How Black Will Oscars Night Be? 2022 Predictions
This Sunday night will be historic for Will Packer Media. It’s the 94th Oscars, produced by none other than Will Packer and Shayla Cowan – the first all-Black producing team in Oscars’ history.
And xoNecole, a WPM brand, will also be in the building for the first time at Hollywood’s famous Dolby Theater and on the red carpet with Content Queen Danielle Young chatting up your fave nominees, presenters and guests.
Danielle caught up with Shayla earlier this week to get the scoop on what we can expect, so we know that for the first time in history there will be three women hosting the Oscars: Regina Hall, Wanda Sykes and Amy Schumer.
We also know that BEYONCÉ is going to shut the stage down, as she always does, with a performance of her Oscar-nominated song from King Richard, “Be Alive.” The Black presenters at the Oscars include Serena and Venus, Ruth E. Carter, Diddy, Tiffany Haddish, H.E.R., Samuel L. Jackson, Daniel Kaluuya, Zoë Kravitz, Lupita Nyong’o, Tracee Ellis Ross, Tyler Perry and more. It’s safe to say that we can expect some heavy Blackness at the 2022 Oscars.
But who will be in the winners’ circle by the end of the night? Black Hollywood is only up for a few awards, with only four Black actors nominated in the acting category, two films nominated in documentary categories, one in costume design, two in make-up and hairstyling and one for the night’s biggest award: Best Picture. Let’s take a look at their chances.
I appeared on the UK's Sky News to offer up some predictions of the night. Watch below:
Best Actor: Will Smith
It’s been twenty years since Will Smith and Denzel Washington faced off in the Best Actor category at the Oscars. In 2002, Denzel took home the statue for Training Day over Will’s Ali performance. This year, it’s Will’s turn. As the titular character in King Richard, Will shines as Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena and the visionary architect of their careers since before they were born. Denzel is fantastic as MacBeth in The Tragedy of MacBeth, but based on how awards season is shaking out, with Will racking up awards at every ceremony from the NAACP Image Awards to the BAFTAs and Critics Choice Awards, it would be a major upset if Will didn’t take home the gold. Here's a clip from his performance which you can watch in full on HBOMax:
Best Actress: No One Black
20 years ago, halle berry won the oscar for 'best actress' becoming the first black woman to win in said category pic.twitter.com/ePEbkTSh9o
— old MTV (@notgwendalupe) March 23, 2022
Also at the 2002 Oscars, Halle Berry made history as the first Black woman to win Best Actress. She tearfully accepted the award and celebrated that “this door tonight has been opened” for Black women. Twenty years later, Halle remains the only Black woman to win the award. Zero Black women were nominated this year, when Jennifer Hudson’s outstanding performance as Aretha Franklin in Respect and Tessa Thompson’s compelling performance in Passing were right there. Of the five white women nominated, my bet is on Jessica Chastain for The Eyes of Tammy Faye, but Kristen Stewart’s transformation into Lady Diana in Spencer should win.
Best Supporting Actress: Ariana DeBose
The always incredible Aunjanue Ellis is up for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Oracene Price, Venus and Serena’s formidable mother, in King Richard. Even with all of her excellence, she still had to fight to be paid fairly for her Oscar-nominated role. I hope this nomination solidifies the respect she’s long-since deserved. But the win is going to Ariana DeBose. The Afro-Latina star of West Side Story sang, danced and acted her way into every major award this season, picking up a BAFTA and a Critics Choice award in the same night just a few weeks ago. Ariana is the brightest part of Steven Spielberg’s remake and she’ll make history by winning the same award Rita Moreno won in the 1961 original West Side Story for the same role of Maria. Here's a clip of Ariana as Maria:
Best Song: Not Beyoncé
The first time I heard Beyoncé’s “Be Alive” as the credits rolled on King Richard, I had chills. The transition from minor to major chords, the lyrics of pride in our Blackness, all over a montage of the real Richard coaching the real Venus and Serena into becoming the greatest athletes of all time, embodied their triumph over every obstacle put in their path. It’s such a moving, beautiful song that was made for us. But while Beyoncé has forever won my heart, the Oscar will probably go to Lin-Manuel Miranda for Encanto’s “Dos Oruguitas,” making him the youngest EGOT (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony) winner in history. Listen to "Be Alive" here:
Best Documentary Feature: Summer of Soul
?uestlove, in his directorial debut, Summer of Soul, has been racking up the wins all season for his documentary on the six-week summer concert series in 1969 Harlem remembered as "Black Woodstock". On Oscars night, that trend will likely continue, with The Roots' drummer bringing home his first Oscar.
But iconic director Stanley Nelson and Traci A. Curry are also up for the award for their heartbreaking documentary Attica, which covers the 1971 uprising in Attica, NY state prison. It draws much needed attention to the consequences of mass incarceration and the broken prison system today. Attica is truly Oscar-worthy as well. You can watch the documentary in full for free on Showtime.
Best Costume Design: Dune
Famous designer Paul Tazewell is up for his first Oscar nomination for West Side Story. His immaculate designs are worthy of the praise beyond this nomination. But based on how the awards season has been shaking out so far, the front-runner going into Oscars night is Dune, though the team from Cruella did take the award at the Critics Choice Awards a few weeks back. Here's a look at Paul's work which you can watch in full on HBOMax:
Best Make-up and Hair-Styling: The Eyes of Tammy Faye
Two Black women are a part of Coming 2 America’s Oscar-nominated hair and make-up team, Stacey Morris and Carla Farmer, along with prosthetics expert Mike Marino. While the hair and make-up, alongside Ruth Carter’s costume designs, were the best part about that film, the Oscars love a biopic and a full-on transformation, so the statue will likely go to the team behind Jessica Chastain’s redemptive transformation into (in)famous televangelist Tammy Faye for The Eyes of Tammy Faye. Here's a look at Stacey and Carla's work, which you can watch in full on Prime Video:
Best Picture: CODA
Will Smith’s King Richard is up for Best Picture but the heartwarming film has only a slight chance of winning. The Producers Guild Awards Best Picture winners have predicted the Oscars Best Picture winners for the past 22 years, and another heartwarming coming of age film about a child of deaf adults CODA just won the PGA. If AppleTV+’s CODA wins it will be quite the upset, as Netflix’s The Power of the Dog has been racking up the win all season. But either way, it’s likely a streamer will take home the Best Picture win.
Will you be tuning in?
Smile, Sis! These Five Improvements Can Upgrade Your Oral Hygiene Instantly
This article is in partnership with Sensodyne.
Our teeth are connected to so many things - our nutrition, our confidence, and our overall mood. We often take for granted how important healthy teeth are, until issues like tooth sensitivity or gum recession come to remind us. Like most things related to our bodies, prevention is the best medicine. Here are five things you can do immediately to improve your oral hygiene, prevent tooth sensitivity, and avoid dental issues down the road.
1) Go Easy On the Rough Brushing: Brushing your teeth is and always will be priority number one in the oral hygiene department. No surprises there! However, there is such a thing as applying too much pressure when brushing…and that can lead to problems over time. Use a toothbrush with soft bristles and brush in smooth, circular motions. It may seem counterintuitive, but a gentle approach to brushing is the most effective way to clean those pearly whites without wearing away enamel and exposing sensitive areas of the teeth.
2) Use A Desensitizing Toothpaste: As everyone knows, mouth pain can be highly uncomfortable; but tooth sensitivity is a whole different beast. Hot weather favorites like ice cream and popsicles have the ability to trigger tooth sensitivity, which might make you want to stay away from icy foods altogether. But as always, prevention is the best medicine here. Switching to a toothpaste like Sensodyne’s Sensitivity & Gum toothpaste specifically designed for sensitive teeth will help build a protective layer over sensitive areas of the tooth. Over time, those sharp sensations that occur with extremely cold foods will subside, and you’ll be back to treating yourself to your icy faves like this one!
3) Floss, Rinse, Brush. (And In That Order!): Have you ever heard the saying, “It’s not what you do, but how you do it”? Well, the same thing applies to taking care of your teeth. Even if you are flossing and brushing religiously, you could be missing out on some of the benefits simply because you aren’t doing so in the right order. Flossing is best to do before brushing because it removes food particles and plaque from places your toothbrush can’t reach. After a proper flossing sesh, it is important to rinse out your mouth with water after. Finally, you can whip out your toothbrush and get to brushing. Though many of us commonly rinse with water after brushing to remove excess toothpaste, it may not be the best thing for our teeth. That’s because fluoride, the active ingredient in toothpaste that protects your enamel, works best when it gets to sit on the teeth and continue working its magic. Rinsing with water after brushing doesn’t let the toothpaste go to work like it really can. Changing up your order may take some getting used to, but over time, you’ll see the difference.
4) Stay Hydrated: Upping your water supply is a no-fail way to level up your health overall, and your teeth are no exception to this rule. Drinking water not only helps maintain a healthy pH balance in your mouth, but it also washes away residue and acids that can cause enamel erosion. It also helps you steer clear of dry mouth, which is a gateway to bad breath. And who needs that?
5) Show Your Gums Some Love: When it comes to improving your smile, you may be laser-focused on getting your teeth whiter, straighter, and overall healthier. Rightfully so, as these are all attributes of a megawatt smile; but you certainly don’t want to leave gum health out of the equation. If you neglect your gums, you’ll start to notice the effects of plaque buildup, which can irritate the gums and cause gingivitis, the earliest stage of gum disease. Seeing blood while brushing and flossing is a tell-tale sign that your gums are suffering. You may also experience gum recession — a condition where the gum tissue surrounding your teeth pulls back, exposing more of your tooth. Brushing at least twice a day with a gum-protecting toothpaste like Sensodyne Sensitivity and Gum, coupled with regular dentist visits, will keep your gums shining as bright as those pearly whites.
We waved farewell to summer last week, along with all its highlights. Now we warmly embrace music that encourages us to feel, calm down, and think back on the last enjoyable months and their aftermath. Some of the aftereffects of our summertime delights, like "Lil Boo Thang" and "Guarantee," will make us feel content and that our time was well spent. Other repercussions, like "I Just Wanna Feel Your Love Again" and "No SZNs," are more severe and will leave us contemplating some ill-placed steps while we spiral into deep despair.
Whichever side you find yourself on during this change of seasons, or if you're between, consider adding some of these new singles to your playlist to help mourn what's left of this summertime weather. While also welcoming the possibilities that only autumn's beautiful breeze can create.
1.Doechii - "Pacer"
Oh, Doechii, how we have waited for you at every door and corner for what seems like an eternity; yet we are so grateful that you have finally arrived. Doechii has released another single to further demonstrate her versatility after releasing one of the summer's most popular songs. With "Pacer," Doechii, who stunned us with her vocal range on "What It Is," goes back to her rapping roots. The TDE phenomenon starts the song out completely unhinged. With a blood-curdling scream, similar to fellow TDE artist Jay Rock, Doechii gathers her clique to prepare for battle, as though she had just returned from a fierce altercation.
However, instead of amassing casualties upon those who doubted her, Doechii plans to render them inept under the weight of her accomplishments and accolades. She acknowledges that she has arrived at her success later than she had hoped, but says she is on "God's time," and that while reaching her level of achievement later than others, she has done it regardless and with enough assurance to intend to remain for a while.
2."No Statements" - ScarLip
No matter what rap music you play these days, there is always a critic waiting to proclaim that rap and hip-hop are dying. Although part of what they say is true, they haven't yet detected the faint pulse that keeps the business alive. If the naysayers would quiet down long enough to hear that fading pulse, it would be the sound of female rappers smashing through locked doors in an attempt to reclaim its strong and steady beat. One of those rappers, besides Doechii, is ScarLip.
ScarLip, who is 22 years old, fresh off the success of her 2022 "Glizzy Gobbler," has dropped her newest single "No Statements." The rapper says in "No Statements" that she is not in the business of snitching, making statements, or leaving a paper trail of her wrongdoings, but rather needs to be fully aware of the circumstances so she may proceed with her decisions. It would be difficult to not hear people humming this song for weeks to come, because of the catchy chorus and straightforward lyricism. Maybe after this, critics can follow her lead and refrain from making detrimental statements.
3."How Were We To Know" - Emeli Sandé
How were we to know? We ponder this question after a relationship has ended and everything has been put out on the floor to be either picked up and rebuilt or swept away and abandoned. How were we to tell if the connection would burn to the ground or vanish into thin air? How could we have known that the person we intended to spend forever with would be gone the next day? How were we to recognize all the signs when they were arranged randomly and incomprehensibly? In this query, we pardon ourselves for not being omniscient. We accept responsibility for failing to recognize the apparent facts that were put in front of us.
Emelie Sandé asks the same questions in her most recent song, "How Were We To Know." She ponders how she might have known that the relationship was doomed. But as the song goes on, it becomes obvious that she, just like the rest of us, could have easily figured it out if we had communicated better, assigned blame less frequently, and set aside our egos.
4."Angel" - Halle (Acoustic Performance)
At the beginning of August, Halle Bailey released "Angel," her debut single as a solo performer. In less than a few hours, the piano-driven ballad that explored what it is like to be a Black woman growing up in this tiresome, neglectful environment captured millions of listeners and became an anthem for all sun-kissed girls. With beautiful lyricism that acknowledges the weight unfairly burdened upon Black women, Halle reminds audiences that they are in fact angelic, despite the demons that appear out of the woodwork to tell us otherwise.
When one falls, they fall "onto clouds" and find a way to make their way through the limitless struggles bestowed by simply existing. After all, as I said before, black women are the only things to ever grow without nourishment. As if the song couldn't be lovelier than the original rendition, Halle debuted an acoustic version of the smash a couple of weeks ago to demonstrate just how genuinely heavenly she is.
5."No SZNS" - Jean Dawson and SZA
Every day is like the day before. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west, and everything beautiful and dismal that can happen occurs in between. The seasons bring a certain ambiance that allows for differentiation between the past and the present, but only if you're in a place where it matters, and the changing of seasons can be felt. If not, then every day is every day. In "NO SZNS," by Jean Dawson and SZA, this simple fact is mentioned repeatedly in the chorus; but the reality of every day being the same creates an unshakeable melancholy that can only be felt through their lilting vocals and sometimes abrupt instrumentals.
They appear to be pleading for some other truth, because they find it difficult to accept that each day will be the same as the last, and that, despite the passing of time and the changing of the seasons, we are doomed to repeat the at times idyllic, terrifying cycle.
6."Black Dress" - 070 Shake
It's unfortunate that not as many people tune in to 070 Shake as frequently as they ought to. Despite becoming popular with her song "SCAR" on Beyoncé's The Lion King: The Gift, many people are still unaware of how good she is as an artist. The unclassifiable New Jersey musician, whose music is tough to define, has released "Black Dress," in preparation for her second album, You Can't Kill Me. The brand-new 070 Shake track "Black Dress" is a sensation with a haunting feel.
The song has strong, churning guitars, hazy synthesizers, and trap 808s that help to create an eerie and encapsulating, daunting melody. Shake plays the sole survivor of an aircraft accident in the popular song's music video, which was shot by Noah Lee. She is originally stranded in a tree with her parachute before descending to the burning wreckage below. When she finally touches the ground, she performs a song deserving of the fame she will one day enjoy.
7."You" - Lola Brooke ft. Bryson Tiller
What's that I hear around the way? Oh, another female rapper here to save the day? With the help of Bryson Tiller, Lola Brooke's newest song, "You," aims to kick off this cuffing season in the 90s. The rapper, who is relatively new to the hip-hop scene and who recently released the single "Don't Play With It," samples Foxxy Brown's popular song "Get Me Home" on this nearly three-minute tune.
In time for the fall, Brooke and Tiller's powerful voices and sensuous vocals have created the ideal song to dance to while searching for love. In her lyrics, the 29-year-old displays both her Brooklyn heritage and the characteristics ideal in a potential suitor. By the end of the song, it is clear that Brooke plans to move through this cuffing season with intention and refuses to settle for anything less than what she deserves.
8."Guarantee" - Black Eyed Peas
No matter how far into the future we are, you can always depend on the Black Eyed Peas to come from a more vibrant, lively, and distant time period than our own. The trio speaks about having what other people need in their newest song, "Guarantee," off of their 2022 album ELEVATION. In this single, they assert that they can elevate all that is freely provided to them, leading to greater love, knowledge, and total pleasure.
Promising endless satisfaction, they show what is guaranteed if only given the opportunity. With a fun summer mix and poppy, futuristic beat, "Guarantee" is one of the dance songs the endless heat has to give.
9."Lil Boo Thang" - Paul Russell
It is almost ridiculous how often this song has been played throughout the summer, to not have made it in time to be a summer hit. But with only the first 30 seconds available to audiences via TikTok, it had no other choice but to be a glimmer of what it could have been. Nevertheless, now that Paul Russell's "Lil Boo Thang" has been made available, it includes a much lengthier version of the endearing summer song about liking someone enough to be open and honest about one's intentions.
In this short song, he sings of all the potential and affection he can bring to the relationship if only given the chance. Concluding with a nice homage to The Emotions' "Best of My Love," "Lil Boo Thang" might be able to reclaim the love it was unable to receive in the summer this fall.
10."I Just Wanna Feel Your Love Again." - Montell Fish
If Kevin Abstract, Leon Bridges, and Moses Sumney had a baby, I'd imagine it'd be this Montell Fish single. In "I Just Wanna Feel Your Love Again." Fish laments the end of his relationship and the unrestricted love that came with its demise in this song. Without her affection, the need and want to be with her consumes his weekends and moments, but he is always left pleading and alone.
To make matters worse, he is compelled to navigate the world knowing how wonderful it is to experience everlasting love and realizing that he is unlikely to come close to doing so again. As he sings over a guitar and echoing backing vocals, the song has a loneliness that cannot be placed into words. Ultimately, his longing to once again experience his love's devotion feels almost unearthly and forever out of reach.
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