Did you know Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali were super tight? Yes early on, while Muhammad Ali was still named Cassius Clay and taking in the teachings of the NOI by Elijah Muhammad. Malcolm took on a mentor role with Ali. Ali once said, “My first impression of Malcolm X was how could a Black man talk about the government and white people and act so bold and not be shot at? He was fearless. That really attracted me." Friction came when Malcolm started making moves and saying things unapproved by Elijah Muhammad, but ultimately ended when Malcolm exposed his extramarital affairs. There’s a whole doc on Netflix about it if you haven’t seen it. It’s called “Blood Brothers,” very emotional watch.
Black History 365 | #13 - Kool Herc
What do you know about Kool Herc? Kool Herc and his sister are credited for throwing the first party thst essentially birthed Hip-Hop. DJ Afrika Bambaata, and DJ Grandmaster Flash are also synonymous with the birth of the culture. Definitely the founding fathers of Hip-Hop. “MC’s never showed loyalty yet. Kool Herc ain’t never get a royalty check.”
Black History 365 | #12 - 1520 Sedgwick Avenue
Did you know 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in The Bronx, New York is credited as the birthplace of Hip-Hop? August 11th, 1939 to be precise. Yep, a 102-unit building built for working classes families was where it all started. Humble beginnings for the 50 year old art form. Now, in 2022 Hip-Hop generated $15.9 billion off of music streams and purchases alone, according to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Across the globe, it's changed how businesses outside the culture/genre of Hip-Hop now market their products even if they’re not directly using an artist to market their products. This culture is huge business now. Where’s those royalty checks for the founders?
Black History 365 | #10 - Madam C.J. Walker
Did you know Madam CJ Walker was one of the first self-made American woman millionaires? She developed a formula that contained Sulphur and the Sulphur healed her scalp. When other women saw the results of her creation she went into business. She set her sights on expanding her market. She began “branding” herself…which is wild given the context. She went door to door with fliers, and business cards. She advertised in black newspapers using before and after photos and testimonials. She built a factory, a laboratory and a beauty school. She employed other women who would become sales agents. This is in the early 1900s! Get that bag!
Black History 365 | #28 - Black Hair
In America there have been hairstyles unique to Black people that are linked to history, slavery, texture, even more. Some white slave owners forced slaves to shave their head and keep a “tidy” appearance. In pre-colonial times hair was a symbol of a person’s identity like their tribe, social status, family background, etc. Natural black hair was banned in the military, workplace, and school. Black people in the 1940s-1960s started to chemically straighten their hair using lye. Lye is an alkali metal hydroxide originally used to “cure” foods. Which made them less bitter. Now there are chemical hair relaxers that can be lye free? Idk about women’s hair, I can’t tell em what to do. I prefer the natural whether it’s nappy, coiled, curly, wavy, even straight. I don’t discriminate. Fine is fine. But hey 🤷🏾♂️. Now, did you know in 2021 Synthetic Hair was getting bought by/imported to the US for a total of 2.02 Billion dollars? Right behind was Nigeria for a total of $410M, Ghana for $226M, South Africa ($192M). It was exported from China, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Germany, and Senegal. Now with Human Hair Hong Kong was up with $27M, Burma had $26.4M, India ($16.7M), Singapore ($8.69M), and China ($6.97M). It was getting imported by Indonesia, China, Austria, Burma, and Vietnam. Black women in the United States, along with women in continental Africa are the largest consumer group of this industry. Synthetic braids were the second most popular hairstyle among American black women in 2022. Hope more black people can cash in on this billion dollar industry and make some bread too.