Entertainment
Julia Browne Shares Her Love of France as a Guide to the History of Black Paris — Andscape
Black Americans in France is a series of reports specializing in African Americans living abroad during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Julia Browne has been guiding travellers through the history of Black Paris since 1994.
As the owner and founder Walking in the Spirit walking tours, Browne is an element of a vibrant enterprise that explores the deep, wealthy history of African Americans in Paris. For many black Americans, Paris represented liberation and an escape from the constant hum of racism.
For many reasons, this was not Browne’s reality.
“Honestly, it was somewhere else, and I liked being somewhere else,” Browne said during a recent interview from her home in Paris. “I liked being in a recent culture, and I liked looking around and never knowing what was occurring, and having the opportunity to discover what other people were doing. What life was all about.
“I wasn’t looking for freedom. It was a life that was more satisfying and closer to my personality.”
Browne’s journey has been as fascinating as the story her trips reveal. She became part of the black expat community in February 1990, when she left Canada and moved to a city that had resonated together with her since she was 10.
Browne was born in Yorkshire, England, after her parents emigrated from the island of St. Kitts in the Nineteen Fifties. They were part of the Windrush generation, made up of Commonwealth residents, particularly individuals and families from the Caribbean, who were invited to the UK to help rebuild Britain after World War II. When Browne was 8, the family moved to Ontario, Canada, in search of a more promising future. Her father left first, working in a logging camp. The rest of the family followed suit, settling in a small German village called Kitchener-Waterloo.
Browne said she was intrigued by France, the French and French culture in elementary school. She studied French and had a French pen pal in tenth grade. She’s undecided how or why her interests developed.
Her spirit was drawn to France normally and Paris specifically.
“There are certain ideas that come to you and you just go with them,” she said.
“The turning point came very gradually. It crept up on me. It’s not something I ever thought I’d be doing. If you had told me this was the job I’d be doing, I would have thought, ‘But it doesn’t even exist,’ because it didn’t.”
—Julia Browne
When Browne was 17, she discovered that her biological father, who was born in the Caribbean, was of French descent. She later discovered that her biological father had roots in Normandy.
Browne first went to Paris in the late Nineteen Seventies, when she was a flight attendant for Air Canada. Her introduction to France was unimpressive.
“I was disappointed because I didn’t like it, I didn’t like it at all,” she said. “I didn’t like the way people approached me, I just didn’t like it. That’s what happens when you don’t know what culture you’re entering and it’s so different from your own.”
When Air Canada laid off a whole lot of employees, Browne used her share-based advantages to enroll in a study abroad program at the University of Toronto. She settled in Aix-en-Provence, a city in southern France, north of Marseille.
It was there that Browne met the Frenchman who would turn into her husband. They returned to Montreal and married. After two years in Canada, Browne and her husband moved to Paris in 1990. They arrived on February 1, the birthday of poet and novelist Langston Hughes.
Browne didn’t have a grand plan. She definitely didn’t have plans to start a business based on exploring the wealthy history of African Americans in France.
This happened much later.
“The turning point came very gradually. It was coming to me,” she said. “It’s not something I ever thought I’d be doing. If you told me this was the job I’d be doing, I’d be like, ‘But it doesn’t even exist,’ because it didn’t.”
After a few years in Paris, Browne began hanging out with black expatriates. She met the author Davida Kilgore, who, like Browne, had studied at the Sorbonne. They became friends, and Kilgore introduced Browne to other black Americans.
“It took a conscious effort to get out and meet black Americans,” she said. “I was the odd one out because I was Canadian. My experience was different than Americans.”
Browne, on the other hand, was aware of black American culture, largely through television.
“We knew what African-American life was like. We knew some of the trials and tribulations. We could name all the big cities, we watched all the same TV shows,” she said. “I felt like I knew what it was like to be African-American, but I still had a distance from it because I hadn’t lived that way, so it was two different cultures.”
She knew enough about the history of black Americans to realize that the differences between them were significant.
“We felt safer in Canada,” she said. “We didn’t feel like there was as much prejudice and discrimination, but deep down we knew it was there. It wasn’t on the same level, it wasn’t as intrusive. It didn’t seem as obvious.”
For Browne, the opportunity to meet and talk with black Americans in Paris allowed her to see herself in a broader context: she was Canadian, born in the UK, but still black. Their stories were part of hers.
“It was a chance for me to hear what it was really like, beyond what you saw in the media. I wanted to know what it was like to be a black American as opposed to a Canadian. That’s still ongoing,” she said.
Today, he believes that the common thread between black Canadians and black Americans is that they’re all North Americans.
“But at that time I felt there was a boundary between us,” she said.
The seeds of Browne’s Black Americans in Paris travel business were planted while she was taking classes at the Sorbonne. One of her professors, Michel Fabre, who co-founded the Center for Afro-American Studies, wrote a book titled .
Browne took the book and walked the streets of Paris with it. She discovered, for instance, that Hughes lived near her apartment in the seventeenth arrondissement.
There were so many other gems she never knew about. “I love research, I love documentaries, I love learning,” Browne said. “I took the book and commenced walking around with it.
“It was so amazing to me that I kept doing it, walking around different places.”
During this time, Browne joined a group of black American women called the Sisters. During the group’s monthly meetings, Browne began to discuss her journeys and the history she was exploring.
“I was telling my sisters what I had discovered, and someone asked, ‘Can you show us some of these things?’ So I wrote some things down on cards and took some of my friends with me.”
Word of her informal tours spread, and when friends and relatives visited, they asked Browne to be their guide. “That’s literally how it started, I just started showing people around because someone had heard and someone had told someone else.”
In 1994, a magazine editor visited Paris. Browne took her on a tour, and she or he wrote a story about the tour. A reporter from the magazine later wrote about Browne’s Black Paris tour. “It just took off. It surprised me, but it was so much fun,” she said. “You feel the need and you just go for it.”
Browne recalls that regardless that the business became popular, at first the travel agencies she contacted didn’t consider their clients would want to take a Black Paris tour.
“I contacted travel agents in the States and asked them, ‘Do you think your clients would be interested in this?’ And they said, ‘No, I don’t think so. I don’t see why,’” Browne said.
“It was travelers going back to their travel agents and saying, ‘We want to do this,’” Browne said. “People generally felt a need and wanted someone to do it for them. And then the travel industry — well, some agencies, anyway — saw that there was a need for it. And that’s when it really took off.”
Unlike some expats who live in Paris year-round, Browne still travels between Paris and Canada. She has trained staff to run tours while she is out of the country.
“I was doing the administration and all that, and the guides were my guides. And that was interesting because I was able to pass on that training and knowledge to other people I knew among black Americans,” Browne said. “It wasn’t just me anymore, it was other people kind of putting it off. That was good, too. In that sense, it wasn’t bad.”
When Browne moved to Paris, she absorbed the culture and loved it.
“In those first years, and since I used to be here full time — raising kids, living the life of a wife, being part of a French family, having friends, teaching, working — I felt increasingly connected to the place I used to be living. I felt good about being part of this society. I liked being French. That was what I identified with greater than being Canadian.
“I feel like I’m more myself here. I feel like I’ve definitely found my mission and my reason for being here in a way that I don’t feel when I’m back in North America.”
On the other hand, Browne said she also cherishes her Canadian roots and, greater than anything, enjoys having the ability to come back and are available back. “It allows me to relax into one. And then when I get bored of that, I can relax into the other,” Browne said. “I just can’t imagine being just one.”
While Paris has been a place of comfort for generations, Browne, like others, is at pains to emphasize that Paris will not be a paradise for black Americans.
“I don’t think it’s a panacea. Nothing is a panacea. But there are times when you need a break and there are places where you can take a break, where you don’t have to think, where you don’t have to feel oppressed, where you can hide,” she said.
“You start to calm down, you start to relax. And then you find other parts of yourself that you can bring out, like the writers did. They found a certain space where they could create. And then you take a breath, and then you throw yourself back into the fight if you need to, or you find a place to fight, or something to fight for. You choose that, but at least you get a chance to sit out a few rounds, right?”
With the discharge of Wicked fast approaching, it’s protected to say that Cynthia Erivo is on fire straight away.
The film adaptation of the Broadway musical (which is an adaptation of a best-selling novel based on one other novel) is about to open to over $175 million worldwide this weekend, and Erivo has just landed a significant deal.
Universal Pictures has struck a first-look cope with its production company Edith’s Daughter, Deadline reported.
“Having spent the last three years working with Donna Langley, Peter Cramer and the Universal team on Wicked, I have experienced first-hand the love and fearlessness with which they tell stories and uplift narrators,” said Erivo. “I am absolutely delighted to take the next step in our cooperation under our first-look agreement. This is not only a milestone for my production company, but also a testament to the power of storytelling and the importance of diverse voices in film. I can’t wait to bring our visions to life and share them with the world!”
However, some could also be just discovering the 37-year-old from Stockwell, London (where she was born right into a family of Nigerian immigrants) or may don’t know about her background and profession to this point. There’s quite a bit to like about the Emmy, Grammy and Tony winner – and much more to grasp beneath the surface. Below we have gathered some things you have to know about Erivo, including some very necessary ones.
He is a Broadway sensation
Before Erivo became a star of the silver screen, she made a reputation for herself on the stage. The actress’ breakthrough role was the role of Celie within the musical adaptation of “The Color Purple” on Broadway. From 2015 to 2017, she delivered critically acclaimed, groundbreaking performances, winning the 2016 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
She has played several iconic black characters
Aretha Franklin, Harriet Tubman and Recy Taylor are black American historical figures immortalized on screen by Erivo, who has played all of them in movies. Shortly after her Broadway run in 2017, Erivo played Taylor in “The Rape of Recy Taylor.” She then starred as Tubman within the 2019 film “Harriet.”
In 2021, Erivo played Franklin within the National Geographic anthology “Genius: Aretha”. While critics praised her performance, Franklin’s family had a special tackle the project, claiming she was never consulted and even felt “disrespected” by the production team.
He is a queer icon
Earlier this yr, Erivo received the Schrader Award from the Los Angeles LGBT Center as a self-proclaimed member for her talent and support of the queer community.
“Acknowledging that I am queer publicly – especially in the public eye – means taking a risk to claim my freedom,” she said in her speech through which she agreed to return out as queer later in life. “It seems we prefer to see the world in black and white rather than accept the difficult (but beautiful) complexities of our humanity.”
Although it has never been explicitly confirmed, Erivo has long been considered one half of a fairly powerful Black Hollywood power couple, as she is commonly seen at red carpet events alongside fellow industry heavyweight Lena Waithe.
He has a novel sense of fashion
From shaving her eyebrows to her signature long and ornamental nails, Erivo is understood for her daring sense of fashion. Her uniqueness was even incorporated into her makeup for “Wicked.” The makeup artist used stencils to attract eyebrows and add freckles. Meanwhile, a special shade of green face and body makeup was developed to make Erivo’s melaninated skin appear “clearly” on screen, and the shade was named “Cynthia Green,” the film’s makeup artist said People Magazine. It’s value noting that despite the hours-long application process required day by day for months of filming, she also said that Erivo “never, ever, ever complained.”
She doesn’t suffer fools
Social media was abuzz this week with response to actor/podcast host Dax Shepard’s invasive query about Erivo’s signature elaborate manicure, specifically how he moves through it while using the lavatory. When footage of her interview with Shepard hit the Internet, many individuals were quick to sentence its inappropriateness, asking her how she wipes herself while having very long, jeweled nails.
“My answer is that no one wipes their ass with just their fingers. You use wipes, right? And you wipe it off,” she replied calmly.
Erivo further expressed her annoyance with this query; the one she had exhibited before.
“I understand, it annoys me. Come on, guys,” she said. “I understand, but I’m a functioning adult and I’ve never walked around smelling like… you know.”
People participating within the discussion found this query rude, disgusting and invasive. It can also be, as Erivo identified, unoriginal. In response to this viral exchange, some have responded by demonstrating how they adapt these very human processes to long fingernails – and shockingly, it’s just about the identical process we have all been doing since potty training. It’s really not that complicated.
He has some questionable tweets in his search history
When it was announced in 2018 that Erivo would play Harriet Tubman within the biopic “Harriet,” the British actress’s seemingly problematic comments made years earlier about the language of Black Americans inevitably resurfaced. As previously reported by theGrio, this compounded existing questions about the choice to forged British-born Erivo because the historical African-American hero, given what some perceived as a disdain for African-American culture.
“As for the tweets, they were taken out of context, giving me no room to explain what they meant – and they weren’t actually mocking anyone,” she explained on the time: Complex reported. “It was not intended to be (offensive) at all. It was to celebrate a song I (wrote) when I was 16.”
Speaking further about the controversy during an event on the Toronto International Film Festival, she said: “I actually have never… never spoken negatively about people because I don’t desire to; I don’t desire this energy to be passed on to others.”
She continued: “I do not think it’s good for us in any respect; I do not think it serves any purpose apart from to bring negativity into my life and yours, and I just don’t desire that.
Perhaps he has some tension with the band in “The Color Purple.”
For unknown reasons, Erivo claims she was not invited to a special screening of the musical “The Color Purple” for family and friends, which was also attended by other members of her Broadway forged. It’s a bit strange that the Tony-winning revival star wasn’t on the guest list. When asked about her apparent rejection in the course of the interview and whether it reflected her initial considerations for Celie’s role within the film adaptation, Erivo suggested she couldn’t talk about it.
Despite every little thing, he’s capable of admit his mistake
Erivo can have had mixed emotions previously as a result of questionable comments or her unwavering passion for her craft, but she is ultimately capable of admit when she was incorrect. In the lead-up to Wicked’s premiere, fan-made art got here to light that edited the film’s poster to look more like the unique Broadway Playbill, obscuring Erivo’s direct gaze with the brim of her witch hat. The actress was initially very offended, but later admitted that she can have overreacted.
“I think for me it was a human moment…” she later explained. “I probably should have called my friends, but I’m fine.”
After all, she is an expert
Say what you want, but Cynthia Erivo is robust and talented. He can also be a one that is alleged to place the nice of the team ahead of his personal glory. During a recent appearance on “Cutting room floor” podcast, she described her technique of coming into harmony together with her “Wicked” co-star Ariana Grande and the way the 2 worked together to create a unified sound fairly than resorting to diva-like behavior in an try and outshine one another.
For example, although she and Grande have very different voices, Erivo noted that what they’ve in common is way more necessary.
“I think what connects us is the way we hear music, so we can hear each other,” she explained. “And the beauty of singing with someone who can also hear is that you follow each other back and forth. We can find ways to make our textures and sounds make sense, and that’s really hard with humans.”
Erivo added: “It also signifies that you found someone completely selfless because they care about working with you, and being an element of that’s essentially the most amazing thing. When you find someone who’s committed to creating sound together, (there may be) no ego.
Snoop Dogg attends the Los Angeles Premiere of “Gladiator II” held on the TCL Chinese Theater on November 18, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
When Snoop Dogg takes the stage at Amazon Music Live on November 29, it is the moment hip-hop fans have been waiting for. The West Coast legend ends Season 3 with a performance that guarantees to be nothing in need of legendary.
Airing after Black Friday Football at 7pm EST on Prime Video and Twitchthe show will showcase his expansive musical journey, combining chart toppers with deep cuts that defined a complete generation.
Sponsored by the brand new 2025 Nissan Kicks, fans can expect an exclusive first hearken to songs from his upcoming album ‘Missionary’, which might be released next month. The announcement comes at a critical point in Snoop’s profession and marks the following evolution of an artist who moves seamlessly between music, acting and entrepreneurship.
Amazon Music Live has change into a powerhouse of musical innovation, and Snoop’s final performance epitomizes what it’s all about. Throughout Season 3, the series featured standout moments from artists resembling Jelly Roll, who brought together country and rock stars for an epic performance, and Big Sean, who paid tribute to historically black colleges and universities together with his breathtaking tribute .
For those that wish to have fun in advance and luxuriate in the final word Snoop experience, Amazon Music has REDISCOVER Snoop Dogg playlist it’s the proper foundation. It’s a musical time capsule chronicling his journey from the Long Beach underground scene to world-famous superstardom. Each track tells the story of an artist who not only survived in the music industry, but fundamentally modified it.
With 16 Grammy nominations to his name, Snoop continues to prove that he’s greater than only a rapper – he’s a real entertainment icon. His influence extends far beyond music, touching on film, television, cannabis culture and entrepreneurship. The Black Friday performance might be the following chapter in a profession defined by constant reinvention.
The performance isn’t only about music – it’s also a presentation of, amongst others, recent nissan kicks 2025. As an official sponsor of Amazon Music Live, the compact crossover was integrated throughout the season, giving fans a glimpse of its modern style and advanced technologies through pre-show and in-person experiences on the show.
For those in the Los Angeles area, a limited variety of tickets can be found from DICE. But for everybody else, Prime Video and Twitch will bring the magic of Doggfather right to your screen. It’s a probability to see a living legend in top form, delivering a performance that guarantees to be as unpredictable and electrifying as Snoop himself.
Entertainment
Melania slammed Donald Trump with third prenup change, fueling rumors of marital drama after she dodged his kiss and claim resurfaced
For years, there was speculation concerning the authenticity of the love between President-elect Donald Trump and his wife, Melania Trump. The theories intensified after Melania was caught repeatedly hiding from her husband’s public displays of affection for years.
Some imagine their relationship is solely business-related, a view that gained popularity when the New York Post reported in September 2023 that its alleged insider claimed that Melania had renegotiated her prenuptial agreement with the forty fifth president for the third time. The move followed Trump’s confirmation of his intention to hunt a second term as president after announcing his re-election campaign on November 15, 2022.
When the couple married in 2005, the initial prenuptial agreement reportedly significantly favored Donald Trump. However, since then the contract has been renegotiated not less than 3 times, with the primary renegotiation going down in 2017 and one other in 2020, when she served as apparently delayed moving to the White House – not less than that is what the New York Post claims in its unconfirmed reports. It is unclear why the thrice-married Trump would conform to loosen up his protections as part of such an arrangement.
In 2023, an alleged insider told the Post’s Page Six gossip column: “Over the past yr, Melania and her team have been quietly negotiating a brand new deal following the suspension of her contract with Donald Trump. This is not less than the third time Melania has renegotiated the terms of her marriage contract.
It continued to be claimed that Melania can be increasingly concerned about Trump’s mounting legal problems. Last yr, he was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with making secret payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels. That same yr, Trump was also found liable in a civil suit for sexual abuse and defamation of author E. Jean Carroll. More than a yr ago, Trump was also charged in Atlanta with attempting to overturn the presidential vote within the 2020 elections in Georgia. Trump ultimately faced federal criminal charges related to his mishandling of classified documents after leaving office and the January 6 rebel.
With all this happening against Trump, Melania obviously desired to be certain she can be secure.
“This agreement was necessary due to ongoing legal disputes that (…) (Donald) has suffered,” the source said.
However, the insider also told Page Six that the postnuptial agreement doesn’t mean Melania plans to depart Trump.
They said the revised deal would also provide money for his or her 18-year-old son, Barron Trump.
“Melania is most concerned with maintaining and increasing the considerable trust she has in her son, Barron.”
Another source backed up this statement, saying, “I know she wanted this to provide her with more money, and also – from what I understand – there is at least a set amount that Barron is expected to get.”
Fans shared their thoughts on Melania renegotiating her prenup with The Daily Beast’s. side.
One person said: “Thanks to her we managed to save him. After filing for bankruptcy five times, he will be living on Melany’s benefits.”
The second wrote: “He must secure Barron’s future before the non-existent money disappears.”
A third commenter advised: “Honey, take the money and run.”
CNN is preparing for Trump’s second visit to the White House reported that his wife doesn’t plan to live in Washington full time. Sources told the news outlet that while Melania plans to attend essential events, she will spend loads of time living between New York City – as her son Barron attends NYU there – and Palm Beach, Florida, where many of her friends live.
Her reported impending absence from the White House has sparked whispers about whether Melania is serious about her responsibilities and priorities as first lady, but that is not all. It also sparked more speculation about whether she and Trump have a blissful marriage.
Even during Trump’s victory speech, a smiling Melania avoided being kissed by her husband as he sang her praises on stage. After thanking her and expressing his appreciation for her “best-selling book in the country,” Trump moves to hug and kiss his wife, then places her hand on her cheek as she turns her head barely.
Still, Melania assures doubters that every little thing is effective in her marriage to Trump. In September, she even tried to disclaim the rumors during an interview on “Fox & Friends.”
When asked what she liked about her husband, she replied: “His essence. His humor. His personality. His kindness,” he added later. “It’s very special. His positivity. His energy. It’s unbelievable. Yes, so we’ve got a fantastic relationship.
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