Sesali Bowen

Born and raised in Chicago, Sesali Bowen learned early on how to hustle, stay on her toes, and always bet on Black women. These sensibilities have driven her work in political organizing, sex education, and women’s media as a writer, journalist, host, fat influencer, and content creator.

Sesali is the former Senior Entertainment Editor at NYLON magazine and senior entertainment writer at Refinery29. She honed in on Black pop culture and helped launch Unbothered, R29’s sub brand for Black women. Over the course of her career Sesali has profiled Janelle Monae, Issa Rae, Lizzo, and Megan thee Stallion among many others. Her writing has also appeared in the New York Times and Feministing.

These days, Sesali is interested in expanding the intersectional space she’s cultivated by curating events, writing for film and television, and doing elevated pop culture correspondence. She’s an alum of the Gender Studies programs at DePaul University (BA) and Georgia State University (MA).