Danyel Smith
@danyelsmith.bsky.social
i tell stories 🔆 NYTM. 3X author. creator/host, Black Girl Songbook pod. vintage VIBE + Billboard. film consultant. ESPN. Rock Hall. MacDowell + Yaddo
https://www.danyelsmithwriter.com/
https://shinebrighthq.substack.com/
https://www.danyelsmithwriter.com/
https://shinebrighthq.substack.com/
Pinned
Danyel Smith
@danyelsmith.bsky.social
· Apr 7
it’s the 110th anniversary of Billie Holiday’s birth: April 7 1915. in Episode 28 of my Black Girl Songbook #podcast, i celebrate the influence of Holiday’s music as it shows up in artists like Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Diana Ross, and more. listen in www.theringer.com/podcasts/bla...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
Jim Crow regimes relied on violence against Black Americans and ostracism and/or boycotts of whites who dared complain or ally with them.
January 29, 2026 at 9:49 PM
Jim Crow regimes relied on violence against Black Americans and ostracism and/or boycotts of whites who dared complain or ally with them.
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna has been a constant across my thinking, writing, editing, magazine-making, podcasting, and newslettering for years. I was leading VIBE Vixen when we created this issue ('07?) and was fortunate to be in the room for the shoot. We say “what a time” a lot—but truly, it was
January 28, 2026 at 9:17 PM
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna has been a constant across my thinking, writing, editing, magazine-making, podcasting, and newslettering for years. I was leading VIBE Vixen when we created this issue ('07?) and was fortunate to be in the room for the shoot. We say “what a time” a lot—but truly, it was
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna’s been a constant in my thinking / writing / editing / magazine-making / podcasting for years. the energy is lush, genius, complex, collaborative, eternal open.spotify.com/episode/1CEv...
Rihanna: She Found Love and Herself | Chapter 18
open.spotify.com
January 28, 2026 at 9:01 PM
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna’s been a constant in my thinking / writing / editing / magazine-making / podcasting for years. the energy is lush, genius, complex, collaborative, eternal open.spotify.com/episode/1CEv...
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna’s been a constant in my thinking / writing / editing / magazine-making for years, and she pops up in my newsletter more than almost anyone shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/rihanna-an...
rihanna & nancy & carmelo & wendy
+ goodness is “not realistic.” meanness is super cool
shinebrighthq.substack.com
January 28, 2026 at 8:57 PM
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna’s been a constant in my thinking / writing / editing / magazine-making for years, and she pops up in my newsletter more than almost anyone shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/rihanna-an...
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna’s been a constant in my thinking / writing / editing / magazine-making for years, and she pops up in my newsletter more than almost anyone shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/rihanna-te....
rihanna ➕ teedra ➕ what's exactly what
'i love how my brain feels'
shinebrighthq.substack.com
January 28, 2026 at 8:56 PM
ANTI turns 10 today. Rihanna’s been a constant in my thinking / writing / editing / magazine-making for years, and she pops up in my newsletter more than almost anyone shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/rihanna-te....
Reposted by Danyel Smith
i will take decent journalism news wherever i can: www.inquirer.com/opinion/comm...
Elizabeth Hughes: There is a path for Pittsburgh to save its newspaper
As publisher of The Inquirer, I believe that our own experience over the past decade offers a template for success.
www.inquirer.com
January 28, 2026 at 4:36 AM
i will take decent journalism news wherever i can: www.inquirer.com/opinion/comm...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
today’s work. it has me thinking — greatness is rarely polite
January 25, 2026 at 7:18 AM
today’s work. it has me thinking — greatness is rarely polite
Reposted by Danyel Smith
From Hell's Kitchen to everywhere — the piano, the braids, the voice that made you feel seen. Happy birthday to Alicia Keys. And in her honor, we're resurfacing her episode of My Black Girl Songbook pod open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
January 25, 2026 at 8:49 AM
From Hell's Kitchen to everywhere — the piano, the braids, the voice that made you feel seen. Happy birthday to Alicia Keys. And in her honor, we're resurfacing her episode of My Black Girl Songbook pod open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
i will take decent journalism news wherever i can: www.inquirer.com/opinion/comm...
Elizabeth Hughes: There is a path for Pittsburgh to save its newspaper
As publisher of The Inquirer, I believe that our own experience over the past decade offers a template for success.
www.inquirer.com
January 28, 2026 at 4:36 AM
i will take decent journalism news wherever i can: www.inquirer.com/opinion/comm...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
Y'all remember when Maxine Waters said a motherfucker she'd never heard of was tryna get her to leave her office on 1/6/2021? She said she just stayed there until she was certain she could leave. I think about that a lot.
January 28, 2026 at 4:20 AM
Y'all remember when Maxine Waters said a motherfucker she'd never heard of was tryna get her to leave her office on 1/6/2021? She said she just stayed there until she was certain she could leave. I think about that a lot.
Reposted by Danyel Smith
happy celestial birthday to Ms. Jean Knight — shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/the-fall-g...
January 26, 2026 at 6:02 PM
happy celestial birthday to Ms. Jean Knight — shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/the-fall-g...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
[🤗 🤩] Taylor Townsend has advanced to the Australian quarterfinals in both women’s and mixed doubles shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/tay-townse...
Tay Townsend + Mac Miller [RIP] + burner rules
+ the OG Mariah, Coco's hot sauce & women's ambition
shinebrighthq.substack.com
January 25, 2026 at 9:46 PM
[🤗 🤩] Taylor Townsend has advanced to the Australian quarterfinals in both women’s and mixed doubles shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/tay-townse...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
Alicia has been giving us grace, talent, and zero apologies since day one. Happy birthday to her. Resurfacing her Black Girl Songbook episode to celebrate open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
January 25, 2026 at 6:44 PM
Alicia has been giving us grace, talent, and zero apologies since day one. Happy birthday to her. Resurfacing her Black Girl Songbook episode to celebrate open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
happy celestial birthday to Ms. Jean Knight — shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/the-fall-g...
January 26, 2026 at 6:02 PM
happy celestial birthday to Ms. Jean Knight — shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/the-fall-g...
[🤗 🤩] Taylor Townsend has advanced to the Australian quarterfinals in both women’s and mixed doubles shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/tay-townse...
Tay Townsend + Mac Miller [RIP] + burner rules
+ the OG Mariah, Coco's hot sauce & women's ambition
shinebrighthq.substack.com
January 25, 2026 at 9:46 PM
[🤗 🤩] Taylor Townsend has advanced to the Australian quarterfinals in both women’s and mixed doubles shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/tay-townse...
Alicia has been giving us grace, talent, and zero apologies since day one. Happy birthday to her. Resurfacing her Black Girl Songbook episode to celebrate open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
January 25, 2026 at 6:44 PM
Alicia has been giving us grace, talent, and zero apologies since day one. Happy birthday to her. Resurfacing her Black Girl Songbook episode to celebrate open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
From Hell's Kitchen to everywhere — the piano, the braids, the voice that made you feel seen. Happy birthday to Alicia Keys. And in her honor, we're resurfacing her episode of My Black Girl Songbook pod open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
January 25, 2026 at 8:49 AM
From Hell's Kitchen to everywhere — the piano, the braids, the voice that made you feel seen. Happy birthday to Alicia Keys. And in her honor, we're resurfacing her episode of My Black Girl Songbook pod open.spotify.com/episode/5FIE...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
Reposted by Danyel Smith
that fresh air today tho. a blessing
January 19, 2026 at 6:17 AM
that fresh air today tho. a blessing
today’s work. it has me thinking — greatness is rarely polite
January 25, 2026 at 7:18 AM
today’s work. it has me thinking — greatness is rarely polite
Reposted by Danyel Smith
resurfacing because yesterday was Natalia’s birthday shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/kobes-daug...
Kobe's daughter + St. Tropez check-ins + super Usher
life will leave you gasping, bruised, and checking your heart
shinebrighthq.substack.com
January 20, 2026 at 11:08 PM
resurfacing because yesterday was Natalia’s birthday shinebrighthq.substack.com/p/kobes-daug...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
Back in The New York Times Book Review after a while away. I wrote about The Flower Bearers by Rachel Eliza Griffiths — a book that trusts its own voice, without armor. 🎁 link below for anyone curious www.nytimes.com/2026/01/20/b...
There’s More to Her Story Than Salman Rushdie
www.nytimes.com
January 21, 2026 at 7:45 PM
Back in The New York Times Book Review after a while away. I wrote about The Flower Bearers by Rachel Eliza Griffiths — a book that trusts its own voice, without armor. 🎁 link below for anyone curious www.nytimes.com/2026/01/20/b...
Reposted by Danyel Smith
I’m almost never not thinking about Black women who make music. This edition moves between Sister Sledge, EPMD, and the quiet confidence of cultural survival. New Shine Bright HQ is live substack.com/home/post/p-...
January 23, 2026 at 8:00 AM
I’m almost never not thinking about Black women who make music. This edition moves between Sister Sledge, EPMD, and the quiet confidence of cultural survival. New Shine Bright HQ is live substack.com/home/post/p-...
i used to like watching joakim noah play.
January 25, 2026 at 2:34 AM
i used to like watching joakim noah play.
Reposted by Danyel Smith
The thousands of people dying and developing long term complications from preventable diseases like the flu and COVID is also state violence.
January 24, 2026 at 9:11 PM
The thousands of people dying and developing long term complications from preventable diseases like the flu and COVID is also state violence.