GorJazz Cosmetics
I recently reached out to a very close and dear friend of mine. She recently jumped into the entrepreneur world and started her own cosmetics line called “GorJazz Cosmetics” I was VERY intrigued by her jumping into the world of entrepreneurship so we decided to have an in-depth Q & A session. I’ve known her for close to a decade now, possibly longer and i’m PROUD OF HER. I’m proud of you BLACK QUEEN. I’ve placed the links to her website and her business instagram at the bottom. CHECK HER OUT!!
What made you start your own cosmetic line?
I want women to feel good about themselves - whether they wear make up or not. And if they do wear make up, I want them to feel good knowing that when they use my products, their skin is in good hands. With that being said, my products are cruelty and paraben free, hypoallergenic, 100% vegan.
What’s the best thing about being your own independent business owner?
I get to learn and master certain skill sets, I get to set my own schedule and most of all I get to meet beautiful women.
What are some of the challenges you’ve faced being an independent business owner?
Managing my time and staying motivated. I work a full time job, so sometimes I struggle to use my time wisely whenever I have it free. I sometimes can also be easily discouraged. Self awareness is something I have been slowly but surely working on. And it’s definitely paying off.
How long did it take for you to come up with the concept and the design?
About 2 months total. I did not (and still don’t) have the financial resources or time to hand make my products like I originally wanted to, so I did a lot of research and found a lab that would manufacture vegan, cruelty free beauty products at an affordable rate making sure they run EVERY LITTLE THING by me.
What made you come up with the idea of making your products cruelty free and 100% vegan?
Living a healthier lifestyle is becoming more popular amongst us. From the food we eat, to the cleaning products we use, more people are starting to go “natural, organic, pure, or vegan”. I hate to see beautiful women with all that poisonous shit caked up on their face not knowing what it’s really doing to their skin. Women should know that if they choose to wear any cosmetics, that they can do just that while still being mindful of their skin health. Enter GorJazz Cosmetics!
Who inspired you to start your own line?
Dozens of women (some even random) I talked to before starting. Women in my family included.
What keeps you motivated?
Ladies, you know that feeling you get when you buy a bomb ass outfit and know you’re about to shut it down? Fellas, you know that feeling you get after ya barber shape up that hairline? Yeah, that feeling right there...that’s my motivation. I want women to feel like that when they’re using my products to complete a look.
What are your long term goals for your cosmetics line?
In about 3-5 years, I want to have the proper finances and resources saved so that I can eventually manufacture my products myself promoting more authenticity. I also want to open a store somewhere down the line.
What advice would you give to a young entrepreneur that’s just starting out?
Don’t be discouraged. You don’t have to have a million degrees to start a business nor do you necessarily need a great abundance of financial resources. It’s also about who you know. Networking will become your best friend. With the right determination and vision, you literally can do anything you put your mind to. I started this business not knowing what the hell I was doing, no cap - I just knew WHAT I wanted to do and I have not regretted it this far. I’m loving every minute of this adventure (good and bad) and I’m excited for the opportunities that lie ahead.
Men Of Respect Interview. Ari Howard & Moe Corleone
Detroit Cousin & Moe Corleone had their long awaited sit down/interview about their favorite rap albums, growing up in Detroit, the generational curse in the african american community, etc. CHECK OUT THE INTERVIEW!
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RMG The Label Presents: Moe Corleone “Based On Actual Events” Available Right Now On All Streaming Sites
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Billey Madison: Talented And Gifted
https://www.youtube.com/user/SmeLIVE
Billey Madison. 1 of the best in the game, 1 of the best in the city and 1 of the best in the midwest without a doubt. You can not deny talent. I remember my bestfriend playing his music and my first response was "why didn't you tell me your little brother could rap?!?" From that day forward, I became a fan and a supporter. He became a little brother to me. His vision and his drive can not be denied. His talent and his ear for the proper beat selection is PERFECT. From the Eastside of Detroit, Michigan and you'd never know it. He isn't the typical rapper and he damn sure isn't the typical Detroit rapper. Earning 44,000 Youtube views from 1 of his videos titled "Out Of My Head" with the old school SWV-You're Always On My Mind sample, You can see how far he's come and you can see exactly where he's headed. “Bottles Of Liquor" pays homage to another old school classic. This time, he stays at home with this joint by sampling Dale-Soulful Moaning, a underground Detroit classic. The old school mixed in with the new school. His mixtape “A Tape Full Of Vibes” is a classic from top to bottom. The lyrics compliment the samples and the samples compliment the lyrics. It’s not the typical “Detroit Sound” The new school can embrace it and relate to it. The old school can embrace it and relate to it. He hits every angle. Speaking on topics such as failed friendships, being the man of the family. providing for the family, his own personal struggles, the struggles that young black men go through, etc. You can catch a vibe, party, hear some motivation, and shed some tears listening to him. Good classic music for the soul. Something that’s missing from the rap game and something that’s missing from music in general. Another classic under his belt. A REAL ARTIST with REAL RAW EMOTIONS. One way or another, the game will know him and the game will embrace him. Organic artist like himself are rare. He doesn’t make druggie music. He doesn’t make degrading music. He makes real music that you can vibe to. Real music with a soulful feel. You can hear the passion. Listen to Billey Madison and catch a vibe you can’t catch anywhere else.
Moe Corleone
Artist: Moe Corleone
Born: August 18, 1983 In Detroit, Michigan
Genre: Rap
Styles: Classic Hip Hop
Street Rap
Also Known As: Michael Austin
Debuting as a member of RMG’s Hip-Hop group, The ReFresh Crew, Moe Corleone Made His public introduction on an Underground smash, “Lingo” (DJ) “A day in the life of a trap boy”. Eager to perfect his craft and the joy of making music, Corleone’s hunger propelled him towards a solo career with ReFresh Music Group (RMG) . January 2018, Corleone unveiled EP, RMG Presents: Moe Corleone Cleaning Dirty Money. “History In The Making” was the first released single featuring Label mate PRock Pratt. Quickly, Corleone’s second single “2018” gained recognition from listeners worldwide, achieving 24,267 streams to date. Not bad for a debut! With great expectations, Corleone planned to set the world on fire but not without first attaining the adoration of the native Detroiter. Gaining a local buzz, Corleone released his second Ep, Based On Actual Events, bringing 2018 to a strong close. BOAE provides a glimpse into the highs and lows of Corleone’s life -having the “Mindset Of A Boss” while sailing Belle Isle On “3 Tier Yachts” and enduring the heartbreak of losing his “Mama”
Generational Curse
I was sitting back on a random day and i had a random epiphany. My grandfather on my mom’s side was the baby out of all his brothers and sisters. He took care of them all. His mom died when he was young and his dad wasn’t around to show him how to be a man. My dad’s father(i don’t respect him enough or know him enough to call him grandfather) wasn’t there for my grandmother, my dad, or my uncle. They didn’t have a father figure themselves. I look at myself and realized that i was in the same position. My dad’s father never learned how to be a man. My dad never learned how to be a man. I didn’t have anybody show me how to properly be a man when i was a kid. The generational cycle is real. We often suffer because of the bad decisions our elders made. There are things i’m learning now that i feel like i should’ve learned earlier in my life or things i wished i would’ve learned earlier in life. All i knew was a man was supposed to provide and that’s it. That’s all i saw. I never saw my grandfather on my mom’s side spend quality time with my grandmother. I never saw them eat dinner together. They never went out on dates. Nothing. I never seen him do anything romantic for her when they both were living. I never saw her receive any flowers. Nothing. My grandfather on my mom’s side was a great man. I loved him to death. That was the only father figure i had. He provided and he provided well. He gave me everything i wanted and needed as a grandchild but as far as giving instructions and guidance on how to be a man, i never got that from him. But when i found out about his upbringing, it all made sense. I’ll never fault him for that ever. He did the best he could with what we given to him. And as far as my dad’s side, I’ve crossed paths with my dad’s father maybe 3 times in my entire life so our relationship never existed and it never will. He never reached out when my dad was locked up. He never called and asked my mom did we want or need anything. Never received a birthday card, a birthday call, nothing. But for all i know, he may not know how to be a good man himself. From what i hear, he didn’t treat my grandmother right. It left me feeling like i’m out here on an island by myself. I’ll forever be grateful to have my older cousins because without them, i know i’d be dead or in jail. They gave me SOOOO much game as a teenager and they are still giving me game as a man but being a father figure and being my cousins are 2 different things. All i saw growing up was provide, pay the bills, come home, do it all over again. That’s it. That’s from one perspective.
The other perspective i saw was provide, pay the bills, drop the money off, and be gone for days at a time. So, where was i supposed to learn how to treat a woman properly? Where was i supposed to learn how to be a good man? That’s something i just thought about recently. I’m honestly just winging it and watching how my older cousins move. I take what they teach me and apply it to my own life. I’m learning how to be a man on the fly just like a lot of black men in society. A lot of us men, especially the young generation didn’t always have the proper structure growing up. Sometimes, the structure helps. Sometimes, it doesn’t. It’s a lot of pressure on a person that’s trying to reverse that cycle. I had a choice growing up like most black men. You either follow in the footsteps of everything you saw growing up or you attempt to do the complete opposite.
It’s easy to be a no good nigga. That takes no effort at all. It takes a man of morals, principles, and integrity to reverse the cycle and do the right things. It’s not as easy as it looks. You feel more pressure when you’re doing right because it’s so easy to do wrong. In our culture, you get knocked for doing right and praised for doing wrong. That’s something that needs to change. As men, this is where we have to step up and be better role models for the younger ones that’s looking up to us right now. We need more uncles, more cousins, more OG’s to step up and show the youngins the game. We have to be better brothers, better sons, better grandsons, better boyfriends, better husbands, better nephews, better cousins, better everything. Everything is just bad right now. Agendas are being pushed out here. We aren’t safe at all. We’ve never been safe but it’s bad. It’s at a all time high. We have to do better as men because our youth is suffering. The youth needs us as strong black men. We have to be better men to make sure they don’t feel the same pain we’ve felt. We have to make better decisions and choices so our kids and the generation under us will do better than us. We still make mistakes as grownups. That comes with the cycle of life. We have to do what we have to do. That generational cycle is bad and it’s real. We have to give our kids the right tools so they can make it in society. We can’t let them live and see some of the toxic things we had to go through. A lot of why kids are so toxic is because of what they saw growing up. You can honestly become what you saw. It’s not about money. It’s not about gifts. It’s about quality time. It’s about understanding. Talk to the kids, listen to the kids. Kids need to see and feel the love. That’s when the kids look elsewhere. They may get that outside influence from the street, from the music, from social media, etc. If you’ve never seen your mom or dad love each other properly, how will you learn how to love your spouse?
Men have to take responsibility for the type of women they sleep with. Women have to take responsibility for the men they sleep with. Like i said earlier, kids suffer a lot of times because of some of the bad decisions that our elders made. Parents also have to take accountability for their actions as well because a lot of kids suffer because of what the parents did. That’s where the cycle starts. That’s how we inherit that cycle. We inherit that struggle and pain. And since our parents didn’t know what to do, we repeat the same cycle and we end up passing it down instead of fixing it. With that comes with the possibility of multiple kids, multiple baby mothers, multiple child support payments. That’s more stress from situations that you created. If you grew up watching your parents in a abusive relationship, it’s possible that you will be the same way one day. If a boy watches his father and his father is a womanizer, he very well may become one too one day. We have to be better men to our women as well because they need us now even more than ever. Both sides need each other. I don’t think that both sides sit back and logically think about how much we need each other. If we stuck together more, our culture would be in a better space. Just because you both have children together doesn’t mean that you all are meant to be. Learn how to co-parent. When i say co-parent, do it for the kids. It will not be easy at all. Don’t have any hidden agendas. Don’t have sex tied to it. Don’t have money tied to it. Don’t do it with the expectations of trying to get back into a relationship with each other. The kids should be the focus. It’s about the kids. It’s about family. It’s about being together and sticking together. Families overall aren’t the same anymore as well. That’s another lost cause in our culture. We have to do better. Talk things out, listen to each other. Don’t just brush things off. We’re the only culture that doesn’t take pain serious until something bad happens. We just learn to suppress the pain and keep going. We need to all stick together. Whether you realize it or not, we’re all in this war together. It’s up to us as a culture to be better examples to all these kids.
Reassurance
The older i get, the more that i realize that everybody was raised different. I was raised different. I didn’t have the typical childhood. I saw a lot and i was exposed to a lot. If you don’t deal with the pain, you will carry it with you forever. I’m older, i’m maturing, and I’m dealing with my pain head on. The pain of my childhood was not having my father there the way that i needed. I’ve always been super laid back and quiet. Part of it is because i’ve always felt like i didn’t have a voice. I was always younger than everybody so who will listen to me? My guess is nobody. I’m more of a thinker than a talker. I’m sensitive to certain things but that’s also what makes me so harsh at the same time if that makes any sense. I’m stoic but sensitive. I didn’t have the typical 2 parent household. My mom was a working woman and my father was being a black scarface. With my mom working so much and my father being a drug dealer, my father didn’t have time to give me the reassurance that i needed as a boy growing up in the inner city. I needed those extra hugs. I needed that extra push. I didn’t get that. And i still need them.
I love my pops deeply. Always have. Always will. I don’t hold anything against him. I know my dad loves me. My mom did what she had to do as a single black mother in america. She didn’t have the time. I don’t hold that against her. A woman can’t raise a man. A man can only do that. I needed that love from my pops. I felt like my dad loved the streets more than he loved his own family growing up. I know that’s not the case but that’s how i felt. The streets must be addictive. The fast cars, the fast money, the fast bitches, the jewelry. It’s hard to stay focused. He did provide. We wanted for nothing when i was growing up. But i didn’t give a fuck about material shit. I needed my dad around. I needed that love, strength, that push, that affection, that reassurance that you can only get from your dad. I missed that. I never got that. That caused me a lot of pain and i’m still learning to deal with it even today. I watched them haul him out of the courtroom and take him to prison. I saw that with my own 2 eyes so imagine what else that did to me. It’s impossible to raise a young black man from prison. He tried his best. He did. He never had a father figure show him what to do. He didn’t have that. His role models were street niggas, gangstas, dope dealers. My grandfather on my dad’s side didn’t do anything for him. Until this day, my dad has only hugged me a hand few of times. He’s never even told me that he was proud of me. That hurts. I know he loves me but i needed to feel it. I still need to feel it. I’ve never received that “i’m proud of you son” response. I’ve never received that “i’m proud of the man that you’ve become” response. It’s so many things i learned on my own. Outside of a few cousins that helped me, i learned how to be a man on my own. For the most part, i turned out pretty good. No kids, never been married, never been to jail, never had a STD, nothing. That’s why when people speak on me and my abilities as a man, it pisses me THE FUCK OFF because you don’t know what i went through to become the man i’m becoming. That’s part of why i’m so self reliant. That’s why it’s hard for me to depend on anybody. I’m so use to feeling by myself that it’s made it easy to depend on myself. That’s part of why i’m so quiet. That’s part of why i have moments where i feel like i’m alone. I can have a room full of people around me and still feel like i’m the only one in the room. That comes from my childhood. I’m naturally a loner anyway but feeling alone on top of that doesn’t help.
Mom was at work. Pops was flipping birds. Who do i express my feelings to? Who has time to listen to me? Who took the time out to listen to me? How do i even express these feelings as a kid? I couldn’t express that in phone calls every sunday because “you have a collect call from a federal prison” interrupts your talk. And you only get a certain amount of time during those calls. That’s where the doubt came from as a child. That’s where the self esteem issues came from. I felt unimportant. I felt unloved. I felt unsure of myself. I felt like nobody cares. I still have moments like that. And when i do express myself these days, do people even give a fuck? Do people listen? Do people just listen just because? Are people gonna take the time to listen to me or is everybody gonna be just “Super” busy 24/7 and not take time out to listen? As kids, we always wanna make our parents proud.
We all need that reassurance from somebody. We’d love to hear it from them because we know that it’s coming from a genuine and sincere place. Everybody needs love. Kids need love. Some adults never get over this type of pain. It starts with your upbringing. If you have kids, love those kids, motivate them, push them, love them up, hug them, talk to them, listen to them. It could make a difference. MEN, take care of these fucking kids. Be a role model to these young men. It’s a jungle out here. Boys need a father. If you didn’t understand why i’m the way that i am, you will now. This is me in my rawest form. I’m learning and maturing. This is me telling my truth while speaking up for young men that could be going through this and feeling like this. It’s about breaking that generational cycle and generational curse.
The Misunderstood Black Man
The Misunderstood Black Man deals with so much on a day to day basis. We’re at war with everything, including ourselves. We were built to be tough, never show our emotions, maintain and keep our composure by any means. Not true. We suffer just like anyone else does. We cry, we become depressed, we aren’t always sure of ourselves. We aren’t allowed to be emotional though. That’s what society says. That’s what they want us to believe. You can always learn from a person that’s always quiet and silent. It’s so many of us black men that are suffering in silence every single day. We never learned how to be vulnerable. We never learned how to express ourselves. We were never taught that. That’s considered soft in our community. We suffer in silence as black men because we feel like nobody cares. Nobody takes the time out to listen to us. Nobody takes the time out to understand us. We’re at war with ourselves, our community, our own kind, our own women at times, and we’re at war with other cultures as well. A lot of days, i’m happy to just leave the house and come back safely. That’s a shame because we should feel safe anywhere we go. We can be killed just taking out the trash. We can be killed just going to the gas station. There’s no guarantee that we are going to make it home to our families at night. These are all thoughts that we have as soon as we wake up in the morning and sit on the edge of our beds. A lot of us just want to be able to go out, provide for our families, and come home. Being paranoid is considered an understatement at this point. We need the same love and reassurance just as much as women do. It’s just hard for us to be vocal about it. And if we have a woman in our life, it’s still hard to be vocal about what we deal with day in and day out. We need peace of mind as well. We suppress so much. We don’t always know how to open up and express ourselves and that’s where we become misunderstood. It’s not that we don’t know how to express ourselves. We’re just so used to the world saying fuck us that we’d rather just keep it to ourselves. We aren’t always angry at the world. We just have to be approached a certain way. The jig is up and the world is against us. Strong, black, and being educated in america. That’s 3 strikes already. I love being a black man but it comes with a cost. Once we do encounter a woman that actually cares and is concerned, we don’t always know how to embrace it. It’s like a fish being out of water. We deal with the same exact things that a black woman goes through. We feel like the world is against us and it’ll always be against us. Nowhere to turn, nowhere to channel our frustration, nowhere to go or run. Doing right feels like it’s pointless sometimes. Why do right by our women when they already feel like niggas ain’t shit? Why do right by a woman when they are gonna complain about it? Why do right by a woman when they downtalk your growth? Sometimes, we feel like our best isn’t even enough for our women. No matter what we do, it’s always an issue. That’s when the white towel gets thrown in.
PARTNERSHIPS
L-R: Ari, Myself, my wife Jess, and Lance at a #HashTagLunchBag event.
When I started Detroit Cousin as a blog the only idea that kept bouncing in my mind was "togetherness". No lie, like I just wanted to create a hub where I can find stories about the good things happening in Detroit and give it more exposure -- the bio goes a bit more into that. However, I knew that I could not and would not want to do this alone, enter Ari Howard and Lance Peterson. There was a time where it looked like I would have to live in Texas so I needed somebody that saw the vision and believed in what DC was about. Now the prevailing thought is to never do business with friends, family, or anybody close to you for that matter.
However, my wife Jessica has been my greatest parter. So I took a chance because Ari saw what I saw, he saw that change starts wherever you are. You don't have to be a perfect or have things lined up nor do you have to wait from "authoritative persons". Do what you can however you can, where ever you can and thats how change begins and ever since then Ari, myself, and Lance have pushed forward as the owners of Detroit Cousin and I haven't looked back since.
ONYX Collection
It is said that the onyx stone represents inner-strength, will-power, and focus along with other resilient qualities. Don't those sound like familiar traits of Detroiter's -- down but never out. I wanted the Onyx collection to embody that - to embody that though it may not always be "seen" on the outside, it is definitely recognized. Respected.
That is the ONYX Collection.