I learned of Joanna "JoJo" Levesque in 2004 when her debut song, "Leave (Get Out)" blew up on the charts. I was eleven at the time, so seeing a twelve/thirteen-year-old make such a splash at damn-near the same age as me was inspiring. I BEGGED to get JoJo's debut album when it came out and, thanks to Grandma's Kmart employee...[ read more ]
Acamea Deadwiler is a gifted storyteller, and her new memoir, Daddy’s Little Stranger, made me feel understood and even brought me to healing tears. “Releasing my tears would only compound the humiliation. I knew there would be no consoling hugs. We weren’t that kind of family.” Daddy’s Little Stranger takes readers on a journey set in Gary, Indiana, which for a...[ read more ]
A Visible Man by Edward Enninful was one of a few memoirs that I finished in December. The book is different from most of the memoirs I choose because I had no prior knowledge of who the author was; rather, Audible kept recommending it to me. I'm glad I gave his book a chance and I look forward to sharing...[ read more ]
I've had Fat Joe's new memoir, The Book of Jose, on my Audible wishlist for a while and I finally got around to giving it a listen. As a hip hop fan growing up in the 90s and early 00s, I've kept up with Fat Joe's career. Prior to reading his story, I didn't know much about his personal life...[ read more ]
While this blog focuses on mental health, I occasionally get creative with a relevant book or movie review. Today, I'm doing something a bit different. When Megan Thee Stallion released her sophomore album, "Traumazine," last Friday, I knew I wanted to write about it here. As an EMDR therapist, I know a lot about trauma; however, I'd never heard the...[ read more ]
Like many in their late 20s-early 30s, I grew up during Nickelodeon's heyday (ahem... back when it was good) and enjoyed watching shows such as All That, The Amanda Show, and Drake & Josh. Josh Peck played roles on all the aforementioned shows. Having been chubby throughout my childhood and adolescence, I appreciated seeing the representation that Peck's characters brought...[ read more ]
Today, I'm excited to share about the memoir that I just read by Jamie Lynn Spears titled, Things I Should Have Said. Background I wasn't sure how I'd like this book, as celebrity tell-alls often come across as exaggerated; however, I was pleasantly surprised by this one. I'm about the same age as Jamie Lynn and I remember loving her...[ read more ]
Photo credit link. Despite being only a month old at the release of her debut album, Mary J. Blige is one of the icons that have been a constant throughout my life (alongside Mariah Carey and Ms. Lauryn Hill.) When I saw that Mary J. released a documentary to commemorate the 25th anniversary of her second album, My Life, I...[ read more ]
Image Credit Though I don't tend to follow the royal family, I became more interested when Meghan Markle, an actress from one of my favorite shows, Suits, got engaged to Prince Harry. More recently, I've seen how their lives have been shaped by racism and anxiety, which ultimately culminated in the couple separating from the royal family. Today, I'll be...[ read more ]
I loved watching the docuseries, The Me You Can't See, produced by Oprah and Prince Harry. As a lover of stories, I especially appreciated the interviews with Lady Gaga and Prince Harry (post on him coming soon). What surprised me the most was how forthcoming Oprah was about her own mental health. Today, I'll be sharing some of what I...[ read more ]