She’s Gotta Have It: DeWanda Wise Married Her Husband Of 12 Years, After Just 3 Months Of Dating
DeWanda Wise is a breakout actress that hasn't even reached a pinch of the great things she will experience in her inevitably expansive career. She's most known as Nola Darling, the carefree, sexually liberated juggernaut in Spike Lee's, She's Gotta Have It Netflix reboot, and even snagged a role in the upcoming blockbuster, Jurassic World: Dominion.
But, her career is only one of the most interesting things about her. Wise's love story is fascinating as well.
She's married to Alano Miller, also an actor (Sylvie's Love, Underground, Jane the Virgin), and has been since 2009. The two married after only three months of dating, because...when you know, you know! The two lovebirds even sat down with Black Love Doc to discuss their union and (non)complexities of marriage.
On how they met:
"She just came and made elbow space so quickly and it shook me because I wasn't used to that. So here's a woman who's stunning, intelligent, believes in God, all these things, I just felt like, why am I spending my days playing this game of 'what if' or 'let's do some trials and tribulations before we get married kind of thing. It was two people meeting at the right time."
lev radin / Shutterstock.com
Three months later, they were discussing marriage. After riding on a train one unplanned day in college, Miller leaned over to Wise to ask if she would marry him, to which she replied, "You already know the answer to that, let's get married tomorrow." ...which they did (sort of). And the rest is their love story's history.
As far as how they keep their marriage in tact, for them, it's not complicated at all. Wise says:
"I feel like for me, it's really simple, you know? And it depends on how you live your life. It's like self-love for two. And that's how I think about it. Every day."
"Anything that I would like to do for myself, and there's one other human being that I have to make another serving for, then I'll just make a little more coffee. That's what I look at marriage as. It's a little more coffee. Just make one more cup!"
And Miller agrees, as he loves him some DeWanda! He regularly shouts her out on his social media, even once giving her the utmost praise:
"My favorite day of the year! I have had the honor of having a front row seat watching you evolve into your super powers. It's been humbling. Thank God for you everyday but especially today. I simply want to say thank you for sharing your heart, wisdom, your smile, boundless grace, infectious laughter and your fearlessness. Blessed and grateful to be your husband, number one fan, your bff, your body and feet warmer, your comforter stealer. Here's to forever adventures with you. Who knows what will happen but I know it'll be lit."
Whew, we love seeing confident black love on its high beams: black man, black wife, black love.
Would you marry quickly if you were sure your partner was the one?
Featured image by lev radin / Shutterstock.com
Charmin Michelle is a southern native and creative spirit who works as a content marketer and events manager in Chicago. She enjoys traveling, #SummertimeChi, and the journey of mastering womanhood. Connect with her on Instagram @charminmichelle.
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