Quinn was sitting at her desk in a knee-length dress with a blazer, zoned out, reminiscing about the day she …

You thought you were just minding your business, or at least doing a decent job of convincing yourself. You picked your words carefully. You said things like we’re just friends, we’re hanging out, I mean, I like him, but it’s not really like that. You built a whole language around pretending nothing was going on.

I didn’t think Essence was for me. Making it as a vendor at EssenceFest felt as monumental as making the cover of Essence magazine.

To me, it meant that years of building, praying, grieving, and believing in my brand had finally been recognized. As a Southern girl who had admired Essence from afar, receiving that opportunity in 2024 felt like a dream fulfilled.

The day I finally understood my mother. I remember being trapped in the car with my mom after an hour-long …