JENDELLA BENSON

“Wednesday’s child is full woe” – I remember reading this as a child in a children’s book of nursery rhymes and feeling like everything made sense! Of course, my mom told me not to pay attention to such nonsense, but the facts spoke for themselves: I was born on a Wednesday and sadness and anxiety were feelings I was intimately acquainted with from a young age. ⁣ ⁣ As I got older and tragedies accumulated and official diagnoses were recorded, I felt entitled to my woe, as much as I felt isolated by it. Saying that though, the last two years or so have been the happiest years of my adult life* – note I said 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗲𝘀𝘁, 𝘯𝘰𝘵 easiest.⁣ ⁣ That’s given me some mental headspace to reflect on a previous bad habit of mine, “bleeding all over the internet”. This essay has been gestating over the last couple of months, so it’s a long one!⁣ ⁣ 🗞️🎧 Enjoy reading or listening to 𝙒𝙝𝙤 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜? via the link in my bio 😌⁣ ⁣ * 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘺 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘢𝘺 😏⁣

had to pick the pen up ~⁣ had to pick my chin up ~⁣ 40 days, 40 nights /⁣ got my discipline up ~⁣ had to learn how to forgive /⁣ and give my bitterness up ~⁣ couldn’t wait ‘til i was perfect /⁣ had to learn that 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮 ⭌

“We want to know more about the young men” is the most consistent bit of reader feedback I’ve had about 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘞𝘦’𝘷𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘵 (my second novel). It took me by surprise for a while but let me not pretend that the moment I finished writing about Abi and Mimi, a story about Raph and Tyrex-with-the-Pyrex wasn’t already taking shape 🤭⁣ ⁣ Alas, my imagination is currently occupied by other (fictional) men at the moment – God willing, you’ll get to meet Gideon soon enough 👀 – but if you are interested in the lives of Raph, Ty, Zed, Gambino and the rest, here are some books telling the stories of young men in adjacent worlds:⁣ ⁣ 🏙️ 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙙 𝙇𝙞𝙛𝙚: 𝘼 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙢 𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙇𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙣 𝙀𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝗯𝘆 𝗘𝗯𝗼𝗻𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗶𝗱 (@merkybooks ) – I’m swept up in the world of Northville at the moment. There is so much grace and compassion in Ebony’s pen, but also an insightful truth that is razor sharp. I haven’t enjoyed reading non-fiction like this in a 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦, and as heavy as the topics covered can be at times, Ebony handles both her subjects and her readers with care. ⁣ ⁣ 🌳 𝘼𝙣 𝙊𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙂𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙄𝙣 𝙀𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝗯𝘆 𝗠𝗼𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗠𝗰𝗞𝗲𝗻𝘇𝗶𝗲 (@wildfiredoesbooks ) – “Childhood and innocence are only synonymous to the privileged.” A coming-of-age story set in Bristol and an “ends” story that is as lyrical as it can be brutal. I think the realest thing is how so many kaleidoscopic elements of life collide, the roads, religion, love, consequences, opportunity, entrapment. I saw someone describe it as “vivid” and in a word, yes. ⁣ ⁣ 🧭 𝙀𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝘼𝙘𝙧𝙚 𝙇𝙖𝙣𝙚 𝗯𝘆 𝗔𝗹𝗲𝘅 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗹𝗲 🕊️ (@4thestatebooks ) – I recommend this book at every opportunity. I’ve taught writing workshops from this book. This feels like a time capsule of 1980s London, Brixton specifically, from the point of view of a young black man, like you are living in the skin of Biscuit and his friends. Feels truer than any history book.⁣ ⁣ Maybe I’ll get back to writing that story about Raph and Ty one day…but for now, this is good food 👆🏽

The ultimate podcast for Black mothers is back. The Survival Guide Podcast has returned in partnership with @BestStartInLife . There’s a lot to unpack when it comes to motherhood – but keeping up with your appointments, alongside eating well and taking the right supplements, is a great place to start for a healthy pregnancy. We’re so glad to be back with this conversation. Watch the full reel and visit @BestStartInLife to learn more about having the healthiest pregnancy possible. #AD

𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 @netflixuk ’𝘀 𝙇𝙤𝙪𝙞𝙨 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙭: 𝙄𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙨𝙥𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚? 𝗟𝗲𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸. ☕️⁣ ⁣ It’s easy to look at the likes of Harrison Sullivan, Justin Waller, Myron Gaines and the rest into hyper toxic masculinity monsters, but they were once “normal boys”… 🥲⁣ ⁣ …”normal boys” with trauma they didn’t deserve and dysfunctional relationships with father figures that were not their fault. 😔⁣ ⁣ Thinking about it from a parenting POV, how do young normal boys grow up into the kind of men who belittle women for internet clout and deflect their deep insecurities onto young impressionable minds? 🤨⁣ ⁣ It’s easy to believe “it could never be my kid”, but 𝘸𝘩𝘺 will it never be your kid? If we can answer this question, maybe there’s a way to block the red pill pipeline for good. 🧐⁣ ⁣ Black Ballad’s resident “boy mum” (🫣) @jendella thinks more about this. Read ‘𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙏𝙤 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙎𝙤𝙣 𝙅𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙨𝙥𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’ on the Black Ballad website now.

£𝟰𝟰,𝟲𝟵𝟲,𝟵𝟳𝟴!!! 💰⁣ ⁣ That’s how much we’d have in the bank if we had £1 for every word you read on Black Ballad this year… 🤑⁣ ⁣ 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗕𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗱’𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱 list has dropped and we are deep in our data bag 📊 Here are some to take note of, but visit the link in our bio for the full list 🏆⁣ ⁣ Gather around to witness your fave writers getting their flowers 💐 – 𝘄𝗲 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝟴𝟯 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿!⁣ ⁣ And out of the 𝟭𝟳𝟴 𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀 we published this year, find the ones that really spoke to your soul (and some hidden gems that you don’t want to miss! 💎💎💎)⁣ ⁣ It has been a 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘥 year for digital media – specifically black women working in digital media – so looking back on the editorial we’ve published this year feels even sweeter. 🙏🏽⁣ ⁣ We’re grateful for every single one of the 𝟰𝟮𝟰,𝟮𝟭𝟳 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 BB in 2025, so here’s a 2026 filled with more stories, more wins and more writing that you really won’t get anywhere else! 🥂⁣ ⁣ Are there any of your favourite articles that didn’t make the list? 𝙇𝙚𝙩 𝙪𝙨 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 👇🏾👇🏿👇🏽

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤? 👀    Well here’s a sneak peak ✨    Not every week is press tickets and awards ceremonies, but we’re grateful for the “normal” ones alongside the more “glamourous” ones 🥰

Watching the genre-defying afrobeats singer-songwriter @adekunlegold with Guildhall Session Orchestra as part of EFG London Jazz Festival, left @jendella with a lot of thoughts…⁣ ⁣ 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞? 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐠𝐨 𝐨𝐟? 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐟 “𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲” 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦? (𝘚𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘳: 18𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘺 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘮.)⁣ ⁣ Culture has always been a dynamic and transformative thing, shaped by migration, diplomacy, war and mutual exchange. Part of that transformative fluidity was on full display during Adekunle Gold’s Royal Festival Hall show, with performances that were cinematic (‘Don Corleone’ felt otherworldly) and explosive (‘Party No Dey Stop’ nearly turned everything upside down).⁣ ⁣ Nigerian fújì music itself (which AG’s latest album is named after) is an example of cultural exchange, and what a time to be alive to watch that cultural evolution continue as the music our parents listened to reconnects with a new international generation.⁣ ⁣ Read all about this in ‘𝐀𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐬, 𝐀𝐧 𝐎𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚 & 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐲𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐟 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲’ available now via the link in our bio.

The Way We Move | Celebrating Black women prioritising themselves and their health with @thisgirlcanuk Not every fitness journey needs to be hours spent in the gym - just 10 minutes has changed @jendella ’s life Between work, writing books & being a mum, she thought she didn’t have time to look after herself But catching a quick walk and stretch during the school run, or at lunch has transformed her mood, confidence & health. Make those 10 minutes of movement fit around your life - whether it’s after the school run, during a desk break, as an excuse to catch up with a friend, or to get some precious solo quiet time - however works for you Change can start with a single step if you make the time - just remember that #ThisGirlCan #ad

❤️‍🔥 𝙋𝘼𝙋𝙀𝙍𝘽𝘼𝘾𝙆 𝙋𝙐𝘽𝙇𝙄𝘾𝘼𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 𝘿𝘼𝙔 🎉⁣ ⁣ The real love story in 𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗧 𝗪𝗘’𝗩𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗧 is the friendship between Mimi and Abi. 💞⁣ ⁣ The real success of being an author is connecting with people in deep and unforeseeable ways. 🥰⁣ ⁣ Real wealth is friends who haven't stopped gassing me since last Friday. 😅⁣ ⁣ 𝘖𝘳í 𝘬ìí 𝘣𝘶𝘳ú 𝘵í𝘵í 𝘬ò 𝘮á 𝘭ọ’𝘳𝘶𝘯. (A head is never so unfortunate that it does not have a neck.) 🙏🏾⁣ ⁣ 𝙏𝙤 𝙂𝙤𝙙 𝘽𝙚 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙂𝙡𝙤𝙧𝙮

Nearly half way through the year and let me tell ya, it’s been a 𝘥𝘰𝘰𝘻𝘺!!⁣ ⁣ At the end of 2024, as I was doing my Year Compass and annual reflections, I wanted a real sexy theme for the year ahead. “Abundance!” I thought. But I very clearly felt the Holy Spirit say, “No, 𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦. Imagine what I could do with a year of your consistent obedience.” Well, that’s not very sexy... But over the coming weeks, the word kept cropping up again and again, little breadcrumbs of confirmation.⁣ ⁣ OK, so boom. The reality is that while I wasn’t been asked to build an Ark or lay my firstborn on a wilderness altar, what was being asked of me was in some ways harder: put my pride aside, stop looking for external validation and worrying about other people’s opinions, dive headfirst into Scripture at every given opportunity, be more selfless, look for ways to serve others... i.e. not grand gestures of audacious obedience and faith that will ultimately get me brownie points and inspire awe in those that witness. (Although, let’s be real but Noah and Abraham were probably seen as absolute lunatics in their time.) What was being asked me was death by a thousand cuts – or, in Christian vernacular, die to self, die to pride, die to self-seeking, die…die…die… 💀⁣ ⁣ Anyways sha, this is the part where I’m meant to drop all the amazing ways that God has honoured my obedience, like £10k dropping in my account, someone 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 me a house, all the career-based accolades rolling in… and let me say none of that has happened 😅 but what has happened is a deepened intimacy with the Creator of the universe, joy and peace that make me feel delirious at times (🤣) and the desire to constantly speak in ways that I think even my Christian friends might think I’m a bit… 🤪 Most importantly my kids have a better, softer, wiser and more patient mother who is less distracted by the things that don’t matter 🙇🏽‍♀️⁣ ⁣ Let me be real, existing in this world is not any easier than it’s been previously. Life is hard, but God is so, 𝙨𝙤 good. (Also, just finished a new draft of Book 3! 🥳 This is what the post was originally meant to be about but… ya know! 🤪)

(The billboards are fake but the 5⭐️ reviews aren’t!)⁣ ⁣ 𝗜𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀: you’re a teenage girl, hurtling towards a future that you don’t yet know the shape of, and as the train you’re sitting on is about to cross county lines you look up and catch sight of a billboard looming over the motorway that circles your hometown.⁣ ⁣ “𝙃𝙚𝙮 𝘼𝙗𝙞, 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜?” it reads, but really you hear it in the voice of your auntie, concerned neighbour or big-sister-like-figure and you hesitate, because you’re not supposed to tell anyone... not yet, at least... not until it’s all worked out the way that you’ve been told it will work out.⁣ ⁣ 𝗕𝘂𝘁 the warm tone you hear as your eyes scan that billboard makes you second guess yourself for just a moment… maybe long enough to pull out your phone and send a text into the ether that could be your saving grace… just in case…⁣ ⁣ That was the idea that popped into my head when I woke up one morning, so me being me, I cracked open Photoshop, sourced some royalty-free images and got to 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘬𝘬𝘬 because what author doesn’t imagine one day seeing their book on a billboard?!⁣ ⁣ I’m thankful to every single reader – the ones who couldn’t help but swallow the book whole in a day or two and the ones that had to take a break because… well, I get you. (I still get teary-eyed.) ⁣ ⁣ Next month 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙒𝙚’𝙫𝙚 𝙂𝙤𝙩 is out in paperback. Pre-order now from your fave bookshop to get the ride of your life landing on your doorstep for only 🤩 £9.99 🤩