Raqiyah Mays (born November 11, 1975, in
Newark, New Jersey
Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.[podcast
A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. For example, an episodic series of digital audio or video files that a user can download to a personal device to listen to at a time of their choosin ...]
er, journalist, and former radio personality, Born in
Newark
Newark most commonly refers to:
* Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States
* Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area
Newark may also refer to:
Places Canada
* Niagara-on-the ...
, NJ, Raqiyah was featured in
The Limited
The Limited was an American clothing retailer that operated retail stores between the early 1960s and the late 2010s. After 2007, it became a brand, originally owned by the private equity firm Sun Capital Partners, now owned by another private equ ...
clothing store's 2015 nationwide "New Look of Leadership" campaign, honored as a female leader for her empowerment hard work.
Author
A writer at heart, Raqiyah's debut novel, ''The Man Curse'', was released by
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...
on November 16, 2015. ''The Man Curse'' chronicles the world of Meena, a young woman who spends her life trying to break The Man Curse and become the first woman in her family to marry. No stranger to the book world, Raqiyah contributed a chapter to Gil Robertson's anthology ''Where Did Our Love Go: Love & Relationships in the African American Community'' (Bolden/Agate). She was a featured profile in Thembisa Mshaka's book of entertainment industry professionals, ''Put Your Dreams First: Handle your entertainment business''
(Hachette), and Raqiyah was reporter at large for
Cheo Hodari Coker
Cheo Hodari Coker (born December 12, 1972) is an American former music journalist turned television writer and producer known for such television series as ''Luke Cage'', '' NCIS: Los Angeles'', '' Southland'' and '' Ray Donovan''. Coker also wro ...
's VIBE book ''Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of The Notorious B.I.G'' (
Three Rivers Press
Three Rivers Press is the trade paperback imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House. It publishes original paperback titles as well as paperback reprints of books issued initially in hardcover by the other Crown imprint ...
), which was turned into the critically acclaimed feature film, ''Notorious''.
Journalist
Raqiyah's work in journalism goes back to the
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (born March 14, 1933) is an American record producer, musician, songwriter, composer, arranger, and film and television producer. His career spans 70 years in the entertainment industry with a record of 80 Grammy Award n ...
owned days of
''Vibe Magazine''. As an intern in the mid-90s, she became
Executive Assistant
A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a wh ...
to then editor-in-chief,
Danyel Smith
Danyel Smith Wilson (born Danyel Smith; 1965) is an American magazine editor, journalist, and novelist . Smith is the former and first African-American editor of ''Billboard'' and ''Vibe'' magazine'','' respectively. She is author of two novels a ...
. And later, editorial coordinator assisting the managing editor. Moving on to pursue an early career as a freelance
hip hop journalist, Raqiyah's bylines graced cover stories for publications like
''XXL'', ''
The Source
''The Source'' is an American hip hop and entertainment website, and a magazine that publishes annually or . It is the world's longest-running rap periodical, being founded as a newsletter in 1988 by Jonathan Shecter. David Mays was the ma ...
'', and
''Billboard''. Expanding her beat to report on everything from women and
R&B to politics and radio, she scored covers for ''XXL'', ''The Source'', ''Black Elegance'' magazine, profiles, and features for
The Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newsp ...
, VIBE,
''Essence'',
''Ebony'', ''Billboard'', and ''
Complex
Complex commonly refers to:
* Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe
** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...
''. She later became a founder and
executive editor
Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to:
Role or title
* Executive, a senior management role in an organization
** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators
** Executive dire ...
of ''The Ave Magazine'', dedicated to coverage combining social issues with the intellect and outlook of the hip hop world.
Radio personality
Raqiyah's radio experience goes back 20 years to her days at
Hampton University on WHOV
FM hosting the late-night hip hop show ''The Underground Review''. Her move to New York to pursue a journalism career with Vibe Magazine, led to the weekly show ''High Vision'' on
City College's
WHCR-FM, where Raqiyah brought her passion for combining social issues with hip hop music to the airwaves over five years. She left WHCR for
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio was a satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Holdings.
Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially lau ...
, where as a feature content producer she created content and wrote for Rock, pop, hip hop,
reggae
Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
, and alternative channels along with producing a show hosted by DJ
Grandmaster Flash. She also hosted shows on Top 40 Channel US 1, and R&B channel
Hot Jamz. In a few short months, Raqiyah was hired as a weekend host on NY's
Power 105
WWPR-FM (105.1 FM) is an urban contemporary music radio station licensed to New York City. WWPR-FM is owned by iHeartMedia and broadcasts from studios in the former AT&T Building in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan; its transmitter is l ...
. And after a year, she joined NY's
Hot 97
WQHT (97.1 FM, ''Hot 97'') is a commercial radio station, licensed to New York, New York, which broadcasts an urban contemporary music format. The station is owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared ser ...
, where over five years she held a No. 1 weekly Sunday afternoon show before transitioning to become morning show entertainment reporter on
98.7 Kiss FM's the "Wake Up Club." Featuring radio veterans Jeff Foxx,
Shaila
Shaoila is an Argentine melodic hardcore/ punk rock band from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Formed in 1994, they played for two years for the fun of it and released their first EP, titled ''Sólo Un Día Más'' (Just One More Day) in 1996.
Shaila is ...
, Bob Slade, and comedian Talent, The Wake Up Club drew top NYC ratings before being replaced by ''The
DL Hughley Morning Show''. Raqiyah moved on to also join Hughley, handpicked by DL to provide entertainment and colorful peanut crew commentary during her run on the now syndicated show. She left New York's No. 1 station, 107.5
WBLS
WBLS (107.5 MHz) is an urban adult contemporary formatted FM radio station, licensed to New York City. It is currently owned by Mediaco Holding and operated by Emmis Communications under a shared services agreement, along with sister station ...
in 2019. In the fall of 2019, her podcast ''Real Black News'' was named one of the top 50 podcasts in the US according to UVM.
TV personality
In 2009, named one of
VH1's "Future Leaders of Black History," Raqiyah was featured in their
Black History Month
Black History Month is an annual observance originating in the United States, where it is also known as African-American History Month. It has received official recognition from governments in the United States and Canada, and more recently ...
TV commercial campaign. A trained actress, she performed
off-Broadway for five years, touring the country and appearing on stages nationwide as a cast member with the hit play ''
Platanos & Collard Greens''. Her numerous TV appearances have included correspondent work on
Black Enterprise
''Black Enterprise'' is a black-owned multimedia company. Since the 1970s, its flagship product ''Black Enterprise'' magazine has covered African-American businesses with a readership of 3.7 million. The company was founded in 1970 by Earl ...
's
TVOne /
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
news show ''Our World'', being a regular guest co-host on Arise TV's film review show ''On Screen'', and
MTV,
BET
Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...
, VH1, the Fuse Network, and
Fox News
The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
.
Activist
Raqiyah is a passionate activist for issues affecting women, children, and African Americans. As a child, Raqiyah was a
girl scout
Girl Guides (known as Girl Scouts in the United States and some other countries) is a worldwide movement, originally and largely still designed for girls and women only. The movement began in 1909 when girls requested to join the then-grassroot ...
who became president of
Edison, NJ
Edison is a township located in Middlesex County,in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated in Central New Jersey within the core of the state's Raritan Valley region, Edison is a commercial hub, home to Menlo Park Mall and Little India. It i ...
's
NAACP Youth Council. In college, she helped create the Diversity Union on
Penn State University's
Altoona campus after acts of racism toward black classmates. Participating in student politics, she regularly represented the campus during Penn State's gathering of student government officers. After moving to New York, Raqiyah organized community and youth events in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
. While spending time in Los Angeles, she coordinated fundraising events for
non-profits
A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
along with training
canvassers and managing outreach campaigns in both LA and NY for organizations like
The Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal advocacy organization specializing in civil rights and public interest litigation. Based in Montgomery, Alabama, it is known for its legal cases against white sup ...
,
Planned Parenthood, and the
ACLU. She uses her journalism skills and celebrity interviews to humanize the entertainment world with shared
superstar
A superstar is someone who has great popular appeal and is widely known, prominent, or successful in their field. Celebrities referred to as "superstars" may include individuals who work as actors, musicians, athletes, and other media-based profe ...
views on real life, social issues, and outlooks on making change today.
Footnotes
External links
*
Raqiyah Mays Wordpress
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mays, Raqiyah
American radio personalities
Living people
1978 births
Writers from Newark, New Jersey
People from Piscataway, New Jersey