Who I Am & How I Read the Skies:

My name is Dossé-Via Trenou, and I am an African astrologer, author of Signs & Skymates and the founder of KnowTheZodiac. My work is rooted in a simple but radical truth: astrology did not begin with the Greeks or the Romans. It began in Africa (specifically Ancient Egypt and Mali), where our ancestors tracked the stars, the planets and the lunar cycles as a sacred technology of liberation long before Western civilization claimed it as its own.

The Dogon people of Mali knew about Sirius B — an invisible white dwarf star so dense and faint that Western astronomers couldn’t photography it until 1970 — long before any telescope confirmed its existence. They called it Po Tolo, described its 50 year elliptical orbit around Sirius A, and understood its extraordinary density with a precision that continues to baffle mainstream science to this day.

The Greeks studied at the feet of African scholars. And the Yorúbà people (part of my own African ancestry), descendants of ancient Kemet who carried this wisdom with them through forced migration and genocide, preserved these cosmic teachings in the form of the Orishas — divine forces of nature that I’ve traced back to the very planets we read today.

In my evolutionary astrology framework, I restore those connections: before there was Mercury, there was Eshu (Èṣù), the Orisha (òrìṣà) of crossroads and communication. Before Venus, there was Oshun (Ọṣun), the Orisha of beauty and love. Before Saturn, there was Obalúayé, the Orisha of discipline, consequence and transformation. For the full history of how our ancestors shaped the stars we read today, I invite you to explore Signs & Skymates. But for now, let’s talk about March, because the sky has a lot to say.

What February Revealed

February 2026 was a lot. Eclipse season kicked off, Mercury went retrograde in Pisces, the conjunction of Obalúayé and Olókun — ancient representations of Saturn and Neptune — shook the foundation of everything we thought we understood, and the Fire Horse year arrived and closed out the shedding we’ve gone through during the Year of the Snake. The astrology of this month is deeply activating, reflective and at times uncomfortably illuminating. With Èṣù, Mercury, now retrograde in Pisces for the first three weeks, and eclipse season bringing major revelations around our priorities and values, we cannot run from what must be faced. The lesson will repeat itself until it is learned. That is true personally, and it is profoundly true collectively.

The Reckoning

The conjunction of Obalúayé and Olókun in Aries — Saturn and Neptune — is one of the most significant astrological events in decades. Obalúayé brings accountability and structure. Olókun rules the depths, the hidden, the vast unconscious. When they meet in Aries, the sign of the warrior and the individual, they ask us collectively: are we willing to see clearly enough to act? We’re living through an era where the illusion is dissolving and corrupt structures are being exposed. And Aries tells us the response cannot be passive.

Shango (Ṣàngó) — Uranus — the Orisha of thunder, revolution, and electricity, is also in the final weeks of an eight-year journey through Taurus, the sign that governs money and what we collectively value. These last weeks of Ṣàngó in Taurus are asking us to be strategic with our economic power. Boycotts work when coordinated, and collective divestment is most effective when sustained. The Fire Horse year rewards bold, decisive action — and Ṣàngó reminds us that one of the most revolutionary acts we can do is be intentional about where our money goes and who it empowers.

What March is Saying

March also carries deeply personal medicine alongside everything happening in the world — and the two are more connected than we often acknowledge. The 3/3 Lunar Eclipse in Virgo is asking all of us to look at where we’ve been overextending ourselves in our relationships, our communities and in the emotional labor we perform for systems and people that do not reciprocate. Oshun, the OG Venus, enters Aries on March 6th for four weeks, asking us to step out and show out in how we care for our bodies, our routines and our sense of self-worth.

And Ọ̀rúnmìlà — Jupiter, the Orisha of wisdom and destiny — stations direct on March 10th in Cancer, unlocking expansion and possibility that has felt just out of reach. The Pisces New Moon on March 18th is a rare and beautiful window to set intentions around healing, creativity, love and self-expression right before the astrological new year begins. And on March 20th, the Sun enters Aries and Èṣù stations direct at 3:33pm EST, a portal moment that marks one of the most energetically significant days of the year. Eclipse season officially closes, the fog lifts and we step into a new chapter with our eyes open.

Our ancestors tracked these same movements. They built civilizations by aligning with these forces. We are their descendants, and that wisdom lives in us, so let’s embody it.

Read your March scopes for both your Sun & Rising signs below.

Learn more about all things astrology (and find out your birth chart placements for free) in the KnowTheZodiac app, available on iOS and Android.

Aries Sun & Rising:

Aries, March opens with the Universe asking you to do the one thing that doesn’t come naturally: slow down. With Saturn, Neptune and Chiron all in your sign, you’ve been carrying the weight of a major personal reinvention for months now — restructuring who you are, what you stand for and what you’re building from the ground up. That’s not light work, and your body knows it even when your mind is still pushing. The 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo lands in your health and wellness zone and brings a revelation that you may have been running on fumes and calling it discipline. Something about the way you’ve been treating your physical self — your rest, your nervous system, your daily rhythms — is being illuminated and it’s time to listen.

Mars, your ruling planet, is in Pisces all month long, moving through your spirituality and solitude zone, and this is actually a gift, even if it feels like friction. Mars in Pisces slows your natural pace and redirects your energy inward, toward your intuition, your dreams, your connection to something bigger than the grind. This is the month to pray, to meditate, to sit with your ancestors, to let yourself be still long enough to receive the downloads that only come in the quiet.

The Pisces New Moon on March 18th closes out eclipse season and opens a beautiful new chapter in your relationship with your spiritual practice. If you have an altar, cleanse it and refresh it. If you’ve been meaning to build one — one that honors your lineage, your ancestors, the women who carried you here — this new moon is the perfect moment to begin. That practice will become one of your greatest sources of power in the months ahead.

Then March 20th arrives and Aries, the Sun enters your sign, officially opening your solar return season, and Mercury stations direct at 3:33pm EST on the same exact day. Your revolutionary spark returns with direction and depth it didn’t have before. You’re one of the signs most energized by the call to action that this political moment is demanding, and in the coming weeks and months you may find yourself at the forefront of organizing, speaking out and leading the kind of uprisings that actually create change. The Fire Horse year was made for you. But don’t forget to direct some of that fire inward too...because the most radical thing an Aries can do after a month this transformative is love themselves as fiercely as they fight for everyone else. Happy solar return, you royal being.

Taurus Sun & Rising:

Taurus, the first three weeks of March have Pisces Season and Mercury retrograde stirring up your friendship and community zone, which means the group chats are giving drama, your social media presence may feel off and you’re quietly reassessing who actually belongs in your inner circle. Let that process happen without forcing resolution.

The 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo lands in your fate and creativity zone and brings a revelation about joy — specifically, whether you’ve been allowing yourself to actually have any. Between the weight of the world and the grind of daily life, somewhere along the way fun may have become a luxury you keep postponing. The Pisces New Moon on March 18th closes out eclipse season and invites you to begin a new relationship with pleasure and the parts of yourself that exist outside of productivity. This is your permission slip to play.

Then on March 20th, Aries Season begins in your spirituality and closure zone, a deeply internal activation that asks you to release what is no longer aligned before the next chapter begins. And Taurus, this lands with extra weight because Uranus is in the final weeks of its seven-year journey through your sign, leaving for good on April 25th. You’ve been through more unexpected change, reinvention and disruption than most people will ever know, and this final stretch is asking you to channel that revolutionary energy into one last bold act of truth-telling, whether that means doing something completely unexpected for yourself, using your platform to name harm that’s been normalized, or honestly examining where you may have caused hurt and choosing accountability over defensiveness. Uranus in Taurus has always asked: what are you truly made of? March is your answer.

Gemini Sun & Rising:

Gemini, March is pulling your attention in two powerful directions simultaneously — home and career — and both deserve your full presence. The 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo lands in your home and roots zone, bringing a revelation or moment of closure connected to something that began around September 2025. This could look like a shift in your living situation, a family dynamic finally reaching its resolution or a deeper reckoning with the emotional foundation you’ve been building your life on. Let whatever surfaces breathe.

Meanwhile, Pisces Season, Mars in Pisces and Mercury retrograde (Mercury being your ruling planet) are creating a significant concentration of energy in your career zone all month long. The retrograde isn’t here to stall your professional life, it’s here to make you revisit, refine and get honest about whether the direction you’ve been moving in truly aligns with what you actually want to be known for. The Pisces New Moon on March 18th closes out eclipse season and plants a seed in this same career zone. Set an intention around the work that’d make your ancestors proud, not just your LinkedIn.

Then on March 20th, Aries Season begins and Mercury stations direct, and the energy shifts decisively into your friendship and social network zone. Your voice, your wit, your ability to connect dots and communicate what others are feeling but can’t articulate... all of that gets a green light now. Use your platform with intention this season, because the combination of Aries’ revolutionary fire and your natural gift for reaching people means you have real influence in shaping the conversations that matter. The right connection made between March 20th and the end of the month could change the trajectory of what you’ve been quietly building all year.

Cancer Sun & Rising:

Cancer, you’re ruled by the Moon, so you’ll feel the 3/3 Virgo lunar eclipse in your body before you can even name what’s shifting. This eclipse is sharpening your mind and your mouth — revelations around how you’ve been communicating, what you’ve been leaving unsaid and the conversations in your immediate environment that have needed closure since last fall are all coming to a head.

Meanwhile, Pisces Season, Mars, Mercury retrograde and the Pisces New Moon on the 18th are all activating your expansion and belief systems zone, making this a deeply philosophical month where you’re questioning what you truly believe about the world, and about whether the path you’ve been on still reflects who you’re becoming. With Jupiter moving direct in your sign on March 10th after months of retrograde, something that felt stalled in your personal growth or opportunities begins to move again.

When Aries Season opens on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, the energy shifts into your career and public legacy zone and Cancer, this is not the time to stay quiet about what you know and what you stand for. The combination of Jupiter direct in your sign and the Sun moving into the most visible part of your chart is essentially the Universe putting a spotlight on you and asking what you’re going to do with it. This is your season to step into a more public role, speak on the issues that matter to you, and make moves professionally that reflect the depth of transformation you’ve been through.

The Fire Horse Year rewards those who show up fully... so show up and show out.

Leo Sun & Rising:

Leo, the 3/3 Virgo lunar eclipse is shining a bright and unfiltered light on your money, income and self-worth... and what it’s revealing is that the two have always been connected more than you’ve admitted. A revelation around what you’ve been undercharging, undervaluing or tolerating financially is likely around this time, and it’s asking you to close a chapter that began around September 2025 around how you relate to your own worth.

Meanwhile Pisces Season, Mars, the Pisces New Moon and Mercury retrograde are stirring something deep and transformative in the intimacy and shared resources part of your life — this could be a reckoning around a financial entanglement with someone else, the terms of a partnership, or the emotional walls you’ve kept up that have been quietly blocking both deep connection and abundance. This is not light territory but it is necessary, and this month is your invitation to release the old story around what you deserve and begin a new one.

Then Aries Season arrives on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, and Leo, your mind opens up like a window that’s been stuck all winter. This activation brings a hunger for expansion — travel, higher learning, new philosophies, bigger audiences, bolder ideas. The revolutionary energy of the Fire Horse Year is a call to broadcast your truth more widely and more fearlessly than you’ve been. Whatever you’ve been learning and transforming through this year so far, someone out there needs to hear it from you specifically.

Virgo Sun & Rising:

Virgo, this is one of the biggest months you’ve had in a while... the 3/3 lunar eclipse is taking place in your sign, which means the cosmic spotlight is on you directly, illuminating who you are, how you see yourself and how you’ve been showing up in the world. And since your ruler Mercury is retrograde in Pisces — sitting directly opposite your sign — that spotlight is being refracted straight through your closest relationships. What this creates is a powerful and sometimes uncomfortable mirror: the ways you’ve been shrinking yourself to keep the peace, over-functioning so others don’t have to or losing the thread of your own identity inside a relationship dynamic are all being surfaced right now whether you invited that conversation or not. A relationship shift of some kind is likely around this eclipse — romantic, professional or with yourself — and the one with yourself may be the most significant of all. Closure that’s been six months in the making is finally within reach.

Pisces Season, Mars, and Mercury retrograde continue to activate your partnership zone through March 18th, when the Pisces New Moon closes out eclipse season and asks you to plant a new intention around how you want to show up in your closest relationships going forward: with clearer boundaries, a stronger sense of self and the willingness to ask for what you actually need instead of intuitively meeting everyone else’s needs and hoping they notice yours.

Then Aries Season begins on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, shifting the energy into your intimacy and shared resources zone. This is where the real transformation gets activated — financially, emotionally and in the power dynamics of your closest bonds.

Virgo, the eclipse handed you back to yourself. Now Aries Season is asking what you’re going to do with that.

Libra Sun & Rising:

Libra, the 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo lands in your solitude and inner world zone, surfacing things that have been operating beneath the surface. Old wounds, hidden anxieties, patterns you’ve been managing privately that are now asking to be properly addressed and released. This eclipse isn’t loud or public for you, but it is deep and what it closes out from the past six months has everything to do with what you’ve been carrying alone that you no longer need to.

Meanwhile your ruler Venus enters Aries on March 6th and joins Saturn and Neptune in activating your partnership zone for most of the month, so even as you’re doing this quiet inner work, your closest relationships are very much in motion. Pisces Season and Mercury retrograde are also moving through your health and daily routines zone, asking you to honestly reassess the habits, work dynamics and self-care practices that are either supporting your wellbeing or quietly depleting it. The Pisces New Moon on March 18th closing out eclipse season is a powerful reset point. Set an intention around a routine or wellness practice that actually nourishes you rather than one you adopted because it looked good from the outside.

Then Aries Season begins on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, and everything shifts into your partnership zone with a new clarity and boldness. Libra, you’re known for seeing all sides and keeping the peace, but the Fire Horse year and the revolutionary energy of Aries Season are asking you to get clear on whose side you’re actually on, starting with your own. The relationships, collaborations and alliances you invest in from March 20th forward should reflect your values, not just your desire for harmony. Who you choose to align with publicly and personally right now carries weight, so choose with intention.

Scorpio Sun & Rising:

Scorpio, first of all, please acknowledge yourself for making it through February, because that was genuinely one of the most astrologically charged months in recent memory, and you’re still standing. March opens with the 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo illuminating your friendship and community zone, bringing clarity — and possibly some necessary endings — around who’s truly in your corner versus who’s simply been benefiting from your proximity. Before you start auditing everyone else though, check yourself too: are there people who genuinely love you that you’ve been neglecting because you were too focused on the ones who weren’t showing up? The eclipse cuts both ways.

Meanwhile Pisces Season and Mercury retrograde are moving through your romance, creativity and inner child healing zone all month; meaning blasts from the past are likely, creative blocks are real and the nonlinear nature of healing is something you’re being asked to accept rather than fight. The Pisces New Moon on March 18th closes out eclipse season and opens a beautiful new chapter here, so set intentions around the love and creative expression you actually deserve, not the watered-down version you may have been settling for.

Then March 20th arrives and everything shifts at once: Aries Season begins, Mercury stations direct at 3:33pm EST and the astrological new year officially starts. For Scorpio, this activation lands in your daily life, wellness and momentum zone and it’s going to feel like the Fire Horse finally woke up from a nap and is ready to move. The karmic lessons eclipse season put you through around love, boundaries and self-worth were not wasted on you... they were preparing you for exactly this moment. Step into the astro new year knowing that the version of you who came out of this eclipse season is more grounded, has better boundaries and is more magnetic than the one who walked in. The love, the opportunities and the connections headed your way are going to reflect that upgrade. Trust it.

Sag Sun & Rising:

Sag, the 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo is landing directly on your career and public image, and whatever’s been building professionally since September 2025 is reaching a turning point. A revelation about the direction you’ve been moving in, a shift in how you’re perceived publicly or a moment of closure around a work situation or authority figure is likely around this time, and as uncomfortable as it might feel, this eclipse is clearing the path for something more aligned with who you’re actually becoming.

Meanwhile Pisces Season, Mars, Mercury retrograde and the Pisces New Moon are drawing your energy inward toward home, family and your emotional roots all month long. This isn’t the most outward-facing stretch for you, and that’s intentional. Something in your foundation — a family dynamic, a living situation, an ancestral pattern you’ve been carrying without realizing it — is asking for your attention and your healing. A new relationship with your sense of home and belonging, is beginning to take shape.

Then Aries Season arrives on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, and Sag, this is where your legendary spark comes back. This activation lights up your creativity, romance, and joy and after weeks of deep internal work it feels like finally coming up for air. Your ruler Jupiter also stations direct on March 10th, loosening up resources and intimate connections that may have felt stalled these past five months. Let yourself play, create and fall back in love with the parts of life that make you feel most alive. The world needs your optimism and your fire right now... especially the kind that’s been refined by everything this month put you through.

Cap Sun & Rising:

Capricorn, the 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo is expanding your world whether you planned for it or not, landing in your expansive zone, it’s bringing a moment of closure or revelation around a philosophy, educational path or long-held perspective that no longer holds up under scrutiny. Something you were taught to believe about success, about your place in the world, about what’s possible for you is being outgrown in real time, and this eclipse is making that impossible to ignore.

Meanwhile Pisces Season, Mars, Mercury retrograde, and the Pisces New Moon are all activating the way you think, communicate and connect with your immediate world all month long. Conversations you’ve been avoiding, ideas that have been stuck in your head without an outlet, and dynamics with siblings or close community may all surface for examination. March 2026 is your invitation to plant a new intention around how you use your voice — not the polished, strategic version you present to the world, but the raw, honest one that actually reflects what you think and feel deep inside.

Aries Season begins on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, shifting the energy toward your home, roots, and emotional foundation. Your ruler Saturn has been in Aries all month alongside Neptune and Chiron, quietly dismantling and rebuilding the structures underneath your life, and this is where you’ll start to feel that work becoming tangible. For Capricorn, revolution doesn’t always look like marching in the streets.

Sometimes it looks like restructuring the emotional architecture of your private life, breaking a generational pattern, or finally building a home environment that reflects your values rather than your survival instincts. That kind of inside-out transformation is just as radical — and in the long run, it’s what makes everything else sustainable.

Aquarius Sun & Rising:

Aquarius, you’re still in the first tender weeks of the new chapter that the February solar eclipse in your sign ushered in, and March is asking you to keep going even when the ground still feels unfamiliar beneath your feet. The 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo lands in your shared resources and intimacy zone, bringing a revelation or moment of reckoning around a financial entanglement, a power dynamic in a close relationship, or an emotional debt — given or received — that needs to be settled. What someone owes you, or what you’ve been quietly funding with your energy or your money without full reciprocity, is coming to light.

Meanwhile Pisces Season, Mars, Mercury retrograde and the Pisces New Moon are drawing your attention toward your income, self-worth and personal values all month long. The retrograde here is asking a pointed question: do the things you’re spending your time and money on actually reflect what you say you value? This month is a powerful reset, so set an intention around building wealth and self-worth on your own terms, not the terms that were handed to you.

When Aries Season begins on March 20th and Mercury stations direct, your voice and your local community come alive. Aquarius, you’re one of the signs most naturally wired for collective action and systemic thinking, and this activation is putting that gift to work, in your neighborhood, on your platforms, in the rooms you’re already in. Your ruler Uranus is also in its final weeks in your home and roots zone after eight years of quietly revolutionizing your foundation... whatever that long chapter dismantled and rebuilt in your private world has been preparing you for a more public expression of who you’ve become. March is the month where that starts to show.

Pisces Sun & Rising:

Pisces, this is your season! The Sun, Mars, Mercury and the New Moon are all moving through your sign this month, making this one of the most personally significant stretches of your entire year. With Mercury retrograde in Pisces for the first three weeks, your birthday season is less about external celebration and more about deep internal reckoning. You’re reflecting on who you’ve been, who you’re becoming and what version of yourself you’re ready to leave behind as you step into a new year of life.

The 3/3 lunar eclipse in Virgo strikes directly opposite your sign in your partnership zone, bringing a major relationship revelation or turning point that’s been building since September 2025. Your co-ruler Neptune is in Aries all month, simultaneously dissolving the idealized version you may have held of a person or partnership, and replacing it with something more honest. This may sting at first... but Pisces, you already knew. You felt it long before the eclipse confirmed it. So trust what you know. Your annual new moon on March 18th closes out eclipse season and helps you prioritize your rebirth. Over the course of the next six months, you’ll be stepping into the fullest expression of who you are.

Your planetary ruler Jupiter stations direct on March 10th, unlocking a flow of joy, creativity, and romantic possibility that the retrograde had been tempering. Pisces, the theme of your solar return is simple and non-negotiable: you’re not here to make yourself smaller so others can feel more comfortable. The eclipse just showed you the cost of that. And once Aries Season begins on March 20th and Mercury stations direct in your sign that same day, the energy shifts toward your income, self-worth, and what you’re truly ready to claim for yourself financially and energetically. Cha-ching baby!

On a recent visit to the new (and spectacular!) Studio Museum in Harlem, I picked up an essay collection titled BLACK ART NOTES. Published in 1971, it was an early proclamation of what Black artists wanted Black art to be outside of the constraints of a white-dominated art world and society. Art FUBU, in a nutshell. The collection was edited by Tom Lloyd, an artist and organizer whose experimental light sculptures inaugurated the Studio Museum’s first exhibition in 1968 and are featured now as part of the museum’s stunning relaunch. It is a beautiful full circle moment, and I was curious to see what he and his peers were thinking over fifty years ago. I’ve been looking to the past a lot these days. Partly to hunt for clues that might light our way through this darkness, and partly to remind myself that none of this shit is new. I’m rarely disappointed by what I find.

In one of the essays, “The Role We Want for Black Art,” by artist and AFRICOBRA co-founder, Jeff Donaldson, he says the following about the role of Black art:

“Art or knowledge that does not serve the cause of the Black struggle is a waste of valuable time and creative energy. Black artists and Black scholars who do not respond positively to the cause of Black mental and physical liberation will be considered irrelevant by their grandchildren.”

WHEW! A word. Jeff, we are on the same page! Over my many years of producing art projects and trying to discern my own practice, I have gotten the chance to see many, many shows and exhibitions and studio visits. I’d be lying if I said there haven’t been times I’ve looked at something and said…why need this be? Lol. There is surely a place for art that has no obvious connection to current events, but in times of extreme turmoil and strife, I personally gravitate toward artists who are saying something urgent in the most honest and compelling way possible. Energy is finite, and when the stakes presented are our very lives, my priority is to find others who are concerned with the truth of our Black humanity and how that clarity can lead to us thriving, no matter what.

I have been energized recently by many shows where Black artists are taking this charge seriously and are showcasing beautiful work that also has a lot to say about who WE are, where we’ve been and where we may go from here. In this post I’ll talk about two (one that just finished and one that is up until the Spring), but I’ll add in others of note you should check out at the end.

Kerry James Marshall, The Histories at the Royal Academy of London.

Without a doubt, Kerry James Marshall is one of the world’s most technically-proficient painters. His technique is undeniable, as is evidenced by his use of various Black pigments to depict Black people. This itself a brilliant and bold artistic choice.

He is also a brilliant examiner of our society, and is not afraid of tackling some of the biggest and most complex periods of our history and the absence (or inclusion) of Black bodies in its artistic record. While familiar with his work, I had never been to a Kerry James Marshall exhibition, so when I heard that his biggest European showcase ever was happening at the Royal Academy, I managed to get to London right before it closed last month.

It was phenomenal. The Histories is a massive show taking up eleven galleries with themes that range from epochal periods like the Middle Passage and the Civil Rights Movement to how Blackness is represented (or not) in the western Art Canon, to an intimate scene of a couple lying in bed (rendered all in black), to beautifully rendered scenes within a Black barbershop or a Black beauty school. Most of the works are large scale and many are unframed hanging from the wall like in progress studio works. In a space as grand as the Royal Academy, which historically would have been one of the main perpetrators of anti-Blackness or at least Black omission, seeing this show is profound for some, disorienting for others. It was definitely one of those situations where most of the people were older and white (British!), and I prayed no one tried to make conversation with me.

There was a beautiful room of paintings with collage that depicted salons and family rooms focusing on memorializing important cultural and political figures that was very moving. It felt like a glimpse into a room in your grandmother’s house you’re not allowed to sit in, and it was mesmerizing.

Most of the galleries were curated around past works, but the one gallery tackled a subject that deserves its own article. Titled, “Africa Revisited,” it depicted moments in African history that “are not often depicted” aka THE QUIET PART. Several of the paintings show vivid scenes of Africans kidnapping or selling their people into slavery in exchange for coveted European goods. In one pair of paintings I am still haunted by, one shows a canoe captained by an African kidnappaer with hostages being delivered to slavers out of scene; in the next painting the gleeful crew returns is shown returning to shore with all of finery and booty they got in exchange. Yiiiiiiiiiikes. This conversation is so radical and important, and it had the electricity you feel when you see family business being made public. A feeling we need much more of.

While the show is over, look for it to be restaged somewhere soon as I cannot imagine we’ve seen the last of this incredible showcase for one of our most vital living talents.

MONUMENTS, Various artists.

MOCA GEFFEN and The Brick in Los Angeles

MONUMENTS is a very different show about American history taking place across two exhibition spaces in Los Angeles. At MOCA, decommissioned monuments, many of which honor “Lost Cause” figures, are placed throughout the museum removed from their pedestals and their reverent contexts. Artists were given access to the monuments to melt into ingots, carve into sculptures or incorporate into new works. Some are still pristine, with figures that seem unaware of their missing pedestals, while others are retain paint and graffiti from the protests that preceded their de-installation.

Aside these relics are contemporary works that grapple with who and what is celebrated in America and what is omitted. The show continues at The Brick where Kara Walker reverses Lost Cause hagiography by making a monster out of Stonewall Jackson. That statue, up for a century in Charlottesville, came down following the deadly nazi rally in 2017 after much public debate. The shows are a powerful and, in this era of obsequiousness, brave rebuke to those who would sanitize deplorable Americans and snuff out depictions of a truer, multicultural reflection of our shared heritage.

One of the most successful commissioned works in the show was produced by our friends at Monument Lab. Their work, a high-tech visualization of data from their groundbreaking Audit, tells a story of who and what this country has historically celebrated and who has been left out. Unsurprisingly, it is damning and depressing data, but seeing it laid out so clearly and engagingly is still moving. It also couldn’t be more timely as the landscape appears to be getting worse, not better.

Another standout is the short film, “Homegoing,” directed by Julie Dash. Ms. Dash, of Daughters of the Dusk renown, shot on location at Mother Emmanuel church to memorialize the parishioners slain there, and to commemorate the ten-year anniversary of the massacre. The film features a haunting, soaring rendition of, “Let it Shine,” by opera singer Davóne Tines which you can hear echoing throughout the museum. It is heartbreaking. At the opening Davóne was on hand to christen the space with the Black National Anthem and it was so powerful.

The show is up until May 3rd in both spaces, and it alone is a reason to come to Los Angeles.

Other Shows to Note:

Derek Fordjour’s Nightsong at David Kordansky (Concluded in October 2025). See my post here.

On View Now:

Tavares Strachan The Day Tomorrow Began at LACMA

Amoka Boafo Bring Home With Me at Roberts Projects LA

222 FORGOTTEN CITIES

“Cold Summer” Brownsville, Brooklyn, 2015

Cold Summer is a pure example of New York culture in the summertime.

In Brooklyn, drinking water from a fire hydrant is sacred. It is not random. It is a ritual. When the heat rises through the concrete, the hydrant becomes a flowing altar of relief, a public baptism, a reminder that joy is still allowed to exist right here in the middle of everything we have had to survive.

I documented this photograph on a summer day in 2015 while navigating through Brownsville, Brooklyn. During my six years living in New York — and as someone from Deep East Oakland, California — everywhere I document always feels like home because my people are there. I never feel lost, confused, scared or out of touch. It always feels like one big family reunion of my people that I have not seen in a while. That is the energy I enter each community with. Each soul I activate and reflect with carries the energy of remembering.

Summers in Brooklyn are my favorite. The cookouts. The deep laughter. The feeling of being comfortable in our own skin. Being nurtured and held in our culture without having to perform. Being left alone to be in joy and not apologize for it. Dominoes playing. Double dutch ropes hitting pavement. Fish fries. Women braiding hair. Hoop games. Elders sitting and observing. All of this nourishment and returning home to ourselves happens through each spirit interaction. Pure spirit activation.

Brownsville is not just a place defined by headlines. Its history is shaped by community power, cultural vision and grassroots care.

In the late 1960s, Brownsville, especially the Ocean Hill section, became the heart of one of the most important educational liberation movements in New York City. Parents, elders and organizers fought for community-controlled schools, demanding that melanated youth be educated by and for their own communities. This movement was rooted in self determination, cultural pride and the belief that melanated youth deserved to see themselves reflected in what they were taught.

One of the key figures rising from this lineage was Jitu Weusi, a Brooklyn born cultural nationalist, educator and freedom organizer who helped shape African-centered education, language and cultural consciousness throughout Central and East Brooklyn. Through community schools, cultural spaces and organizing circles, Jitu Weusi and those around him worked to re anchor melanated youth in ancestral history, dignity and self knowledge. Brownsville was part of that spiritual and educational corridor of awakening.

At the same time, organizations like The East and the Uhuru Sasa Shule Freedom Now School created African centered learning spaces, cultural hubs and community-run education models that nurtured melanated youth not just academically, but spiritually, artistically and culturally. These were freedom schools before the world had language for what that truly meant.

And that spirit is still alive.

Today, Brownsville continues to heal and build itself through projects like the Brownsville Student Farm Project, where empty lots become living classrooms and melanated youth grow food, leadership and connection to land. Through spaces like the Brownsville Green Community Garden, neighbors gather to nurture food, peace and collective care. These are modern extensions of the same lineage of self determination, stewardship and cultural remembering.

So when I say Brownsville is spirit, I mean it is a lineage site.
A root chakra of Brooklyn.
A place where culture did not just survive. It was protected, shaped and passed down.

Cold Summer is not just a moment in Brownsville.
It is Brownsville remembering itself.

I was filled with that energy when I documented Cold Summer. I felt held by the community, liberated & SEEN, that feeling birthed both me and the moment of this young king. I have always felt a responsibility and accountability to my people once I gained knowledge of self, especially for the children. Their innocence is something I want to protect, and when it has been stripped away, I want to give some of that back in the moment.

When I approached him, I complimented his skin and his crown, something I always do. I love to highlight not only the beauty of melanin, but the importance of it. I call our hair our crown because of the power it holds. I also complimented him on his Jordan 11s, (one of my favorite Jordans!) and the way his socks were pulled high, both deeply cultural expressions in our community. We started talking about how dope Brooklyn felt at that moment, and as we were speaking, he dropped down and got nourishment from the hydrant right on time. Drinking from a water fountain in Brooklyn is deeply cultural. At that moment, I had to document it.

Most people do not know this, but one of my sacred practices is something I created called Spirit Shooting.

I created this because I did not want to conform to standard photography practices rooted in someone else’s rulebook, a rulebook that has historically been written by a Caucasian gaze that dictates our value. Spirit Shooting allows me to document from a lens of love, not trauma. It requires me to be deeply in tune with myself so that spirit activation can happen between me and my people.

The camera becomes a mirror.
In this moment, me and this young king are reflections.

My documentation is a contribution toward changing narratives that have suffocated melanated existence, leaving no room for breath. Seeing melanated kings through my eyes is an acknowledgment of the bravery they embody and the unapologetic revolutionary flame that cannot be extinguished.

Healing your inner child is not soft work.
It is ancestral repair.
It is how cycles of hardness end.
It is how wholeness returns to our bloodlines.
It is how joy becomes safe again.
It is how laughter stops feeling like something we have to earn.

Cold Summer is a reflection of the inner child that still lives within all of us. It is the innocence that has been stolen from melanated youth and melanated kings across the world. It is the visual interpretation of water that heals the flames burning within us.

This Photograph Says:

Liberation is law.
Remembrance is ancestral.
Returning home to self is a BIRTHRIGHT.

Since its release, the limited edition Cold Summer print has been purchased and now lives in the homes of art collectors across the country. Many were drawn to this photograph because of the Brooklyn summertime culture it represents. Many were also moved by the importance of seeing a melanated young king honored and highlighted within their personal spaces. Melanated people are masterpieces, and this work exists to reflect that truth back to the world.

Each time this print is purchased, it is more than an art transaction. It is an act of homage. It is recognition. It is someone choosing to place respect, dignity and melanated presence on their walls in a world that too often withholds acknowledgment from our youth.

If you feel called to anchor this truth in your space, you can become a collector at brittsense.com.

I offer extreme gratitude to every collector who has chosen to hold Cold Summer in their home. Our collectors are living archives of this work. You are the keepers of these moments, the guardians of these stories, and the stewards of remembrance. Because of you, these stories do not fade. They live. They breathe. They are remembered.

Melanated people deserve love without struggle first, because:

We are the gatekeepers of the world.
We are the builders of the world.
We are the wisdom of the world.
We are the principle of the world through every condition.
We are the Light.
We are the Liberation.
We are the Ritual.
We are the SPIRIT.

Our neighborhoods and our communities are the Meccas of the world through every condition.

Brittani Sensabaugh, widely known as Brittsense, is a Deep East Oakland–born documentarian whose photography explores place, lineage and cultural remembrance. She is the creator of the 222 Forgotten Cities series.

Crown Heights is part of the DNA of CRWNMAG. We were founded here, so seeing CRWNMAG Beauty Council alum Tiffany M. Battle strolling up Nostrand Avenue feels like a full-circle moment.

In Sunday Stroll, Tiffany moves neighborhood by neighborhood, following beauty, flavor, and feeling. Each episode blends local discovery with lifestyle inspiration — grounded in community, guided by curiosity, and styled in full color.

In this episode of Sunday Stroll, we’re in Crown Heights. I’m taking you with me to discover things to do in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. We’re going to get into where to grab a matcha, watch the West Indian Day parade, see the people, eat and shop in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. I’m mainly showing you where to walk in Crown Heights, Brooklyn in New York.

We’re strolling along Eastern Parkway and Franklin Avenue, soaking in the sights, sounds, and spirit that makes this neighborhood come alive. From the colorful costumes and island beats to the mouthwatering food and community pride, Labor Day in Crown Heights is more than a celebration! It’s an experience you can’t find anywhere else.

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Astrology isn’t just trending — it’s big business. Recent estimates say the global astrology app market is set to triple in value by 2030, fueled by AI, digital wellness and personalization. In times as wild as these, more people are paying for tools that steady the mind, give language to what they’re feeling and offer a little perspective when the timeline spins.

You may already know ScorpioMystique and KnowTheZodiac (especially if you’re a Scorpio!). Behind both is Dossé-Via Trenou — author, founder, astrologer — building one of the only Black-led astrology apps on iOS and Android and growing it with care.

We discuss scaling while staying true to your voice, making product choices that honor culture and community, and turning cosmic insights into daily practice.

Origins & Voice

You launched ScorpioMystique as a USC freshman back in 2011. What did you see in the culture that made you hit publish that day, and what’s stayed true in your voice since then?

When I think of my ScorpioMystique journey, it’s directly connected to the fact that Twitter was booming as a platform back in 2011 — back when niche communities truly thrived. My intention was to dispel myths about my zodiac sign, Scorpio, and upon sharing tweets I quickly learned that thousands of people were hungry for authentic astrological knowledge… the more raw, messy and hilarious, the better.

As I lovingly both dragged and collected myself (and fellow Scorpios) through my tweets and horoscopes, I felt like we were co-creating a healing and evolutionary journey — one that’s stayed true ever since. The ScorpioMystique community feels seen by each other, and that remained my intention as I expanded and created KnowTheZodiac (KTZ). KTZ is here to help skymates feel seen and feel safe to be their ever-evolving selves.

What began as a tweet became an intuitively-led technology — the KTZ App is that same love letter, scaled through code. That’s been my compass ever since: to make spiritual wellness feel like home, and a form of ancestral remembrance.

When did astrology shift from a personal practice to a calling you were willing to build a company around?

My shift into entrepreneurship began when studying and integrating astrology into my life undeniably felt like a secret and life hack that other people deserved to know. I’m so glad I took time to dive into this spiritual practice for myself first, and truly nerd out about it as a child and teenager before making it my profession.

Astrology isn’t just a calling, it’s my inner child remembering an ancient cosmic language, or cosmic code. SM and KTZ were born out of my inner child’s curiosity about the cosmos, and about the infinite layers of my own being, more than anything.

My Moon is in Virgo in the 10th house, so it tracks that I feel emotionally stimulated and motivated by the work I do, and that a core part of my work centers on offering astrological services to help raise the collective consciousness.

Your writing is intimate yet practical. What’s your process for translating the skies into day-to-day decisions without feeding fear or fatalism?

I often think about all the ancestors that lived before us. They, too, experienced eclipses, new moons, retrogrades, full moons… and life went on. The planets are here to guide and protect us, but sometimes it happens in ways that feel uncomfortable. Other times it happens in ways that make us feel ecstatic. Either way, it’s all part of the experience and ebb and flow we call life. We’re all stardust in living form, and astrology reminds us of the fact that being alive, truly as a human being, is the most magical act of all.

As an evolutionary astrologer, I’m here to help you be present with both the discomfort and the highs of life, and that begins with reminding myself to do the same. The horoscopes I write feel like medicine to myself first, and it becomes medicine for the collective too. When I write, I’m not predicting the future — I’m helping us breathe and live through the present moment together.

Lineage, Culture & Responsibility

Your work centers the African and Indigenous roots of astrology. What lineages do you draw from, and what do most people get wrong (or where is there room to learn more) about astrology’s origins?

At this point in my life, I feel most connected to Yorùbá spirituality (my maternal ancestry is Yorùbá), which also has ties to Kemetic and Nubian cosmologies, both of which are some of the most ancient roots of astrology and spirituality. Much of this history has been hidden or appropriated, and that may be why there can be confusion or misrepresentations when it comes to astrology.

At its simplest form, astrology represents our innate curiosity for why we are here, what we are here to do, and who we’re meant to do it with. We nurture that curiosity by being aware of the solar, lunar, planetary and cosmic patterns above us. As above, so below. Our African ancestors knew this — and KTZ exists to help us remember.

In uncertain times, astrology can be a compass or a distraction. How do you design (your app, your approach, your company) for the first and avoid the second?

We’re very intentional with notifications — we keep them minimal, empowering and never fear-based. The app’s design is intentionally calm, simple and easy to navigate. My goal is to help people become their own astrologer, and not become dependent on me or any platform. That’s how astrology becomes a compass, not a crutch.

Magic & Melanin connects the diaspora to West Africa. How has time on the continent shaped your lens as an astrologer and founder?

Being on the continent roots me. There’s something about living on the Motherland that helps me hear myself more clearly as both an astrologer and founder. Key decisions in my life and in my businesses are intentionally mapped out thanks to me tracking personal and collective astrological transits and cycles. I feel like my ancestors are co-creating my dream life along with me, and they create more easeful pathways for me to navigate life because I remember them, honor them and give them offerings.

My rematriation to the Motherland (and creating my homegoing agency Magic & Melanin to help others return home too) is a reminder that my mission with both Magic & Melanin and KTZ isn’t just digital; it’s ancestral. I’m building tools and pathways that help us reconnect to what we already know in our bones, and to help empower us to celebrate, share and express our unique gifts with pride.

How do you speak to church-raised readers who feel torn? Can astrology coexist with faith in a way that builds character, not conflict?

I tell them that astrology isn’t a religion — it’s an ancient language. A big misconception is that astrology and religion cannot coexist. Most religions drew upon astrology when creating their texts because astrology is the oldest form of spirituality known to humankind. In my view, astrology and religion can coexist because I see astrology as a part of God/Source’s creation – like weather patterns or the ocean’s tides – rather than a rival to faith. For me, it’s another lens and tool for remembering the divine order in life, but it’s not something that should control or dictate our lives (just like religion shouldn’t either).

Oftentimes, when someone who has strong connections to their religious faith feels skeptical or torn about astrology, I encourage them to start off by getting a birth chart reading by a professional astrologer, rather than reading horoscopes on a random site online. If they open themselves up to a reading, they’ll often feel seen in a way that helps them better thrive.

Business & Growth

You’re one of the only Black women astrologers with an app on iOS and Android. What did it take to ship that first version — team, cash flow, mindset, etc.?

Whew. It took a lot of risks. It took a lot of personal investment. It took a lot of figuring it out as I went. It took a lot of overcoming deceptions in business due to my own naïveté. The original app came out in 2019, and as a first-time founder I learned some hard lessons about contracts, trust and tech. What felt like sabotage at the time turned out to be a divine redirection — it led me to Aditi Ohri, a Scorpio Rising, Cancer Sun techie and astro-loving queen who understood and respected the vision from day one and helped me rebuild the app through a freemium MVP, which we relaunched on February 28, 2025, the last day of Black History Month and the day of the Pisces New Moon.

KTZ’s astrologers, Adela Dore and Nisha Prakash, have also been intimately involved in helping KTZ grow its database of horoscopes, forecasts and readings tailored to each Sun sign of the zodiac for the past 5+ years, back when we were mainly sharing our offerings on social media. Now that the KTZ App has launched, they’ve become KTZ experts with their own specific astrological domains, such as offering Chiron Healing guides (Nisha) and Saturn Return reports (Adela). I’m so grateful for their long-term love, support and loyalty and thankful for their trust in me and belief in what KTZ could become.

Shantanu, Mack, Ayo (our KTZ developers and IT team), and Dasia and Murthy (KTZ’s social team) help keep the backend and frontend operations of KTZ running. Our team is lean, diverse and aligned with KTZ’s values. It takes a village to grow the KTZ Universe.

When I shared that shipping out the MVP of the app took risks, I mean that as a founder and CEO, I had to decide that transitioning from a free app to one with premium features was the right move. I had to shift my mindset and remember that I deserved this. I’ve written free daily, weekly and monthly scopes for over a decade, and it’s been beautiful to see how powerfully they resonate with the community. But now I’m in my receiving era — learning to balance the scales after seasons of over-giving.

Creating a cosmic container where my most loyal skymates could join and support directly on my own platform — rather than relying on Zuckerberg’s — felt like a necessary pivot in a world of digital censorship and attempted erasure. Creating the KTZ App and stepping into greater visibility and ownership was a reclaiming of my ancestral roots, because the first astrologers were African women.

Now, thousands of users worldwide open the KTZ App daily to reconnect with themselves and the Universe around them, and that’s the real ROI for me. Through daring to keep showing up for KTZ, despite the speedbumps and plot twists, KTZ and its community keeps showing up for me. The reciprocity is felt, appreciated and amplified through each offering we put out.

What’s on your product roadmap in the next year — content formats, accessibility, or partnerships — that you’re most excited to test?

Being able to connect with culturally-rooted platforms like CRWNMAG, and using such platforms to help remind the collective — particularly the African diaspora and local Africans — that we are the root of astrology (and of most forms of spirituality, science, and technology), is one of the most exciting parts of growing KnowTheZodiac. It’s like, we outttt hereee thoooo.

And in this digital age, all you have to do is share more of your story and mission consistently, and more people will know you’re out here. A part of me was getting comfortable mainly promoting to my IG, Twitter and newsletter community since that’s where I primarily first grew my audience. But now I’m ready to spread my wings and be seen and supported beyond what I’ve previously known.

I’m excited to get back to in-person events in 2026 and beyond, because pre-2020 KTZ would often offer live workshops and community gatherings, and it was amazing. I’m noticing a growing shift towards more real-life communities, and the KTZ App can serve as a portal that connects skymates to each other and encourages in-person bonding and match-making.

An Offering

Give us a 60-second horoscope decoder. In what order should readers read Rising, Sun and Moon — and how do they turn it into action?

Always read your Rising sign’s scopes first if you know your time of birth. Then your Sun, and your Moon third. Focus less on following every horoscope to the T, and more on understanding the themes that day’s transits bring up for you. Then trust your inner compass as you stay present and cosmically aware throughout your day.

Three journal prompts for the upcoming Scorpio Season?

• With the Sun, Mercury and Mars all in Scorpio, how can I use this energy to transform rather than implode?

• If my intensity ever turns destructive, can it be to destroy what inhibits my personal and collective freedom? (It’s giving we could go on work strikes to free Congo, Palestine, Haiti — Scorpio Season wants us to go there.)

• Who would I be if I didn’t fear my own light?

Lightning Round

What’s your Sun/Moon/Rising?

Scorpio Sun, Virgo Moon, Scorpio Rising.

Most misunderstood sign trait?

Scorpios aren’t cold — they’re teddy bears and deeply protective lovers with a sometimes tough exterior.

Underrated KTZ app feature people should use today?

The birth chart feature! Yes, our scopes are fire — but your natal chart is too. Take time to click each placement in your chart list, because we share deep insights on practically every planet in your chart.

A book or deck you created that pairs best with the app for deeper study?

The Inner Sky by Steven Forrest is one of my favorite astrology books and was one of the inspirations for my own book, Signs & Skymates: The Ultimate Guide to Astrological Compatibility.

A mantra you return to when you need courage?

“Leap and the net will appear.”

One Black woman in our astro lineage everyone should know — past or present?

Special shoutout to my paternal grandmother, Marguerite Trenou, who was a natural at cowrie divination (and also the first woman lawyer of Togo, and a major revolutionary) — she’s a reminder that magic runs in our blood, and that I don’t have to choose between my spiritual gifts and my more pragmatic ones… they can co-exist beautifully within me and be offerings for the world.

News of Assata’s transition hit me hard. I’ve spent the days since in reflection — as I’ve moved through work and mothering and the ordinary rhythm of home — mulling over what her presence here meant, and how we can honor her legacy. Processing. To be honest, in times as tumultuous as these, I’m still at a loss.

I first picked up Assata: An Autobiography when I was pregnant with my first son, about seven years ago. Who knows what drew me to it at that particular time, but perhaps it was the weight of carrying new life inside me — a new generation. Perhaps it was my way of looking for answers, for guidance from someone who’d survived much more than I could imagine.

What I found there has stayed with me ever since. I saw a picture of a woman who endured the unthinkable, yet never gave up on her people. A woman who was hated and mistreated, yet still clung tightly to love in all its forms. A woman who was brutalized and neglected, yet never lost faith in our collective freedom. A woman who conceived, carried and birthed her baby girl in the most dastardly conditions you can imagine. And escaped. Survived.

A true freedom fighter. A warrior. A Queen Mother. And now, an exalted ancestor.

And while I’m still struggling to process her physical absence, I hold onto her story, the words she left with us. I think of the pain she endured yet never yielded from her mission. I think of the many comrades who must have worked in concert to keep her safe in Cuba…for decades. I think of her precious daughter, Kakuya.

Hollywood teaches us to picture revolution as fire and spectacle. Assata’s life tells me something else. It’s not about pyrotechnics, it’s about presence — with ourselves, and our loved ones. It’s not about combat, but consistency. Not about reforming, but reprogramming. It’s about fundamental change — in the way we live, eat, educate ourselves, work… the way we see each other.

In my house that looks simple on paper, hard in practice. It looks like dedicating my time, talent and resources to work that preserves our stories and reinforces our families. Like homeschooling my children instead of arguing with some Karen about critical race theory. It looks like owning land, even if the path is slow and the steps are small. It looks like loosening our dependence on corporate systems and state institutions that are not designed for our (or anyone’s) benefit. It looks like investing more in the next generation than in the next shiny treat. It looks like my husband and me putting our heads down and slowly, painstakingly building what we want to see in this world, even when no one else can see it yet. It looks like turning off the screens and tuning into our babies’ faces. Because we’ll never get this moment back.

No, it’s not easy. No it’s not perfect. Yes, it requires sacrifice and offers few accolades. I have been humbled more times than I can count. Yet when I think about Assata’s courage, I feel the call to do more. Not louder. Deeper.

How do we honor Assata’s legacy — and that of all of the true revolutionaries before her? We study and carry their words into our daily lives. We build families and communities that can withstand pressure. We love each other like our freedom depends on it, because it does: “It is our duty to fight for our freedom,” Shakur wrote. “It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.” That’s not a slogan to me. It’s a blueprint.

So I return to the passages that feed me. I return to her (and Sister Audre’s) insistence that no one will hand us the tools to undo the systems that harms us. I return to her refusal to forget that we are oppressed, because forgetting makes you numb and numbness makes you complacent — complicit. I return to her daughter’s name and think about what it means to raise children inside a commitment like hers.

Thank you, Assata, for what you endured and what you gave. For the roadmap and the warning. For the love that kept shining through the unthinkable. May we be worthy of your example. May we love each other. May we move like people who know we are not free yet, and refuse to pretend otherwise.

Rest well, Queen Assata. We’ll study. We’ll build. We’ll love. We’ll keep going.

Below are a few excerpts from Assata: An Autobiography that I’ll continue to carry with me. Feel free to post yours in the comments and check the other books in our Required Reading. Sending love.

Assata On Education:

“The schools we go to are reflections of the society that created them. Nobody is going to give you the education you need to overthrow them. Nobody is going to teach you your true history, teach you your true heroes, if they know that that knowledge will help set you free.”

On Oppression:

“Every day out in the street now, I remind myself that Black people in amerika are oppressed. It’s necessary that I do that. People get used to anything. The less you think about your oppression, the more your tolerance for it grows. After a while, people just think oppression is the normal state of things. But to become free, you have to be acutely aware of being a slave.”

On Politics:

“Those who believe that the president or the vice-president and the congress and the supreme kourt run this country are sadly mistaken. The almighty dollar is king; those who have the most money control the country and, through campaign contributions, buy and sell presidents, congressmen, and judges, the ones who pass the laws and enforce the laws that benefit their benefactors. The rich have always used racism to maintain power. To hate someone, to discriminate against them, and to attack them because of their racial characteristics is one of the most primitive, reactionary, ignorant ways of thinking that exists.”

“As far as I can tell, you have the extreme right, who are fascist, racist capitalist dogs like Ronald Reagan, who come right out and let you know where they’re coming from. And on the opposite end, you have the left, who are supposed to be committed to justice, equality, and human rights. And somewhere between those two points is the liberal. As far as I’m concerned, “liberal” is the most meaningless word in the dictionary.”

On Freedom:

“Nobody in the world, nobody in history, has ever gotten their freedom by appealing to the moral sense of the people who were oppressing them”.

“It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains”

On Words as Medicine:

“One night one of the nurses came in and gave me three books. I hadn’t even thought about reading. The books were a godsend. They had been carefully selected. One was a book of Black poetry, one was a book called Black Women in White Amerika, and the third was a novel, Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse. Whenever I tired of the verbal abuse of my captors, I would drown them out by reading the poetry out loud. “Invictus” and “If We Must Die” were the poems I usually read. I read them over and over, until I was sure the guards had heard every word. The poems were my message to them. When I read the book about Black women, I felt the spirits of those sisters feeding me, making me stronger. Black women have been struggling and helping each other to survive the blows of life since the beginning of time. And when I read Siddhartha, a peace came over me. I felt a unity with all things living. The world, in spite of oppression, is a beautiful place. I would say “Om” softly to myself, letting my lips vibrate. I felt the birds, the sun, and the trees. I was in communion with all the forces on the earth that truly love people, in communion with all the revolutionary forces on the earth.”

Thank you, Assata Shakur, for all that you gave us. Rest well.

Ten Years

A decade ago we hustled our very first zine into 500 hands at Afropunk in Brooklyn — no ads, no machine, just us and the work. Ten years later, we’re still here, still growing with you. Over the next couple weeks we’ll share more about how this all came to be. For now: gratitude.

Slave Patrols

Agent Orange stayed on brand — federalized the D.C. police and set them loose like it’s still 1865, harassing residents block by block. How many times we gon’ recycle the same playbook before we call it what it is — slave patrol 2.0?

The Kicker with Ashlee Banks

Trump Signals Plan to Send Troops and Cops Beyond DC

President Donald Trump is making it clear that Washington, DC, is just the beginning. Speaking Thursday at a U.S. Park Police facility, Trump told a crowd of law enforcement agents and National Guard members that his crackdown in the nation’s capital could soon spread elsewhere…

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8 months ago · 7 likes · 1 comment · Ashlee Banks, J.D.

Amanda Seales ran through 20 Black Conservatives

Sis found her format. Went head-to-head with a lineup of ahistorical raccoons and made stew out of the whole panel. She flip flopped on her previous position on the divisiveness of making a cultural distinction for ADOS and kinfolk rejoiced.

Black Scotland

Yes, Black folks are everywhere — but hearing a Scottish brogue wrap around our slang hits different. It’s a reminder that the diaspora is wide, layered, and everywhere we go, there we are.

Highest 2 Lowest

Spike and Denzel still command respect, but let’s be honest — most of us will catch it once it hits the stream.

Caught Up In This Illusion

Juicy J took a page from Andre 3000’s flute chronicles and dropped a jazz instrumental project. And we’re not mad at it. Played it while making focaccia the other night — smooth, unexpected, no skips needed.

Clocked by CRWNMAG — What we miss?

Serving Suggestion — Sunset drive down Crenshaw. Sunday soul reset. Background while you marinate or foreground when you're healing.

Feels — Warm. Weightless. Woke-but-rested.

Colors — Burnt amber, smoky plum, dusty sage, soft copper.

Playlist Cousins — Solange, Robert Glasper, Blackstreet (deep cuts), D’Angelo, Sault, Masego.

Core Ingredients — Vibey loops, brassy horns, gospel chords, soul-funk sway, ambient falsetto.

Lineage — Curtis Mayfield’s funk, Black LA jazz tradition, 90s R&B harmonies, West Coast synth culture.

More Music

Brooklyn-born Kiyanna Stewart and Jannah Handy founded BLK MKT Vintage in November 2014. Over the past six years, the two have amassed a cult internet following with their ever-growing collection of Black keepsakes and memorabilia. Their online shop has served as a breath of fresh air in the lily-white world of antique collecting, offering found objects like vintage furniture, literature, vinyl records, clothing, art, housewares and more. The grand opening of their brick-and-mortar this past winter took Bed-Stuy by storm, shoppers coming from far and wide to get their hands on these unique pieces of history. We caught up with Kiyanna & Jay — pre-quarantine — to hear some of the inspiration behind what they call “soul work.”

Tell me a bit about the origins of your partnership.

We actually met years ago at a social justice training at Rutgers University, where we both worked and Kiyanna studied. Kiyanna was finishing up her Master’s degree in Women’s Studies and we were both working in different cultural centers on campus. We realized that we were born and raised in the same neighborhood in Brooklyn — Flatbush/Prospect Lefferts Gardens — and actually grew up a few houses away from one another. We’ve been inseparable since and find new ways to embody the word “partnership” regularly.

How has BLK MKT Vintage evolved throughout the years?

It’s interesting because like many great ideas, this business was developed from a shared hobby of ours, but also a sense of need. We spent our down time scouring vintage shops, flea markets, antique stores and the like. Somewhere along the line, we realized that finding Black cultural ephemera was a challenge. We were both craving a space where we could more readily access vintage objects that looked like us and told our stories — a place where we wouldn’t have to dig for Black literature and (maybe) find one or two. It was this recognition that emboldened us to be the collectors we needed. We needed to start a business and open a shop. We started out at local artisan/flea markets in Brooklyn, Manhattan and New Jersey, then a few pop-up events and festivals. All along, we were craving the ability to curate our own content and have dedicated space. Without the capital to open a brick & mortar at the time, we opened an e-commerce shop that quickly picked up traction. While running the online shop, we continued to pop-up in person and build community, also taking on a few opportunities to do set design/prop rentals for various events. In 2019, while renovating our physical space, we launched the interior design arm of the business and developed a process to offer prop rental and set curation for productions/events. In November 2019, our physical location opened in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn and we’re so excited to see all the incredible, palpable growth that has come from the support, generosity and accountability of our community.

What are your individual roles in the business?

We try to share in most of the work together, but our natural talents/interests do guide the way we split the work. Kiyanna takes on most of the social media/digital curation. Jannah handles most of the in-person sourcing at antique stores, flea markets and thrift shops — as well as the DIY/upcycling work (reupholstery, etc). Our running joke is that Jannah brings home the bacon and Kiyanna cooks it up and serves it!

How do you choose objects… and how do you let them go?

We haven’t quite mastered this process yet. Every item we purchase, we buy because we’re connected to it. We tend to buy things we like, which makes it more challenging to let go! We tend to keep items we’re not sure that we can replace or find another of. We also select items that tell the fullness of Black folks’ stories. We’re always trying to round out our collection and think about “who isn’t included?” or “who might we be leaving out?”

I’m sure you constantly come across artifacts that are historically painful. Take us through the emotional process of scouting, finding and holding objects of this Significance.

We always say that this work is “soul work.” One challenging aspect of our business that comes with telling full/whole Black stories is that we interface with a lot of history that is fraught, painful and difficult. For example, FBI wanted posters for Assata Shakur, dehumanizing representations of Black children as ghouls and goblins, fugitive slave notices, slave yokes, press photos showing police brutality at demonstrations. They’re necessary because they help us tell a full story, but they do make the work hard sometimes. However, we didn’t start this work expecting it to be easy. We’d rather see us and our stories whole.

Your dedication to the community is palpable. Your priority seems to have always been about providing a space for Black folk. Has this been a theme throughout your life? In what ways?

Thank you for this. Both of us grew up with deep notions of pride in ourselves and our communities. This has been a theme throughout both of our lives. Jannah’s attended several PWI’s since she was a young child and those experiences triggered a need to bolster Black spaces. Kiyanna spent lots of time in diverse spaces, dedicated to the arts, then studied Africana Studies at the undergraduate level. That training informs her dedication to a tradition of Black folks and Black history as worth of inquiry, preservation and celebration. At Rutgers, we both worked at cultural centers dedicated to marginalized students, ensuring their success at the university. It’s connected work — building community, centering the Black experience and a ton of learning.

When it’s all said & done, what do you hope your impact is on our community — the culture?

The impact we hope to leave is simple. We want to live lives that center the Black experience and Black people, while encouraging others to do the same. Everyday, we strive to show our community that we value Black people, our narratives and historical contributions. We needed to see Black queer women, dedicating their lives to collecting and curating Black items of the past. Living in those truths will hopefully empower others.

Do you have any business advice for young Entrepreneurs?

One of the biggest lessons in life, love, and entrepreneurship is that there is no linear path. Our journey has been steeped in road blocks, u-turns, and dead ends. Give yourself grace if you have to pause and recalculate your route. It’s your route and you’re not in competition with anyone. Run your race. Also, and this is on the more practical side — You don’t have to wait until the end of the month to pay your bills. BLK MKT Vintage is temporarily closed until further notice due to COVID-19. You can continue to purchase goods through their online shop, and follow them on Instagram.

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No matter what's going on outside, at the office, or on our timeline; one thing we can control is the feeling in our own home (or at least in our headphones). Sometimes a good playlist can be just the reset we need to "keep on pushin'".

So press play, give thanks for the breath in your lungs, clear your mind... and vibe. This one is Something for the Builders.

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Independence Day, Our Way.

We didn’t wanna rain on your parade yesterday (joy is resistance, we know). But we spent the day:

• Listening to angsty playlists (skip to the end if you don’t wanna hear cussing — it felt appropriate)

• Eating good and catching up with loved ones

• Rereading our Independence Affirmations (scroll down)

• Reflecting on what independence actually means...

As we see it, independence is building our way toward autonomy from the ruthless systems of oppression we all inhabit. It’s sticking to our values, even when the sacrifice is great.

And we're encouraged to see more of our people charting their indie paths in the public eye:

Erykah Badu, dropping her next album under her own label.
Ava DuVernay, building her own distribution company and financing her films outside of the traditional studio system.
Issa Rae, writing her way into Hollywood — her way — and continuing to fight for ownership of her IP.

Indie life isn’t for the faint of heart (we know this all too well). It’s risky. It can be brutal. It comes at a personal cost.

But it’s also necessary if we want to break the cycle of begging to be "let in" — only to inevitably be let down.

And this applies to every field of endeavor.
Media, yes. But also: shoes, books, wine, toothpaste, tech. Everything.

Maybe for you, being indie looks like:

• Buying land and learning to grow your own food

• Making the jump from corporate — or finally starting that side hustle

• Homeschooling your children

• Learning more about your body and using food as medicine...

In other words: operating outside the systems that were never designed with us in mind.

"Indies" are the people who are willing to take big risks to create the world that they wish existed, based on the values that we all hold dear. These are the people who don’t ask for permission. They bet on themselves, and we should bet on them (us), too.

Independence Affirmations
(to keep from spiraling):

“Saving the world” starts with caring for myself, my family and my village.

Each tiny shift in my daily habits, speech and actions sends a ripple through the atmosphere — the community — that surrounds me.

Even when I feel powerless, I can take one action each day that creates more autonomy for myself and my family. These actions will compound, both personally and collectively.

I am guided by my Higher Power — by Truth — not by politicians.

I create space to unplug from the machine, to tune into my own intuition.

I take time to be still, to sit with my own thoughts and emotions.

I embody my core values, and work to align my daily actions with them.

And I am patient with myself when I inevitably fall short of my own expectations.

I speak kindly to myself, as I would to a cherished friend or family member.

I walk in closer alignment with my purpose, each and every day.

No matter what’s happening in the world, I choose to cling to the fact that the Collective is more powerful than these systems could ever be.

A bona fide vocal talent and natural beauty, 25-year-old singer-songwriter Ari Lennox burst onto the scene in 2016 after signing to J. Cole’s Dreamville Records. The buzz from her soulful EP, PHO, and its sultry lead single, Backseat, led the songstress to an active 2017 — touring with D.R.A.M and J. Cole, performing at Philadelphia’s Made In America Festival and memorably sharing Essence Fest’s main stage with Chaka Khan and Mary J. Blige. of Honesty and Frankness. Describing her own voice as “vulnerable and soulful; imperfect but pretty,” she hopes to influence the narrative around women’s sexuality. “Sometimes women are put in this box where we’re only supposed to talk about certain things,” she explains. “I want to be braver and riskier. I think people want to hear that kind of honesty and frankness.” The recently released visuals for her second single, Night Drive, indicate that Lennox is just warming up. A follow-up to PHO is currently in the works, and it’s rumored that her first full-length album will drop in 2018.

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Describing her own voice as “vulnerable and soulful; imperfect but pretty,” she hopes to influence the narrative around women’s sexuality. “Sometimes women are put in this box where we’re only supposed to talk about certain things,” she explains. “I want to be braver and riskier. I think people want to hear that kind of honesty and frankness.” The recently released visuals for her second single, Night Drive, indicate that Lennox is just warming up. A follow-up to PHO is currently in the works, and it’s rumored that her first full-length album will drop in 2018.