Ghanian-born, New-York based Blay first rose to prominence after sharing the hashtag #carefreeblackgirls in 2013. Blay revealed that prior to sharing the now well-known hashtag with a selfie of herself smiling, she was in a very dark place and had tried to commit suicide just hours before. By writing down how she was feeling in her post, Blay felt this experience liberated her and gave her joy, positivity, freedom and a feeling of being carefree.

Her positive and empowering Instagram posts have led to an army of followers and fans, with Blay revealing that she receives DM’s every day from people saying she’s changed their life. Although some of her interactions online have been very positive, she touches on negativity, trolling and harassment she has faced and shares empowering insight on how she deals with it.

Having previously worked at the HuffPost and written for publications including ESSENCE and The New York Times, Blay discusses navigating the journalism and writing industry. Blay describes it as a saturated field where white, male voices still dominate the narrative within newsrooms but she strongly believes that if you work hard, your work will speak for itself.

She opens up about the challenges she faced during the process of writing her book Carefree Black Girls. Blay reveals she was struggling in herself but didn’t feel like she could turn to anyone as Black women often don’t want to admit when they need support. Rather powerfully, she says asking for help and leaning on people is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength.

Blay’s career keeps going from strength to strength but what does success mean to her? Success for her is truly being happy and at peace, grateful for all the things you have. When it comes to her legacy, she hopes to leave positivity on a few people by her presence. And we don’t doubt she certainly will. 

Memorable quotes:

“As a Black woman, I’m part of such a legacy and that gives me a lot of joy.”

“Black women are everything… the other day I was talking to my friend actually about just the power of a Black woman’s smile or a Black woman’s hug like when you’ve had a really bad day and you just hug your mom. There’s just a certain quality to a hug from a Black woman that just hits different.”

“Nothing good that comes to you means anything if your soul is not at peace if your mind is not at peace.”

“Everybody's just a little kid dressed up in an adult’s body trying to make it through this life.”

“You will dream things not even realising you can dream bigger.”

Zeba Blay’s book, #Carefreeblackgirls, is out October 19.  Listen to the full episode here and tune into Then & Now wherever you get your podcasts.