I have some questions for you. 

What is a hero? Who is your hero? Have you ever felt heroic?

I was 12 years old the first time I felt heroic. My 9-year-old nephew took his bike up our country dirt road. Suddenly, I remember hearing loud, frantic, fearful screams. It was my nephew, and trailing behind him–a giant dog! He wasn’t yelling, “Mom!” or “Dad!”, but “Uncle Royce!” . Come to think of it, that might have been the first time he had ever called me Uncle sincerely, because we’re so close in age. And what did I do?

I pushed open the thin screen door, jumped off the rickety four-step porch, and ran my fastest with one thing on my mind: “Today is the day I fight a dog.” To my dismay, my 12-year-old legs couldn’t make it to him in time–the dog caught him! …and unexpectedly showered my lil’ nephew with kisses. Fear dissolved into laughter.

It may sound silly, but I still feel heroic for many reasons. One of those reasons is that I come from a LONG lineage of heroes…but the hero I attribute my heart to is the hero I want to spotlight right now, my mother. Mothers are the world's greatest heroes, and I wanted my newest release to communicate that. “Mama” is an ode to mothers and motherhood.

It’s important to me to specifically honor the story of the Black mother. Black mothers in America have endured far more than we can imagine. To this day, they continue to embody strength, resilience, and courage in everything they do.