reflections

I met Baze Mpinja, a veteran beauty journalist, in a podcasting class where she pitched Reflections. As she discussed the kind of stories she wanted to cover, I felt excited. I could already hear the show in my head: a documentary-style podcast exploring beauty through rarely-heard voices in the industry.

I found her on LinkedIn after class and messaged her: “I'm so hooked on your show idea. I'd love to hear more about your work over a virtual coffee sometime!” Our virtual coffees turned into creative jam sessions, and now, a pilot season.

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[32] Magazine-Born

[60] In Situ Interviews

[26] Naturalistic Audio

[59] Source-Rooted Scoring

THE PROCESS

As co-creator and producer, I work with Baze to sculpt each episode through scripting, recording, editing, and launch strategies. Since distributing our first episode in September 2025, our show has built a steady, dedicated audience, sparked thoughtful conversations within the beauty community, and earned recognition for its fresh perspective and engaging storytelling.

Baze and I meet every week to build the upcoming show calendar. We talk about beauty stories–what we’ve read in the news, seen on TikTok, and talked about with friends. Then, we ask what’s missing. Who’s left out of the frame? What part of the story never makes it to print?

We find the voices that fill those gaps, structure the conversations, and script the story arcs. Once the tape is in, I stitch together our episodes to balance personal and profound commentary about beauty and how it shapes every part of our world.

EPISODE BREAKDOWN

Reflections from the U.S. Open

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Today, athletes aren’t just competing. They also have to be models. Baze and I went to the U.S. Open, the hottest see-and-be-seen event, to investigate this phenomenon.

We went to Julien Farrel’s VIP salon to ask him about this intersecting moment between beauty and sports. (Patrick McEnroe chimed in while Julien cut his hair.)

I wanted the entire episode to take listeners from the outskirts of Arthur Ashe Stadium into the exclusive salon and back out to the grounds. In addition to our interviews, this episode relies on narration with lots of field tape: the buzzing clippers, the chattering crowds, and wild stadium roars.

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Let’s Shop with a Sephora Kid

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For journalists, the Sephora Kid phenomenon has been raising the same questions for years. Why are 9-year-olds obsessed with make-up? Who is letting them buy $25 lip glosses? Why are they making Sephora stores look like “war zones”?

But we rarely hear from parents or the kids themselves.

In this episode, Baze asked a former beauty PR pro and Brooklyn mom to talk to us about the joys and challenges of raising a Sephora kid. Then, we followed her and her daughter on a shopping trip to Sephora to understand what forces are really at work behind the new children's beauty market.

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Let’s Talk Relaxers: Memories, Myths, and the Hairy Moment We’re In

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There are more than 10,000 active lawsuits filed against major hair relaxer companies in the U.S., raising urgent questions about safety, accountability, and the beauty standards that have shaped generations of Black women.

To explore this moment, we talked to Antonia Opiah, founder of Un-Ruly and co-creator of the viral short film, You Can Touch My Hair. Her site began as a how-to guide for women going natural and grew into a space for think-pieces, reporting, and conversation about Black hair and identity.

In our interview, Antonia reflects on her own relationship with relaxers, what the natural hair movement has meant across generations, and how these lawsuits could shape the future of hair products made for Black women.

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reflections

Editorally ambitious.Acoustically resonant.

Editorally ambitious.
Acoustically resonant.