Necole Kane And Naturi Naughton Talk Self-Care At The My Black Is Beautiful #BlackGirlsDo Panel
Last weekend, Hollywood's favorite celebrities joined their fans at ESSENCE Festival in New Orleans, LA. Among them was actress Naturi Naughton of Power who teamed up with xoNecole founder, Necole Kane and My Black is Beautiful for an intimate discussion during their Beauty & Style Expo.
Created by a group of Black women at P&G, My Black is Beautiful is part of the company's commitment to touch and celebrate the lives of Black women. At the My Black is Beautiful booth, ladies were able to take a break and grab beauty products, learn hair tips from professional stylists and celebrate themselves at the #BlackGirlsDo wall.
#BlackGirlsDo is a tribute to Black Girl Magic that provides us with a platform to celebrate our wins and accomplishments. Achievements that we've been able to fulfill, despite our circumstances and society's negative stereotypes.
Held at the Convention Center, Naturi and Necole joined host Kela Walker to discuss work-life balance and more for the #BlackGirlsDo panel. Both Naturi and Necole have an impressive track record, having navigated and sustained long careers in the industry. Throughout their discussion, one major theme was the ultimate secret to their black girl magic: self-care.
There is pressure and power that comes with being given a platform, especially in a world that makes celebrities look like they have it all together. Necole and Naturi affirmed the importance of staying grounded, especially when you're being pulled in a million different directions in regards to work and your personal life.
Finding balance amidst these factors isn't easy, but somehow both ladies find the strength and the confidence to slay every damn day, and are proof that you can do it too with the help of a consistent self-care regimen.
Naturi told host Kela Walker that her self-care routine was rooted in faith, and Necole told the audience that hers starts the moment she wakes up.
"I tell everybody I have a morning routine and I do about 12 things before I plug into the outside world. And when I mean 'outside world,' I mean social media. Sometimes, when I used to have my old site, NecoleBitchie.com, I would wake up, and I'd just plug into the internet. What's going on? What did I miss? And that will just shift your whole day. You're inviting negative energy in your life before you even have the time to get your mindset right. So, I wake up every morning, I cook breakfast, I take a run, I listen to my motivational books or like, podcasts. And I get my mind in a winning mindframe before I even check an email or check social media or check anything."
We can only control the content we consume via social media to a certain extent. No matter how many positive pages we follow and affirmation quotes that we see on our feed, logging into Instagram or Facebook the moment you open your eyes can potentially forfeit any chance of peace you may have had that day. Necole reminded us that we cannot help others until we help ourselves, a concept that is foreign to many women of color.
Kela said:
"So many times we talk about self-care and people think it's about fitness and they gotta be in the gym. Self-care is different things to different people. What's also important is to be intentional in what we're doing and recognizing our health and our mental state."
As the matriarch in our family lives, we have been tasked with the responsibility of taking care of everyone around us, even if that means neglecting ourselves. Self-care is a concept that would have been foreign to our grandmothers and the women who came before them, simply because nobody had time for that. This self neglect has been fatal among women of color, who consequently end up killing themselves to ensure that their loved ones are empowered live their best lives.
But who is there to empower you, sis? We put on these masks to seem like superheroes in our own right, and forget that even Clark Kent needed time to recharge.
We often look at self-care as some intangible concept that we never have time for, but even as an award winning lead actress and mother of a newborn daughter, Naturi says that checking in with herself is imperative. As a society, we emphasize physical check-ups and keep up to date on dental visits, but how often do we schedule an appointment to check in with ourselves?
Naturi said:
"Our job is to smile in front of the camera for you all. And we do have to push through but there are moments when we all feel like, I need a moment, I need a break. I don't wanna have a break down up in here. But you do have to take time for yourself, and one of the things that helps to just center me is do normal things."
"Just making sure that you stay connected to what's real. Because everything that we see on TV or even my character, it's not real. I am Naturi, not Tasha, so I make sure to stay grounded in what's real."
Both Necole and Naturi have been vocal about their personal battles in hopes of inspiring other women to get serious about their mental health. Although self-care may not have been a practice afforded to our mothers and grandmothers, it is a necessity in the lives of black women today.
#BlackGirlsDo so damn much for everyone else in the world, that we deserve some personal time, and more than every once in a while.
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.
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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It Girl In Motion: Paige Shari Addison Shows Us Why She's The Hostess With The Mostess
Paige Shari Addison is the epitome of an ItGirl, which is why she is one of 100 ladies on xoNecole's inaugural ItGirl 100 list in partnership with Hyundai. Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia, Paige started her journey as a host in high school by hosting parties. Since then, she has made a career in hosting, from parties to big-name events, and she launched Strictly RNB, a platform for new artists and R&B lovers. Paige reflects on her creative path in the limited video series "ItGirl in Motion."
“My first curated event at Criminal Records was incredible. It was all for up-and-coming artists,” she says. “I needed a platform for us as a collective to be able to give ourselves the platform instead of asking for it, instead of looking for it. I was like, I want to make sure I let people get this experience that I would give as a performer but enjoy the experience with them. It was a dream come true.”
The Atlanta native also has her own line of acai bowls called Soulfull Bowls. She started it during the pandemic after events and parties shut down. But it was her love for eating acai bowls and the reactions others had to them that made her want to make it her next business move. Being open to creating new ventures in the midst of uncertainty is a bold move and one of the reasons why Paige has the “it” factor.
“Being an ItGirl means you’re just authentic. There’s an air to us. We have confidence that exudes from the way we speak, the way we put our lip gloss on, the way we walk, the way we talk. I show up as myself everytime I walk into a room. I’m hospitable, I make sure everybody’s good,” she says.
Get to know more about the hostess with the mostess in the video above.
See our ItGirl 100 list in full here. Click through the gallery below for some BTS moments of Paige and our partnership with Hyundai.
Director: Mikkoh @mikkoh
Production company: @polly___studio
Producer/AD: Samuel Cho @choboi90
Producer/Tech: Paul Nguyen @paul__winn
DP: Cristian Bernal @cristianbernal
Editor: @30inthemorning
2nd Cam: Paul Nguyen
1st AC: AJ Paug @ajpaug Gaffer: Dennis Albert @dennisalbert_
Audio Mixer: Victor Chavez @vic_the__
PA: Rick Carreno @ispeakrick
PA: Tiffany Do @tivani.doee
BTS Photo: Prime @theartofprime
Car Detail: @sud_studs @slugglobal
Creative Director @hellobosco
Team Lead @kevgumbo3000
Project Manager @zakk_jullot
Creative Producer @iamkingsheyla
Designers @miacolemxn @noelspiva
@xoNecole
Director, Integrated Marketing @_vang
Campaign Manager @kingchachiii
Talent Lead @kaylawalker
Feature image by Prime/ @theartof prime