Words By Tiffany "My Natural Reality" Shawn
Jasmine Brand never intended to blog fulltime. But people’s desire to talk about entertainers and celebrities intrigued her, so she started The Jasmine Brand website to discuss those topics. Her love for writing and her background in journalism helped fuel TheJasmineBRAND.com. And the site has continued to gain more and more visitors.
TheJasmineBRAND.com offers people the latest pop culture and celebrity news, along with a bit of fashion.
“We give readers an objective side to all things entertainment and we try to present some type of balance,” Jasmine said. “We've interviewed an array of celebs — Joan Rivers, Spike Lee, Rick Ross, Evelyn Lozada — each giving readers an introspective look at their favorite (or sometimes least favorite) celeb.”
Jasmine shared that she’s nowhere near where she wants to be with her goals, so it wasn’t easy for her to answer my question about her greatest accomplishments. But one of her major successes was the day she was able to quit her corporate job to run her site fulltime.
“I'm always proud when I've inspired any of our readers or sparked conversation,” she said. “I've been honored by dope, respectable outlets like Black Enterprise, Vibe Vixen, and I just received my first 'Best Journalist/Outstanding Blogger' award. Those have all been humbling experiences.”
Jasmine’s boldly colored hair makes her easily recognizable. She’s tried everything from locs to weaves to relaxers, she said.
“I don't really consider myself 'natural' because I put lots of color on my hair, which has a ton of chemicals in it,” Jasmine said. “But I will say, I used to hide my face with long hair and weaves. I didn't appreciate my own beauty until I chopped my hair off and stopped straightening it. It was pretty liberating!” When it comes to staple products or a regimen that works best for her hair, Jasmine keeps it simple.
“I'm a leave-in conditioner type of gal,” she said. “I wash and rinse my hair a lot and use lots of conditioner. Lots of co-washing; but no brands in particular. I'll try almost anything once.”
Follow TheJasmineBRAND on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Vine.