Get Creative & Expand Your Reality In Refinery29’s 29Rooms Atlanta
Time and time again, Atlanta proves that it influences everything through music, culture, and impact. Another noteworthy element is the ever-growing occurrence of events. Just last month, xoNecole threw our first-ever ElevateHER business crawl, and following suit, popular women's digital destination Refinery29 has brought their immersive 29Rooms experience on tour to multiple cities -- Atlanta being one of them. And if you were wondering what to do in Atlanta this week, we're about to put you on.
For years, 29Rooms has acted as an offline experience stemming from the Refinery29 brand. Part-funhouse, part-museum, the popular exhibition is the epitome of all things culture, interaction, and connection and does so through a series of art installations that seem to keep the fact that we're the generation of Instagram in mind. This year, the premise of their multi-city tour is 29Rooms Presents: The Expand Your Reality Experience.
Featuring collaborations with artists like Kali Uchis, Carlotta Guerero, Neka King, and The Hoodwitch, each "room" was tailored to incite a different thought or feeling and help you better connect with others but most of all yourself. What I loved about walking through the creative wonderland most was that it spoke to my inner child on many levels. From moments of teenage nostalgia to cultivating direct fellowship that asked me to write a love note of encouragement to the younger me in the mirror, we were connecting and healing.
My favorite installation however was the one created by R29 Unbothered. It was an homage to blackness and best believe, I was absolutely here for it! Entitled "A Long Line of Queendom", it featured portraits by Unity In Color and a floor-length golden satin durag featuring the names of black queens on the back of it designed by Evita Loca. The sign read, "Powerful and soft, queenly and human, an individual and a community, there are a spectrum of truths that make up Black women's experience. Brought to life by Refinery29's dedicated platform for Black millennial women, Unbothered, we invite you to 'say her name' or take your place within a long legacy of Black excellence, beauty and achievement." Aka, it's lit.
If nothing else, I invite you to partake in this glory up-close. Other notable installations included a "29 Questions" room where you connect over 30-second eye contact and questions with a stranger for six minutes, a test that's scientifically proven to make you feel more connected with the other person after all is said and done (and I was, even followed her on IG. Hey Akua!). Another one was the "Crack the Code to Financial Wellness" room. It was an escape room put together as a bank vault equipped with safety deposit boxes. We had to crack the code in order to secure the bag for our early retirement. Surprisingly difficult, surprisingly fun.
All in all, 29Rooms is an experience you don't want to miss out on and if you're in the A, you don't have to. There are still tickets available for Tuesday, September 3 through Sunday, September 8. Cop your tickets here.
Featured image by Presley Ann/Getty Images for Refinery29
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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 LISTÂ 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