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Skyh Alvester Black Talks Life, Faith and Love

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Best known for Sistas and All The Queen’s Men, Skyh Alvester Black has worked hard to get to where he is today. It was not always easy, but ultimately, every challenge he encountered helped build his character and led him to his purpose.

Born in Alabama and raised in Miami, the 33-year-old Florida native always had a deep-rooted love for music. Dancing became the passion he wanted to pursue professionally, a task that required real commitment. His loving grandparents, who raised him, were prime examples of how hard work, dedication, and faith pay off. “My granddad created a construction business only having a High School diploma,” Black shared with HM, “I always saw the work ethic in my grandparents, so it was just kinda innate for me. If I wanted something – to go after it with the relentless approach and jump because the net would always appear.”

While his other dream of becoming an R’n’B singer did not pan out, dancing became his thing. He loved it and was good at it. Black worked on stage with some of the biggest names in entertainment, including Rihanna and Beyonce. Dance was the path, the goal. Dance was everything until it wasn’t.

Skyh Alvester Black | photo by Leigh Keily

In 2010 Black had an encounter that shifted the trajectory of his creative journey forever. Back then, he auditioned for a small part in Grey’s Anatomy, where he met Debbie Allen. The legendary dancer and actor saw something that Black was not aware of at the time. ‘Honey, I’m going to make you an actor. That’s what I see of you,’ Allen told him. It would take a few years and hard work for those fateful words to become a reality.

Encouraged by his music manager, Black stepped into Tasha Smith’s acting class in 2018. Sadly, his beloved grandfather had passed by then, and Black’s singing career had not taken off. “I felt like a failure cause I didn’t accomplish it to the gratitude that I wanted to accomplish it,” he told HM, “and I felt guilty about that until my grandfather passed, and I wasn’t where I personally wanted to be. I felt guilty that I wasn’t able to give back everything he gave me.”

The acting workshop was the spark he needed, “I fell in love, and I remember everything Debbie Allen had pushed me to do several years before, and it was cathartic, it was therapeutic. It was everything that I needed, and it became an obsession.” That was the turning point. Exactly one year later, Black booked his first major television role as Jacobi on Tyler Perry’s Sistas that airs on BET. The network recently renewed the series for a fourth season, so there is no time to catch a break just yet.

After the first time I had the privilege of doing Sistas, I felt like I could do anything!

Working with Tyler Perry certainly warrants an intense schedule, and Black is here for it. “It’s the best training for an actor. And not just an actor but a professional. I love it! Even the first time I got the privilege of doing Sistas, I felt like I could do anything; because of the pace and intensity. It’s this well-oiled machine that just works,” he told HM.

Skyh Alvester Black | photography by Leigh Keily
Skyh Alvester Black | photo by Leigh Keily

Black then went on to book a role on the BET+ series All The Queen’s Men. The show takes viewers into the world of exotic male dancing. The actor plays AMP, a bouncer/doorman at Eden, a club managed by Marilyn ‘Madam’ DeVille (Eva Marcille).

There is no word on the show’s season 2 renewal yet, but it’s clear that the audience wants more. “I was completely surprised by the response,” Black shared with HM, “It’s such a taboo subject in mainstream America, and we were in the middle of the pandemic. It has been such an amazing and unexpected ride, and people are loving it, so I am completely grateful.”

And this is just the beginning. Ahead lies another leading role in AllBlk’s new legal drama Lace from Deuces and Brotherly Love helmer Jamal Hill. The series follows a prolific Los Angeles attorney Lacey (Maryam Basir), who often blurs the lines between right and wrong to protect her rich and powerful clientele. Black stars as attorney Othello Charles. The show will air in November.

Things are coming together not only in his professional life but also personal. Black and his girlfriend and Sistas co-star KJ Smith recently made it Instagram-official. Although the couple stays mostly private, Black wants everyone to know how proud he is of his significant other. “She is great!” He told HM, “I learned how to be a leading man by watching her when she didn’t even know I was watching. She is the exemplary leading woman, and she is incredible!”

The journey of the leading man has not been easy, but he says he likes to test his limits “because when you are pushed, you never know what you can actually accomplish.”


Interview by Tina French, Hollywood Melanin

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The Girlfriends Reunite for Tracee Ellis Ross’s Pattern Beauty Campaign

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Girlfriends

Tracee Ellis Ross reunited with her Girlfriends cast members Jill Marie Jones, Golden Brooks, and Persia White for the first commercial from her Pattern Beauty hair and body care line, available Friday, June 27, 2025. So this campaign, which champions black hair and immortal friendship, has fans of the cult 00s show absolutely giddy.

Tracee Ellis Ross-founded brand made when it came out with its first commercial to celebrate six years in the haircare space and the 25th anniversary of Girlfriends (2000–2008). The ad, which features the fan-favorite cast—Tracee Ellis Ross (Joan), Jill Marie Jones (Toni), Golden Brooks (Maya), and Persia White (Lynn)—is a colorful love-fest for Black hair care and sisterly love. In a stylish setting of a “Pattern Lounge,” the ad displays the winning chemistry of the cast as they slip into their iconic characters, raving about Pattern’s curl-centric products.
The campaign is centered on elite “hair cocktailing,” a term used in the Black community to describe the layering of things like gels, creams, or oils to create bespoke haircare regimens. Ross plays the “Chief Curltender,” guiding her co-stars to their product matches made in heaven for their specific curl types, from flake-free definition to touchable hold and shine.

Girlfriends, which ran on UPN and, later, the CW from 2000 to 2008, followed four Black women in love, career, and friendship. A pioneering series created by Mara Brock Akil, it was revolutionary in the honest way it depicted Black sisterhood, far removed from contemporaries like Sex and the City. “Sex and the City was about dating with a friend group, but Girlfriends was about the ‘chosen family of sisterhood,’” Akil said, adding that Joan and Toni’s relationship was “the emotional core.” The series has stood the test of time, remaining a cultural obsession available to stream on Netflix even though die-hard fans are still mourning a cancellation that didn’t even get them a proper farewell.


The initiative sees the cast of Girlfriends reunite on screen for the first time since the stars appeared on Black-ish in 2019, which also starred Ross. The commercial cashes in on the series’ continued relevance and features the cast’s infectious camaraderie that you missed – and Maya’s melodrama, Toni’s shade, and Lynn’s ditsy sweetness!
The campaign also aligns with Pattern Beauty’s commitment to championing and empowering curly, coily, and tightly textured hair. So Ross, who spent her Girlfriends days shopping in the kids’ section for haircare products, created Pattern to fill that void. The ad showcases the brand’s diverse product collection, which includes shampoos, conditioners, stylers, hot tools, and tools specifically designed for individuals with type 3B to 4C curl patterns.

Ross, the CEO and founder of Pattern Beauty, has been on the ground floor with the brand since its inception. The concept for Pattern was nurtured during her Girlfriends days, when she noticed the dearth of products suited for Black hair.

Launching in 2019 after 10 years of pitching and developing, Pattern was born, and Ross worked with chemists to develop formulas that actually worked. The spot takes place in a colorful production setting and features the cast’s natural chemistry but not Ross, who teased the reunion on Instagram: “Back together like we never left.” The result is a love letter to friends and fans, where laughs, heart, and hair care come together.

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Ryan Coogler Confirms Denzel Washington Will Star in ‘Black Panther 3’

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Black Panther 3

Ryan Coogler, the acclaimed director of Black Panther and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, has confirmed that Hollywood legend Denzel Washington will join the cast of Black Panther 3. This announcement came during Coogler’s appearance on the 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony podcast, where he revealed that he has written a role specifically for the two-time Oscar winner, whom he regards as “the greatest living actor.”

Washington first hinted at his involvement in the Marvel project during a November 2024 interview on the Today show in Australia, generating excitement among fans. Coogler, who has long admired Washington, expressed his enthusiasm about their upcoming collaboration, noting their close relationship and Washington’s cultural significance. “Denzel is family at this point,” he said in the interview.

Black Panther
Ryan Coogler and Chadwick Boseman/ Black Panther

Although Marvel Studios has not officially announced Black Panther 3, the franchise’s success, having grossed over $2 billion globally from its first two films, makes a third installment a logical step. The film is still in early development, and while there is no confirmed release date, Coogler hinted that it’s “not long” away, potentially targeting a 2028 release following Avengers: Secret Wars.

Speculation about Washington’s role is abundant, with fans suggesting he could portray a new Wakandan character, a historical figure like Bashenga, or even a multiverse variant of T’Challa or T’Chaka. The emotional connection to the late Chadwick Boseman, who credited Washington’s mentorship for his career, adds significant weight to this casting choice.

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Here Is Why Halle Berry Declined Van Hunt’s Proposal After 5 Years Of Dating

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Halle Berry

Halle Berry and Van Hunt went public with their relationship in September 2020. After five years of dating, Hunt, a Grammy-winning musician, proposed to the Oscar-winning actress, but Berry has not yet accepted.

Berry’s decision to decline Hunt’s proposal, at least for now, stems primarily from her history with marriage. The actress has been married three times previously—to former MLB player David Justice (1993–1997), singer Eric Benét (2001–2005), and actor Olivier Martinez (2013–2016). She also shares a daughter, Nahla, 17, with ex-boyfriend Gabriel Aubry, and a son, Maceo, 11, with Martinez. Hunt has been married once and has a teenage son, Drake.

Halle Berry and Van Hunt
Halle Berry and Van Hunt at 2023 Oscars

During the Today interview, Berry explained, “Well, I’ve been married three times. Van has been married once, and so no, we don’t feel like we have to get married to validate our love in any way. We don’t.”

While Berry has not accepted Hunt’s proposal, she has not ruled out marriage entirely. In the same interview, she expressed that she believes Hunt is the right partner for her, stating, “I think we will get married just because, out of the people I’ve been married to, this is the person I should have married.” She added that any future marriage would be a choice made out of desire for expression, not obligation, and hinted at a potential wedding “soon.”

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