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Zendaya Thrills With New Moves in Fashion and Tech
The actress and socially conscious Power 100 alum talks about her new ventures and why voting this election is crucial
by James R. Love,
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Read more at EBONY http://www.ebony.com/style/zendaya-fashion-app#ixzz4PB8uqc00
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From Disney star to social media darling, EBONY has had a longstanding love affair with all things Zendaya Coleman. Last year, we handpicked the starlet to join industry heavyweights Harry Belafonte and Jesse Williams on our Power 100 cover. On the heels of that anniversary, we caught up with the young mogul in New York City while prepping for the launch of Zendaya: The App and Daya by Zendaya clothing. As expected, we fell in love with the fashionista all over again.
EBONY.com: What do you think your fans will be most surprised to learn about you on your app?
Zendaya: I’ve always been transparent in who I am as a person, so the app is really about just opening up my life to the fans a bit more. It will feature content about my life and hopefully allow other young people to see all the work that it takes to do things. I love to entertain and make people laugh so there will be videos of me doing that. I also want to use this app to talk about things that are more important. [I’d like to] make it a platform to help other people, I’d love to bring light to various charities that I’m involved in, highlight young designers, upcoming artists and young entrepreneurs. This will allow me to use the app to start uplifting and empowering other people, so then it becomes less about me takes on a life of it’s own.
EBONY.com: Daya by Zendaya clothing is all priced under $160, offers unisex pieces and runs in sizes 0-22. How important was it for you keep your line accessible to all?
Zendaya: I didn’t want make anyone feel like they weren’t included in the thought of my brand. I want everyone to feel like there is something in the collection for them and that they have the ability to wear whatever they want. I believe you should wear whatever you feel confident in so offering a diverse size range and gender-neutral pieces speaks to that.
EBONY.com: How did social media play a role in your design process?
Zendaya: It plays a huge role in my life in general. Social Media has now become a part of our culture—you are either a part of it, or you ignore it. I listened to a lot of the things my fans were saying and price points were of big concern. There were comments like, “We need [the prices] to be lower! We’re college student and working people. We don’t have a large disposable income and we’re not going to be able to afford the collection otherwise.” I wanted to offer quality garments that were affordable while also offering pieces for their wardrobe that felt luxurious. I wanted to create something that was not only beautiful but made them feel like they were a part of something.
EBONY.com: If you could dress any celebrity in Daya by Zendaya, who would it be and why?
Zendaya: One would say Rihanna, right? But that’s a lot of pressure. She doesn’t get it wrong and you don’t just dress Rihanna. I really don’t know. I think my goal is not even with celebrities. I love celebrities, but my goal is to walk down the street and just see people wearing my stuff –that is the goal!
EBONY.com: It’s been a year since you did our Power 100 cover. In the article you touched on social issues and the importance of galvanizing our youth. How important do you think it is for your generation to get out and vote in the forthcoming elections?
Zendaya: It cannot be more important! If you ever wanted to get out and vote, now is the time. This is a very pivotal moment in history. I think we are in a time where the youth play such a huge role. It’s up to us to go the extra mile to vote and raise our voices. We are the people and this country is really nothing without the people. We have to take control and we have realize as young people that this is our future. We have to live here and this where we’ll one day raise our own children. We have to build the country that we want to see our future children and grandchildren live in.
Daya by Zendaya clothing is available starting today at dayabyzendaya.com. The fashionista will also be appearing at one of three pop up shops in New York, Chicago or Los Angeles on November 5th or 6th. Check out our gallery above for an exclusive sneak peek.
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[App Addict] Keep Calm and Meditate On
In times of high stress, meditation is a sure fire way to remain calm and get back to basics
by Elizabeth Aguirre, November 2, 2016
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This year’s election is upon us, which is enough of a reason for most Americans to be in dire need of a mental health break. The need for self-care is evident within the Black community, where we’ve been speaking on racial injustice, depression and more on a larger scale than in the past. Meditation is a great way to preserve your mental health and sanity during these seemingly tumultuous times.
When it comes to self-care, meditation is one of the best ways to refresh your mind, body and spirit. The perks of meditating are endless, from being more energized, to having increased concentration and performance, adopting a meditation practice is a must. Meditating also helps improve overall moods and helps to ensure sound sleep at night. One thing most people do not realize is that meditation also takes practice and discipline. Like any good habit, meditating must be done regularly to reap the full spectrum of rewards.
Check out our picks for 3 meditation app must-haves, that will help you begin and maintain a healthy meditation regimen.
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Money
How an Engineer Flipped a Hustle Into Black Success
Washington D.C.- based Corenic Construction started from Brunson Cooper working an extra job until he could launch his own firm
by Avis Thomas-Lester / Urban News Service, October 17, 2016
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Brunson L. Cooper dreamed of starting his own construction firm–but he had no money, no investors, and no connections. So he decided to become his own rich uncle.
The engineer spent 16 years working at Turner Construction, one of America’s largest builders. He always lived below his means and saved what he could. But his nest egg wasn’t enough to start his own construction firm in 2009. So he kept his “day job” at Turner for three years, while starting Corenic Construction Group on the side. Keeping his job at Turner money to get started and time to raise additional funds, to assemble a team and land his first few few projects.
“Then I never looked back,” said Cooper, 43, of Bowie, Maryland. “The company had grown enough that it needed my full-time attention, and I could actually take care of my family as well as I had at Turner.”
Corenic Construction, based in Washington, D.C., employs 30 people who have completed more than 1,000 projects, including a 30,000-square-foot showroom addition at BMW of Sterling, Virginia, and renovation of a 9,500-square-foot space at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. Corenic’s clients have included the Army, Navy, the Department of Homeland Security, LOWE Enterprises and the Penzance Companies. Corenic earned $20 million last year, Cooper said. Quite a turnaround from a business he started on the side in 2009.
Cooper’s secret is simple and old-fashioned: integrity, honesty and hard work. Cooper said these principles were instilled in him as he grew up in tiny Hemingway, South Carolina, a three-traffic-light town 32 miles – as the crow flies – from Myrtle Beach.
Brunson Cooper
His father, the late Brunson Cooper, Jr., worked as a mill foreman at International Paper. His mother, Gladys, 79, taught second grade. His older brother, Calvin Davis, still lives in town and coaches high school basketball. His younger sister, Letia, is the IT coordinator for the Williamsburg County School District, where each of the Coopers went to school.
When Cooper’s father wasn’t at the factory, he tended a huge garden behind the family’s home. It supplied vegetables for the Coopers and several senior citizens to whom he regularly provided food. He also ran a catering company that barbecued whole pigs. Little Brunson was his assistant.
“My dad always said, ‘Have your job and have what you call your hustle.’ Your hustle is a job to help you make extra money,” Cooper said, laughing. “Catering was his hustle.”
Cooper said his chores included tidying the family’s 2.5-acre spread with a push mower every week and washing his father’s Chevy pick-up every three or four days.
“He kept me very grounded in terms of working to get what you want or need in life,” Cooper said.
In high school, the 6’4″ Cooper excelled on the basketball court and in the art studio. He spent one summer in the coveted South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities program. He worked another summer at a local Tupperware plant.
Cooper started at North Carolina A&T University as a graphic arts major, but eaerned his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering.
His first job after college was in Turner’s D.C. office. In his first major project, he supervised construction of the Society of Human Resources’ building on Duke Street in Alexandria, Virginia.
Thomas Moorehead, America’s first black Rolls Royce dealership owner, said he first worked with Cooper 13 years ago on a project that Turner was building for him. Moorehead had asked Turner to include people of color among those who built his structures.
Though the young engineer had limited experience, Moorehead said Cooper convinced him that he could do the job. Since Cooper started Corenic, the two have collaborated on several projects at Moorehead’s Sterling, Virginia, auto complex, including construction of his MINI and Rolls Royce showrooms. Also in greater Washington, D.C., Cooper is scheduled to build for Moorehead Lamborghini and McLaren showrooms and a Harley Davidson store.
“He’s always done an outstanding job,” Moorehead said.
Cooper credits industry friends and colleagues for spurring him to start Corenic. He said he first considered launching his own company while performing home-improvement projects for acquaintances on the side – his hustle – while working for Turner.
Cooper often works 12-hour days, necessary if he’s to reach his dream to double his company within five years. He’s also a busy family man. He and his wife, Tia, a financial manager, have two children – Lillian Corine, 9, and Brunson Dominic, 7. “Corenic” is a contraction of his daughters’ middle names.
“He doesn’t mind working hard and doing whatever he thinks he needs to do to complete the job,” said Corey Pressley, 43, of Alexandria, Virginia, who has known Cooper since high school. “Because he’s got charisma, he’s able to network well. That’s important, because if people think you work hard and they respect you, they’ll work with you.”
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May 26, 2013 6:55 PM
The story of how one man went from surviving Newark's streets to teaching those in his community to survive by leading healthy lives.
Famed emergency-room physician Sampson Davis knows how blessed he is to have survived the streets of Newark.
Sure, he’s a doctor and an award-winning author now but Davis’ childhood was riddled with tragedies and potential pitfalls: he hailed from an impoverished, single mother household in one of the most destitute communities in the country. He had an older sister who died of AIDS, a brother who was paralyzed in a bar fight and several friends who died as a result of street violence.
In his new book, “Living and Dying in Brick City,” the 40-year old also describes being 16 years old and, along with a friend, literally standing in front of a desperate man with a gun, who was threatening to kill them. Given how intently he’s stared down death Davis says he could think of nothing better than sharing all the ways he knows how to survive — and thrive.
This is why Davis’ first solo book (he co-wrote the New York Times-best-seller “The Pact” with his childhood buddies Rameck Hunt and George Jenkins, about the agreement they made to one another to become doctors) addresses many of black youths’ biggest obstacles to success.
“‘Living and Dying in Brick City’ picks up where ‘The Pact’ left off,” says Davis on a break from the hospital.
“It’s part memoir and part a series of health and community-oriented stories designed to help us think through critical issues such as gun control, the rise in prescription drug abuse, the mental health crisis and silent killers such as heart disease, strokes, diabetes and obesity,” he says. “Also, sexually transmitted diseases, and the importance of mentorship — without which I would not be where I am today.”
Davis, who mentors himself through The Three Doctors Foundation — which he runs with the help of Hunt and Jenkins — also discusses something else he knows a lot about as a doctor: how not enough black folks seek care before something is dreadfully wrong.
“In the book I talk about the lack of access to healthcare in our community, and how there’s still a mistrust a lot of patients have when it comes to the healthcare system,” he says.
A big chunk of the reason why is because we’re afraid of the folks wearing a white coat and a stethoscope.
“We need to increase the number of doctors that look like us, that talk like us and are from where we’re from as well,” he shares. “My hope is that the book will start a movement, a call to action where people are just a lot more concerned about their health.”
After all, he advises, ObamaCare can only do so much.
“[Having insurance] is not necessarily going to change a person’s attitude about getting regular checkups,” he says. “Right now, in the emergency room I see a lot of primary-care issues — things that people should be going to their regular doctor for. It’s really important to find a primary-care doctor, make appointments and schedule follow-ups,” he insists. “If you have high blood pressure or diabetes, you have to stay in control of that. ObamaCare is going to make it easier for people not to be denied treatment for a health issue but at the same time they are responsible for doing their own due diligence and staying on top of the care they need.”
Not that Davis wants you to think he’s preaching to you — he just wants his readers to live and live well.
“Medical books have been done in the past but this book is the first book to come from a person from the same community working at the same hospital he trained at,” he says. “It’s something everyone can understand because we’re speaking in very clear, concise terms. My goal is to get to a point where I have more of a platform to speak on issues like the ones that book addresses. There’s really not a voice out there that lends itself to health for our community in a major way. I’m hopeful that I can become that voice that’s just every day in our community.”
Wealth Building: 4 Tips To Get Your Money Right in 20141Posted by UPTOWN on Jan 17, 2014

In a constantly changing economy, it is often hard to know which direction is the best to take. After a crazy year filled with government shutdowns, rising interest rates and the S&P 500 hitting all-time highs, who really knows what tomorrow will bring? By leveraging investment outlooks and concerns of everyday investors, we have come up with four key personal finance tips for 2014. All four tips center around one key theme, “pay yourself first.” There are hundreds of ways you can put your assets to work, but you always want to make sure your actions are keenly focused on meeting your personal financial goals. The suggestions range from tactical ideas that are best used during the current year to strategic moves that are essential to any financial planning process.
1. Max out your 401(k) before investing anywhere elseWhether it’s a 401(k), 403(b) or 457, employer-sponsored retirement plans are typically the best savings vehicles for investors. These are highly tax-efficient vehicles that allow employees to save at least $17,500 in a tax-deferred vehicle. Since your contributions are pulled out of your paycheck before you receive it, they are not taxed on the front end, saving you money you would have lost to taxes.2. Diversification is keyDiversification is the technique to manage risk by investing in noncorrelated asset classes so if one investment does poorly, another could possibly deliver positive returns. In 2013, the S&P 500 hit all time highs, while many fixed income investments got hit pretty hard. In 2008, the S&P 500 fell over 40 percent and U.S. bonds were one of the only asset classes with positive returns. You never know for sure how the markets will fare but, with a highly diversified portfolio you are typically positioned well for whatever the future may bring.3. Always have emergency savingsYou should always have enough money put away to cover three to six months’ worth of bills. These assets should be readily available in case a major life event occurs. In 2009, the US unemployment rate hit double digits; leaving millions of Americans jobless. In times like these, having access to an account that can cover three to six months worth of bills can be a lifesaver.4. Don’t try to time the marketMarket timing has historically been proven to not work. It is the technique of buying and selling at the right time. This doesn’t work because it is counterintuitive to how people think. The reality is you should sell while a stock is up and buy when it is low; one thing which is incredibly hard to do. Who really wants to invest in losers, while selling winners? This is why the best method has always been to buy and hold. Investment selection is always critical but if you’ve done the research and know what you would like to invest in, pull the trigger.Image credit: Ryan Etter/Ikon Images/CorbisOctavius T. (Ted) Reid, III has worked for Morgan Stanley for more than 20 years. The Cherry Hill, N.J., resident and Rutgers University alum, known as “the broker to the stars” for his sizable sports and entertainment clientele, frequently speaks to adults and kids on financial stability and wealth building.
