Events

Pictures & Video highlights: @BlackGirlsRock 2016

The BLACK GIRLS ROCK! Awards is a show celebrating the achievements of brilliant, beautiful Black women and girls who stand in their truth. Produced by BLACK GIRLS ROCK! Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit, the event is also aimed a promoting the arts for young women of color, as well as to encourage dialogue and analysis of the ways women of color are portrayed in the media.

This year’s award show was held at the New Jersey Performing Center in Newark, New Jersey and was hosted by Tracee Ellis Ross. The honorees were Rihanna, Gladys Knight, Shonda Rhimes, Amanda Stenberg and Danai Gurira. All honorees had wonderful nuggets to share. Particularly memorable was Amandla Stenberg who said, “I remember looking in the mirror when I was a little girl and looking at all that hair and being like, ‘Why is that there?’ I wanted it to go down so much. I remember suppressing it and brushing it and being so frustrated that I was so big and so bold. I felt like I took up too much space. But because of those women [who raised me], I have learned that…my blackness does not inhibit me from being beautiful and intelligent. In fact it’s the reason why I am beautiful and intelligent.”

Also memorable was Danai Gurira who said, “I know it can get tough out there. It can get downright ugly. I have walked the path or some version of it but know that you are designed for greatness. You have a resilience that is in your DNA…whether you want it or not. You are what the world is waiting for. Whether the world acknowledges that or not. Step into your uniqueness. Protect it. Nurture it. It is precious. No one can do what you can do or contribute what you are destined and designed to contribute.”

Check out some pictures from the event and a few soundbites from guests.

Teyonah Paris
Black Girls Rock 2016 Teyonah Parris2

Black Girls Rock 2016 Teyonah Parris

Skai Jackson
Black Girls Rock 2016 Skai Jackson

Shonda Rhimes
Black Girls Rock 2016 Shonda Rhimes

Rihanna
Black Girls Rock 2016 Rihanna2

Black Girls Rock 2016 Rihanna

Mikki Taylor
Black Girls Rock 2016 Mikki Taylor

Maya Penn
Black Girls Rock 2016 Maya Penn

Marsai Martin
Black Girls Rock 2016 Marsai Martin

Marley Dias
Black Girls Rock 2016 Marley Dias

Justine Skye
Black Girls Rock 2016 Justine Skye

Jazmine Sullivan
Black Girls Rock 2016 Jazmine Sullivan

Haile Thomas
Black Girls Rock 2016 Haile Thomas

Gladys Knight
Black Girls Rock 2016 Gladys Knight

Franchesca Ramsey
Black Girls Rock 2016 Franchesca Ramsey

Danai Gurira
Black Girls Rock 2016 Danal Gurira2

Cicely Tyson
Black Girls Rock 2016 Cicely Tyson

Beverly Bond
Black Girls Rock 2016 Beverly Bond

Bethann Hardison
Black Girls Rock 2016 Bethann Hardison

Amandla Stenberg
Black Girls Rock 2016 Amandla Stenberg

Tatyana Ali
Black Girls Rock 2016 Tatyana Ali

Photo: Nicholas Hunt/BET/Getty Images

Ladybrille Magazine

Founded in 2007, Ladybrille® Magazine is a California based pioneer digital publication demystifying the image of Africans in the west through contemporary African fashion and celebrating the brilliant woman in business and leadership, with an emphasis on the African woman in the diaspora. Our coverage includes stories on capital, access to markets, expertise, hiring and retention, sales, marketing, and promotions.

You may also like...