I am an avid TV watcher, to the point where I see it as an addiction. Don't judge me. That is why I don't have cable at home and I keep my TV viewing to a minimum. There is also the fact that not many shows represent the diversity of the Black community. If they do, it's stuck in little niches on networks who rank low on my scale of enjoyable programing. Don't get me started on reality shows. Yes, I got sucked in at the beginning then I really stepped back and asked myself "What the hell am I watching. Then I discovered YouTube.
Hmmm, where did it all begin? I would say it was about two years ago. A FaceBook friend put up a link to Awkward Black Girl. To say I got sucked in by the genius of Issa Rae is an understatement and I'm not alone. Pharell Williams liked her work so much that he had the show join his channel, I Am Other. But it didn't end there.
And these are just a few I've come across. There's a couple I've yet to see in their entirety like SPIN, PuNanny Diaries, The Complex, Relationship Games and Anacostia.
I'm not saying that the story lines are stellar or the acting is out of the world for all of them but they can hold their own compared to some of the things you would find on basic cable. I'm Just Saying. I'm happy to see Black folk making quality programmes instead of bemoaning how Hollywood are not giving them roles. Kudos to them all.
Here is one of my favourite clips:
If you know any webisodes I should check out and add to the list, leave a comment below.
I fell in love with Wedding Nouveau long ago, so long ago that I can't even tell you the exact date. What I loved about Wedding Nouveau was their collection of diverse weddings. When I say diverse weddings, I'm talking about interracial weddings, cultural theme weddings, and tons and tons of inspiration for a dream wedding and pre-wedding stuff.
The above pic is from this post called Trash The Dress Engagement photographed by AlleBach Photography.The couple decided an artsy way of trashing the dress and they look so cute and in love. Loving it.
Below is a make up tutorial for dark skin. Some may argue that the model is more brown than dark skin, but the information in the tutorial is still relevant.
For the continuation of this tutorial, click here.
Since I was a kid, I've been reading Archie comics.They used to be sold at the bookstores/news outlets down here in Antigua. And while other kids were buying toys and video games, I was buying Archie comics and tween novels. Keeping it real, my favourite main character was Jughead, simply because he did what he pleased and didn't really give a damn.
One of the things I have to give the creators of Archie comics is the fact that they did diversify their cast of characters to a degree. I'm still waiting for the Asian, American Indian or East Indian characters, but they did have Black and Latino characters in the lives of the main characters. Namely Nancy Woods and Chuck Clayton representing Blacks and Maria Rodriguez and Frankie Valdez representing Latinos.
Although Nancy and Chuck were featured the same amount of times as other supporting characters (Dilton, Moose, Ethel). Their back stories were vague to say the least and their character development was minimal. The most we know about Chuck is he is an artist with interests in comics and he's the son of Coach Clayton. We even know less about Nancy apart from her being Chuck's girlfriend. Heck I didn't even know her last name until I saw the above pic.
It's a situation where you can't have your cake and eat it too. Yeah, we have blacks in a well known comic book, but their story is very limited. Then we have Valerie Smith/Brown. Yes I said Smith/Brown, in the cartoon she's one name and the comic book she's another. She's so fabulous, she has two, Two, TWO last names.
Here's some info on Valerie courtesy of Wikipedia:
A headstrong young lady, Valerie performs back-up vocals (in the
comics, cartoons, and the movie) and occasionally sings lead (nearly
always in the TV series) for the Pussycats. In the comics and the movie,
she plays the bass; in the cartoons, she plays tambourine. She is also
the group's main songwriter, and is occasionally seen playing different
instruments. In the comic book, she replaced Pepper, a sharp-minded
spectacled brunette.
Valerie's surname may be the most definite of the three. Archie
Comics have occasionally used the name "Brown" from the movie on their
website and in promotional material, but in the comics, she is always
called Valerie Smith.
In the comics, Valerie is more tomboyish
than her two bandmates. Besides being good at science and a skilled
auto mechanic, she occasionally shows a quick temper as well as being
physically stronger than she might appear. She is also less concerned
about her appearance or her love life than Josie, Melody or Alexandra,
and has rarely been seen in a romantic relationship, though in the
cartoons she seems attracted to Alexander.
In the animated series, she is somewhat similar to Velma Dinkley from Scooby-Doo and they met in a 1973 episode of The New Scooby Doo Movies, The Haunted Showboat.
She is the character who saves the day the most often, thanks to her
street smarts and her mechanical and scientific genius. In the comics,
this is downplayed, although she is still the most intelligent of the
group. Valerie is the first African-American female cartoon character on
a regular animated television series.[citation needed]
To me, Valerie is all about firsts when it comes to comics like the Archie Comics. Not only is she the first well rounded character who is in the lead, she is smart and a leader. Although I love the other Pussycats, Josie is naive and Melody is a bit special. Valerie sees through BS and makes no bones about it. She calls it as she sees it. Plus who else could pull off a romantic connection with Archie, the comic's name sake -The Archies & Josie and the Pussycats (Archie & Friends All-Stars).
Yes ladies and gentlemen, Valerie of Josie and The Pussycats is truly a talented, outspoken, pretty dark girl. Below are some pics found around the internet.
Who would have thought the uber talented singer/actress Brandy was not comfortable in the colour she's in. It's amazing to come across the fact that these amazing dark skin women struggled with self acceptance and triumphed. In an interview with EURWeb, Brandy discussed Kelly Rowland's admission that she struggled with being a dark skin girl. Click here for the extended interview and video.
I am such a fan of Freshly Ground, I came across them last year and then I discovered they were featured in Waka Waka with Shakira. They recently came out with a single, Take Me To The Dance, the video is very artsy. I love this song
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