The cast of Tyler Perry’s new drama For Colored Girls grace the cover of the December 2010 issue of Essence Magazine in a rainbow of beautiful gowns for an exclusive portrait for the magazine’s annual Hot List Issue.
The Starting Lineup consists of: Thandie Newton (Orange), Kimberly Elise (Silver), Phylicia Rashad (Peach), Anika Noni Rose (Yellow), Kerry Washington (Blue), Loretta Devine (Green), Janet Jackson (Red), Tessa Thompson (Purple), and Whoopi Goldberg (White).
Rose, who starred in Disney’s 2009 animated hit The Princess & The Frog, has high hopes for the movie, which is adapted from playwright Ntozake Shange’s 1974 Broadway classic For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf.
“I want this film to awaken people to the power of Black actresses,” says Rose. “I want people to know there are things that Black women go through that aren’t slavery or hip-hop. I want people to know Black women as Americans.”
Essence Magazine may be done in Melyssa Ford’s book, but the embattled mag still has a friend in songbird Monica.
The singer was recently choose to cover the first issue of the mag’s new sister publication Essence Hair. Check out the behind the scenes footage of the shoot as Monica talks about getting the cover, her signature short haircut, and more.
Add former video vixen Melyssa Ford to the growing list of Black women growing disenfranchised with Essence Magazine. Once the newsstand’s staple of feminity for women of color, Essence has taken a beating in the court of public opinion in recent months following its decision to hire a White editor to head up the magazine’s fledging Fashion Department.
Essence Magazine –a staple of elegance for Black women since the 1970s — has sparked outrage in the world of African-American publishing and among readers of the lifestyle monthly after selecting a White woman to head up the mag’s Fashion/Style Department.
This September, Ellianna Placas will step into her new role as Essence’s new Fashion Director. The girl certainly knows her stuff: Placas has a lengthy history in style and impressive resume that includes working for O: The Oprah Magazine, Us Weekly, and contributing/styling for many television shows. All that means little to many readers and supporters of the publication, who would prefer to see a woman of color (You know, the magazine’s target audience…) appointed to such a prestigious position.
In honor of its 40th anniversary, Essence Magazine will publish excerpts from Terry McMillan’s Getting to Happy, the long-awaited sequel to her best-selling 1992 novel Waiting to Exhale.
The excerpts will appear in the next four issues of Essence, beginning with the June edition, on newsstands now.
Uh-Oh: Is Essence Magazine on the verge of collapse?
Word on the Interwebs claims the “Black Woman’s Guide to Life” for nearly 40 years is in danger of folding. Publishing industry insiders tell Gawker.com that Essence issued a substantial number of pink slips since last November; long-time beauty director Mikki Taylor is retiring; beauty editor Pamela Edwards Christiani recently left for PEOPLE; and the entire Fashion Team was let go on Thursday.
Controversy’s a’comin: There’s all kinds of Hell breaking loose on Essence.com this afternoon. The iconic Black women’s interest mag has come under fire from subscribers for its selection of New Orleans Saints star Reggie Bush as the cover model for his “Black Men, Love, And Relationships” issue.
Bush has been in a high-profile relationship with reputed HOcialite Kim Kardashian since 2007 — and that’s the main source of consternation for those protesting the Essence’s February cover. Some can’t help but wonder why editors chose to put a Black Man who is rumored to shun Black women as potential mates on the cover of mag that targets them.
Michelle Obama and her mother, Marian Robinson, speak out about life at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in the May 2009 issue of Essence Magazine, arriving on newsstands April 10. Read the rest of this entry »
