THEMBISA TAKES “PUT YOUR DREAMS FIRST” MESSAGES OF MENTORSHIP AND CAREER SUCCESS TO THE UK AND #140CONF LONDON
November 12, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaThe Polanski Problem: Karma is a B*tch
October 22, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaFull disclosure: I have NOT seen the HBO documentary about Polanski. I write this entry with the intent to express my before and after points of view. Be advised: the two may not differ…
I acknowledge that the Polanski case was problematic. According to various news reports, he was entrapped by a media-hungry judge who renegged on his jail-time free plea deal and went to the other extreme by sentencing him to decades behind bars. I acknowledge that Polanski has an extraordinarily traumatic life, beginning with surviving the Nazi Holocaust, where he lost his mother–and continuing with the murder of his pregnant wife Sharon Tate at the hands of supporters of Charles Manson. I further acknowledge that Polanski is an immensely talented fillmmaker with work ranging from the utterly frightening Rosemary’s Baby to the utterly heartbreaking Oscar winner The Pianist.
Listen. We know that the American Justice System rarely shows up as just. It has been infuriating and depressing for me to watch, for example, as white male police officers go free after murdering or abusing black civilians, from Rodney King to Amadou Diallo and Sean Bell. This happens while people of color are thrown in jail at greater proportion and for harsher sentences than their white criminal counterparts. I can even see why Polanski would feel compelled to run from the law for 31 years. He took matters into his own hands, doing what he believed he had to do. He used his judgment.
Roman Polanski
But Polanski also used his judgment the day he drugged Samantha Gailey (now Samantha Geimer), the thirteen year-old girl he also pled guilty to having sex with. Here come the cop-outs: it was Hollywood during the ’70s. Poppin’ queludes was regular behavior. So was having wild, casual sex. Who wouldn’t want to be deemed a star by a hot European director? Hold up: everybody was not drugging minors into having sex with them, because in the United States, it’s against the law. And at last look, Hollywood was and still is in the United States.
So here’s my thesis: the reason Polanski ran for 31 years was not because the system turned on him; and not because the woman he violated ultimately grew to forgive him as an adult. I think that Karma came for him, caught up to him, and showed up in the form of an arrest during a film festival created to honor his work. Karma can be ironic. I find it ironic that this all went down in a country that’s usually so neutral about stuff. Clearly his past wasn’t so offensive that the Swiss refused to host the event; they were happy he was coming–and they have stood firm in keeping him in their custody.
Bottom line: Roman Polanski pled guilty to raping a minor. In my view, Polanski never satisfactorily atoned for or paid for his crime. The circumstances around the case have no bearing on the depth of wrong of the crime itself. There are few that would argue 42 days of psych evaluation compensates for using drugs to commit forcible rape of a 13 year-old girl. Now, if he didn’t actually rape her, but just said he did for the plea deal, then he’s an innocent man and justice was miscarried. But this isn’t The Fugitive starring Harrison Ford. This isn’t a movie. This is Roman Polanski’s problem. And now, he’s being made to face not just the initial crime of rape, but the crime of being a fugitive from justice for half a lifetime.
Now for more troubling stuff. Hollywood’s powerful cannot believe one of their own has been confronted with an arrest for something that even the victim seems to have ‘gotten over’ so to speak. But that’s because they live in a bubble where very often, its elite members get away with doing weird, deviant, and sometimes even criminal things. But America is the quintessential cowboy, and it really sticks in a cowboy’s craw when a criminal runs. That’s a chase not easily given up on. So far, only Hollywood types have signed this petition. Maybe because the Polanski Problem only rings unfair to Hollywood. Maybe their rush to defend Polanski is a function of the Old Boys Club circling ranks; Hollywood’s got a miserable track record with women from roles on screen to roles behind the scenes. Maybe it’s none of those reasons and it comes down to not wanting to face some Karma of their own, because some Hollywood closets are full to bursting with bones they can’t risk the rest of the world knowing about.
Plaxico Burress
I just find it very disturbing. You didn’t see the NFL rallying to defend Michael Vick over dog murder, or over Plaxico shooting himself. The rap world didn’t cry foul when Grammy(r) winner T.I. got arrested for gun charges. These guys committed crimes and are also very talented at what they do. Karma caught up to them. They didn’t run. They faced their consequences.
T.I.
I’m gonna watch the Polanski documentary to see if it challenges or shifts my perception. But I’m also going to keep in mind that like all media, it’s designed to communicate the perspective of its creators and provoke thought based on what’s presented. In ‘The Polanski Problem Part II’ I will surely blog whatever thoughts are provoked.
My parting questions: have you seen the film? Did it change how you feel about the case or Polanski’s actions? Is Hollywood trippin’ defending Polanski? Would their collective power might be better served to improve the lot of workers or lobby for legislation against piracy?
Upcoming Events With Thembisa Mshaka
August 13, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaReading & Signing
TONIGHT, August 13 6pm-8pm
East Harlem Cafe
1651 Lexington Ave @ 104th St., NYC
Books sold by La Casa Azul Bookstore
Signing
Friday, September 25 11:00am-12:30pm
Author Pavilion
Congressional Black Caucus
Washington, DC Convention Center
Panel and Signing
Friday, September 25, 6pm
Baltimore Book Festival Hip-Hop Panel
Location TBD
SISTER SWANS: Angela Yee
July 23, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaANGELA YEE
On Air Personality-Shade45
Host-Lip Service, The Morning After
Sirius/XM Radio
- Share something you do for work that’s harder than it looks.
Interviews are definitely a lot harder than they look. I try to make it conversational, but every person or group I speak with requires extensive research. I make sure I read every interview, look at every video, and every blog post that I can find before I talk to guests so that I can have information that everyone else doesn’t know. I hate to be redundant and ask the same questions that are always asked. - Describe a moment of sweet vindication.
When I first started at Sirius, I had no radio experience. There were a lot of people who felt like I didn’t deserve the job and hoped that it wouldn’t last for me. Some people felt like I didn’t have the schooling and it wasn’t fair that I should get the opportunity. But I worked harder than most, and I still do, and now I have my own morning and nighttime show. - What’s the most dangerous aspect of the waters you navigate?
There can be a fine line between being a role model and entertaining my largely male audience. I’ll have porn stars and strippers on the show, but I’m very non-judgmental. Some people may look at it like I’m not being responsible, but the truth is that these women are people too and stories they have can be damn interesting. - Who are your influences?
I love Chelsea Handler because she’s hilarious and her interviews are off-center. And Chris Rock would be one of my all-time favorite people because he is well-versed on history and current events, and makes any topic or interview fun to watch. - What is your favorite creative food?
I’m very simple when it comes to food. I’m also picky. I don’t eat red meat, pork, or seafood so I only get creative with dessert. If I could live off red velvet cake from cake man raven, chocolate cheesecake, churros, and key lime pie I would. - Name two places you call home.
Brooklyn, where I’m from and where I live now, and the Shade 45 studio. - What is your guilty pleasure?
I love shoes, and there’s nothing I can do about it. Sometimes I take a break, but then I break down and buy 5 pairs at a time. - What book are you reading right now?
Making Music Make Money by Eric Beall. I’m getting ready for an interview with him, and even though I’m not a songwriter it’s fascinating to read how to write songs that can become hits and get played on the radio.
SISTER SWANS: Bless Roxwell
July 15, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaBless Roxwell
Hip Hop Artist/Poet/Blogger
Sister Swan
1. What are you working on right now?
Right now I am working on multiple projects. I am a Hip Hop artist so I am in the process of writing and recording my 4th project, a free mixtape for download for my music fans, I am writing the blog “She’s So Fresh” Fridayz where I profile a different woman in Hip Hop every Friday with the focus on female MC’s in particular and that’s on www.thebloomeffect.com/blog on friday during the day and then it goes up on my blog, www.roxrevolution.blogspot.com on Friday evening. I’m also gearing up for the “She’s So Fresh” Showcase on 8/6/2009 featuring an all female MC lineup.
2. What book(s) are you reading right now?
I just finished reading an amazing book that inspired me so much called “Put Your Dreams First, Handle Your Entertainment Business” by this powerful, truthful sista, you may know her…;-). I also just recently finished “The Witch of Portobello” by Paulo Coehlo.
3. Share something you do for work that’s harder than it looks.
I would have to say writing and performing. There’s this perception that if you want to be an MC all you have to do is write something that rhymes and that couldn’t be farther from the truth. There is thought and effort that go into writing something that bounces for 3:30, makes people want to groove to it, purchase it, support it, AND has the longevity to stick to the wall and stand out. Not to mention commanding the audience, interacting them and convincing them that, even though they haven’t heard you on the radio or haven’t heard of you period, you’re still worth listening to. Getting up onstage in front of X amount of people (b/c it varies widely) and showing and proving that you have the skills and deserve to be up there taking up the listeners time, is no easy task. And I think people SERIOUSLY underestimate how hard it is for any artist, let alone a woman MC fighting to be heard and respected in the “Boy’s Club” that is Hip Hop.
4. Describe a moment of sweet vindication.
I honestly don’t know if I’ve had that moment yet. I feel in my spirit that it is coming b/c there is a renewed interest in the woman MC but it has yet to manifest itself on a level that I would say feels to me like vindication. Still waiting…
5. What’s the most dangerous aspect of the waters you navigate?
I’d have to say it’s making sure I don’t get pigeonholed and/or or labeled the “man-hater” as a way to cut my power in this “Boy’s Club”. I love my man, my brother and all the other amazing brothers that support me and my efforts. And I’m always willing to work with brothers that are respectful to women, I’m even willing to educate the ones that aren’t..lol, but there are some folks that will straight up tell other people, “don’t deal with her, she’s hates men” and to a man, that may be offensive and may actually keep that man from working with me. Those that know me, they know that’s not true but if you don’t know me and see me doing so much to promote women, it may be easy to believe. But the reality of my philosophy is you don’t have to fall for me to rise, and vice versa. Life is about balance and the ancient Chinese knew that you can’t have the Yang without the Yin, just doesn’t work. So its an effort to always make sure the brothers I am working with understand that my mission is not about them looking bad but always about making sure my sistas are properly repped and look good.
6. Name two places you call home.
I am originally from Boston, MA so that will always be home. I definitely don’t get back there as much as I wish I could but it’s always gonna be home. I have lived in NY now for 10 years (this September) so this has become home now also, even though I maintain a love/hate relationship with it (thank you very much MTA).
7. Who are your influences?
Wow, so many. It all starts with my mom though, really. Raising my brother and me as a single mom, putting herself through nursing school, then medical school, all the while keeping us out of jail, off drugs, and instilling a value system of love, tolerance and strength. It’s always my mama. Beyond that, there were so many powerful women over the years that influenced me. My beloved West Indian grandmother and my English teacher from High School, both of whom shared and gave me so much wisdom and have since passed away. My older brother, whose passion for Hip Hop runs VERY close to mine and from whom I accepted the MC torch. My cousin that I call my uncle, Donovan, and my true uncle, Oswald, both of whom assumed the role of father figure when I didn’t have one. The list could go on as I am very close to my family and those that I love tend to have a very strong influence on me.
Artistically, KRSONE, Queen Latifah, MC Lyte, Rakim, Slick Rick, Chuck D, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson (for sure, smh L), Sade, Aretha Franklin, Madonna…I mean the list can keep going and going…lol.
8. We all need creative stimulation to be successful. What is your favorite creative food?
Sweet and Sour meatballs with Jasmine Long Grain White Rice…it’s mean and I make it myself.
9. What is your guilty pleasure?
My guilty pleasures are 80’s music (can’t get enough of it, even the bad stuff), anything and everything history and science related, the more ancient the history the better, and I am borderline obsessed with Science Fiction and Action SciFi. I’m a huge Trekkie, know several random facts about Star Wars, Transformers, Thundercats, GI Joe, Ironman..I’m a total geek about that stuff.
A World Without Michael
July 2, 2009 by Thembisa Mshaka
I used to slide back and forth on the carpet-free floors at home, moon-walking in my socks. When I learned how to do it in a circle, you couldn’t tell me nothin’! I used to open up my high school locker to a collage of him made from fanzine posters. I wore my button of him wearing his yellow vest with the pride of an innocent crush.
My aunt Lainie and I partied to the 45 of ‘Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough’ from the Off The Wall album; it usually fell into rotation somewhere between ‘Rapper’s Delight’ by the Sugar Hill Gang and ‘Shake Your Pants’ by Cameo.
My best friend Maliika Chambers (now a college professor) and I stared for hours at the Jackson’s Victory poster in the closet of my room. As a young Muslim girl, I wasn’t allowed to put images up on my wall in the house. But on the walls of my walk-in closet, the Jacksons were the paint. The Victory Tour was my first concert, thanks to my grandfather, whose escort was the only way I was allowed to attend. I screamed until I lost my voice. I still remember my Victory Tour tee shirt: black, baseball-style with purple sleeves.
I wore it under my school uniform. Anything to be closer to Michael.
And then, there was Thriller.
I actually met one of my dearest friends, and amazing fine artist, Alex Asher Daniel, at our neighborhood ‘premiere’ of the Thriller video. It happened my neighbor Jennifer’s house; she had MTV. She lived across the street from me in Altadena, CA. She also happened to be his girlfriend at the time.
We were all so mesmerized, that only while recounting our ‘the first time I saw ‘Thriller’ stories did it occur to Alex and I that we’d met over a decade earlier at Jennifer’s ‘premiere’! Ten years later I could still feel the sheer awe we collectively experienced as we watched this movie of a music video, complete with storyline, suspense, special effects, score and a one-song soundtrack. Over the span of 14 minutes, he went from adorable and sweet to terrifying, but there was no looking away as he moved.
He was a dancer like no other, part warrior boot dancer, part b-boy, part Bob Fosse.
I terrorized my younger brother and sister with ‘Thriller’, playing the Vincent Price part of the song extra loud to scare them, lights out, windows open, curtains blowing. Heartbreak Hotel was pretty eerie too, I must admit. I wondered, the nerve of Sefra and Sue! I could never imagine breaking Michael’s heart.
Then, on June 25, 2009 it stopped. First his heart. Then the world.
I swear I could feel a hole tear through the Universe as the Creator called Michael Jackson home.
And then, his music got the world turning again. Like a healing touch or a cleansing rain, it was everywhere, filling the air, all over the web, pouring out of cars and shops and blaring through ear buds. The writer Harry Allen had a brilliant idea, tweeting: “When we theatrically screen Jackson’s music videos, this must be there: “Can You Feel It?” I’m with Harry. Sony should play all of Michael’s videos and screen Moonwalker in theaters. If Thriller knocked our socks off in a living room, imagine what it would do for this generation of young people on a movie screen.
This is my request to Rolf and Barry over at Sony BMG: can you hook it up by August 29 for his birthday? Re-master the videos and show them with a theater partner, with proceeds going to a cause that mattered to Michael.
I’m blessed to have known a world with Michael Jackson in it.
Can you imagine a world without Michael?
There would be:
No Jackson 5.
No Jackson 5 cartoon.
Motown would definitely have been a different label. No ‘The Wiz’ as we know it. Quincy Jones would have been without his muse. No easing on down the road. Who else could have done a better scarecrow with the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup wrapper on his nose?
No mini-movie music videos.
No Alphonso Ribeiro being discovered for a Pepsi ad. Without Michael, multitudes of Black people would be drinking a lot more Coca-Cola.
No iconic performance of Billie Jean at the Motown 25 special. Unthinkable. Motown is 50 now; and 25 years after Motown 25, that’s the only moment of the entire show that was seared into my consciousness.
No USA for Africa.
No ‘We Are The World.’
Michael Jackson is the Guinness Book of World Records holder for most charitable pop star. Without Michael, countless human beings would have gone hungry, remained sick, or perished. Michael Jackson even raised the profile of the animal kingdom. It started with that adorable tiger cub inside the Thriller LP. From there, it was Bubbles the chimp. Without Michael, I bet we wouldn’t like llamas as much.
Hip-hop would certainly be less radio-friendly, less fun, and much less interesting without Michael. Michael had hip-hop caught up in his rapture, from the hardest emcees to the shiny crossover acts.
Without Michael, no ‘O.P.P.’ with Naughty By Nature.
No ‘It’s All About The Benjamins’ for Puff Daddy and the Family.
No ‘Hey Lover’ from LL and Boyz II Men.
No ‘911 Is A Joke’ from Public Enemy.
No ‘She Said’ from Pharcyde, my personal favorite use of Michael’s work in rap music.
No ‘Breakadawn’ from De La Soul.
And hip-hop soul would be missing some bangers, too.
Check out the Michael Jackson Sample Map:
http://www.buzzfeed.com/ries/michael-jackson-sample-map-6y
Put simply, a world without Michael, a world without his melody, would be a world less beautiful. While I must accept that he has become an ancestor, I refuse to live in a world without Michael. His songs and performances will play on forever more. What else would we be missing in a world without Michael?
Share your memories and comments here.
SISTER SWANS: Natasha Eubanks
June 24, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaNatasha Eubanks
Founder, TheYBF.com
Sister Swan
Name one professional thing you do that you make look easy despite its difficulty.
I would say running the entire site. Most people think it is very easy. However, because I am the only person who writes on my site, I have to be the eyes, ears, and writer. I also handle some technology issues as well.
In the tradition of the Ugly Duckling who emerges victorious—and gorgeous, who do you wish could see you now that you’ve reached this place in your life?
Despite the success people see, I am still striving to accomplish so much! I don’t feel like I have reached a point where I can stop and look back. There is so much more to accomplish. However, people still doubt me ALL the time (smile).
Many underestimate the stamina of the swan. How have you been second-guessed with respect to what you do or something you’ve created?
People second guess me all the time. Whenever I break a story, I have not been proven wrong! A great example of this is when I break and/or report an exclusive story. People are not use to black sites breaking news first. We, for some reason, have to be secondary sources. So when I break a story, people tend not to believe me, until a “mainstream” site breaks the same story. Who would be the best source to talk about “our celebrities” other than a site such as TheYBF.com?
Do you hold on to a bird in the hand, or let it go to take a risk?
I am a calculated and analytical risk-taker.
What health or beauty product is your saving grace?
What health or beauty product isn’t my saving grace. I love anything that makes my skin as perfect as possible. I love La Mer Body Products, any kind of mascara, bronzers, and any kind of lip gloss ranging from Chapstick, Chanel, or a $500 Custom Lip Color. I love it ALL! I am a very much a lip gloss and mascara girl! I religiously get spa treatments every 21 days!
What’s the most dangerous aspect of the waters you navigate?
Anytime you speak about people’s professions or character, you run the risk of legal drama. I definitely have a GREAT legal team to keep me straight!
What do you wear that makes you feel sexy?
When I wear… Confidence! Lingerie and six-inch heels don’t hurt!
Who are your influences?
My mother and my grandmother! I admire anyone who is fearless, carefree, happy and full of life. Being carefree is the direct opposite of me but something I try to tap into too often!
How do you maintain your sanity?
I love TV! I love escaping my reality into other realities such as TV, movies, music, and good entertainment…and a couple of shots with my friends helps too!
Who do you have on repeat in your ipod?
BEYONCE, Jill Scott, Drake, Maxwell, Kanye, Dave Matthews Band, Lil Wayne, and so many others.
What is your favorite creative food?
I am really a simple girl when it comes to food…which is why I love Italian! It is so simple yet rich and yummy! The most creative food probably is New Orleans because it is a whole lot of seafood and sauces rolled up into one dish!
Where did you get your start?
I did not “get” a start…I took a risk and just did it. TheYBF.com was my first attempt at blogging and it took off! I hadn’t done anything in the entertainment industry beforehand and my focus was law school.
What location feels most like home to you?
Louisiana or wherever my mom is located.
What song is your guilty pleasure?
Anything by Britney Spears!
What album would you recommend to HY[e]B Readers?
The Dream’s latest album is pure HOTNESS!
What book are you reading right now?
A novel entitled Trading Up by Candace Bushnell and any tabloid that’s on the stands at the moment! However, don’t get it twisted: I do keep up with world news!
By Thembisa S. Mshaka, Author of Put Your Dreams First: Handle Your [entertainment] Business in stores now.
CREATIVE FOOD FRIDAY: Mark Fast/Kara Walker
June 19, 2009 by Thembisa Mshaka
Nancy Jimenez
Mark Fast/Kara Walker
SISTER SWANS: Helen Little
June 17, 2009 by Thembisa MshakaHelen Little
Midday Personality
106.7 Lite FM – WLTW
1. What are you working on right now?
I’ve been blessed to expand my broadcast territory and I’m now on over 20 other stations across the country. I can be heard on the weekends in various markets and via the iPhone with the iHeart radio application on the soft rock channel. I’m also working on turning writing into an additional career. And my newest interest is in real estate investing.
2. What book(s) are you reading?
Tax Wise Business Ownership by Toby Mathias, Zero Debt by Lynette Khalfani-Cox , The Bible
3. Share something you do for work that’s harder than it looks.
My work isn’t really hard at all. And when you love what you do even the stuff that is hard, isn’t as hard. Probably one of the biggest challenges is explaining to listeners how the music is picked and programmed on the radio station. Many people still thing that the person they hear on the microphone is the one that picks the music and most often it isn’t.
4. Describe a moment of sweet vindication.
I’m motivated by people who think I’m not capable. I love being told I “can’t” do something. Early in my career a consultant at the station where I was working told me in our first meeting, “I don’t know why the PD hired you. You don’t sound like nothing.” Instead of correcting him and saying “No, it should be you don’t sound like anything,” I just worked hard and prove him wrong. Many years later I was working in New York and I got to pull the feathers from his mouth.
It was also said to me when I was working in Dallas TX, “What makes you think you can get a job in New York? Everyone wants to be in New York.” Well, actually I didn’t because I didn’t like snow. But I’m still here and they aren’t. And I still don’t like snow!
5. What’s the most dangerous aspect of the waters you navigate?
I’m very opinionated so keeping it to myself at times is important. Also, having a clear understanding of the business of radio as it is TODAY. It’s so easy to fall into the trap of old thinking. But the reality is that it’s a new world and the consumer has dramatically changed since the onset of my career.
6. Name two places you call home.
Bucks County Pennsylvania and North Carolina.
7. Who are your influences?
My parents and my siblings. I had great examples at home.
8. What is your favorite creative food?
Learning! Yummy! I swallow it whole! I love learning something new and can get a little greedy with it at times. I’m stuffing myself with knowledge on real estate investing. It’s deliciously fascinating. Also writing. I love words. Aside from being tasty they can say so much it you know how to use them and take advantage of the vast variety of them we have. I also like fried chicken and watermelon. LOL!
9. What is your guilty pleasure?
Real estate, people watching and making up their stories while observing them, driving very fast,my little patio garden of fresh vegetables, and SMILEY FACES! OMG I love them!!!!!!!!
Links:
www.1067LiteFM.com/pages/onair/helenlittle.html
www.helenrlittle.blogspot.com/
www.linkedin.com/in/helenrlittle
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Helen-Little/56327204685?sid=8a6ba81708e38be26953593bf1e259c2&ref=search
QUEENS UP, HOES DOWN
June 15, 2009 by Thembisa Mshaka
Michelle Obama’s presence is a welcome, seismic shift from the stereotypical image of women of color as accessories to their own exploitation in media. In her non-celebrity post as the Most Influential Woman of the Free World, Mrs. Obama is covered by media daily around the globe, giving her the power to unravel the thread of negative perception about Black women in a way that even the mighty Oprah could not. Dealing a major blow to the video ho, Mrs. Obama is the only First Lady to make Maxim’s 100 Hottest Women In The World, holding her own at #93 with starlets and models.
This awesome power now has a name: The Michelle Effect.
As far as I’m concerned it’s about time the hoochie fell out of fashion. She’s been pop culture’s go-to stereotype for long enough. BET Uncut was cancelled. The Girls Next Door had their final season. The window of fame for Tiffany Pollard of I Love New York appears to be coming to a close and the KING is dead. KING magazine, that is. He lost his crown this March.
Somewhere along the way the hoochie became a crutch, a distraction to draw attention away from subpar talent. The hoochie used to ensure a quick buck no matter what was being sold. The same could be said about all the music clogging the airwaves loaded with digital trickery. Autotune, like the video hoe, is overexposed. Jay-Z heralds the death of Autotune. Me? I’m trumpeting the Death of Video Hoes.
Even video vixen-turned author Karrine Steffans has turned over a new leaf. She now rejects Superhead, her former nickname. Steffans is living proof that skin can only get you so far before your brain has to kick in. Now, she’s turning her past into The Vixen Manual, a tutorial for women seeking to keep their men from…you guessed it—hoochies. Another nail driven into the video ho’s coffin.
But where’s the line between loving your skin and showing too much?
At one end of the spectrum you have Michelle Obama, who is scrutinized for exposing her arms. On the on the other (dare I say deep) end of the skin showing spectrum, we’ve got leaked photos of pop princesses Cassie and Rihanna showing it all. The jury is still out on whether these Internet leaks were publicity stunts or real violations of their privacy.
What we do know is all their “business” is out in the street now. Once simply sexy and provocative, both are now also viewed as indecent. As the ripple effect of their overexposure continues, so does the debate.
Will Cassie and Rihanna’s endorsements suffer?
Have they fallen from grace?
Were they really just hoochies with microphones to begin with?
In this new era of the user-generated sexting, are leaked nude photos the marketing strategy du jour for female celebrities? Media plays along by running these leaks as top stories, reinforcing that nudity gets girls attention.
Go nude. Create Buzz. Repeat.
But where’s the payoff? Both Cassie and Rhianna lost points with music buyers. According to Billboard, in the subsequent weeks after the leaks, single sales were flat for Cassie and down for Rihanna.
In another match-up, Ciara posed nude (on purpose) on the October 2008 cover of VIBE only to find her third album, Fantasy Ride debut at #2 on the Billboard Top 200 chart. Coming in at the top spot was Epiphany, the sophomore set from the fully clothed, full-figured and lesser-known Chrisette Michele.
Keep clothes on. Go #1. Repeat.
Even Drake, the hot rapper of the moment and former star of hit teen drama Degrassi muses, “sweat pants hair tied chillin’ with no makeup on. That’s when you’re the prettiest, I hope that you don’t take it wrong”. No offense taken.
The Michelle Effect is transforming the image of womanhood in America.
Queens up, hoes down.
By Thembisa S. Mshaka, Author of Put Your Dreams First: Handle Your [entertainment] Business
