’m inside my woman, and I’m not apologizing for it.”
Demetria added that dating now comes with deeper self-awareness. “Anybody in my life is there because I want them there. I’ve worked hard to need nobody. But I’m open to love—as long as you keep doing what got me there in the first place.”
For Claudia, the bar is high—and the peace is priceless. “I’ve worked hard for my peace,” she said. “I’m not dating for food. I’m dating because I want to spend time with you. And honestly, if being with you isn’t better than being alone with my candles and fountains and cats? Then no thanks.”
Channeling Strength & Icon Status
Each actress brings something different to the play—but all of them deliver.
“I actually wish I could be messier on stage,” Claudia joked. “But I think about my grandmother—she was born in 1929, couldn’t even vote or buy a house without a man, and didn’t give a damn. She was fearless. That’s where my strength comes from.”
For Jill, the comparisons to her iconic Girlfriends character Toni Childs aren’t far off—but this role gave her a chance to dig deeper. “If you really understood Toni, you’d see how layered she was. And Paisley is the same—misunderstood, but strong. There’s more to her than people see at first glance.”
Demetria, who juggles singing and acting seamlessly, shared that live theater pushes her in a new way. “Every moment on stage counts. You can’t redo anything. It’s a different kind of love and discipline. You have to give the performance away—live, in the moment—and trust that it lands.”
Laughter, Lessons & Black Girl Gems
The show has plenty of laugh-out-loud moments—and the cast isn’t shy about who steals scenes.
“Chico Bean gets a lot of gasps and laughs,” Claudia said. “And Naomi Booker? Every scene she’s in—she’s hilarious.”
But the play isn’t just about humor. It leaves space for reflection—especially for Black women.
“I hope we get back to the foundation of love and communication,” said Demetria. “A lot of us are in protector mode. But that’s turned into survival mode. We’ve lost softness. We’ve lost connection.”
Claudia agreed. “We’re doing it all—but it’s not because we want to be strong all the time. It’s because we have to be. And I just want women to know: You can have peace, you can be soft. But stop bringing your old pain into new love. Don’t let past heartbreak build walls so high that the right person can’t climb over.”
Final Act: Pack the House
If there’s one thing this cast agrees on, it’s that this play isn’t just entertainment—it’s necessary.
“Atlanta is the Black entertainment hub,” Claudia said. “We need y’all to show up for this play. Support the arts. Support each other. Because when we pack the house, we make space for more stories like this.”
Games Women Play is more than a play—it’s a mirror. You’ll see yourself, your friends, your exes, and maybe even your next chapter. So get ready to laugh, reflect, and maybe even heal—because the games are on.
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After Decades-Long Career, Terri J. Vaughn Is Finally The Main Character: Exclusive
Terri J. Vaughn first captured our attention in the late ‘90s as Lovita Alizay Jenkins on The Steve Harvey Show. Decades later, she is starring in her very own series, She The People, which is now available to stream on Netflix.
The political sitcom, which she co-created with Niya Palmer and later teamed up with Tyler Perry Studios, is about a Black woman named Antoinette Dunkerson who runs for lieutenant governor of Mississippi. She wins and becomes the state’s first Black lieutenant governor. Now, she’s forced to balance working with a racist and sexist governor while also trying to keep her family from running amok.
According to the beloved actress, this project was a long time coming. “I’ve been trying to get my own television series for like 20 years, pounding the pavement, meeting with people, getting clothes, being lied to, just a whole bunch of stuff,” she says in an exclusive interview with xoNecole.
“But just keep going, because this is what I do. This is what I love, and I know how important it is for us to continue to show up and make sure that we are seen, make sure that our voices are heard. For several reasons. I just never give up. So here I am, 20 years later, finally sold my show.”
She The People is inspired by the true story of London Breed, who became the first Black female mayor of San Francisco, Terri’s hometown. And to help make the show more authentic, the Cherish the Day actress tapped former Atlanta mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms to come on as a producer.'“I’ve been trying to get my own television series for like 20 years, pounding the pavement, meeting with people, getting clothes, being lied to, just a whole bunch of stuff."
After bringing the former mayor aboard, it was time to pitch again. And this time, the companies were pitching them. Ultimately, Terri decided to work with Tyler Perry on the series.
“We decided to do it with Tyler for several reasons. I love that. Well, most of the companies we met with were Black-owned companies, but he was the only studio,” she explains. “Tyler is like Walt Disney. That's literally what he is. He has the studio, he has the content. He operates just like Walt Disney.”
And thanks to the cast, the show is nothing short of laughs. The series also stars social media creator Jade Novah as Antoinette’s crazy cousin/ assistant, Shamika, Family Mattersstar Jo Marie Payton as Anotinette’s mom, Cleo, and Terri’s husband, Karon Riley, who plays Michael, her driver and love interest.
While we’ve watched Terri’s career blossom in various ways. From directing to producing, and playing diverse characters, the mom of two says her The Steve Harvey Show character will always be her favorite.
“Well, Lovita was definitely my favorite, especially for my time, the age and everything that I was. Now as a grown ass woman over 50, Antoinette Dunkerson is everything that I've wanted to play. She's everything. She's a mother of two teenagers. She's divorced, so she's co-parenting with her ex-husband. She has to wrangle in a very eclectic family,” she says.
“So I like playing characters that are really flawed and trying to figure it out and doing their best to try to figure it. And she's very flawed and she is trying to figure it out, and she fucks up sometimes. But her heart and what she's trying to do and what her vision is and purpose, it's all for the people. I mean, she the people. She’s for the people, she is the people.”
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Feature image by Jamie Lamor Thompson/ Shutterstock