The Essence Black Women event in Hollywood is an annual luncheon that honors black performers as well as visionary directors and creators who work behind the cameras. The 16th iteration of the award took place Thursday and honored Hollywood’s many great contributors, such as Danielle Deadwyler for Till, Gina Prince-Bythewood for her newest film, The Woman King, and Sheryl Lee Ralph for Abbott Elementary. The event formally highlighted black women’s contribution to the industry in the eras that have passed and the ones that are to come. The current year’s contributions were also looked up to and celebrated.
The Event
The event was hosted by Boris Kodjoe, the German-Ghanian actor who is famous for many shows and films. Essence has been a brave and bold platform for the representation of Black representation. It all began in 1970 when Hollywood was raw and brand new. Essence magazine’s founders and creators were hence applauded for their vision and ahead-of-time thinking that brought so much attention to the people of color associated with Hollywood. Dominique Thorn, who played Riri Williams in Marvel’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, lauded Essence’s efforts in her acceptance speech which she began with a prayer:
“this world is overly eager to forget, ignore, overlook, endanger, misuse, misunderstand and otherwise brutalize the Black woman. Yet in that same world, Essence stands – and has stood – proud and immovable to amplify our truths … to honor our mystique and to celebrate our successes.” Said Thorne, who was overjoyed and emotional at the moment.
Essence Magazine has been a place of refuge as well as a brand that firmly stands behind its contributors and artists. Supermodel Beverly Johnson recounted her experience of stepping into the industry and how her initial shoots were with magazines like Glamour, Vogue, and of course, Essence:
“Essence Magazine and I started the same year. It’ll be 50 years for me in 2024,” she said. “What I always knew as I traveled throughout the world as this token Black model was that I had a home in Essence. I always knew it would be there for me.”
Being a Black model in the early days was not easy for anyone. Johnson has hence become an idol and a legend in her field, and it’s all because of the safety and comfort of the platform that Essence provided her with. Now, Essence is looking forward to showing the newer generations the impact Black women have had in multiple industries. It’s all a part of their brand-new vision for the company. Executive director and vice-president of content Danielle Cadet talked about Essence’s future direction:
“The brand has such an incredible foundation and I’m really interested in taking it into the next chapter and serving that audience of Millenial and Gen Z Black women who are entering into a different phase of life,” said Cadet.
Another brilliant talent present at the ceremony was Arsema Thomas, who plays the role of a young Agatha Danbury in the Netflix series Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story. She had things to say about her show and what the audience could expect from it:
“Bridgerton is so light and beautiful and fun with the balls and the gowns, [but] Queen Charlotte is about the back story. It’s about what had to happen so that this kind of community could even exist. You see all the hard work and struggle that it took to make that world, so I think it’s just a bit more grounded in reality. It’s going to be a different feel, like a different texture.” She said about the upcoming season.
