May 7, 2026

Hey Reader,

"Being Black is not exhausting.
Living in a country that is terrified of your existence is.
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I don’t have the words to describe the rage I feel after six justices decided to rip the Voting Rights Act to shreds.
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I’m angry for my generation and the ones who come after me.
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I’m heartbroken for the generations that came before me.
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John Lewis, Hosea Williams, Amelia Boynton Robinson and every name not spoken. Our parents and grandparents.
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They marched, were beaten, and died for the right to vote.
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Our right to vote.
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We have never demanded too much.
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We’ve demanded equality.
We’ve demanded respect.
We’ve demanded freedom.
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It is exhausting to have to fight generation after generation.
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We are tired. But we can't give up.
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Many have started talking about what we can do at the local level cause this is where real impact can be made. And while we strategize, I implore you to feel all the feels.
We have a right to do so.
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And don’t let anyone gaslight you into thinking your grief is too much."

I shared these words on social media last week and they resonated with so many. Someone commented and said that being exhausted and showing up anyway is no longer resilience, it's survival. And we deserve more than that.

Amen to that!

I never imagined that this country would be setting the stage for Jim Crow 2.0 in 2026.

As exhausted as we are, we can't afford to be passive.

Exercise your right to protest.
Attend city council meetings
Participate in local and state elections
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State representatives are the decision makers when it comes to congressional maps and the types of communities we live in (i.e. data centers).

And support organizations that are doing the work to protect our civil rights like NAACP Legal Defense Fund, ACLU, Black Voters Matter and League of Women Voters to name a few.

“To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time." - James Baldwin

XO,

Preserving Black Radio: Jocelyn Robinson founded the HBCU Radio Preservation Project to ensure that the irreplaceable radio station archives at HBCUs are saved and accessible. Check out the details of the project here. To date, the project has digitized more than 1,125 hours of archival audio and visited nearly two dozen HBCU campuses.

Batter Up: Kwanza Jones could become Major League Baseball's first Black woman majority owner with a $3.9 Billion San Diego Padres deal. The family of late San Diego Padres owner Peter Seidler announced that it had reached an agreement to sell the franchise to an investor group led by Jones and her husband, José E. Feliciano. If the deal goes through, new ownership would begin around this summer's All-Star break.

Love & Laughs: Filmmaker Malcolm D. Lee recently launched Love & Laughs, a new initiative developed in partnership with Tribeca Studios and Universal Film, to support emerging filmmakers with a passion for telling comedic and romantic stories. The submission window is now open and closes on May 20. Check out details here.

Building Our Own List: The Grio has partnered with the BLK Bestsellers List, powered by the African American Literature Book Club, to spotlight the top-selling books by Black authors every single month. They'll also be highlighting indie authors, debut authors, and everyone in between to showcase the literary brilliance that exists in our community. Check out the details here.

Full Circle Moment: Former Washington Wizards star, John Wall, has been named President of Basketball Operations at Howard University. He’ll have a hand in roster construction, name, image and likeness opportunities, revenue sharing, agent relationships and player mentorship.

Welcome To Show Business: Usher's New Look non-profit organization is partnering with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Detroit to launch the Entertainment Industry Club: Live Touring Edition. The program will select 10 interns, ages 18 and up, from Detroit and Atlanta to gain hands-on experience in key touring departments, including multimedia, operations, and community impact.

Not Forgotten: Maryland Governor Wes Moore joined state and county leaders to honor the more than 230 Black boys who died at the House of Reformation and lie in unmarked graves. It was recently announced that the state is restoring the burial sties. The House of Reformation, in Cheltenham, MD, was a place Black boys as young as 5 years old were sent for rehabilitation but hundreds never made it out alive.

For Everyday People Evryday Blk (Everyday Black) Magazine is a bi-monthly culture magazine focusing on uplifting the community while catering to everyday Black people. The magazine features events, businesses, stories, and resources that are not celebrity or influencer-centered, but rather helpful for everyday needs. Evryday Blk is less about consumerism with a focus on sharing community resources, stories, and legacy while still committing to support Black business owners and creators. DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE COPY HERE

Home Is Where The Heart Is: Through her foundation, Taylor Rocks partnered with Undue Medical Debt to erase over $2.1 million in medical debt for 1,805 people in Gwinnett County, Georgia, the community where she was raised. According to the National Library of Medicine, medical debt remains one of the leading causes of bankruptcy in the United States and disproportionately affects Black households.

Passing The Torch: In partnership with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation (CBCF) and Community Development Investors (CDI), Zelle will award $10,000 scholarships to 10 MBA students at five HBCUs who are interested in entrepreneurship. The scholarships will help MBA students acquire existing businesses; positioning them for ownership, preserving jobs and building generational wealth.

Ready for Expansion: After hitting $38 million in sales and $7.3 million in earnings in 2025, the popular Black-owned hair care brand The Doux recently received an investment from VMG Partners to accelerate the brand's presence in the U.S. Although they received an investment, founders Maya Smith and Brian Smith maintain majority ownership of their brand.

The Next Generation: Lowe’s is investing $250 million to train the next generation of plumbers, carpenters, and electricians. The investment comes as the Associated Builders and Contractors estimates the U.S. will need about 350,000 additional construction workers in 2026, rising to 456,000 in 2027. Electricians, plumbers, and carpenters face similar shortages, and while demand and wages are increasing, the training pipeline hasn’t kept up.

READ: SCORE by Kennedy Ryan​
SCORE is the second book of Kennedy Ryan's Harlem Renaissance series. I highly recommend you read REEL first before you dive in SCORE. More than a decade after their disastrous breakup, Verity and Monk must work together on the set of an epic Harlem Renaissance biopic. This once-in-a-lifetime project could catapult them both to new heights, but can they put the past behind them for the sake of the film; for the sake of something more?

WATCH: MICHAELMThis film tells the story of Michael Jackson’s life beyond the music, tracing his journey from the discovery of his extraordinary talent to the visionary artist whose creative ambition fueled a relentless pursuit to become the biggest entertainer in the world. Coleman Domingo was excellent as Joseph Jackson and the spirit of Michael came through Jafar Jackson. After watching the film, I realized we've been spoiled! After getting used to watching five to six hour movies about our favorite artists, (Jackson 5: The American Dream, The Temptations, New Edition), Michael felt like it wasn't long enough.

LISTEN: KEHLANI
​Packed with superstar collaborations from legends and hitmakers including Brandy, Usher, Missy Elliott, Cardi B, Lil Wayne, Keri Hilson, Tank, Leon Thomas, T-Pain, Lil Jon, and Big Sean, the album evokes a fearless musical voyage through love, vulnerability, healing, passion, and self-discovery.

Summer of Reading Is Back: Pizza Hut's BOOK IT! program has announced the return of "Summer of Stories," where kids can earn personal pan pizzas and more for meeting reading goals. The program, open for kids in pre-K through 6th grade, will run from June 1st to August 31st. Parents can sign kids up for the summer reading program through the BOOK IT! App.

Putting Survivors First: Mariska Hargitay‘s End the Backlog campaign has achieved a milestone. All 50 states, Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico have enacted at least one pillar of rape kit reform. The campaign aims to eliminate the backlog of hundreds of thousands of untested rape kits sitting in storage across America, providing closure for victims.

Big Brother Is Watching: A federal law requires all new passenger vehicles in the United States to include advanced impaired-driving prevention technology by 2027 under the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has reported that monitoring technology is not ready to be implemented into vehicles by the 2027 deadline.

Pushing Us Out: The U.S. Department of Agriculture canceled the remaining grants of a $300 million Biden-era program intended to provide technical support and help farmers buy land. Intended to help underserved producers by increasing land, capital, and market access, the program’s cancellation will further economically starve Black farmers amid the Trump administration’s anti-diversity, equity and inclusion push.

Sound The Alarm: A new special edition of ​The Blackout Report​ says the administration's March 2026 Diversity, Equity and Inclusion executive order could narrow $774 billion in federal contracts for Black businesses. According to the report, Black-owned entities currently receive just 1.2% of federal contract dollars. The analysis says $9.3 billion in annual Black wealth creation is now at risk if access narrows even more.

Under The Radar: The Department of Homeland Security is closing an office responsible for investigating misconduct and abuse in the immigration detention system. The office’s public-facing website, which advised the families and attorneys of detainees on how to file complaints, was down as of Monday afternoon.

Get Us Off This Timeline: A rule change pushed by The White House would slash benefits or end support for as many as 400,000 Supplemental Security Income recipients with Down syndrome, dementia and other disabilities whose parents or relatives receive SNAP benefits.

In a recent podcast episode, I kick back with Adrienne Randle, creator of Evryday Blk Magazine, our item of the month. Adrienne shares why she ended her viral Black-owned shopping guide to launch an indie bi-monthly magazine that centers everyday Black people, not celebrities.
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Adrienne opens up about her lifelong dream of running a magazine, the unexpected pivot that began with a holiday shopping guide and the real challenges of producing an independent magazine; from high printing costs and ongoing content planning months in advance.
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She also shares how she vets small Black-owned business submissions to weed out businesses that misrepresent themselves as Black-owned, and why she believes everyday Black stories deserve the spotlight just as much as celebrity brands.
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In this episode, we talk about:

• Why small Black-owned businesses deserve just as much recognition as celebrity brands
• The challenge of getting Black men to participate and be featured
• How to shop Black-owned businesses intentionally all year round - not just
  during Black History Month or Juneteenth
• The one word Adrienne hopes every reader feels when they flip through an issue

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