Ever since I was very young, I have had a huge love for pop culture; mostly pop culture in the Black community. I remember being as young as 10 or 11 googling things like, “Does (insert celebrity) date (insert celebrity)?” or things of the sort. A lot of people around me, including friends and family, would say things like, “Why do you care so much about what these celebrities are doing? You don’t know these people!” Though they did have a point, I do not know these celebrities personally, I felt like celebrity gossip and pop culture helped me navigate my own personal dilemmas in a way. From watching a lot of different interviews they have done, I realized a lot of celebrities share the same views as I do. This helped me come to the conclusion that I want to study Journalism/Mass Communications, so that post-graduation, I could become an entertainment journalist, so I could be the one actually conducting the interviews.
Many of the people I saw on television and heard on the radio helped me come up with this career goal, were Black. However, the majority of them were Black women. Here are three Black women who helped shape my love for the mass media and journalist field:
Wendy Williams
I have known about and kept up with Wendy Williams ever since I was about five years old. My grandmother was an avid watcher of The Wendy Williams Show, so I have very vivid memories of watching her show as a young child whenever I would come over to my grandparents’ house. Many people do not really care for Williams, because they think she is very invasive of celebrities’ lives, especially when she conducts her “Hot Topics” segment on her show, where she reports celebrity news/gossip, and adds her two cents. However, I love her segment! It’s quite literally her job to “get in these celebs’ business” and add her opinion. Though her personality does come off kind of strong, I think that’s what makes the show 10 times more entertaining! I also had the opportunity to watch her biopic, Wendy Williams: The Movie, which aired last year on Lifetime, which explained her journey to get where she is. In the movie, she shared that she never was jobless for more than two weeks. If she ever lost a job, she quickly picked up another. If that is not hustle and drive, I don’t know what is!
Rocsi Diaz
Now, I can admit that I did not get to experience the “golden era” of BET’s 106 & Park, an after school music video countdown with special musical guests each episode. I did not get to see the era where artists like Chris Brown, Ciara, and (Lil’) Bow Wow would come onto the show, when it was hosted by A.J. Calloway and Marie “Free” Wright. I’m kind of a youngin’. I got to experience the later era where Rocsi Diaz and Terrence J hosted the show, when artists like Mindless Behavior, The OMG Girlz, and Diggy Simmons would be musical guests. During most episodes, at least one of the hosts would get to interview the musical guest. Me, being obsessed with Mindless Behavior during elementary school, would be absolutely ENVIOUS of Diaz when she was able to interview them, as they were very frequent guests. I would watch the episodes of 106 & Park like, “That’s gonna be me one day! I have to meet Mindless Behavior!!!”
LaLa Anthony
I’ve read that Alani “LaLa” Anthony earned her first internship hosting at a radio station in Georgia alongside Flava Flav and Ludacris, at the early age of 15. That was so impressive to me. I’m sitting here like, “Dang, I’m 18, going on 19, where’s my internship alongside some legendary rappers?!” Anthony also hosted MTV’s Total Request Live, another daily music video countdown show. I just thought it was so cool to see her be on television every day and have the ability to keep the audience entertained throughout the entire show, while also interviewing the special guests that would come to the show. Aside from being a radio/television personality, Anthony is also a successful entrepreneur, as she owns her own cosmetics line and clothing line. She is also a successful actress, as she stars as LaKeisha Grant in 50 Cent’s show, Power, while having recurring roles in other television shows and movies including BMF, Think Like A Man, and Think Like A Man Too (2).
These three amazing Black women have played an amazing role in helping shape my love for the media and journalism. I hope one day I will be able to host events such as red carpets and/or conduct interviews with them in the future!