Stephenetta “Isis” Harmon on Creating Sadiaa’s First Black Beauty Room & Awards

By Cat Satterwhite
When it involves magnificence requirements, Black magnificence hasn’t all the time been on the forefront, and in some ways, it nonetheless isn’t. You do have these like Iman, Lizzo, Beverly Johnson, Tyra Banks and lots of extra which have set some precedents, however numerous work nonetheless must be completed. Of course, most of us study our magnificence requirements from our mother and father and ancestors which now we have to be grateful for. But extra precedents should be set to collectively make change.

I had the pleasure of chatting with Stephenetta ”Isis” Harmon of the Sadiaa Black Beauty Guide. Stephenetta is a journalist, Black magnificence culturalist, and digital media strategist. Before we dive into the fabulousness of the wonder information, let’s look into the position of a magnificence culturalist if you happen to’re not acquainted.
“I’m West African and Liberian. I used to be born within the states however when you’ve gotten your mother and father, you’ve gotten this kind of twin id. As Black Americans, we dress as much as be accepted. We will go to the mall dressed up since you couldn’t go any sort of approach. It’s such as you wore your Sunday greatest to the mall to go store as a result of we needed to be taken significantly as customers. Studies present that we’ll spend extra as a result of we don’t need you to assume that we’re broke. But once we have been broke we have been doing this. And that’s how we over-index on magnificence as a result of we’re nonetheless attempting to be deemed lovely in a society that tells us we aren’t and so they proceed to indicate us by excluding us,” Stephenetta mentioned.
“I began as an editor. There is one factor to write down in regards to the tales and one other to begin positioning the tales. It’s about tradition. It’s about altering the dialog about how we discover our magnificence. It’s not solely about magnificence, make-up or hair, however the factor that makes us really feel higher about ourselves,” she mentioned.

She references Fenty Beauty by Rihanna as a fantastic instance of the way you’re speaking about it and being about it. Rihanna has put Black magnificence entrance and middle from all of our lovely Black tones to all sizes and shapes.  I needed to know extra about how the title Sadiaa was chosen.
“Sadiaa means” lucky one” I’m a poet as nicely and I’ve had the title since I used to be 20 years previous. I used to be on the Amistad ship at some re-creation in L.A. on the Watt’s competition and the title got here to me. I carried this title for a very long time. I’m like I don’t know what to do with this,” she mentioned.
She calls her mother and asks what her grandmother’s center title was and her mom advised her that her grandmother didn’t have a center title. But quick ahead and she or he finds out via one other relative that she really does have a center title that simply so occurs to be similar to the title that got here to her on the competition, Sadiaa. It was simply pronounced otherwise. How profound that this got here right into a full circle second to assist launch this lovely motion. So, let’s dive into extra in regards to the information.

“The Sadiaa Black Beauty Guide, I name it a 360-degree platform as a result of it’s devoted to amplifying the voice presence of Black magnificence manufacturers, entrepreneurs, and aficionados. It is Black magnificence tradition at its best to me. I began it truthfully in 2017 whereas I used to be a magnificence editor for one more publication. It was a platform for me to inform the tales that I needed to inform. We’d have all these listicles, like 5 Black-owned this, 5 Black-owned that. I’m like, how are we supposed to place all this collectively? We wanted one place to search out it. Journalists want one place and so do manufacturers and customers. I wanted this for us, that places us first. We spend cash, we make the traits, and we outspend and over-index in magnificence spending. If you depend all that stuff we get from China, we’re taking a look at 500 billion a yr yearly in magnificence, and we’re not centered. We’re solely introduced in when it’s handy, even pre-2020, pre-George Floyd,” she mentioned.
The platform began as a listing and now it has a information portal the place Stephenetta can speak to Black-owned magnificence manufacturers and people who find themselves shifting and shaking within the magnificence trade in addition to having a useful resource space.
Of course, with so many new Black-owned magnificence manufacturers, traits are hovering.

“We need clear magnificence and issues that aren’t killing us. Most of the merchandise marketed to Black ladies are essentially the most poisonous on the market. We have been very a lot on clear magnificence earlier than it was a development. We are mixing and mashing in our kitchens and that’s what’s hitting the cabinets. As far as hair, it’s about self-love. We simply got here out of a pandemic. We bought all of the a long time being celebrated, the Seventies, Eighties, and Nineteen Nineties. Everything is about what made us really feel good. We are seeing so many a long time being celebrated as a result of so many generations are coming collectively and we’re taking a look at what our mother and father did and that’s what made us really feel good,” she mentioned.
To add much more magnificence to Stephenetta’s motion, she has produced her first-ever Sadiaa Black Beauty Room & Awards. ***Insert applause!
“The Black Beauty Room & Awards is one thing that I used to be speaking about a couple of months in the past like I wanna do that in 2023 and I needed to convey this room collectively. I needed to convey this room collectively the place we will begin celebrating on bigger scales, our tradition, who we’re, and the way we expertise, really feel, stay, breathe and see magnificence. I used to be talking with Leah Frazier who’s wonderful in PR in DFW, and she or he mentioned I may join you with some individuals that may make it easier to do it. What if we do it subsequent month? The approach God works from thought to actuality is ridiculous. I needed so as to add one thing else to it, which is the awards. The DFW of us, there are individuals who I knew of earlier than I bought right here. I used to be following their tales, seeing their affect on a nationwide degree. It’s the primary for Black shopping for energy, and prime for entrepreneurs and girls of shade. I’m new to the world however I’m right here and I need to amplify the individuals who stay right here. There are actions and platforms right here that we will all sync and synergize on and it doesn’t should be one right here or one there. If we’re all poppin, then we should always all be within the room collectively. We create rooms, we don’t have to attend on another person to ask us to a room, proper? That’s why it’s the Black magnificence room. I need us all within the room. We are gonna have seats at our proverbial desk and we’re gonna make extra rooms and have extra seats. And my hope is that everybody expands on that,” she mentioned.

As far because the awards, there will likely be numerous focus on hair, but in addition trend, make-up, wellness, and skincare. The awards happen on Saturday August 27, 2022 at Renaissance Dallas at Plano Legacy West Hotel, 1:00 PM-4:00 PM CST.
This will likely be a fantastic alternative to be launched to new manufacturers.
In the longer term, Stephenetta sees her information being a full information platform churning out 10 tales a day, in addition to changing into the most important listing on the planet.

Websitehttps://www.sadiaa.com/
Tickets
https://www.legacywest.com/events/sadiaa-black-beauty-room-awards

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