Diversify your feed with these Black Influencers to follow

By Nicole Mitchell

We shouldn’t have to say it, but let’s get one thing clear: listening to Black stories shouldn’t only be for Black History Month. Finding Black influencers to follow all year round, can be your first step.

If you scroll through your Instagram feed, do you see Black creators? Too often, it’s easy to find yourself scrolling through Instagram to realize everyone you follow looks the same. Especially if you follow a lot of popular influencers: white, skinny, and neurotypical. This series—Diversify Your Feed—was created to inspire readers to do just that. Diversify their feed.

Below is a short list of Black creators from a variety of niches. We hope that in it, you’ll find at least one influencer that you’ll love—or maybe you already follow some of them! Who are some of your fave Black content creators? Shoot us an email or DM. We’re always open to finding more diverse creators to follow.

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Vote No on the Kansas City Stadium Tax on April 2

Words and Photos by Whitney Young

Here at Catcall, we are incredibly passionate about preserving the arts and culture in Kansas City. That’s why we urge Jackson County voters to Vote No on Question 1 on Tuesday, April 2, to prevent billionaires from changing the district’s culture forever with a baseball stadium.

Here’s the background on Kansas City and Question 1

The arts are integral to a successful and expanding city. At Catcall, most of our staff resides in Kansas City. We’ve watched as downtown KCMO has expanded from mostly vacant warehouses to the thriving neighborhoods we see today. That success is thanks to the dreamers and artists who led the overhaul—which is especially true for our beloved Kansas City Crossroads Arts District. The outcome of Tuesday’s vote will determine the future of this key Kansas City neighborhood. 

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Olivia Rodrigo Makes Music for the Teenage Girl in All of Us.

By Bella Rainey

In 2021, Olivia Rodrigo stunned the world with “Sour” —a short but sweet record that journies through heartbreak and girlhood. It balanced immaturity and maturity in a way many thought would be impossible to top. 

Spoiler alert: She topped it. 

GUTS” is one of the best sophomore pop albums I have had the pleasure of listening to, analyzing, and dissecting—and I’m still thinking about it six months after it debuted on September 8, 2023.

The album leans into hints of pop-punk we got in “Sour,” but it stays true to Olivia’s ballad-y roots. She focuses on topics such as hooking up with an ex, jealousy, and the difficult (but exciting) transition from teenage girl to young woman. It’s a lot to cover in just 39 minutes, so let’s hop in. 

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You’ll want to hop under the covers after visiting KC’s first romance bookshop

By Nicole Mitchell
Photos by Whitney Young

Do you dart to the romance section at every bookstore you enter? Are you someone who chooses books based on romantic interests? Will you be reading Ao3 fanfiction for the rest of your life? Maybe you found all your fave book recs from Catcall Editor Kelcie McKenney’s Smutty Book Guide. If any (or all) of the above fits your reading style, then, wow, do we have news for you.

Carley Morton recently opened Kansas City’s first all-romance bookshop, Under the Cover, to serve all your rom-com, YA romance, paranormal romance, regency romance, and/or erotica needs. A fellow cliterature stan, Carley has been a romance fiend since 2011. 

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Kansas City Lesbian and Feminist Stories are the Focal Point of Kemper Museum’s Current Annual Atrium Project

By: Nicole Mitchell

Emerging and mid-career Hispanic and Latinx artists in Kansas City get the opportunity to highlight societal themes through the exploration of subject and scale with the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art’s annual Atrium Project. On display through July 28, the Kemper’s eighth annual Atrium Project exhibition, So the roots be known, offers a lens into the intersection of feminism and Exhibition Artist Sarah Zapata’s personal experience with her lesbian identity.

In her practice, Zapata navigates identity, community, lineages, counterculture, and histories of resistance through intentional usage of color, iconography, and textile techniques—such as acrylic yarn and natural fibers.

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