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It is so trendy to be Black right now….

I almost feel a little sorry for White people, cause its like, being White is sooooo last season and being Black is sooooo right now! Its only fair, however, I mean White people had like centuries of being “in” so I’m not going to spend too much time being empathetic. Justin Timberlake, lover of all things Black, said on Oprah the other day that he’s walking with a little more of a swagger in his step.  I always thought J.T. was walking with a swagger, so I’m excited at the prospect of seeing this more pronounced swerve. 

It’s an exciting moment indeed.  Still, I must confess, there is something pulling on the corners of my mind.  I hardly got any sleep last night.  I was tossing and turning, sweating and popping straight up in bed every ten minutes or so. 

“What was bothering me so much?” you might be asking. Well, dear reader…. I’m worried that this is the kind of trend that is never going to end.  Now that Black is so “in” we are going to have to be on point, sexy, stimulating, smart and bold ALL THE TIME!  That’s a lot of pressure.  I mean when you are solely responsible for being the example of what’s cool on a global scale, you can’t make a mistake or you will become passé. 

I’ve been in the fashion world for a decade so I know how traumatic it can be to go from “in” to “out”.  In the interest of making sure Black is cool for longer than a season I’ve developed a short book list of the ‘ESSENTIAL THREE Books of winter 2009’ for this new age of Black hotness:

1. Rigged: The True Story of an Ivy League Kid Who Changed the World of Oil, from Wall Street to Dubai by Ben Mezrich.                                                                              

I noticed Tracy Maitland, Black finance wiz, reading Rigged on the beach on St. Barths over Xmas and New Years.  The second I got off the plane and was able to get to an English language book store in Miami, I scooped it right up.  I want the same information pulsing through my head that he decides is beach appropriate light reading.  (And so should you)  I leaned tons about the New York Merc exchange, the creation of an exchange in Dubai, and the way oil is bought and sold.  Anyone who wants to join in with Busta singing “We gettin’ Arab money!” should grab this entertaining book.

2. Do You by Russell Simmons                                                                                 

Russell was kind enough to send me his best seller after I expressed to him my desire to really take the reigns of my life and move towards excellence in 2009.  This book is equal parts wisdom, self-help, universal truths and Russell’s example from his extraordinary life and successes.  You can pick it up, turn to any page and even reading a