Thursday 22 June 2017

EXCLUSIVE: Naturi Naughton's Baby Bump Photo Shoot Is An Ode To Black Culture

Photo by Joey Rosado @islandboiphotography

By Britni Danielle

'We always try to incorporate African proverbs or Kente cloth or use different images to celebrate this beautiful Black girl that’s coming into the world," the 'Power' star told ESSENCE

Naturi Naughton is having a great year. After putting in work for years as a singer and actress, Naughton is not only gearing up for the return of the wildly popular Starz drama, Power (June 25), but she’s preparing to welcome her first child into the world.

Understandably, she’s overflowing with happiness.

“I feel really happy; pregnancy has been good to me,” Naughton confesses. “I’m in love, I’m looking forward to just sharing this next level of life. My whole life has been about working and being in the girl group and being on stage and being an actress, but now I get to really enjoy a bigger purpose, which is motherhood, so I’m really excited.”

Recently, ESSENCE spoke with the Power star about the show, her pregnancy and why it’s so important that she makes sure her baby girl is surrounded by Black girl magic.

This is your first child, so how have you been preparing to be a mom?

Logistically, just trying to prepare my home, my nursery, prepare my mind. I don’t really know a perfect way to be prepared to be a mother. It’s really hard because there’s so many things that keep running through my mind and it feels like it’s never enough. However, talking to my mother more and just thinking about the examples I had through my grandmothers and my mother and I think just being prepared is just readying myself for what’s to come and just being ready for the blessing.

Have you and your partner, Ben, talked about how having a child will affect your relationship?

Maybe it’s naive, but we feel like we’ll still be out on the town. It’s going to take adjustments and we definitely talked about it. We’re definitely doing the best to prepare for all of the things that will change, but we want to maintain us. A little bit of the fun and romance, that’s important to me. Hopefully we’ll still grow through the changes and continue to love each other.

Have people been pressuring you to get married?

I don’t feel crazy pressure anymore. Naturally, the way I grew up and the way I was raised...I didn’t anticipate being pregnant at this time. Of course I wanted to be a mom and have children, but the reality is God’s plan is not always in alignment with my plan. I wanted to do it my way, but it doesn’t always work out that way. I still think I can still have that dream, and I want to be married — and I will — I think we’re just taking it step-by-step and not worrying about what other people’s judgments or thoughts are because at the end of the day, they’re not living for me, or for us.

One of the really great moments is this photo shoot. What was it like getting all dolled up and sharing this moment with your partner?

It’s kind of like our first family photo shoot. I felt gorgeous and he was looking all good, and we just made the best of something that I didn’t even know if it would fit into the schedule. The photographer [Joey Rosado] was so wonderful and he made me feel beautiful, but I feel beautiful every day with my man. He tells me everyday, and he talks to my stomach and we do a little thing where we just have a moment where we’re really appreciative of every blessing. I think the photo shoot captured that love and the love inside of me.

When it comes to the color scheme, I’m sensing a theme. At your babyshower you were dressed in all white, but it was very colorful and afrocentric. Is that something you’re attracted to?

We both just really appreciate Black culture. Ben wore a shirt from Ghana and my theme was “It takes a village to raise a child” for my baby shower. We just always try to incorporate African proverbs or Kente cloth or using different images to celebrate this beautiful Black girl that’s coming into the world. I think in society we get so caught up trying to assimilate and be like other people, but in reality what we feel is that we just want to celebrate who we are.

We’re in an interesting time. On one hand we’ve made so much progress as Black people in general, despite the current political climate, and then we’re having this really powerful #BlackGirlMagic moment. What kinds of things do you plan to impart to your daughter?

Everything that my parents imparted to me. When I was coming up we didn’t have the movement of Black Girl Magic or Black Girls Rock, but my parents made it their business to make sure I saw positive images of myself and celebrated images of Black women. I want to implement those same things but thank goodness today there’s a movement that celebrates all of our hues, our shades, our beauty, our lips, our noses--there’s a celebration surrounding Black women.

I grew up with insecurities about those things because people made fun of my complexion or made fun of how big my lips were when I was a kid. Even when I was a professional singer, I went through things in 3LW that really weighed on my self-esteem. I’m just sick of it. Thank God, now we have a time where we can make sure these girls know how beautiful they are, how special they are, and how worthy they are.

I know how difficult it is to stay firm in who you are, so I’m going to do the work. Me and my man are going to do the work. Little girls need their fathers, little girls need their mothers, but little girls need support from the world, particularly when they’re Black.

You mentioned 3LW and recently reunited with one of your group mates on TV. You guys had moment and Adrienne Bailon apologized. Is that chapter closed?

I was asked to be a guest on The Real to promote Power and then they told me that she wanted to apologize. I had already closed that chapter and worked through some of those painful memories on my own, but it was definitely public closure between her and I, and I accepted her apology. To me, it’s not worth holding grudges and being bitter and being angry when there are so many blessings that have happened in my life because of 3LW.

After it aired, there’s still some bitterness, I guess we can call it, from the group’s former manager, Tse Williams, who was going off on Twitter.

All I can say is bitterness is simply what it is. It shines through just the way that happiness does, you can’t really hide bitterness. But it’s kinda sad and I wish her well.

I can’t let you go without asking about Power. What can we expect from Tasha in season four?

In season four Tasha is the strongest she’s ever been. You’ll really get to see her pick up the pieces and handle her business while Ghost is in jail. You also can expect to see Tasha--without telling too much--fall in love this year. You get to see Tasha step up as a mother, this year she really has to fight to save her son Tariq and fight to protect her children while Ghost is in prison. He’s been gallivanting around for three seasons with Angela and now he’s like, oh it backfired. Duh, yes it backfired! So this year people will continue to root for Tasha she’s the woman you want on your side, even when you mess up.

Power returns on Sunday June 25 on Starz

Essense

Tuesday 20 June 2017

'The Federal Reserve has done nothing': Elizabeth Warren urges the Fed to clean house at Wells Fargo

Alex Morrell

(Elizabeth Warren says it's time for the Fed to take action.AP) Sen. Elizabeth Warren wants the Federal Reserve to clean house at Wells Fargo, asking for the removal of the 12 members of the board of directors who served while the fake accounts scandal was ongoing.

In a letter sent to Fed Chair Janet Yellen Monday, Warren argued that the directors present from 2011 to 2015, when Wells Fargo employees opened as many as 2.1 million accounts for customers without their knowledge, need to go — and that the Fed has the authority to remove them under a Congressional statute regarding the governance of insured depository institutions like Wells Fargo.

"I urge you to exercise your legal authority to remove the holdover Wells Fargo Board members. Federal Reserve regulations and guidance impose clear risk-management obligations on the Board — obligations that are quite demanding for a bank as large and complex as Wells Fargo," Warren wrote. "The Board did nothing to stop rampant misconduct in the Community Bank that resulted in more than 5000 bank employees creating more than two million fake accounts over four years."

Warren cited a statute that empowers the Fed to remove board members who "engaged or participated in any unsafe or unsound practice" that caused depository institution "financial loss or other damage" and that showed "continuing disregard ... for the safety or soundness" of the institution.

She argues in the letter that the directors failed in their risk-management obligations, resulting in "massive financial losses" and "long-lasting reputational damage to the bank that has eroded the bank's customer base."

So far, the accounts scandal has resulted in $185 million in fines, the ouster of CEO John Stumpf and other high-level executives, and a spate of ongoing government investigations. The company has set aside some $1.7 billion to pay for potential costs surrounding the scandal.

Warren criticized the Fed for having "done nothing" with its authority to hold Wells Fargo accountable.

"While other federal regulators with jurisdiction over this scandal ... have taken steps to hold Wells Fargo accountable and promote the integrity of the banking system, the Federal Reserve has done nothing to date, despite its ample statutory authority," she wrote in the letter.

A Fed spokesman confirmed they had received the letter and plan to respond to Warren.

Wells Fargo issued a statement Monday highlighting the company's efforts to make amends and changes in the wake of the scandal:

"Wells Fargo’s board and management team have taken many actions in response to its retail sales practices issues, including changes in senior leadership, executive accountability actions and numerous steps to ensure we make things right with any customer affected by unacceptable sales practices. That work continues and remains a core part of our efforts to build a better Wells Fargo for the future."

Shareholders blasted the company at its annual meeting in April over the scandal. Some board members were reelected by only slim margins.

The company came under fire last week over a new allegation: That in 2015 the bank was changing the terms of customers' mortgages without telling them, several lawsuits allege.

Culled from Business Insider

Monday 19 June 2017

N261b forex, OMO auctions stabilise exchange rate

By Chijioke Nelson

Acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Isaac Okorafor, assured that the interventions will continue to guarantee stability in the market and ensure availability to individuals and business concerns.

• BDCs, investors, parallel market rates near convergence
A mix of $831.5 million foreign exchange (about N254 billion at N305.75/$) and Open Market Operation (OMO) auctions by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) last week, reduced the quantity of naira in circulation and stabilised exchange rate across segments through the weekend.
It however, unsettled bankers as they jostled to grab every available naira in the money market to offset their obligations for participating in both auctions, leading to earlier spike in the lending rates among banks, before its moderation.
The first two days of the week were full of activities as the monetary authority offered $418 million and $13.5 million respectively, while on the other hand, it intervened through OMO, mopping up N5.3 billion and N2.1 billion in each day.
With other monetary policy actions in the week like the maturing bills and rollover at 16 per cent, it also mopped up N86.8 billion, keeping interbank lending rates at 15.2% and 15.7% for Open Buy Back and Overnight instruments respectively.
This was followed by N200 billion roll-over on Friday, in a 181-day special Treasury bill auction at 16 per cent, according to traders. Consequently, parallel market exchange rate remained stable at N367 per dollar throughout, while the recently inaugurated Investors and Exporters window traded near convergence with parallel market at N371 per dollar.
The Managing Director, Stanbic IBTC Bank, Dr. Demola Shogunle, while speaking at the 333rd meeting of the Bankers Committee, affirmed that Investors and Exporters window has recorded $2.3 billion transactions, with CBN contributing less than 30 per cent of the sum exchanged.
On the other hand, the Acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Isaac Okorafor, assured that the interventions will continue to guarantee stability in the market and ensure availability to individuals and business concerns.
A poll of analysts by The Guardian, showed that investors’ confidence in the Nigerian market is high, and can be seen in the increase in the volume of transactions in the Investors’ & Exporters segment and activities in the stock market.
The Managing Director, Rand Merchant Bank Nigeria, Michael Larbie, also corroborated the claim of return of confidence, saying that the oversubscriptions in both UBA and Zenith banks’ Eurobond offerings are indications that international investors are betting seriously on the economy.
Analysts at Afrinvest Securities Limited also admitted that the foreign exchange market has continued to see improvements in liquidity and rates convergence since the launch of the NAFEX window, and sustained CBN interventions in the interbank market via Wholesale and Retail SMIS, which have buoyed confidence in the economy and financial markets.
“We expect the stability in the FX market to be sustained in the short to medium term as the CBN continues its intervention in the spot and forward markets as well as the improvement in the NAFEX window,” they said

Guardian

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