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Message 2025 WOMAN OF WORTH RECOGNITION SPECIAL FEATURE THE COM M UNI TY B E HI N D J U N E T E E N T H LITTLE ROCK TOURISM EQUALS ECONOMIC BOOST QUINTESSENITAL BLACKNESS KWAME BRATHWAITE EXHBITION
T H E U R B A N E M A G . C O M JUN / JUL 2 URBANE Magazine honors Black Arkansas’ culture, identity, and history. We use our print and digital platforms to showcase the infinite melanated treasures within this state and to celebrate our unsung heroes and leaders shaping the next generations. MISSION To ignite conversations, show Us successful and thriving, refute stereotypes, promote empowerment, and induce overwhelming pride in just how dope we are! It is our honor to uphold and reaffirm the respect, dignity, and existence of all Black people. DISCLAIMER All information and content are accurate to the URBANE Magazine’s staff and contributors’ best knowledge. Please accept our apology if there is an error or changes that occurred after publishing that affect accuracy. Our contributors’ opinions are not necessarily the opinion or view of URBANE Magazine, nor is URBANE Magazine liable for how these opinions are interpreted. URBANE holds no responsibility. ADVERTISING We obligate ourselves to display quality in everything we execute, including advertising! Every issue is designed to display positive representation, empowering reflections, and provide valuable information and resources. Our Media Kit is available at www.TheURBANEMag.com/Advertise-With-Us SUBSCRIPTION URBANE Magazine is published bi-monthly in digital form and is available individually by issue and through subscription. Print subscriptions have been discontinued. Physical* Digital* · $9.99 per issue · $4.99 per digital issue · $19.95 - 1 year *plus tax and/or shipping URBANE MAGAZINE P. O. Box 94151 North Little Rock, AR 72190 www.TheURBANEMag.com TO REACH THE EDITOR TheURBANEMag@gmail.com TO ADVERTISE TheURBANEMag.com/Advertise-With-Us TO SUBMIT A REQUEST: TheURBANEMag.com/Submit-A-Request TO FIND A PRINT COPY 1001 Wright Avenue, Little Rock 9807 West Markham Street, Little Rock TO PURCHASE A DIGITAL COPY TheURBANEMag.square.site TO PURCHASE A PREVIOUS ISSUE TheURBANEMag.com/Current-Issue
CULTURE Kwame Brathwaite Exhibition HEALTH How UAMS is Giving Nonspeaking Autistic Children a Voice EDUCATION NEWS COVER STORY The Community Behind Juneteenth EMPOWERMENT ECONOMY RELATIONSHIP Writing Our Own Narrative Darlene Goldi Gaines +
T H E U R B A N E M A G . C O M JUN / JUL 4 Actor / Actress Alcoholic Beverage Maker Annual Fesval Author Auto Dealer / Car Salesman(-woman) Auto Service / Tow Service Bakery / Baker Band / Group Bank / Loan Ocer Barber BBQ Restaurant Beauty Salon / Barbershop Bookstore Burger Joint Caregiver / Assisted Living Service Chiropractor City / Government Ocial Comedian Construcon / Contractor Consulng Firm Counselor / Therapist Current Athlecs Coach Current Principal / Dean / Administrator Current Teacher / Instructor / Professor Daycare Facility Denstry DJ Emergency Service Workers Event Planner / Designer / Coordinator Event Venue / Facility Family Doctor / Physician Family-Friendly Event / Facility Fashion Stylist Filmmaker / Movie Producer Financial Advisor / Consultant Food Truck Funeral Home Gospel Arst / Choir Grocery / Convenience Store Gym/Workout Facility Hairstylist Historically Black Colleges & Universies Insurance Agency / Agent Interior / Exterior Designer Law Firm / Lawyers / Aorneys Lawn Maintenance Service Markeng & Adversing Firm Massage Therapist Media Firm Menswear Movers Musical Arst Nail Technicians / Salons Natural Hair Care Stylist Night Club/Lounge Nonprot Organizaon Nurse / CNA / LPN OBGYN / Gynecologist Pediatrician Personal Trainer Philanthropist Photographer/Videographer Podcast / Blog / Radio Staon Poet / Spoken Word Radio / Television Personality Real Estate Agency / Realtor / Agent Reporter / Newscaster Seamstress / Repair Skincare / Facial Soul Food Restaurant Specialty Restaurant Taoo Arst Tax Accountant / Company Web Design / Graphic Design Window Tinng Womenswear Worship Centers / Facilies Writer / Blogger / Columnist Yoga Instructor/Studio ...and more! POSSIBLE FINALIST CATEGORIES INCLUDE: NOMINATE YOUR BLACK, ARKANSAS-BASED FAVORITES FOR THE <FINEST IN ARKANSAS= PHASE ONE—NOMINATION SUBMISSIONS MARCH 1—MAY 31, 2025 PHASE TWO—FINALISTS' VOTING JUNE 8—30, 2025 Winner Announced August 1, 2025
Interested in sharing your voice and skillset with Arkansas? Send your résumé and your sample work or its link to: TheURBANEMag@gmail.com — SUBJECT: Contributor Submission NishaSpeaks Tonisha’s, affectionately known as <NISHA,= talents have made room for her with several on-air radio broadcasts, including her podcast, The NishaSpeaks Podcast, JoyNet Radio, Hot 96.5 LR, and KWCP 98.9. She has also been featured in Curvy Connect Magazine. Her experiences have inspired her to become one of the Greats. NishaSpeaks is an advocate for plus-sized women and an active model for the Kurvy Kuties Full Figure Modeling Group. <LISTEN FOR THE NUDGE=, page 17 Joseph Crew4cover story photography Carmen Bradford of Studio 62, Inc.4Black Love feature Libby Doss Lloyd, APR submitted press release on behalf of the Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau Philip Allison submitted press release on behalf of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences FACILITY RENTAL NOW AVAILABLE 2000 sq. . with access to commercial kitchen & great parking Great for yoni parties, children’s parties, ceremonies & receptions, conferences, networking events, religious functions, and various entertainment occasions (501) 565-8222 5120 West 65th Street | Lile Rock, AR 72209
Visit the URBANE Store and GET YOUR MERCH TODAY! TheURBANEMag.square.site The current, individual issue is available for partial viewing on most operating systems and internet browsers for free. Available wherever you are! Visit TheURBANEMag.com/Current-Issue to get your Digital issue today Advertise with URBANE! Visit TheURBANEMag.com/Advertise-With-Us for our affordable rates T H E U R B A N E M A G . C O M JUN / JUL 6
Hey y’all Can you believe it’s already June? This year has moved so fast, but I love how this time of year always gives me a reason to slow down, soak up the sun, and realign with what really matters to me. First up4July 4th is not our Independence Day. June 19th is! Juneteenth. This ain't just another day off, descendants of African people! It's our reminder that freedom didn't come easy for Us or immediately for all of Us. Even after slavery was technically over, folks in Galveston didn’t get the news till two years later 3 do you realize how eff-ed up that is?? Wild, right? So, we will celebrate Juneteenth not just for the history, but for the strength, the survival, and the Black excellence that’s still pushing forward today. I believe we are our ancestors’ wildest dreams, and it would be a slap in their faces not to pay homage to this day…beyond line dancing and spades tournaments. Such things jump the day off; however, we must do more to ensure generations to come know what’s up. Then there's Father’s Day4and y’all already know, Black dads don’t get nearly enough love on the grand scale. Whether it’s your biological daddy, your stepdad, uncle, granddaddy, or that mentor who always showed up4June is their month too. Let’s give the men who protect us, guide us, and uplift us their flowers while they can still smell ’em. And if your daddy or father figure is no longer here, I see you. This month might feel a little heavy4and that’s okay. Grief has a way of showing up right when the world feels like it’s celebrating. But know this: just because they’re gone doesn’t mean the love is. You still carry their essence. That’s forever. So take a quiet moment to miss them. They’re still with you, cheering you on from the other side. And for those of y’all who never had that bond4or maybe it’s complicated, strained, or just straight-up nonexistent, you’re not alone either. Father’s Day can stir up a lot, and if that’s your story, I want you to know: your worth was never tied to who showed up or who didn’t. You’re still deserving of love, protection, and peace. And the beautiful thing? You get to redefine family. You get to build your own safe spaces4with chosen family, mentors, friends, or even within yourself. Healing doesn’t always look like reconciliation4sometimes, it’s just you deciding to break cycles and stand tall anyway. At any rate…listen... summer is here, and your girl is all about a little rejuvenation. Let this warm weather and sunlight create progressive momentum in your life. I’m talking soft life, gospel, line dance, AND ratchet playlists; road trips with the windows down, and finding peace in the little things. This is your sign to unplug for a bit, do something that feeds your soul. No guilt. No grind culture. Just real rest and joy. And/or/while working before the winter months bring they raggedy @$$ back around. This issue of URBANE is full of pride, love, and culture. Take a deep breath and relax while reading each page. In closing, you made it to June! Let’s bloom. JUN / JUL T H E U R B A N E M A G . C O M 7
1001 Wright Avenue Lile Rock, AR www.Pyramid1988.com 1 / Dreams in Waiting: From the Initial Spark to Full Manifestation Dixon shares her remarkable journey of hustle, resilience, and purpose-driven success. From building a babysing empire as a young girl to founding the transformave iniave S H E Build, Anika reveals the keys to unlocking your full potenal and making an impact that outlives you. 2 / This Leaves Me Okay: Race, Legacy, and Letters from my Grandmother Lucille "Mama Ceal" Hatch Eldridge wrote to her grandson Walter Pryor weekly for nearly 30 years, from his boyhood unl she died at 80. Most extraordinarily, Mama Ceal was not a well-educated person, having completed only the eighth grade. As a live-in maid, raising other people's children, she had lile leisure me to write. Yet, her leers, sprinkled throughout This Leaves Me Okay helped Pryor profoundly to feel he maered. 3 / Juneteenth Is This book is an ode to the history of the Black community in the United States, a tribute to Black joy, and a portrait of familial love. With poignant text and vivid illustraons, Juneteenth Is oers a window and a mirror for readers, resonang with kids who will see themselves reected in its pages and those who hope to understand experiences beyond their own. 4 / Why Fathers Cry at Night: A Memoire in Love Poems, Letters, Recipes, and Remembrances In an inmate and non-tradional (or "new-fashioned") memoir, Alexander shares snapshots of a man learning how to love. He takes readers through stories of his parents and his own relaonships while dealing with the grief of his mother's recent passing. With an open heart, Alexander weaves together memories of his past to try and understand his greatest love: his daughters. Book descripons found on Amazon.com or the publicaons’ specic distributor/website. 1 4 3 2