community leader

It all started with…

Black History Month 2019. I wanted to find a very specific topic to share on my instagram for the month.  Because I love opera and I love encouraging Black women, I decided to give short history lessons on Black opera divas. Fifteen days into the month, I discovered more Black women opera singers than I imagined.  I knew 28 days would not be enough to highlight all these amazing artists even with multiple posts a day. I founded Black Women in Opera (B.W.I.O.), LLC to highlight the past and current achievements of Black women opera singers. B.W.I.O. seeks to be the premiere source of knowledge and news about Black opera divas. In the future, I hope the organization will be instrumental in sponsoring the vocal education of high school seniors.

I learned the value of strong female leadership in my home and my community at a young age. My grandmother’s and aunt’s devotion to women’s suffrage and political advancement in Zambia sparked my interest in women’s empowerment. Furthermore, I observed that the strong community of African-American women in my Mississippi neighborhood were vital to upliftment of the entire community. I admired how these women used their talents to dismantle myths about womanhood and create new paths for the next generation. B.W.I.O. allows me to take that path and contribute to the advancement of Black womanhood throughout the world.