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Ford And The Cast Of 'A Different World' Took Over This HBCU's Homecoming And It Was Lit
All education is valuable, but there is a quintessentially Black experience attached to having attended or graduated from an HBCU. Sadly, in the last few decades, this experience has been diluted by financial trouble and has caused a number of historically black colleges to close their doors and lose their accreditation. Ford and the cast of A Different World just stepped up to change that narrative.
This time last year, one of the smallest HBCU's in the country made history by winning a prize experience worth $150,000 in Ford's Drive2Greatness competition, and that initiative came full circle last weekend in a major way.
Photo Credit: UWG for Ford Motor Company
In fall of 2017, a school with only 125 students outvoted colleges and universities like Spelman and Howard in a social media competition by Ford. As their prize, not only did the school secure the bag, but Ford also came through with the Ultimate Homecoming Takeover Experience, complete with a DJ, local food trucks, and a few very special guests, including the Grammy award-winning gospel quartet The Walls Group and the cast of
A Different World. This weekend, Ford Motor Company gave xoNecole a chance to link up with these students in Terrell, Texas to celebrate HBCU culture in a way that was just as black and magical as you would have imagined.
When I learned that I would be traveling to Southwestern Christian College for the weekend, I had no idea that it would be one of the most unapologetically Black experiences in my life so far. In layman's terms: It was lit. The campus was humble, but the community was strong.
When speaking to Jordan Williams (19), a sophomore pharmacy major, she said that the donation would be monumental for the small institution, which needs strong financial support in order to grow. She shared, "I believe that [we won because] we are a small school and we want big things, so we would work harder than probably other schools that would just take one or two pictures. We went around taking pictures wherever we could and working for our goal."
Photo Credit: Instagram / @omg_jerr
Jordan said that attending Southwestern Christian College, who garnered more than 114,000 points in the competition, taught her a valuable lesson that she won't forget:
"As a little school, as a little girl, we can do anything we want if we just work hard for it."
In addition to the takeover experience, in a blast from the past, the campus was visited by Jasmine Guy, Kadeem Hardison, Cree Summer, and Darryl Bell, otherwise known as the true originators of the HBCU way of life.
Nearly 31 years ago, A Different World aired on NBC and created a culture that was both game-changing and essential to Black history. Today, the cast is making it a point to keep the culture they created alive by teaming up with Ford to offer SWCC the financial support they desperately need.
Photo Credit: UWG for Ford Motor Company
Many people, including myself, say that
A Different World inspired them to one day graduate from an HBCU, or go to any college for that matter. Dwayne, Whitley, Freddie, and Ron were just as much household names then as they are now, and helped to mold the culture of Black colleges that exists today. I got a chance to sit down with Jasmine, Kadeem, Cree, and Darryl to talk about the impact of their show and the importance of keeping the doors of black colleges open.
As mothers, Jasmine and Cree said that supporting HBCUs are especially important for the future of their daughters.
Cree told xoNecole that it was important to be a part of this initiative because she wants to allow her daughters the opportunity to learn and grow in spaces that feel familiar. The actress shared, "I have two beautiful daughters, Brave Littlewing, and Hero Stormborn, who are five and seven and they are voracious readers. Brave loves science and math very much. And why it's important to me is because I want to see little brown girls be engineers and doctors and teachers and all kinds of things to make this planet [an] equal, fair place to live. And I also think that it's imperative that we learn among ourselves because I think that helps with our comfort and it helps to see each other grow, and change, and learn. And so that is why I think HBCUs are imperative. I want to learn from people that I understand and feel a familiarity to, and also just because of the culture to keep our culture alive and thriving. So yes, [it's] profoundly important."
Photo Credit: UWG for Ford Motor Company
Jasmine, who has a 19-year-old daughter, echoed this sentiment and shared that if we don't know our history, it will be impossible to learn from it. Jasmine, who formerly played the fictional southern belle Whitley Gilbert told xoNecole, "It's imperative that we know our history and that we teach our history. I don't think we can afford to wait for other people to teach us our history. I know that HBCUs will focus on not just the American story about the African Americans and Native American story and the truth about how this country was founded and why things are the way they are and why we're still fighting for certain things. If we're ignorant of where we came from, we're not going to be able to grow."
"If we're ignorant of where we came from, we're not going to be able to grow."
Photo Credit: Taylor Honore for xoNecole
She continued, "I mean, some of this has to come from your own pride and your own understanding of your history and now it's your turn to make sure that we are protected in the future. And if you're not aware of what's going on politically right now, it's a problem because we're counting on you. We're counting on your generation. We're counting on this old generation to kind of fluff off. We need the new generation to come in with regenerated skin cells."
To help this regeneration of the new generation, the cast along with Ford's Multicultural Communications Manager, Dee Guerrero, presented the school with a check for $100,000 and a promise to help keep HBCUs doors' open for good.
Photo Credit: UWG for Ford Motor Company
In addition to the generous scholarship donation given to Southwestern Christian College, Ford offered a $20 donation to the Tom Joyner Foundation to help support HBCUs for every attendee that test drove the Ford F-150. In total, Ford will donate $20,000 through
the "Drive 4 Ur Community" initiative in the company's efforts to support Black colleges in the U.S.
If there's one thing I learned this weekend, it's that Ford Motor Company knows how to throw a party. Although I graduated from my HBCU in 2016, meeting the cast of A Different World took me all the way back to the 90s and emphasized the importance of maintaining the culture that they helped create nearly 30 years ago.
Photo Credit: Taylor Honore for xoNecole
Be sure to do your part in helping HBCUs survive by test driving the Ford F-150 XLT and Limited. Learn more about features of the Ford F-150 XLT and the company's initiative to help multicultural communities go further by clicking
here.
Taylor "Pretty" Honore is a spiritually centered and equally provocative rapper from Baton Rouge, Louisiana with a love for people and storytelling. You can probably find me planting herbs in your local community garden, blasting "Back That Thang Up" from my mini speaker. Let's get to know each other: @prettyhonore.
This article is sponsored by Hulu.
UnPrisonedhas returned for its highly anticipated second season, delving deeper into the complex dynamics of the Alexander family.
The series premiere comes a year after its debut season garnered rave reviews from fans and critics and earned record-breaking ratings for Hulu's Onyx Collective brand. UnPrisoned's success can be attributed to its raw, relatable themes and comedic appeal.
Inspired by creator Tracy McMillan's life, the show follows Paige (Kerry Washington), a therapist and single mother whose life takes an unexpected turn when her father, Edwin (Delroy Lindo) --who was released from prison-- moves in with her and her teenage son, Finn (Faly Rakotohavana).
Throughout UnPrisoned's first season, viewers witnessed how Edwin's incarceration deeply affected Paige's life and relationships. In the series, Paige unpacks her trauma through interactions with her inner child and her online followers. Meanwhile, Edwin is overcoming specific struggles with his own past that led to his life of crime, including a dysfunctional upbringing and his mother's arrest. As the Alexanders attempt to reconcile, new challenges arise.
This new season promises to further explore their unconventional family dynamic. Here are several compelling reasons why season two of UnPrisoned should be on everyone's watchlist.
The Alexander Family Life Is Still In Shambles
UnPrisoned's second season resumes where the series left off, with Paige grappling with the fallout from her troubled therapy practice and Edwin navigating life independently after moving out. Meanwhile, Finn faces his own challenges. The teenager is battling anxiety and seeking information about his father—a topic Paige avoids discussing.
The Alexander Family Are Attending Therapy To Resolve Their Underlying Issues
Amid the chaos in their lives, the Alexander family decides to mend their bond by confronting their past traumas. They seek professional help and attend therapy sessions with a “family radical healing coach,” played by John Stamos, a new cast member. This collective effort aims to unravel the complexities of their shared history and strengthen their relationships.
The process of unraveling each character's internal conflicts and their potential impact on future relationships may clash with Paige's textbook therapy approach. While Paige is used to being in the therapist's seat in both career and family, this forces her into the unfamiliar role of a patient during therapy sessions. This shift would compel her to look in the mirror and try a radically different approach.
The Alexander Family Learned A Big Lesson During A Therapy Session
In therapy, the Alexanders are tasked with addressing their individual traumas to salvage their remaining relationships. One of the family therapist’s eccentric suggestions was an exercise involving a family wrestling match. During this session, Paige faces tough questions about her refusal to share information about Finn's father.
While it's unclear whether this scene is reality or fantasy, the image of the family duking it out in the ring certainly makes for hilarious yet compelling television.
Paige Tries Dating Again Following Failed Relationships
Amid her life's chaos, Paige decides to step back into the dating field. However, her many attempts have left her with mixed results. The dating apps have turned out to be a fail, and an outing with her ex Mal (Marque Richardson), who is also her father's parole officer, doesn’t go quite as expected after he brings an unexpected guest – his new girlfriend.
The situation takes an awkward turn when Mal's new partner learns why the former couple split, partly due to Paige's self-sabotage.
UnPrisoned Is A Perfect Balance Of Comedy And Drama
As a dramedy, UnPrisoned takes a comedic approach to its heavy subjects. The show takes us on a ride with Paige's dating misadventures and navigating a friendship with her ex.
Other lighthearted moments include Edwin's attempts at CPR based on online videos and, of course, the antics of the Alexander family's unconventional new healing coach.
The second season of UnPrisoned is now available on Hulu.
UnPrisoned | Season 2 Trailer | Hulu
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Mariee Revere On Her History-Making Million-Dollar Sales And The Future Of MoonXCosmetics
If the name Mariee Revere sounds familiar, it's probably because you heard of her beauty and skincare brand, MoonXCosmetics, or you may have heard about her history-making achievement of making $1.8 million in less than eight minutes. But before starting her million-dollar brand, Mariee was just a teenager trying to cure her acne.
While she grew up in the skincare capital of the world, South Korea, Mariee didn't really experience breakouts until her senior year of high school. Like many people who get their first breakout, she didn't know what to do, and there weren't many products out there at that time. So she decided to experiment. What she didn't know was that what she came up with would ultimately be her ticket to success.
"When I graduated high school, I moved back to America, Georgia, and I ended up making, like, the oil, the Rose Galore oil, which is like the staple product of my brand. I don't know what made me make it, but I did, and it literally cleared my face up," she tells xoNecole in an exclusive interview.
"I end up selling it as a body oil first because, obviously, I'm 17, [and] don't have any background as an esthetician or anything like that. I just made a product that worked for me, but people bought it and was using it, and I reformulated it, and then it just stuck like with me."
While MoonXCosmetics is known for its facial products, it wants to expand to body care and home. It just released its new product, Moon-Gel body wash, and it's only up from there. As Mariee continues to grow the brand, it's more than likely that she will see more history-making moments. And so far she has.
Photo courtesy
When asked if she feels pressure to obtain more of those milestones, she says yes and no. "I did $1.8 [million] again, and then I did $2 million but I feel like now, currently, I don't look at that as one of my goals anymore because [of] the headache and just everything that came with it, but I was thankful and blessed to have that milestone, but now I'm looking for more," she says.
"I want to say more reach than more like fast-paced sales. I do want that. Obviously, every girl wants that, but I do want to have a better overall reach for my brand because I did take two years off so I was able to learn, [and] study a lot of different things. See how things have changed from 2020 to now."
"I did $1.8 [million] again, and then I did $2 million but I feel like now, currently, I don't look at that as one of my goals anymore because [of] the headache and just everything that came with it, but I was thankful and blessed to have that milestone, but now I'm looking for more."
Another part of expanding for any company is hiring people. Finding the right person to help you can be a hassle, especially for business owners who are used to doing all the work themselves. Mariee can relate to this, and she touched on this topic in her documentaryThe Million Dollar Story. She recommends having someone be your "right-hand man" who you trust to handle the ins and outs of the company.
"I could say, definitely get, like a right-hand man to help you within the process because that really was what helped me. I never had a job. I literally was 18 now, being like, you know, the boss of over 30+ employees at one point in time, and I didn't know anything. I didn't know anything about no W-2s, no taxes, no clock in, clock out because all I [have] ever known was my brand," she explains.
"So I definitely partner with people who are very skewed and versed in those areas, and they helped me get through it. Even to this day, I still have my same person helping me with hiring, firing, [and] doing everything that I can right now because I'm still learning. But obviously people get jobs young, so they have way more experience than me, but still learning."
And though she is still learning, one thing she makes sure to stay on top of is being consistent. Consistency is what trips many people up when it comes to achieving goals, but Mariee says it's all about scheduling. Whether it's when to post on social media or email marketing, scheduling it out can make a world of difference. That same practice also works when planning out her future goals for the company.
"Right now, future goals would be to drop at least five more products before the end of the year. We always do outreach, where we do drives and all that, but definitely do way more this year, she says. "Then really dive into body [care], and then hopefully open up MoonXBody underneath MoonXCosmetics to let that branch out and be open and definitely get back consistent."
For more information, visit moonxco.com.
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