By Danaé Reid
Nyyah Regine is a beauty, lifestyle, fashion, and luxury influencer and content creator who currently has an Instagram and YouTube brand where she creates vlogs, hauls, unboxings, look books, makeup videos and more. She states that her brand is tailored to Black women in their mid to late 20s and early 30s.
Aside from her role as an influencer, Regine also holds a degree in Public Health and is very passionate about mental health and wellness within the Black community — specifically Black women. All of her brands emerged from the desire to give Black women an outlet, build our confidence, and promote self-love and self-care.
DR: Your platform promotes Black luxury which seems to be a huge movement right now. Why do you think that is? And furthermore, why do you think it’s important that people of color have access to a luxe lifestyle?
NR: Black people are decades behind in many different aspects in comparison to our white counterparts. We are playing “catch up” when it comes to building generational wealth, furthering our education, and working our way up the corporate ladder. We are also just waking up to a lot of life’s pleasures as we didn’t have the luxury to do so for many years. Black people are now gaining access to luxuries and that is why it is such a huge movement. What was once only a commonality for Black elites is now being widespread and I love that for us!
It is extremely important for persons of color to experience luxury because our history is rooted in struggle and trauma. We deserve it! We deserve to rest, relax, and be treated to life’s greatest pleasures. We created luxury for centuries for our white counterparts, it is now time for us to bask in what we created for them.
DR: What is your definition of luxury? Do you believe it should be more attainable?
NR: It is important to note that luxury, like many things, is subjective. Luxury for everyone looks different. Not everyone views luxury as designer items, but more so as freedom. I look at luxury as both: The freedom to live my life on my terms, at my speed, and with self-care as the focus. For me, this can mean a day at the spa or an at home spa day, a shopping trip to buy a new handbag or outsourcing a cleaning company to clean my home for me. Luxuries are not necessarily necessities, but they make your life more enjoyable. Luxury does NOT have to be expensive either. Do not feel like you are not indulging in luxury just because you are being budget friendly and don’t compare your definition of luxury to others.
DR: Traditionally Black women have had a harder time finding self-love within due to the fact that the world holds us to white/eurocentric standards. How did you come to love yourself?
NR: Self-love is a lifelong process. The first step to self-love is being able to sit with all of you; your good, your bad, and your ugly that you pushed to the back of your brain. Once you are able to sit with all of this, you have to accept it completely; Accept it so much that if anyone ever brought up your ugly as a way to attack you, it would not phase you.
In order for you to love your outside, you have to love your inside. Next, I went through the process of understanding that the traits that make me who I am are valuable. They may not be valuable to everyone, but that’s okay because what other people value does not alter my worth. There will always be someone that is prettier, smarter, and better received by others but, that does not change our value.
DR: What was the inspiration behind “Selfish Black Babes” and where do you see it going and how do you see it expanding?
NR: Selfish Black Babes emerged from my own self-care, self-love, and femininity journey. For so long, Black women have been taught to be strong, keep our family and race together, never show emotion, etc., and I wanted to break out of that. Other races of women are not held to this same standard so why should we be? Why should we continue to be tied to generations of trauma? I wanted to break free from all of that and I did. I felt it was my duty to share my journey with other Black women who wanted to do the same. I created Selfish Black Babes as another outlet for Black women to receive self-care inspiration, lessons on femininity for Black women, as well as affirmations to manifest the life they want to live. I see SBB surpassing an Instagram platform and growing into a more tangible community: memberships, meetups, merchandise, and courses on self-love and femininity. Our community is growing daily and I can’t want to expand it further.
DR: What self-love tips do you have for the fellow “Black babes” reading this?
NR: 1.Learn to love all parts of you. This is the hardest part of the self-love journey.
2.Therapy is a necessity for all people. You are not weak for choosing to go to therapy, you are showing that you love yourself enough to prioritize your mental health.
3.Know that you will lose people on your self- love journey and that’s okay! Once you grow to love yourself more, you will see that you may have allowed some people in your space that do not deserve to be there.
4.Comparison is the thief of joy. Stop comparing yourself to others.
5.Remember your value is not based on your outer appearance or how other people
view you.
DR: What does it mean for Black women to be “selfish” and how do you embody the spirit of a “selfish Black babe”?
NR: Black women have had to carry more loads on our back than any other race of women. A selfish black babe prioritizes her mental health, self-care, and indulges in life’s luxuries the way she sees fit. You see, Black women cannot be the spine of our race if our cups are empty. Instead of drying ourselves out, a selfish babe knows that her cup must be running over before she can pour into anyone else’s. It doesn’t mean to negate the feelings and needs of others, but to put ours at the forefront.
Disclaimer:
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in the article belong solely to the author, and not necessarily to the author’s employer, The Philadelphia Sunday SUN, the author’s organization, committee or other group or individual.
Leave a Comment