Holly Olayemi Ajala – AYO Magazine

BEAUTY HAIR USA

That’s Why Her Hair is So Big, It’s Full of Discourse: A Critical Examination of My 4C Hair

Holly Ajala provides an analytical look into her personal relationship with her natural hair and society’s insistence that she hate it. Read More

Home is Where the Heart Breaks: Ngozi Anyanwu’s “The Homecoming Queen”

Writer Holly Olayemi Ajala reviews Ngozi Anyanwu's newest play, "The Homecoming Queen". Read More

HEALTH LIFE WELLNESS

Black in Berlin: Self-Care as Warfare

Writer Holly Ajala shares how a monthly social collective is helping black women in Berlin facilitate self-care. Read More

A Tale of Two Mothers: Chimamanda and Janet (…and Laverne and Marsha, Too)

Writer Holly Olayemi Ajala shares her disappointments with a favorite author, the importance of inclusivity and redefining womanhood. Read More

Rihanna: The Erotic as Knowledge of Self

Writer Holly Olayemi Ajala investigates black female erotica vis-à-vis the popular cultural icon Read More

Welcome to AYO, an international meeting place for black women.

Here at AYO, we share honest, relevant stories for smart, creative, engaged, black women. From Brooklyn to Bordeaux, Lagos to Laos, we aim to meet black women wherever they are in the world. Literally.

AYO was launched in 2016 by founder and editor-in-chief Adenike Olanrewaju.

AYO is a labor of love that we hope will be a wellspring of cultural examinations and celebration; a place where various kinds of the black woman can exist. In this space, there is joy.

So here’s to finding your joy. Wherever you are.