Black History Month: NaKeesa Frazier-Jennings: Black women’s self-care and Standing Firm in Power & Pride

For this Black History Month and the theme – “Standing Firm in Power & Pride”, I interviewed an amazing Black American woman NaKeesa Frazier-Jennings. She is a Black women’s self-care Advocate, Consultant-Coach and Author. She took time out of her busy schedule to discuss her self-care journey that led to her writing a new book on the topic and why us Black women are “Standing in Power & Pride”, whenever we overcome any challenges. Read on to learn more…..

Tell us about your background and your work; what led you into the creative/freelance space?

Even as a child, I was the responsible, oldest sibling and I started small businesses at an early age from baking cookies for people in my church to babysitting for my neighbors and family friends. I was also a freelance model when I was a teenager. I’ve always liked to write and am a natural storyteller so all these things led me quite organically to the freelance/creative space. Over the years, putting my feelings down and sharing my voice in writing became my way of processing the world and I hope that it has helped many others do the same. Through my company, NaKeesa Marie Enterprises, I built a boutique consulting practice that blends writing, coaching, and business consultation — helping individuals, artists, and entrepreneurs articulate their stories, find clarity, and create structure around their goals.

My transition into the creative and freelance space, though organic was also born out of necessity and a calling. I wanted the freedom to center work that mattered to me and my community. Stories that uplift, shed light in an authentic way and provide strategies that empower people in their own lives. As an adult, my work as an entrepreneur started with being my husband’s visual artist manager that grew to include several other visual artist clients. While at the same time, sharing my freelance writing with the world. Eventually my work evolved into a holistic ecosystem of storytelling, consulting, and wellness tools like my set of “Gentle Accountability” guided journals. They were created to help people to invest in their individual personal growth and self-care and journeys with compassion rather than criticism.

What motivated you to become a Black women’s self-care advocate?

Honestly, I became what I needed. As a Black woman navigating being a business owner, full-time employee, community work and in many cases, motherhood, I saw how we — even the most capable among us — often put ourselves last. I especially saw that play out right before my eyes during my childhood and teen years but even when I became an adult not much had changed. I wanted to make sure that I did not fall into that way of living and wanted to do what I could to help change that narrative. My advocacy for self-care and gentle accountability came from realizing that we don’t need more pressure; we need more grace.

I wanted to create a language and a resource that affirmed that accountability doesn’t have to be harsh — it can be gentle, loving, and rooted in honoring ourselves. That’s the foundation of my journals and my mission.

Tell us about your self-care journey; did it come easy to you?

Yes and no. I realized at a very early age that I didn’t want to have my life be full of exhaustion and burnout. I also have always felt that I wanted to take the best care of myself that I possibly could and to experience as much joy as I possibly could in life. However, during my childhood, I did not see most of the Black women in my life experience a life that they were able to center themselves in. Self-care, during my childhood, was also not a term that I heard used nor was a woman prioritizing her needs something that was supported broadly. So, though I had decided by the time that I was a teenager that I would find a way to have the type of day-to-day life that I didn’t see other Black women around me experience, I didn’t realize how much I’d have to engage in self-advocacy in order to create the type of life I wanted and knew that I deserved. So, it was easy to make the decision but took effort and lots of self-advocacy to actualise a self-care practice in my life.

Self-care was something I had to learn to incorporate into my life, almost entirely, on my own. I built my life to include a daily self-care practice brick by brick even in the face of naysayers and a constant narrative in our society that when a woman, especially a Black woman, chooses to prioritise caring for herself, that she is being selfish.

Now, my self-care practice looks like boundaries, intentional rest, writing, community connection, softness, and grace. It is consistent and nonnegotiable. That’s what I try to model and teach: self-care isn’t about perfection, it’s about permission.

Thinking about Black women’s self-care journey, how do you advise us to get started with our self-care?

Start small and start with being honest with yourself. Ask yourself what you actually need, not what our society, the media, social media and even the people in your life, say you should. Maybe it’s more sleep, or maybe it’s saying “no” without guilt or setting boundaries or getting fresh air everyday. Self-care doesn’t have to cost money — it costs intention.

My journals help people begin that process — through daily prompts that invite reflection, gentleness, and being accountable to yourself.

I encourage Black women to schedule their self-care the same way they schedule everything else — because our peace deserves for us to be intentional.

How do you think Black women’s self-care needs are different to those of women of other races?

Black women in the U.S. and the U.K. have so many stressors that they face. From family and societal expectations, racism, biases, and more, Black women carry layers that are historical and generational — that often demand we show strength at the expense of softness. We’ve been told to “push through,” even when we’re depleted and many of us received the message early in our childhood that we needed to be responsible for and prioritise the needs of everyone else. That’s why our self-care must go deeper; it’s not just about wellness; it’s about reclaiming our human right to care for ourselves.

We deserve care that that’s restorative, not something that barely scratches the surface. For us, self-care is a radical act of resistance. It’s how we reclaim and/or sustain our wellness and our joy.

How do you ‘stand firm in your Power and Pride’ as a Black woman in the creative/freelance writing and self-care space?

By owning my narrative and refusing to shrink it. I stand firm by writing my personal story and the story of Black women and Black people my way that is authentic and unapologetic — full of both truth and beauty. I’m intentional about creating work that centers Black women, not just includes us. Both my power and my pride come from self-love and confidence as well as from my lineage — from the women who came before me and the women I’m in community with now. I know who I am, and that clarity keeps me grounded in my power and pride in every space that I enter.

What is your advice for Black women who are struggling to find their ‘voice,’ to stand firm in their Power and Pride?

Your voice doesn’t have to be loud and it doesn’t even have to be spoken verbally to be powerful — it just has to be authentically and uniquely yours. You can write, type, or even draw what you feel, even if it’s messy. You can practice speaking your truth in small ways until it becomes second nature to you.

Once you become comfortable, you won’t have to think twice about it, your voice will just come out naturally and organically.

Remember, confidence in your voice doesn’t come before action — it comes from action. Each time you honor yourself, protect yourself, set and stick to a boundary, or tell your story, you strengthen your voice.

Who are the Black women who inspire you by how they ‘stand firm in their Power and Pride’?

The Black women who inspire me by how they stand firm in their power and pride are women in my life and my community. I’ve known some of them for my whole life and some more recently. There are dozens and dozens who I could name but instead I’ll just share a few, not by name but rather who they are to me. My mom, my maternal grandmother (deceased), my maternal great grandmother (deceased), my surrogate/community mothers and aunties, my peers and the young Black women in my community. All of these women have done various things that are so powerful and that show their pride such as:

• They exist and persist in the face of multiple forms of racism and discrimination they experience daily
• They do not let the world or society’s view or narrative define them
• They hold their heads high and wear their invisible crowns with grace and dignity
• They travel and even live abroad not letting borders stop them from living in places and in ways where they can thrive
• They create visual and literary artwork and art venues that center and celebrate Black people and the Black experience
• They invest in Black youth and the generations coming up behind them
• They invest in their own continued personal growth and evolution
• When they see a need in our community, they don’t wait or ask for permission, they figure out how to fill that need
• They find ways to engage in intentional self-care despite whether the world feels that they deserve it or not
• They engage in various forms of advocacy to help to create a better world in the future that they may not be herd to see, experience or enjoy

Each of these Black women regardless of age have faced challenges that many could not imagine yet, they are everyday examples of power and pride in motion.

You have a range of products to empower women — how do you get inspired when creating your products?

Inspiration comes from within me and through my observations of the women close to me and ones who I do not know. I try to create what I know that I need and what I see does not exist or doesn’t exist in large enough supply. I also listen – to my community and to the pulse of the times we’re living in and I even reflect on times in the past and create work based on what we may have never had or things that we still need. Six years ago, I imagined a portrait art exhibit that features paintings of Black women and Black girls.

Images of Black women and Black girls are underrepresented in fine art space. I wanted to help to change that reality and pushback on the narrative of whose images belong in art galleries and museums. So, I became the creative director of the art collection titled The Women, The Paper, and The Light, a portrait art exhibit with two dozen large scale portraits painted by my husband and artist client that ran in two art galleries in Washington state (USA), from September 2024-March 2025.

I also have written and self-published several different self-care art books that are also guided journals with my special edition titled 100 Days of Gentle Accountability for Black Women. Each “Gentle Accountability” journal was born out of seeing a gap — people needed tools that invited them to care for themselves with kindness.

I think visually, too. The photography in my books — from portraits of Black women to scenes across the Pacific Northwest — serves as a mirror and an invitation to center our needs, our joy and our rest as these things are a human right.

As this interview is a great example of how us Black women in America and the UK can collaborate, what’s your advice on how Black women across the world can support each other to stand firm in their collective Power and Pride?

We are powerful alone but unstoppable together. Collaboration begins with connection — seeing ourselves in one another, even across oceans. We can share platforms, stories, and resources. We can amplify each other’s voices rather than compete. I’ve done this mostly through social media platforms as they make it almost effortless to find and communicate with each other. However, once I do connect, what I do and encourage all Black women to do globally is to keep those connections going. Show up to each other’s pages consistently, attend virtual events, help to promote each others’ work and stay in contact via emails, virtual meetings and other apps and platforms that allow us to stay connected. Also, find ways to collaborate to breakdown the barriers that distance and borders can sometimes create.

When Black women across the world support one another, we can dismantle isolation and we can show that our collective power is global — and that pride in our culture, our creativity, and our sisterhood transcends borders.

What can we expect to see from you in future?

You can expect more work that centers wellness and community. As I mentioned, I recently released “100 Days of Gentle Accountability for Black Women” — a guided journal and visual love letter to Black women — and I’m expanding that series with workshops, my worldwide virtual book tour, as well as youth-focused journals like “30 Days of Gentle Accountability: KIDS” and “30 Days of Gentle Accountability: TEENS.”

In 2025 and beyond, I’ll continue creating tools and spaces that celebrate reflection, joy, and gentle self-growth — because this movement isn’t a trend, it’s a lifestyle and my life’s work.

Below you will find the link to my online shop where my full collection of books are available! I have physical copies available for people in the U.S. and digital downloads available for people who live outside of the U.S. or who want a version that allows for them to type their responses to the writing prompts.

Learn more about NaKeesa and her self-care products and services at:

Visit NaKeesa’s Online shop here:

Instagram: @nakeesamarie

TikTok: @nakeesamarie

NaKeesa will be holding a Black Women’s Self-care Online Event – on Sunday 30th November at 3:00 PM (U.K. time). Details and the link to register for the online event is below:

Message from NaKeesa:

“I’m so excited to share that my newest book, 100 Days of Gentle Accountability for Black Women, is officially out in the world — and I’m thrilled to be hosting a special Virtual Book Tour & Artist Talk for my U.K. audience on Sunday, 30 November at 3:00 PM (U.K. time).

This book is both a visual celebration of Black women—through portrait photography that honours our many ages, shades, and stages of life—and a functional guide to support and deepen our self-care journey.

During this virtual event, I will share more about my own journey and the inspiration behind the creation of my latest book and I will explore why it’s so essential for Black women to have spaces for rest, reflection, affirmation, and community care—especially in today’s world.”

Event Details:

📖 Virtual Book Tour & Artist Talk – U.K. Edition
🗓️ Sunday, 30 November
🕒 3:00 PM (U.K. Time)
📍 Zoom – Free to attend (no book required)
✨ Limited to 50 attendees

👉 Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/X7161RsaRgKoleCpJ5BgwQ

#Afrowomanonline #Blackwomenrising #NakeesaFrazierJennings