In the plot twist of 2023 so far, Meagan Good has sparked dating rumors thanks to being steadily papped while on the arm of new flame actor Jonathan Majors. And one thing that we got from this week's court appearance where she walked hand in hand with her man, the Harlem star is going to stick beside him.
Marvel star Jonathan Majors arrives in court holding hands with girlfriend Meagan Good. Once inside the courtroom, Good had her arm around Majors and stroked his head.
— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) June 20, 2023
Majors is facing assault and harassment charges for a case involving an ex-girlfriend. pic.twitter.com/jncMh4POO8
After a meteoric rise from starring roles in two major (no pun intended) Hollywood blockbusters this year, the actor's image in the court of public opinion took a nosedive following assault and harassment charges filed against him by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. The charges stemmed from an alleged incident with his ex-girlfriend in March.
Through his legal counsel, the Marvel star, who is still slated to appear in upcoming MCU properties, has maintained his innocence with his lawyer calling the allegations "false." His lawyer Priya Chaudhry also shared with Insider that the arrest and subsequent charges are a textbook case of racism.
A court date has since been set for August.
On the heels of a very public divorce, seeing Meagan explore love in a new relationship with Jonathan has been the center of many conversations on Twitter and the like, with opinions ranging from her big "wife" energy displayed in court this week to beliefs that the relationship smells like a PR move.
But piggybacking off what Prentice Penny said in 2021 that we think is a very on-point quote for when you find yourself judging other people's choices: "Love is a choice, and it only needs to make sense to you."
Who Is Meagan Good Dating?
One thing about Meagan is she is going to love fiercely and fearlessly. She also lives her life for herself and can easily shake off others' opinions if it isn't in alignment with what she wants for herself. None of us know the ins and outs of this new relationship. And like her ex-husband DeVon Franklin shared in a recent interview with The Breakfast Club when asked if her being with Jonathan upset him, "She's happy. That's a blessing."
Seeing Meagan happy and possibly in love again made us want to take a trip down relationship memory lane of who the actress has dated in the past.
Meagan Good's Dating History
Keep reading for Meagan Good's dating history.
Meagan Good and 50 Cent (2002-2003)
Who could forget the iconic 50 Cent visual for "21 Questions" made all the more sweeter by Meagan Good's presence in it? The Cousin Skeeter alum was long since known for her looks and career moves, like starring in 50 Cent's music video further cemented her sex symbol status. After meeting on the set of said video, Meagan and 50 dated briefly but kept it lowkey because Meagan didn't want their relationship to define her success as she was making a name for herself.
Meagan explained her decision to keep the relationship under wraps a decade later in an interview with Hollywood Unlocked:
"I kept it under the radar intentionally because at that time in my career, I'd just come off of 'Biker Boyz,' I'd just done the music video, and my career was going in a really great way, and what I didn't want was my connection to him to be the catalyst in any type of success that I had."
Meagan Good and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (2004)
Though it has never been confirmed or denied, much speculation has circulated in the media that the two co-stars dated between April and October of 2004 while they were filming the 2005 film Brick.
Meagan Good and Thomas Q. Jones (2007-2010)
Steve Granitz/WireImage
Between 2007 and 2010, Meagan was in a relationship with former Kansas City Chiefs running back Thomas Q. Jones (who is now an actor). In an interview with ESSENCE, he shared how he and Meagan made their on-again-off-again relationship work:
"I look at it as something I want to do, and we take it one day at a time. I don’t look at it like it’s work. The reality is I work in New York and she works in L.A., but we are fortunate we have jobs where it’s flexible. I’m in New York for five months of the year and the other time I am wherever she is. To me, it’s what you make it. I’ve never seen myself as a celebrity, which is probably because I’m from a small town. I’m just blessed I get to do something I love to do. She’s the same way, and really humble. We may be at the mall or the movies, and people will say what are y’all doing here. We’re doing the same thing everyone else does."
Meagan Good and Soulja Boy (2008)
After a crush that seemed one-sided, Meagan did indeed briefly date rapper Soulja Boy in 2008 during one of her breaks with Thomas Q. Jones. The relationship fizzled, and according to an alleged tweet from the actress that no longer exists, things didn't end between the pair on the best terms.
Meagan Good and DeVon Franklin (2011-2021)
David Livingston/Getty Images
After a slew of relationships ending, being cheated on would become the catalyst for Meagan's healing journey. In 2010, she decided to take a vow of celibacy. She told Parade in 2019, "I had gotten out of another relationship and started praying about what was next and what I should be doing, and I started being celibate and working on myself and healing."
In addition to wanting to change some of her "destructive" ways, she told The Post in a 2016 interview about her decision, "I no longer wanted to be a girlfriend, I wanted a husband." Two years into her celibacy journey, she found one.
In a 2020 interview with the Tamron Hall Show, a then-38-year-old Meagan shared what God told her about the man she would eventually marry.
"The first thing God told me was that it was time to get out of that relationship. The second thing that God told me was that it was time to be celibate. The third thing God told me was that DeVon was my husband."
While working on the film Jumping the Broom in 2011, Meagan connected with producer and preacher DeVon Franklin. They had known each other for years but didn't truly hit it off in a romantic sense until that year. They would have a brief courtship before getting engaged in March 2012. Following the theme of a brief courtship, their engagement would end a few short months later, in June 2012, when the couple married and said, "I do."
In addition to cultivating a strong marriage of nearly a decade, the former couple wrote a very popular book together called The Wait: A Powerful Practice for Finding the Love of Your Life and the Life You Love in 2017, and their love journey was an inspiration to many.
In December 2021, in an announcement that would shock many, Meagan and DeVon announced their decision to end their marriage. In a joint statement, the former couple shared, "We celebrate almost a decade of marriage together and a love that is eternal. There's no one at fault, we believe this is the next best chapter in the evolution of our love."
Similarly to the healing journey before it, Meagan chose to be an open book about her major life shift and was very vocal about processing the divorce. "Throughout life, I’ve always approached relationships as understanding that at some point, they’ll get to the place that they’re going to, and then they would be over," she revealed in a 2022 conversation with xoNecole.
She continued, "In my situation right now, it’s a little bit different because I thought that that would be the last time that I would be doing that and that I would be doing this with that person forever.”
Meagan Good and Jonathan Majors (2023-Present)
And now, we're back to where we started at the beginning of the article. Though much isn't known about her relationship with Lovecraft Country alum Jonathan Majors, the two seem pretty serious.
Despite first being papped as recently as May 2023, Meagan, 41, and Jonathan, 33, have been photographed while shopping for home decor, having dinner with her family, and now somewhat infamously holding hands at Jonathan's recent court appearance in an undeniable display as a united front, the budding relationship seems like the real deal for both actors.
The couple hasn't confirmed relationship rumors, but they are also far from denying them. Regardless of whether or not the two are falling or growing in love, we are happy to see our girl happy.
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Featured image by Leon Bennett/Getty Images
RELATED
So, we handpicked one hundred It Girls who embody that palpable It Factor moving through us as young Black women, the kind of motion lighting up the world both IRL and across the internet.
It Girl 100 became xoNecole’s most successful program, with the hashtag organically reaching more than forty million impressions on Instagram in just twenty-four hours. Yes, it caught on like wildfire because we celebrated some of the most brilliant and influential GenZennial women of color setting trends and shaping culture. But more than that, it resonated because the women we celebrated felt seen.
Many were already known in their industries for keeping this generation fly and lit, but rarely received recognition or flowers. It Girl 100 became a safe space to be uplifted, and for us as Black women to bask in what felt like an era of our brilliance, beauty, and boundless influence on full display.
And then, almost overnight, it was as if the rug was pulled from under us as Black women, as the It Girls of the world.
Our much-needed, much-deserved season of ease and soft living quickly metamorphosed into a time of self-preservation and survival. Our motion and economic progression seemed strategically slowed, our light under siege.
The air feels heavier now. The headlines colder. Our Black girl magic is being picked apart and politicized for simply existing.
With that climate shift, as we prepare to launch our second annual It Girl 100 honoree list, our team has had to dig deep on the purpose and intention behind this year’s list. Knowing the spirit of It Girl 100 is about motion, sauce, strides, and progression, how do we celebrate amid uncertainty and collective grief when the juice feels like it is being squeezed out of us?
As we wrestled with that question, we were reminded that this tension isn’t new. Black women have always had to find joy in the midst of struggle, to create light even in the darkest corners. We have carried the weight of scrutiny for generations, expected to be strong, to serve, to smile through the sting. But this moment feels different. It feels deeply personal.
We are living at the intersection of liberation and backlash. We are learning to take off our capes, to say no when we are tired, to embrace softness without apology.
And somehow, the world has found new ways to punish us for it.
In lifestyle, women like Kayla Nicole and Ayesha Curry have been ridiculed for daring to choose themselves. Tracee Ellis Ross was labeled bitter for speaking her truth about love. Meghan Markle, still, cannot breathe without critique.
In politics, Kamala Harris, Letitia James, and Jasmine Crockett are dragged through the mud for standing tall in rooms not built for them.
In sports, Angel Reese, Coco Gauff, and Taylor Townsend have been reminded that even excellence will not shield you from racism or judgment.
In business, visionaries like Diarrha N’Diaye-Mbaye and Melissa Butler are fighting to keep their dreams alive in an economy that too often forgets us first.
Even our icons, Beyoncé, Serena, and SZA, have faced criticism simply for evolving beyond the boxes society tried to keep them in.
From everyday women to cultural phenoms, the pattern is the same. Our light is being tested.
And yet, somehow, through it all, we are still showing up as that girl, and that deserves to be celebrated.
Because while the world debates our worth, we keep raising our value. And that proof is all around us.
This year alone, Naomi Osaka returned from motherhood and mental health challenges to reach the semifinals of the US Open. A’ja Wilson claimed another MVP, reminding us that beauty and dominance can coexist. Brandy and Monica are snatching our edges on tour. Kahlana Barfield Brown sold out her new line in the face of a retailer that had been canceled. And Melissa Butler’s company, The Lip Bar, is projecting a forty percent surge in sales.
We are no longer defining strength by how much pain we can endure. We are defining it by the unbreakable light we continue to radiate.
We are the women walking our daily steps and also continuing to run solid businesses. We are growing in love, taking solo trips, laughing until it hurts, raising babies and ideas, drinking our green juice, and praying our peace back into existence.
We are rediscovering the joy of rest and realizing that softness is not weakness, it is strategy.
And through it all, we continue to lift one another. Emma Grede is creating seats at the table. Valeisha Butterfield has started a fund for jobless Black women. Arian Simone is leading in media with fearless conviction. We are pouring into each other in ways the world rarely sees but always feels.
So yes, we are in the midst of societal warfare. Yes, we are being tested. Yes, we are facing economic strain, political targeting, and public scrutiny. But even war cannot dim a light that is divinely ours.
And we are still shining.
And we are still softening.
And we are still creating.
And we are still It.
That is the quiet magic of Black womanhood, our ability to hold both truth and triumph in the same breath, to say yes, and to life’s contradictions.
It is no coincidence that this year, as SheaMoisture embraces the message “Yes, And,” they stand beside us as partners in celebrating this class of It Girls. Because that phrase, those two simple words, capture the very essence of this moment.
Yes, we are tired. And we are still rising.
Yes, we are questioned. And we are the answer.
Yes, we are bruised. And we are still beautiful.
This year’s It Girl 100 is more than a list. It is a love letter to every Black woman who dares to live out loud in a world that would rather she whisper. This year’s class is living proof of “Yes, And,” women who are finding ways to thrive and to heal, to build and to rest, to lead and to love, all at once.
It is proof that our joy is not naive, our success not accidental. It is the reminder that our light has never needed permission.
So without further ado, we celebrate the It Girl 100 Class of 2025–2026.
We celebrate the millions of us who keep doing it with grace, grit, and glory.
Because despite it all, we still shine.
Because we are still her.
Because we are still IT, girl.
Meet all 100 women shaping culture in the It Girl 100 Class of 2025. View the complete list of honorees here.
Featured image by xoStaff
Then there were those who gave up their zip code altogether and found a permanent home in the skies. After years spent recruiting students for a university, Lisa-Gaye Shakespeare became a full-time travel influencer and founded her travel company, Shakespeare Agency. And she's not alone.
These stories mirror the experiences of women across the world. For millions, the pandemic induced a seismic shift in priorities and desires. Corporate careers that were once hailed as the ultimate “I made it” moment in one's career were pushed to the back burner as women quit their jobs in search of a more self-fulfilling purpose.
xoNecole spoke to these three Black women who used the pandemic as a springboard to make their wildest dreams a reality, the lessons they learned, and posed the question of whether they’ll ever return to cubicle life.
Answers have been edited for context and length.
xoNecole: How did the pandemic lead to you leaving the cubicle?
Randi: I was becoming stagnant. I was working in mortgage and banking but I felt like my personality was too big for that job! From there, I transitioned to radio but was laid off during the pandemic. That’s what made me go full throttle with entrepreneurship.
Gabrielle: I moved around a lot for work. Five times over a span of seven years. I knew I needed a break because I had experienced so much. So, I just quit one day. Effective immediately. I didn’t know what I was going to do, I just knew I needed a break and to just regroup.
Lisa-Gaye: I was working in recruiting at a university and my dream job just kind of fell into my lap! But, I never got to fully enjoy it before the world shut down in March [2020] and I was laid off. On top of that, I was stuck in Miami because Jamaica had closed its borders due to the pandemic before I was able to return.
Randi O
xoN: Tell us about your journey after leaving Corporate America.
Randi: I do it all now! I have a podcast, I’m an on-air talent, I act, and I own a public relations company that focuses on social media engagement. It’s all from my network. When you go out and start a business, you can’t just say, “Okay I’m done with Corporate America,” and “Let me do my own thing.” If you don’t build community, if you don’t build a network it's going to be very hard to sustain.
Gabrielle: I realized in New York, there was not a lot to do for Black lesbians and queer folks. We don’t really have dedicated bars and spaces so I started doing events and it took off. I started focusing on my brand, Raw Honey. I opened a co-working space, and I was able to host an NYC Pride event in front of 100,000 people. I hit the ground running with Raw Honey. My events were all women coming to find community and come together with other lesbians and queer folks. I found my purpose in that.
Lisa-Gaye: After being laid off, I wrote out all of my passions and that’s how I came up with [my company] Shakespeare Agency. It was all of the things that I loved to do under one umbrella. The pandemic pulled that out of me. I had a very large social media following, so I pitched to hotels that I would feature them on my blog and social media. This reignited my passion for travel. I took the rest of the year to refocus my brand to focus solely on being a content creator within the travel space.
Gabrielle
xoN: What have you learned about yourself during your time as an entrepreneur?
Randi: [I learned] the importance of my network and community that I created. When I was laid off I was still keeping those relationships with people that I used to work with. So it was easy for me to transition into social media management and I didn’t have to start from scratch.
Gabrielle: The biggest thing I learned about myself was my own personal identity as a Black lesbian and how much I had assimilated into straight and corporate culture and not being myself. Now, I feel comfortable and confident being my authentic self. Now, I'm not sacrificing anything else for my career. I have a full life. I have friends. I have a social life. And when you are happy and have a full quality of life, I feel like [I] can have more longevity in my career.
Lisa-Gaye: [I'm doing] the best that I've ever done. The discipline that I’m building within myself. Nobody is saying, ‘Oh you have to be at work at this time.’ There’s no boss saying, ‘Why are you late?’ But, if I’m laying in bed at 10 a.m. then it's me saying [to myself], 'Okay, Lisa, get up, it's time for you to start working!’ That’s all on me.
xoNecole: What mistakes do you want to help people avoid when leaving Corporate America?
Randi: You have to learn about the highs and lows of entrepreneurship. You have a fast season and a slow season and I started to learn that when you're self-employed the latter season hits hard. Don't get caught up on the lows, just keep going and don't stop. I’m glad I did.
Gabrielle: I think everyone should quit their job and just figure it out for a second. You will discover so much about yourself when you take a second to just focus on you. Your skill set will always be there. You can’t be afraid of what will happen when you bet on yourself.
Lisa-Gaye: When it comes to being an influencer the field is saturated and a lot of people suffer from imposter syndrome. There is nothing wrong with being an imposter but find out how to make it yours, how to make it better. If you go to the store, you see 10 million different brands of bread! But you are choosing the brand that you like because you like that particular flavor.
So be an imposter, but be the best imposter of yourself and add your own flair, your own flavor. Make the better bread. The bread that you want.
Lisa-Gaye Shakespeare
xoNecole: Will you ever return to your 9 to 5?
Randi: I wouldn’t go back to Corporate America. But I don’t mind working under someone. A lot of people try to get into this business saying, “I can't work under anyone.” That’s not necessarily the reason to start a business because you're always going to answer to somebody. Clients, brands, there’s always someone else involved.
Gabrielle: I went back! I really needed a break and I gave myself that. But, I realized I’m a corporate girl, [and] I enjoy the work that I do. I’m good at it and I really missed that side of myself. I have different sides of me and my whole identity is not Raw Honey or my queerness. A big side of me is business and that’s why I love having my career. Now I feel like my best self.
Lisa-Gaye: I really don’t. For right now, I love working for myself. It's gratifying, it's challenging, it's exciting. It’s a big deal for me to say I own my own business. That I am my own boss, and I'm a Black woman doing it.
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Featured image courtesy of Lisa-Gaye Shakespeare
Originally published on February 6, 2023