Salva Storie Instagram

What began as a love letter to Chicago’s South Side became one of the most important Black stories ever told on television.

For years, The Chi gave us community, conversation, heartbreak, healing, joy, and characters that felt like family. It made Chicago feel like home while spotlighting the beauty, complexity, and humanity of life with care and intention.

Now, as the longest-running Black drama series in premium cable and streaming history, ESSENCE honors the legacy of a cultural institution that changed the landscape of storytelling forever.

This is their final curtain call and serves as a standing ovation to the stories, performances, and cultural impact that made The Chi a defining force in television.

Featuring Lena Waithe, Luke James, Hannaha Hall, Birgundi Baker, Jacob Latimore, and Jason Weaver, this moment is both a celebration and a thank you. To the cast. To the city. To the culture.

Some stories entertain us.
The Chi became a part of us.

Read more of our digital cover story at ESSENCE.com

Roll The Credits:
Photographer: @lelanief
Production: @allworthypeople

Talent: @lenawaithe @jacoblatimore @hannahahall @wolfjames @birgundi_baker @itsjasonweaver

Stylist: @newheartnyc
Hair: @takishahair
Makeup: @alovethepro
Special thanks to: @paramountplus

Essence
Editorial Director & Writer: @ghostwritervic
Content Operations Manager: @shelbylnstewart
VP, of Social & Special Projects: @mentionme
VP, Video: @nicolejanuarie
Visuals Director: @hashtag_bre
Art Director: @so.lit
VP, SMTG Creative - @praise_odg

Meet the Jacksons

In the film Michael, Colman Domingo, Nia Long, and Jaafar Jackson step into one of the most sacred legacies in music: The life, The family, and The genius that is Michael Jackson.

From Gary, Indiana to stages across the globe, the journey unfolds through music, sacrifice, and ambition. The story moves through a father’s discipline, a mother’s grace, and the quiet weight carried by a child destined for greatness.

Because before the icon, there was a son. Before the myths, there was a family.

At its core, Michael is about complexity. Talent and pressure. Growth and expectation. This time, the story is told with care.

From Off the Wall to looking at the Man in the Mirror, the reflection reveals the full picture of the soul of Michael.

Read more from the cast of Michael in ESSENCE’s digital cover story at ESSENCE.com. In theaters April 24.

Photography: @Mr_Dadams
Creative Producer, @laurenpaigecreates of @allworthypeople

Colman Domingo
Styling: @waymanandmicah
Grooming: @jam_rich
Barber: Pierce Austin

Jaafar Jackson
Styling: @ilariaurbinati
Grooming: @bcorso

Nia Long
Makeup: @kilprity
Hair: @farmercarla
Styling: @thereismans

ESSENCE
VP, of Social & Special Projects: @mentionme
Writer: @coolhandoak
Editorial Director: @ghostwritervic
Manager, Content Operations: @shelbylnstewart
Art Director: @so.lit
VP, Video: @nicolejanuarie

The power of Sinners lives in the women who helped bring it to life.

Zinzi Coogler, Ruth E. Carter, Autumn Durald Arkapaw, Jayme Lawson, Wunmi Mosaku, Shunika Terry-Jennings, and Hannah Beachler shaped the film’s visual language and cultural depth. Through design, cinematography, hair, performance, and world-building, they helped reimagine Black history through horror, myth, and memory.

The results speak loudly. A box-office phenomenon. Sixteen historic Oscar nominations.

But the real impact lives deeper. These women did more than tell a story about ancestry and survival. They protected it.
Frame by frame, Sinners reminds us that when Black women create with intention, it becomes legacy.

The Women of Sinners are our 2026 ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Luminaries. Read more at ESSENCE.com.

Photographer: @peacebureau
Writer: @be_vic

Zinzi Coogler 
Makeup - @janicekinjo
Hair -@marciahamiltonhair
Stylist - @JasonBolden

Jayme Lawson 
Makeup - Mila Thomas
Hair - @dhairiusnyc
Assistant - @heather_borah/?hl=en
Stylist - @jasonrembert

Wunmi Mosaku 
Makeup - @u.z.o
Hair - @iamaraxilindsey
Stylist - @shameelahhicks 
Nails- @chuenails

Hannah Beachler 
Makeup -autumnmoultriebeauty
Hair - @kimblehaircare
Stylist -  @fresh2impress

Shunika Terry-Jennings
Makeup -@camillearianemakeup
Hair - @therealritabee
Stylist -  @fresh2impress

Autumn Durald Arkapow 
Makeup - @camillearianemakeup
Hair - @therealritabee
Stylist - @fresh2impress

Ruth Carter 
Makeup -@brandyallen
Hair -@Stylesbydavonte
Stylist - @fresh2impress

Nails
Lead -@sayo_irie

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

What happens when we let play take over?

For so many of us, play was treated like a warning. “Keep playing and find out.” Well, we did. And turns out? Play might be the thing saving us.

That’s the heart behind our partnership with LEGO® bricks and the “Keep Playing, See What Happens” campaign. Black women remain one of the most overworked and underpaid groups in society, with Black women earning just 66 cents to every dollar earned by white men. And in a world constantly demanding more from us, choosing joy, imagination, and rest can feel revolutionary.

Turns out, play isn’t a distraction from life. It might just be the thing helping us hold it together.

Explore more at https://www.lego.com/en-us/us-culture

Festival Flashback: Druski may tell a joke, but he’ll never tell a lie.

Druski had us all taking notes during his ESSENCE Festival Suede stage conversation at last year’s festival.

We’re bringing Suede Stage back this time with more talent and nire experience for the fellas! And the next part, it’s FREE!

Be sure to get your tickets today!

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • More than one million copies sold!

A “brilliant” (Lupita Nyong’o, Time), “poignant” (Entertainment Weekly), “soul-nourishing” (USA Today) memoir about coming of age during the twilight of apartheid.

What happens when politics, art, and culture come together in the name of Black liberation?

You get the Road to ESSENCE!

Don’t miss @SisterSong_WOC and @GBEF_’s five-city tour from 4/12- 6/20 that will build community, resistance, and action.

Find out if #RoadtoEssence is stopping in a city near you: https://www.sistersong.net/the-road-to-essence-1

Dance Jermanie!

If you've been in the clock app, you've seen the shock and amazement people are having over seeing an old clip of Jermaine Dupri dancing, so JD had to prove he still has the moves. And it’s given us a reason to get up and dance, too!

Happy Friday, may the groove carry you through the weekend!

What would you do with a second chance at your first time?

Following a bad breakup, Willow Lewis tackles a re-do list with the help of her brother’s best friend in this sweet and sexy romance.

Be sure to pick up your new summer read by author Denise Williams at Penguin Random House.

World Stop…

We literally stopped mid scroll to be in awe of the hair, the skin, the glow that make up these beautiful women. At some point, it's just unfair.

This is our type of carrying on, ladies!

Video: @belamexmo

📍 Houston, TX — Tag a Black-owned business that deserves their flowers! 💜

Drop them in the comments, help us build the best HTX directory!

Be sure to shop at WeLoveUs.shop — your one-stop destination for Black-owned brands. All brands. All drops. Link in bio. 🛍️✨

#blackownedhouston #supportblackbusinesses #blackownedbusiness #houstontexas #shopblack

📍 Houston, TX — Tag a Black-owned business that deserves their flowers! 💜

Drop them in the comments, help us build the best HTX directory!

Be sure to shop at WeLoveUs.shop — your one-stop destination for Black-owned brands. All brands. All drops. Link in bio. 🛍️✨

#blackownedhouston #supportblackbusinesses #blackownedbusiness #houstontexas #shopblack

ESSENCE Festival of Culture really is for everybody… even the folks on the clock.

The security team at the Superdome may have came to work, but the music said ‘clock out emotionally.’

Between the line dances, singalongs, and side-step choreography at the barricade, they were in formation right along with the crowd.

Battle of the Security is officially underway who’s taking it?

ESSENCE Festival of Culture really is for everybody… even the folks on the clock.

The security team at the Superdome may have came to work, but the music said ‘clock out emotionally.’

Between the line dances, singalongs, and side-step choreography at the barricade, they were in formation right along with the crowd.

Battle of the Security is officially underway who’s taking it?

ESSENCE Festival of Culture really is for everybody… even the folks on the clock.

The security team at the Superdome may have came to work, but the music said ‘clock out emotionally.’

Between the line dances, singalongs, and side-step choreography at the barricade, they were in formation right along with the crowd.

Battle of the Security is officially underway who’s taking it?