Browsing: Black

Rafiqah Akhdar On Going Viral, TikTok Inspiration, and Being a Black Muslim Woman In Beauty
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Welcome to Favorite Follow, a new series highlighting NYLON’s favorite creators and the stories behind some of their most memorable content.

For those deep in the beauty world, there’s a good change your news feed, timelines, and Explore page are filled with skincare regimens, new product releases, and super intricate makeup looks ready to save and give a try. Whether you’ve realized it or not, there’s an equally good chance you’ve seen the talented 20-year old Rafiqah Akhdar and her incredible makeup looks — either through social platforms like Instagram and TikTok or in major beauty campaigns for Glossier.

Starting out in her early teens by diving into YouTube tutorials, makeup and beauty soon became her passion. As TikTok quickly became viral, the platform filled with endless creators inspired Akhdar and expanded her creativity to truly step out of the box and try a variety of different looks—from

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How the Hairstylist and Makeup Artist for ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ Refined a “Homemade, Jittery, Imperfect” Look for Viola Davis’ Portrayal
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7:00 AM PST 1/12/2021

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Maya Tribbitt

Using sweat and a baked horsehair wig, the actress transforms into the Mother of the Blues singer for a scorching and heated recording session.

Viola Davis literally melts into the title role of the blues singer in Netflix’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, a film adaptation of the August Wilson play. Her visage, drenched in sweat and rouge and topped with a wiry wig, becomes one of the most searing images of the film. The Hollywood Reporter spoke with the masterminds — makeup artist Sergio Lopez-Rivera and hairstylist Mia Neal — behind Davis’ transformation into the legendary Ma Rainey about the challenges of bringing the larger-than-life Mother of the Blues to the screen.

What inspiration helped you decide on Ma Rainey’s look?

Sergio Lopez-Rivera There’s not that much photographic evidence of Ma Rainey, at least not in the way that would tell you

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Cicely Tyson championed Black beauty ideals
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Cicely Tyson, the award-winning, trailblazing African American actor, died on Thursday, at the age of 96. Over her lifetime, she became an icon, known for personifying layered and complex Black women on the screen and the stage, notably starring as the wife of a jailed sharecropper family in 1972’s “Sounder,” for which she earned her first Oscar nomination; and as a former slave in “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman” in 1974, for which she won two Emmy awards, among other performances. But her impact extended well beyond her choice of roles.



a close up of Cicely Tyson wearing glasses and smiling at the camera: Portrait of American actress Cicely Tyson holding a monocle to her eye during a visit to London, February 19th 1973. (Photo by Dennis Oulds/Central Press/Getty Images)

© Dennis Oulds/Central Press/Getty Images
Portrait of American actress Cicely Tyson holding a monocle to her eye during a visit to London, February 19th 1973. (Photo by Dennis Oulds/Central Press/Getty Images)

Off screen, Tyson was an enduring picture of style, a star who loved fashion and indulged in beauty until the very end, known for her endless rotation

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How Pietra Is Helping Black Businesses Break Into the Fashion Industry
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Like the inseams of a dress that no one ever really sees, the fashion industry has a history of hidden issues, including a lack of inclusive sizing, ableism, or absence of diversity on the runways and in boardrooms. In the wake of mass protests to honor Black Lives Matter, and with COVID-19 impacting Black entrepreneurs at a disproportionate rate, the fashion industry has had to flip their dress inside out and face these issues head-on.

Leaders and entrepreneurs like Aurora James, founder of Brother Vellies, have called for companies to pledge to source at least 15% of products from Black-owned brands. But before we can even support our favorite Black-owned fashion and beauty brands, we must address inequities Black entrepreneurs face when starting and scaling any business.

Globally, 80% of all venture capital firms don’t have a single Black investor, and just 1% of venture-funded startup

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Macy’s Black Friday in July
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Slashing prices on homeware, kitchen items, clothing and beauty products, Macy’s is hosting a Black Friday in July sale with huge discounts that match those you would normally see around Thanksgiving. Brands like KitchenAid, Tommy Hilfiger and Martha Stewart Collection are participating, giving shoppers the opportunity to purchase thousands of high quality products at low prices. The sale is active through July 13.

While Macy’s typically holds a clearance event towards the end of the summer, Michael Bonebright, consumer analyst for DealNews.com, said this year’s sale is earlier and filled with “unusually good” discounts. He attributes the sale to Macy’s

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BET Awards Celebrate Black Designers and Stir Calls for Fashion Industry Change
BET Awards Celebrate Black Designers and Stir Calls for Fashion Industry Change
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There wasn’t an actual red carpet, but Sunday’s virtual BET Awards was an impressive showcase of Black style nonetheless, starting with host Amanda Seales, representing all Black-designed clothing, jewelry, hair-care and makeup brands, including a custom gown by Los Angeles-based rising fashion star Claude Kameni.

“We wanted to tell a story of Black creativity, pay homage to iconic moments of Black style, and amplify the work of these Black fashion innovators,” said Seales.

“The BETs are our Oscars, our Grammys, our everything, where we are able to show ourselves and have fun and show off,” said her stylist Bryon Javar of the 13 looks, using pieces from Pyer Moss, Romeo Hunte, Sergio Hudson, Sister Love, Brother Vellies, Grayscale, Bishme Cromartie, Dapper Dan-Gucci and more, and paying homage to iconic moments in Black style history, from Hilary Banks’ Nineties power wardrobe in

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