Q: How would you describe your aesthetic? Who are your style icons?
JM: Movement is probably the first important part of my aesthetic. My spirit is in motion and I need what I’m wearing to be a reflection of that. I love bold and bright pieces that pick me up and leave me to not have to say anything.
Off top– Mom.
Me and my mama grew up with each other in the 90’s. She was always fly and always had me in something fresh as well. She was my first introduction to style.
I grew up watching Tisha Campbell, Lisa Bonet, Nia Long and Queen Latifah- and watched all of these women channel, Billie Holiday, Diana Ross, Chaka Khan, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Frida Kahlo even, and so many more women.
Q: We love the way you prioritize care for those around you. Even in our short moments together you’re constantly looking to the people in your life who you love and making sure they’re alright, checking in with your son, making sure he’s being treated well and that he’s treating others well in return and supporting him in his endeavors, all while emitting positivity to everyone else. We’ve always considered care a distinct form of activism, so where do you think this instinct comes from?
JM: As Black women we are forced to pick ourselves up off the ground no matter the circumstance or situation. We are expected to carry not only our own, but the weight of those around us. There is a burden and responsibility there. There is care and love there, and there is process. These things come as instinct to me because my body holds the memory of the generations of women who came before me, and those trying to move through me now.