North of the 10 Atlanta Red Carpet

North of the 10 tells the story of five friends that chase Hollywood dreams from the south side of Chicago and become the first generation of viral video stars in the dramatic comedy North of the 10. Cam Weston, a wannabe model, lives with his best friends — an actor, chef, dancer, and gamer — as they strive for success in Chicago’s entertainment industry.

North of the 10 sees five struggling friends grow their own social media empire through the relatability of their friendship. It’s a hangout movie about creative people trying to make it on their own, finding strength in unity, and inviting the world to join them."

North of the 10 will be available for streaming on Bet+ February 10, 2022!

Images provided by Joi A. Stokes

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REVOLT Summit x AT&T takes over Atlanta

 

Over the weekend I attended my first Revolt Summit here in Atlanta at 787 Windsor. I had an amazing time it was so inspiring and empowering. On Saturday Offset and Killer Mike held a discussion with 2 Chainz on how young leaders can use their voices to effect real change in Atlanta and beyond. Young Thug surprised long-time friend Gunna on stage during his insightful panel on growth and career milestones. Attendees enjoyed exclusive performances from today’s biggest Hip-Hop stars, and the crowd went wild for a surprise performance by Meek Mill.

Additional panels throughout the day included REVOLT Black News: Black Safety First, where Eboni K Williams sat down with Ben Crump, David Banner and Justin Moore for a robust discussion on the safety crisis in Black communities throughout the country. High profile community activists took the same stage as three Black police officers in a multilayered discussion on Black safety. 

 

Detavio Samuels and I

 

L to R: James Brown (REVOLT), Deon Graham (Combs Enterprises), Colin McIntosh (REVOLT), Angela Logan (AT&T), Detavio Samuels (REVOLT), Dunnie West (Combs Enterprises), Matthew R. Brooks (AT&T)

PHOTO CREDIT: Dora Photograph/ Paras Griffin Getty Images

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Five Reasons to Watch HBO's Euphoria

On Tuesday June 11th, I had a pleasure of attending the exclusive screening of HBO's new show Euphoria. Euphoria is an American adaptation of an Israeli show of the same name, and all episodes are written by Sam Levinson. The show follows a group of high school students as they navigate love and friendships in a world of drugs, sex, trauma and social media. I was blown away by the first episode I swear it didn't disappoint. Check out my top 5 reasons why you should check it out.

1. Zendaya is simply amazing. I'm late to the party I didn't know she was such a phenomenal actress.
2. It's a thought provoking drama-- it has a lot going on and at the end of the first episode you will see what I mean, everything is connected.
3. Great Cast-- The Acting is top notch.
4.  It's not your average high school drama, it tackles a lot of real life issues that needs to be address in the climate.
5. Say Hello to your new Sunday Night show since Game of Thrones is off-- HBO will air the first episode June 16. The first season will have 10 episodes.

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Entertainment on the go with the Lifetime Movie Club App

 As long as I can remember I've been a fan of Lifetime movies -- so I was super excited when Lifetime launched its Movie Club App because the price is very affordable for only $3.99/month you can get access to a great selection of Lifetime movies on your iPad, iPhone, Android or Roku Players you can select recurring payments on either a monthly or annual basis after your 7-day free trial ends. I swear this app is amazing since I let go of my cable back in 2013 I have several Roku systems downloading the app was so easy and you get a variety of movie selection to choose from I also adore the fact that I can watch movies while I'm traveling on my iPhone. 

 Here are some reasons why you should give it a try:

1. Movies are commercial FREE!!!! (YEEESSSSS)
2. You can watch movies at anytime.
3. A NEW movie is added every day!
4. You can get a FREE 7-day trial here!

and once you get signed up here a few of my favorite movies that are currently streaming. 
 

 Starring Regina King and Gabby Douglas. A gymnastics phenomenon beats overwhelming odds to become the first African American Olympic champion of the individual all-around competition. Based on a true story.



Starring Lex Scott Davis, Debbi Morgan, and Gavin Houston. A gifted young singer works to navigate personal struggles with health and family while climbing the ladder of global fame.



Starring Yaya DaCosta and Arlen Escarpeta, with vocals by Deborah Cox. Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown's relationship is threatened as the overwhelming rewards and consequences of fame begin to overshadow them both.

The Lifetime Movie Club

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of LifeTime Movie Club and The bLink Marketing Network. The opinions and text are all mine.

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Tech Talk: Samsung Galaxy S6

During Essence Music Festival alot of my colleagues on the trip had a Samsung Galaxy S6 and they boasted about how great the phone was. Upon my return I was able to receive a phone and give it a try myself. Let me start by saying this phone is remarkable I instantly fell in love with the camera being able to take high quality pictures for social media and my blog are a priority . So the 16MP Camera BLEW me away it comes equipped with different camera modes such as Sport Shot, Food Shot, Beauty Face, Animated GIF just to name a few.

Another favorite feature was the Wireless Charger: I just place the phone on top of the wireless hub and its charges seamlessly. The Battery life is also phenomenal I can go all day without charging and if I need a quick charge I can connect to the wall charger and be at 100 percent in 10 mins. 

I love the design of the phone I have the Black Sapphire unit and I absolutely love how crisp the screen is the 5.1-inch display now packs more pixels than ever before - 1440 x 2560 which means you're looking at the sharpest display on the market.

Phone Specs:

Internal Memory 32 gigabytes
Integrated Camera Yes - Front and Back
Additional Hardware Included Lithium-ion battery, charger, USB 2.0 cable, SIM card
Front-Facing Camera 5.0 megapixels
Rear-Facing Camera 16.0 megapixels
Processor Speed 2.1 gigahertz
Internet Connectable Yes
Bluetooth Enabled Yes
Price: $199.99 With 2-year contract 

* Featured above JBL Flip | Bluetooth Speaker

The product in this review was provided to the reviewer for the purpose of writing a review. This in no way affects the quality of the review provided. No monetary exchange occurred in exchange for the writing of the review. The views expressed in this review are strictly that of the reviewer. All reviews provided here are the work of the reviewer and remain completely unbiased 

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2015 Essence Music Festival

On Wednesday July 1st, I traveled to New Orleans to attend the 21st Annual Essence Festival this was my first year attending and also the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. To commemorate this event ESSENCE kicked off the celebration with a ‘Day of Service’ over 1000 volunteers joined to plant flowers, paint classrooms, build play areas, and prep classrooms for the upcoming school year!

Also we visited one of areas that was hit the hardest by Katrina. I swear I fell in love with New Orleans this is such a strong city filled with so much history, amazing architecture and great food.

This area had houses but was never rebuilt after Katrina

Workers rebuilding houses

During my time in New Orleans I was able to visit a variety of Landmarks thanks to our wonderful sponsors --Peoples Health New Orleans Jazz Market hosted the My Black is Beautiful Dinner, The Little Gem Saloon  hosted the Ford Motor Company dinner and Dooky Chase's Restaurant hosted the Verizon Dinner. I definitely partied with a purpose, met a lot of amazing people and celebrated my 33rd birthday in style. 

Pic'd with Audra Day at the Ford Motor Company Dinner

With my Makeup Artist after the My Black is Beautiful Makeover

Getting my roll bounce on at the McDonald's Skate Jam

With Luke James after the Verizon Dinner

The beautiful Stained Glass inside of Dooky Chase's Restaurant

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Ava DuVernay, Marvin Sapp and more honored at 12th Annual McDonald’s 365Black Awards

The 12th annual McDonald’s 365Black Awards took place on July 3rd at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans. The annual event was held during ESSENCE Festival weekend and recognized exceptional leaders who make positive contributions within the African-American community.

Marc Morial, who has been described as one of the few national leaders to possess “street smarts ,”and “boardroom savvy,” is the current president and CEO of the National Urban League, the nation’s largest historic civil rights and urban advocacy organization. He served as the highly successful and popular mayor of New Orleans as well as the president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. He previously was a Louisiana state senator and was a lawyer in New Orleans with an active, high profile practice.

Dr. Marvin L. Sapp is a nationally successful gospel recording artist and the principal founder of GREAAT Schools, Inc. with his late wife, Dr. MaLinda P. Sapp. Sapp is also the CEO of Lighthouse Full Life Center Church, and is the principal organizer for Grand Rapids Ellington Academy of Arts & Technology—the first performing arts and technology charter academy. Dr. Sapp’s leadership and vision has made him an award-wining producer with numerous awards in the area of recording and the performing arts and
community service.

For her work in Selma, DuVernay is the first African American female director to be nominated for a Golden Globe Award. With Selma, she is also the  first African-American female director to have a film nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.

As you could imagine it was hectic on the Golden Carpet but I was able to briefly speak with Yara Shahidi from Black-ish.  I asked her how she maintains her gorgeous curls and some of her go-to products. Check out her response below:

For the second year in a row, this year’s McDonald’s 365Black Awards was hosted by
actor/television correspondent Terrence J and actress Keke Palmer. The show featured musical performances from Sevyn Streeter, Amber Riley, B.o.B,
Shanice Wilson and more.

To find out more about the McDonald’s 365Black initiative, click here.

Photo Credit: Paras Griffin

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