I want to let everyone know that today is Spirit Day. Wear Purple. Check the info below… “Millions of Americans wear purple on Spirit Day as a sign of support for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth and to speak out against bullying. Spirit Day was started in 2010 by teenager Brittany McMillan as [...]

Many try to deny the power of music, but I’m telling you, music is a universally communicated artform–no matter your country of origin. Don’t believe me? Watch these very young girls from the UK perform Nikki Minaj’s Super Bass. Its unreal. They may be older than ‘toddler’ age, but not by much.

As much of the world mourns the death of Apple Founder, Steve Jobs at the age of 56, I just wanted to say that I admired what Steve Jobs stood for–leadership and innovation. As a creative person, you want so much for the masses to understand your products, your vision, and even your passion. But, [...]

I’m sending a big Shout Out to the ladies of Delta Sigma Theta of the Palm Coast Flagler County Alumnae Chapter for selecting Retaliation as their 2011-2012 book for the Delta Gems & Delta Academy girls! There are hundreds of books that they could have chosen, but they chose one of mine. I thank you! [...]

I’m excited because my indie book Retaliation is in its 5th printing. I remember when my first book, The Blueprint for My Girls hit its 4th printing. I believe I was on a college tour with authors K’wan, Brandon Massey and Jamise Dames. I remember thinking how exciting it was… Well, in my birthday month, [...]

After having just finished work on my film, The Difference – a documentary about teen suicide, I learned something from the youth who participated. One young person said that if you are ever thinking about suicide think about the people you love. “What would they do if you lose them?” It’s an awesome question that [...]

I am so thankful for the people that I’ve met in my career. The legendary Lee Bailey is a colleague who I can say is the real deal and is always about supporting what is on and poppin. Lee is always the founder of RadioScope and EURWeb! Wonderful writer, Ricardo Hazell, wrote a piece on [...]

I don’t wanna yell but I am annoyed today. I am annoyed with all of the articles that I’m reading about people who have been lynched, hung, electrocuted and otherwise treated unjustly in the United States of America. It is not enough to simply SPREAD a story on Facebook or Twitter. If you don’t like [...]

In celebrating 30 days of Yasmin — 30 days of literacy, film and empowerment–this is one of my empowerment messages.  9/23  to 10/23/11 – Join the Movement… As rough as life is, and it does get rough, there are things for which we should be thankful . When I look at my life, I am [...]

Yesterday I took a call from a parent who asked me what to do about her 15 year old daughter being bullied. The bullying had started last year and this parent had been to the principal and not received any help. In fact, the parent went to the principal and the principal told the mother, [...]

“When you are a young artist, I believe what you need most is acceptance of who you are. My parents gave me that. So, I am forever in their debt.” – Yasmin Shiraz Your child may want to sign his name with a jelly packet, he/she may want to wear a neon green top with [...]

On Friday, September 16, I’ll be on hand at the D.C. Department of Mental Health Capital CARES Suicide Prevention Conference  in Washington, DC screening my new project, The Difference. The Difference is a short film that discusses teen suicide from the perspectives of three African American teens who’ve had personal experiences with suicide. (Its a [...]