New year, new home: Maiysha Kai joins theGrio

What is home? It’s a question I’ve been pondering lately as I’ve settled into yet another new residence, tirelessly obsessing over every minute detail—from the precise shade of curtain to best frame the view to which books deserve a place of honor on my already packed shelves. It’s a meticulous ritual I’ve performed in every home I’ve chosen, my way of creating sanctuary in unfamiliar spaces, cultivating an atmosphere where I can fully realize myself and feel anchored amid a new adventure. 

It’s no understatement to say that for Black Americans in particular, home can be…complicated. Our history is one filled with displacement, separation and migration, often making our concept of home fluid and amorphous. For many of us, home can as readily be found in a people, community or culture as in any specific place. 

As I searched for a new professional home to launch the next phase of my career, I sought the same qualities I seek in a physical one: a place I could anchor myself, create a sanctuary, and bring the fullness of myself to something new. TheGrio proved the ideal destination for my personal migration: a community of gifted writers, thinkers and creators committed to foregrounding the full breadth of the Black experience in new and innovative ways. I arrive with my own experience in tow: two decades in the fashion and entertainment industries, thousands of bylines, a passion for style, beauty, art, culture and literature, and a steadfast belief in the boundlessness of Black creativity. 

As theGrio’s new lifestyle editor, I’m looking forward to crafting a meticulously curated space where our readers can see themselves not only reflected but nurtured, affirmed, inspired and celebrated. Together with an incredible team, we’ll explore how we live, love, dress, flex, learn, and thrive—and how we can do all of the above longer and healthier. As we build this sanctuary, I invite you to come in, kick back and make yourself at home.

Maiysha Kai is theGrio’s Lifestyle Editor, covering all things Black and beautiful. A veteran model, stylist and musician, her work is informed by two decades’ experience in the fashion and entertainment industries, a love of great books and aesthetics, and the indomitable brilliance of Black culture. A former New Yorker currently residing in her hometown of Chicago, Maiysha is also a Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter and author-editor of an upcoming YA book on body image. Prior to joining theGrio team, she was managing editor of The Root’s lifestyle and literary content.