When celebrities hang out with Bustle editors, we want to give them the chance to leave their mark. Literally. So we hand them a pen, a piece of paper, a few questions, and ask them to get creative. The rest is up to them. This time, On My Block…

My great-grandmother died before I was born, but I still feel like I knew her. Like many oral histories of Black families, which are passed down and preserved while told around the dinner table, her story was one that the women in my family kept…

I've always loved a good story. Even when I was 3 (and before I could actually read), I remember sitting with my mom on the New York City subway, making up my own storylines to Archie comics, flailing my little arms to express the particularly…

Eight years ago, I brought home a tiny, squirming cockapoo puppy named Lola. She had — and still has — the most soulful brown eyes I've ever seen, and a personality that's truly twice her size. In the years to follow, my relationship with her has…

The great Lauryn Hill once sang on The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, "I loved real real hard once / But the love wasn't returned / Thought the man I would die for / He wasn't even concerned." Ouch. For those who may have experienced heartbreak years…

It seems like these days, more than ever, colorful graphics proclaiming that everyone should "Listen to black women" are splattered all across social media. Whether getting the word out to vote, or protesting at the front lines over the death of…

If you ever wanted to chat with me back in the late '90s, you could hit me up on AIM, under my screenname: AaliyahsLilSister. The name stuck with me as a tween; I was a shy kid with a love of baggy jeans, always blasting The Notorious B.I.G. on my…

My relationship with alcohol started off in true Jada fashion: totally by the book. I had my very first drink at Red Lobster on my 21st birthday; I remember proudly offering up my driver's license to our server, who chuckled at my enthusiasm. But…

The new animated Spider-Man movie, out Dec. 14, begins with a delightfully relatable scene that transported me back to my own teen years. Into the Spider-Verse begins with Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) sitting at his desk in a Brooklyn bedroom…

I have to admit — I don't have a ton of experience with cats. My mother adopted a stray when I was in college, and since I lived on campus for most of the year, my encounters with her fluffball were pretty fleeting. We did have one thing in common…

I can't believe I've been working for over a decade now (I know, I know... don't let the babyface fool you). And over that time, the literal landscape of office culture — especially in the creative field — has seismically changed. When I first…

I've been a bundle of nerves for as long as I can remember. Whether checking my schoolbag obsessively to make sure I brought home the right books for homework as a kid, or worrying that I'll miss my flight, lose my keys, or catch bird flu as an…

Growing up in the '90s, everyone wanted to be just "Like Mike." Michael "Air" Jordan — the Chicago Bulls shooting guard who is widely heralded as the greatest NBA player of all time — dominated movies (welcome to the Space Jam!), commercials, video…

Every gravity-defying pose Misty Copeland strikes is breathtaking. When she comes to the Bustle offices to be photographed in September, as the sounds of Jorja Smith play in the studio, everyone watches the master ballerina at work. Copeland, who's…

The next step Charlotte Flair takes in the ring will be a historic one. The SmackDown superstar is preparing for WWE's Evolution, the first all-women's exclusive pay-per-view event in the wrestling franchise's history. And the night has long been in…

"Mami, she doesn't drink Bustelo! She's only 3!" One of my earliest (and most hilarious) memories involve my dad pulling a coffee mug out of my toddler hands, as the rich, biting aroma of Bustelo (the brew of Latinx champions) scorched my nostrils.…

Latinx culture is a driving force for the American mainstream — and that certainly holds true for music. For decades, dance crazes, popular phrases, and infectious rhythms have moved us, making us sway our hips to the beloved sounds of cumbia,…

The glittery fairy tale magic of Disney has delighted me since I was a tiny curly-haired toddler with a love of fairies, princesses, and a good happily ever after. Needless to say, when I got the opportunity to spend a day with athletes putting the…

When celebrities hang out with Bustle editors, we want to give them the chance to leave their mark. Literally. So we hand them a pen, a piece of paper, a few questions, and ask them to get creative. The rest is up to them. This time, The…