Sanaa Lathan Wants You To Know She's Her Own Knight In Shining Armor
Cuffing season is upon us, ladies, but instead of getting chose by a man with little else to offer than "potential" and a full package in some grey sweatpants, this year, Sanaa Lathan wants you to do the choosing, sis.
Despite her iconic roles in Love and Basketball and The Best Man, Sanaa has yet to meet Mr. Right in real life, but according to her, she's not in any rush. Last weekend at CultureCon, the 48-year-old actress sat down with journalist, Taylor Rooks, and shared how she really feels when it comes to fairy tale love stories.
"We read all these fairy tales—Snow White, Cinderella—…[and] they're being chosen by a man. That's when you win when you are chosen by a man. That's not the truth! I'ma choose me first."
Being single isn't a flaw or a punishment, issa time to invest in what matters most and Sanaa says that she's using her time alone to become her own knight in shining armor. Although Sanaa has played a hopeless romantic in many of her on-screen roles, her perspective on reality is much different:
"You see how many relationships aren't working. The divorce rate is—I don't know—it has got to be over 50 percent. So I wouldn't invest in something with less than 50 percent. That's more than half of failure."
While Sanaa isn't totally against the ideas of love and courtship, she believes in the value of self-love even more and knows that her personal journey to wholeness and healing will make her even more attractive to a suitable, potential partner:
"I do believe in love and I want that for myself, but right now I'm focused on loving myself and the truth is when you start loving yourself, you attract a better quality of situation."
During the on-stage discussion, Sanaa also detailed the items that she wants crossed off of her wishlist the next time she does become open to the possibility of being in a relationship:
"I want somebody who wants me shining; who is not scared of that; who will be there after the day's over and actually cares about what's going on in my life. And I want to do the same for someone."
As an honorary member of the Single But Not Suffering Club, I must say that I hear you, sis. I don't believe that the divorce rate is a reason to stay single, but having a desire to not settle is.
Love takes time, and so should you, sis.
Featured image by Instagram/@SanaaLathan.
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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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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