A Letter to Virgil

Dear Virgil Abloh,

I wish this was a letter I could actually send you. Maybe it would end up somewhere between sketches, playlists, and the endless ideas you always seemed to have. But since it can’t, this is just my way of saying thank you.

Not just for the clothes, and not even just for the moment you became the menswear artistic director at Louis Vuitton. What I’m really thankful for is the way you helped people see culture differently. You showed the world that the things so many of us grow up loving, music, sneakers, street style, graphics, aren’t small or unserious. They’re art.

For a long time, fashion felt like a world that wasn’t built with people like us in mind. At the same time, Black culture was constantly shaping what the world actually looked like. The influence was obvious, but the recognition didn’t always follow. You saw that clearly. And instead of trying to separate street culture from luxury, you treated them like they belonged in the same conversation. When you created Off-White, it felt like you were translating something that had always been there. Suddenly the visual language that came from street culture, bold graphics, sneakers, industrial details, was standing confidently in spaces that once acted like it didn’t belong. You didn’t ask permission to bring that energy into fashion. You just did it.

One thing you said that really stays with people is that everything you created was for the seventeen-year-old version of yourself. I think that’s why your work resonated with so many people. It reminded us that the things we care about when we’re young, the music, the clothes, the creativity we grow up around, aren’t things we have to abandon to be taken seriously.For a lot of young creatives, especially young Black creatives, seeing your success meant something powerful. It showed that the culture we come from already has value, even if institutions take time to recognize it.

So this letter is really just a thank you.

Thank you for believing that creativity rooted in everyday life, music, and community deserved a place in spaces that once felt unreachable. And thank you for reminding a whole generation of artists, designers, and dreamers that the culture they come from already has value.

Even if the world takes a little time to catch up.

With admiration and gratitude.

Why Music Means So Much to Us.

The word “Superstar” as defined by the Merriam Webster Dictionary is “a star (as in sports or the movies) who is considered extremely talented, has great public appeal, and can usually command a high salary”. I associate traits like talented, undefeated, and unique with Superstars. Who in the music industry do you consider a Superstar? Think Beyonce and Micheal Jackson. I admire the growth of artists like these because of the inspiration they've given to the world. Music is a powerful tool that sends shockwaves through generations, lifestyles, and ideologies. Rhythm and Blues was created by black people and eventually went on to inspire many other genres. Oftentimes black artists are never accredited properly for their contributions. There is frequently the stealing, repackaging, or erasure of black existence. But within the black community the praise and love for these superstars are undeniable. These artists are held in high regard and even revered as saints. There is nothing comparable to black love. 

As a black woman I hold a specific place in my heart for black artists. Knowing that we experience similar struggles yet they still exceeded expectations deepens the connections we feel towards these artists. These artists in turn make music about their experiences that shows the world who they are and how proud they are of their heritage and identity. For example child abuse is normalized within the many communities. The mentality that violence makes one obedient is a core value within the black community. Many of us can relate to Micheal Jackson’s childhood. The overbearing, abusive father using and mistreating his family. But the beauty that blossomed from that was MJ’s craft. The song Childhood discusses MJ’s desire for a normal childhood “People say I'm strange that way/'Cause I love such elementary things/It's been my fate to compensate/For the Childhood (Childhood)/ I've never known”. Music is a tool that heals, when musicians create a space of understanding by sharing their experiences it makes their craft all the more beautiful. These Superstars have resilience and love for art which has persevered above all.

Like I stated earlier black culture, art and inspiration are taken and misappropriated in ways that do not appreciate or value the culture. When it comes to artists like Michael Jackson and Beyoncé they frequently connect back to their roots of being black. This connects with the community in such an emotional evoking way that is so beautiful and unique to the black experience. Artists who are unapologetically black move the community. These artists exhibit their love for their communities with their art. The love in which these artists receive from the community, they pay back through opportunities for others. 

As a young girl hearing Run the World by Beyonce filled me with confidence, I would run around the house in what I believed to be my best outfit, hollering the lyrics to my clearly overstimulated mother. If I wanted to have a sleepover with family friends we would use Micheal Jackson’s Thriller to create an over the top dance number to impress our parents. Beyoncé’s Lemonade has gone triple platinum in my room for 10 years now. First I was a little girl enamored with the beat, now I'm a young adult who can finally relate to the lyrics. As I’ve

grown as a writer, other black artists of many disciplines inspire me the most. When I’m out in creative spaces the first person I look for is someone black.

Beyonce is one of those individuals whose success and dedication inspire me. While I express my love for being black through writing she does it with phenomenal music. When an artist can make timeless music that can capture the attention of a wide audience they are a Superstar. These artists' music resonates with you in a way others can not compare to. In a Vogue article titled Beyoncé in Her Own Words: Her Life, Her Body, Her Heritage Beyonce states “It’s important to me that I help open doors for younger artists. There are so many cultural and societal barriers to entry that I like to do what I can to level the playing field, to present a different point of view for people who may feel like their voices don’t matter.” Messages and actions like this are why black Superstars are treated with such seriousness and respect from the black community. Opening doors and holding space for people who look just like them, despite them already being established. Black artists understand the black community more than anyone because they are a part of that community. 

So let’s answer the big question: why are certain artists considered Superstars within the black community? These people are considered superstars because they have worked endlessly to perfect their craft. They are entertaining, charismatic, and beautiful. They opened a lane for themselves and no matter how much they succeed, they always contribute back to the community. There are so many debates about who is the number one superstar but the creativity and talent the black music community exudes is immeasurable to anything else in this entire world. These black artists put on performances, release albums, start brands that are revolutionary, and this is beautiful. These black stars are a reflection of what black excellence means.

Creative Director: Tayja Whyte

Production Manager: Chloe Kaleah Stewart

Photography: Alec Conwell

Production: Mickayla Davis, K Pereira

Talent: Elena Richardson, Melissa Alcindor, Nevaeh Adkins, Moram Hassan

The Mind of an Angry, Black Woman: Rest in Peace Assata Shakur

Black women matter. Black women in history have always been seen as “other,” or the other. She can’t be both a woman and Black. With that, she is placed at the bottom of the oppressed. As a woman, she’s expected to learn her home before her mind, find her husband before her heart, and have children—completely hindering her childhood to give new life what she couldn’t have.

She does it all with what she has and what she works her ass for. All in silence. Determination. And audacity. Never did she ask for a handout or for understanding; she just asked that you open your eyes to her pain. See through her eyes—her anger and her agency.

Black women throughout time have always been, and continue to be, seen as less and treated far worse. We tend to be the first at the scene and the last to leave. As Black women, we are born leaders—born women and born Black. Throughout history, we are seen as both the most influenced and the strongest. The phrase “strong Black woman” is normally associated with activism. In our perspective, these women come in many different shades of brown and vast personalities.

Strong Black women. Women who care. Women who expanded what it means to be a Black woman in the revolution—addressing issues such as education, health care, and the development of youth. Black women are natural nurturers. While challenging racism and sexism, they never lost sight of the passion that was the end goal: Black liberation and freedom for all.

Assata Shakur, born JoAnne Deborah Byron on July 16, 1947, is one of the greatest political activists in history. A revolutionary and member of the Black Panther Party and the Black Liberation Army, the late Assata Shakur is who I would correctly define as a beautiful, Black, “angry” woman.

On May 2, 1973, Shakur—then a prominent member of the BLA—was involved in a horrific shootout with New Jersey State Police, which resulted in the death of State Trooper Werner Foerster and fellow member Zayd Malik Shakur. In 1977, Shakur was imprisoned. A normal day in May turned into the start of a never-ending journey with no destination for a long time—chaos filled with death, fear, and imprisonment.

In 1979, Shakur escaped prison and fled to Cuba under political asylum. Through her autobiography, she goes in depth about what she went through. She stresses her time in the BLA as well as her early experiences being incarcerated—the treatment cruel and unforgettable. This Black woman spent much of her young life in prison, unaware that this particular crime would be permanently linked to her. Her fight for freedom turned into a fight for survival for over 50 years, as she was hunted for the rest of her life.

She became the first Black woman ever placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted list, with a $2 million bounty announced in 2013. In her autobiography, Assata Shakur explains how it is our duty to fight for our freedom, no matter what.

“No movement can survive unless it is constantly growing and changing with the times. If it isn't growing, if it's stagnant and without the support of the people, no movement for liberation can exist, no matter how correct its analysis of the situation is. That's why political work and organizing are so important. Unless you are addressing the issues people are concerned about and contributing positive direction, they'll never support you. The first thing the enemy tries to do is isolate revolutionaries from the masses of people, making us horrible and hideous monsters so that our people will hate us.”

Leading through her struggles in life, and now in death, we celebrate this strong Black woman for her fight against injustice. That is why we say her name:

Assata Shakur.

Breonna Taylor.

Sandra Bland.

Tanisha Anderson.

Korryn Gaines.

Michelle Cusseaux.

Kayla Moore.

Rekia Boyd.

And to the many more beautiful, “angry” Black women whose lives were ruined by racism.