It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these. I’ve been working and I went to Jamaica and I realised I’ve missed doing them. As I wrote, I noticed that all my stories focused around men, and unwittingly, this edition would be released on International Men’s Day. As I get older, I no longer believe in coincidences. Everything happens as it should. So I celebrate the other side of the coin. Continue to stand firm and shine bright. We need and love you.
STORMZY MAKES HISTORY AS HE HITS THE COVER OF VOGUE
If there was one thing Edward Enninful can do, it’s create an iconic cover. The outgoing Editor of British Vogue, who was recently named the most powerful Black Briton has pulled together several figures together for their all white Great Britain issue.
On the cover is independent artist Little Simz who I really think everyone loves for her authenticity, commitment to her craft, her nonconformity. Her cover mate and friend Stormzy also has a cover making him the first man to ever appear solo on the cover.
Anyone who pays attention knows I admire Stormzy. He’s like a little brother I cheer on from the sidelines.
Ironically he too is a demonstration of power as I think about my article about Edward Enninful earlier. Stormzy deviates and has diversified his portfolio creating community initiatives that are changing lives, building his ownership portfolio from football clubs to publishing imprints, Michael is doing what we all should be doing: building legacy and making change.
MAXINE’S BABY: THE TYLER PERRY STORY
Is it me or does there seem to be an influx of redemption stories around white men? From Matthew Perry’s Friends, Lovers and The Big Terrible Thing which I truly loved to David Beckham’s latest documentary on his career to my favourite member of Take That Robbie Williams having his own Netflix documentary revealing his own struggles with fame and drink and drugs. However, breaking that trend is Amazon Prime’s Maxine’s Baby: The Tyler Perry Story.
Now it’s still possible, despite his incredible accolades, that people may not know who Tyler Perry is. Dubbed the most successful African American Director in history, Tyler Perry emulates the definition of genius I heard the other day. Talent vs Genius was described as having talent is hitting the target and genius is hitting a target no one else can see. Someone in the documentary equates him to Walt Disney and when you think about it it’s a pretty good descriptor. He is the Walt Disney of Black American entertainment.
The documentary tells the story of Tyler’s violent upbringing which he survived through the love and care of his mother who was also a victim of Perry’s father’s abuse and how his faith in God led him to discover his talent as a writer, producer, director and all round media mogul who even outstrips Oprah’s success and that’s saying something.
His faith and relentless work ethic has led him to create iconic characters such as Madea, iconic films like Diary of a Mad Black Woman and to do things no other African American has even done before such as owning the largest movie studio in America and being the first Black man to ever do so.
For those of us familiar with Tyler’s work and for a business geek like me the documentary not only tells you about Tyler’s life but his ability to challenge, to be unapologetic about what he requires, his unwavering commitment to owning everything he does,his ability to negotiate unprecedented deals that serve his agenda and his fearlessness in investing in himself. His success can not be attributed to the man alone; there has to be something else unseen behind it because when you manage to build an entire empire without confirming to Hollywood’s rules, repeatedly leaving them on the back foot, you are highly blessed and favoured.
What I loved about this documentary is the fact that his mum Maxine is at the heart of everything. His love for her is everything and to me she is a demonstration of every mother’s dream: to enable, encourage and empower your children to surpass their own expectations.
It hurts that we in the UK are still so far behind people like Winfrey and Perry though it must be understood that our ecosystems are vastly different but for a moment I truly was inspired by his story and the doc was worth the watch.
YOMI SÖDE RELEASES ‘ON THE CULTURAL REPRESENTATION OF BLACK BRITAIN’
I wanted to highlight poet, playwright, all round creative Yomi Söde whose career I’ve been watching for a while. What’s so interesting about Yomi’s career is how beautifully and consistently he’s carving out a path untrodden. He is one of those (in my opinion) rare people in his space who are breaking what it means to be a poet, a writer. He speaks to his audience in his work and you see its resonance by the way people engage strongly with it.
He’s also a thread in the fabric of Black talent crossing the lines of music, fashion, acting. In his latest release from his collection Manorism (now out in paperback) Yomi highlights the discrepancies between how the media treats Black men differently to their white counterparts, the stark contrast unsurprising yet still jarring.
AND ON THAT NOTE…
As I started to think about what would be the best way to end this edition my spirit remembered Dean Forbes. Dean is CEO, Forterro and Partner at Corten Capital plus the founder of The Forbes Foundation which supports underrepresented young people in London.
Listed as number two on The Powerlist (more things keep making me incredulous about this year’s number one recipient), below is the moment that Dean secured the first billion Euro deal by an African Caribbean man. I watched this video over and over again because of the raw and honest emotions that Dean goes through and you can’t help but be proud.
