Grace "Spice" Hamilton is a Grammy-nominated artist who has been dubbed “The Queen of Dancehall.” She’s also the first Jamaican female dancehall artist in her genre to reach one billion views on YouTube collectively. Her 25-year-long career encompasses many milestones, and she continues to work daily to grow and diversify her legacy. Whether you love her for the bold personality that she shows as a castmate on Love and Hip Hop: Atlanta, her feel-good party music, or her beauty and fashion influence – she’s someone whose presence is magnetic.
But Spice the person is very different from what fans and supporters experience. When asked what readers may be surprised to learn about her she said: that she’s a homebody, likes to throw down in the kitchen, and that she’s a Christian who takes her worship seriously. During this convo, she gave us a glimpse into her life and background in her career journey that audiences may not always get to see on TV or on social media. Check out the exclusive conversation with xoNecole below.
xoNecole: When you’re not on-camera or performing, what does your life look like?
Spice: When I do get a few days off, it normally goes to my kids. I try to dedicate all my free time to being a mother, which is me taking the wigs off, pulling out my natural hair, cooking, and being with them – just having regular days. The days I can be Grace Hamilton are my best and most fun times. That’s also what I love about my artistry. My fans know when I have blue hair, I'm being Spice. But when they see the black hair, they know I probably just want to be a mother and be alone.
xoN: Balance is important, especially for a twenty-five-year career. Can you talk to me about your evolution as an artist? What lessons have you learned?
Spice: I’ve learned that consistency is the key to success. I feel like that’s why I’m relevant to this day. Being in a male-dominated business from 1999 to now is nothing but consistency and hard work. Also, just having faith in God and knowing that He will deliver me. I’ve learned that losses are lessons. Sometimes things happen in your life for a reason. You just have to learn from them, pick up the pieces, and move on. That’s why I called the album MIRROR 25. I've been doing a lot of reflection of all the things that I‘ve overcome – things like heartache, betrayal, music industry struggles, colorism, and more. So when I look in the mirror, I definitely do a lot of self-reflection and self-healing. Twenty-five years hasn’t been a walk in the park, and now I have a lot to celebrate.
"Sometimes things happen in your life for a reason. You just have to learn from them, pick up the pieces, and move on. That’s why I called the album MIRROR 25. I've been doing a lot of reflection of all the things that I‘ve overcome – things like heartache, betrayal, music industry struggles, colorism, and more."
xoN: During that self-reflection period is there anything new you’ve learned about yourself, negative or positive? Would you mind sharing those reflections?
Spice: The good thing I’ve learned is that I’m a warrior. I feel like I’m very strong – it doesn’t matter what’s going on. I defeated a lot of naysayers who didn’t think I’d make it this far. The bad thing I’ve learned is that I allow myself to be caught in the trap of the naysayers. Sometimes, people will literally come up to provoke you, and I’ve always been the one to fall in the trap. It’s like people say something, and I just have to defend myself. I need to realize that with fame, that just comes with it.
Photo by Mackinley Madhere from Spex Photography
xoN: Also, I wanna address one of the issues you touched on earlier. You mentioned colorism. I’m in my 30s, and I still meet women my age who feel uncomfortable with their skin complexion. If you could give a piece of advice to women like that who struggle with self-confidence due to colorism, what would you say?
Spice: I’d say, if I can make it, so can you. I remember when people would make me feel like I had to bleach my skin to appear to be lighter and have a certain image. When I did "Colorism" back in 2018 and appeared to be lighter, it was because of conversations like this. I wanted to remind girls that look like me that they too can make it big in Hollywood.
xoN: Okay, let’s get a bit into the new project. How do you hope this album makes women feel?
Spice: I hope it makes them feel happy and accepted. I want them to live in their truth. It doesn’t matter their size or race. I just want people to hear my music and just want to dance and have fun. And most of my music is like that, where it just brings good energy and lets people know it’s time to dance and have fun.
"I hope it makes them feel happy and accepted. I want them to live in their truth. It doesn’t matter their size or race. I just want people to hear my music and just want to dance and have fun. And most of my music is like that, where it just brings good energy and lets people know it’s time to dance and have fun."
xoN: There’s a lot of vulnerability on this album. What were your emotions like when you put everything out?
Spice: I had mixed feelings because I’ve been in the business for 25 years. I know how people receive certain things, but I also didn’t want the controversy to overshadow the message. In the "2085 Tea," I dressed like an older person talking to my younger self. Even though the song is controversial, it’s real-life experiences. These are things that happened to me and I overcame, and I know there's a lot of women that go through similar stuff, and I wanted to remind them that we’re all human. But people who were parts of my past are gonna come out and vocally express I didn't have to reflect on that, but who are they to reflect on my past?
xoN: Generally, is it important to you to set the record straight on conversations related to yourself or do you prefer to just let people think whatever they want?
Spice: I’m my own voice. A lot of times, fans feel like I’m bigger than answering. But I don’t feel that way. I’m a human first, and if someone paints a picture of me that’s not true, then I need to be open and honest with my fans so they hear my side of my story. I’ve worked hard for 25 years to build a brand, and I can’t just allow someone to tarnish my reputation. So unfortunately, I’m someone who will come out and voice my opinion on things that aren’t true.
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Feature image by Mackinley Madhere from Spex Photography
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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
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