Colorism is a heavy word. Honestly, it’s a reality that has dictated who gets the lead roles and who gets the magazine covers for decades. For a long time, the "standard" was a very specific, narrow version of beauty that often excluded deep complexions. But things are shifting. We’re seeing a massive surge of dark skinned famous women who aren't just participating in the industry—they are fundamentally dismantling it.
It isn't just about "representation" as a buzzword. It’s about power. It’s about Lupita Nyong’o winning an Oscar for her debut film and immediately becoming a global fashion icon. It's about Viola Davis achieving EGOT status. These women aren't just famous; they're institutional.
The Viola Davis Effect: Breaking the "Background" Mold
Viola Davis is a powerhouse. You’ve seen her in How to Get Away with Murder or The Woman King, but her journey wasn't some overnight fairy tale. She’s been very vocal about the "paper-bag test" mentality that still lingers in Hollywood casting offices. In her memoir, Finding Me, she talks about the grit required to survive an industry that often tries to typecast darker-skinned women as "nurturers" or "struggling mothers" rather than romantic leads or action heroes.
She changed the game by demanding nuance.
When she took off her wig on national television in How to Get Away with Murder, it was a cultural reset. It sounds small. It wasn't. It was a radical act of vulnerability that showed a dark-skinned woman in her most natural, private state—something TV had historically avoided.
Beyond the Screen: The Business of Beauty
We have to talk about Rihanna. While she’s a global pop star, her impact on dark skinned famous women in the business world is arguably her biggest legacy. Before Fenty Beauty launched in 2017, the "inclusive" range of foundations usually stopped at a medium-tan. Darker shades were an afterthought. They were often ashy or weirdly orange.
Rihanna didn't ask for a seat at the table. She built a new house.
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Fenty Beauty launched with 40 shades (now 50). The industry called it "The Fenty Effect." Suddenly, every legacy brand from Estée Lauder to L'Oréal had to scramble to catch up because they realized they were leaving billions of dollars on the table by ignoring deep skin tones. This wasn't just about makeup; it was a proof of concept that dark-skinned women are a primary, high-value demographic.
The New Vanguard of Fashion
Anok Yai. Adut Akech. Duckie Thot.
If you look at the runways in Paris or Milan right now, these names are everywhere. Anok Yai made history as the second Black model to open a Prada show after Naomi Campbell. Think about that gap. Naomi did it in 1997. Anok did it in 2018. That’s a twenty-one-year silence.
These models are bringing a high-fashion visibility to dark skin that feels different from previous eras. It’s less about being a "trend" and more about being the standard. Their presence challenges the old-school photography techniques that often struggled (or refused) to light dark skin properly. Now, photographers like Tyler Mitchell are rewriting the visual language of fashion to celebrate melanin rather than washing it out.
Why "Proximity to Whiteness" is a Dying Metric
There’s this concept in sociology called "colorism" where people with lighter skin are often granted more social capital. It’s a legacy of colonialism. It’s messy.
For a long time, even among "famous" Black women, those with lighter skin were given more opportunities. You can see it in the casting of biopics—there's a long history of controversy where light-skinned actresses were cast to play dark-skinned historical figures. Take the 2016 Nina Simone biopic. The casting of Zoe Saldana (who had to wear darkening makeup and a prosthetic nose) was met with massive backlash.
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It was a turning point.
The audience basically said, "No more." People wanted authenticity. They wanted to see women who actually looked like the people they were portraying. This pushback has paved the way for actresses like Thuso Mbedu and Michaela Coel to lead massive projects without the industry trying to "soften" their image.
The Music Industry's Slow Evolution
Music has been a bit of a mixed bag. While we’ve always had icons like Grace Jones or Lauryn Hill, the pop machine has historically favored a very specific look. But look at Normani. Look at Kelly Rowland’s solo career. Look at Megan Thee Stallion.
Kelly Rowland has been incredibly candid about her journey. She’s talked about the "mental gymnastics" of being the darker-skinned member of a girl group and how that affected her confidence early on. Her song "Dirty Laundry" is a raw look at those insecurities. By speaking out, she’s made it easier for the next generation—like Tems or Ayra Starr—to enter the global stage with a sense of unapologetic self-worth.
Sports as a Global Stage
Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka.
Tennis has always been a "country club" sport, which often carries a lot of baggage regarding race and class. Serena and Venus Williams kicked the door down, but Coco Gauff is walking through it with a different kind of ease. She’s becoming the face of brands like New Balance and Rolex, proving that the marketability of dark skinned famous women in sports is at an all-time high.
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The Misconception of "Diversity Wins"
It’s easy to look at a few magazine covers and think the problem is solved. It isn't.
Behind the scenes, the struggle continues. Dark-skinned actresses still talk about arriving on sets where the makeup artists don't have the right foundation or the hairstylists don't know how to work with 4C hair texture. This is why women like Issa Rae are so vital.
Issa Rae isn't just an actress; she’s a producer. She hires the crews. She ensures that the lighting on Insecure was specifically designed to make dark skin look "luminous and golden." That kind of structural change is what makes "fame" sustainable for the next generation. It's not just about who is in front of the camera, but who is holding the lights.
Actionable Steps for Genuine Inclusion
If you’re looking to support or better understand the landscape for dark-skinned women in media and business, here is how to move beyond surface-level observations:
- Audit your media consumption. Look at the shows you watch and the influencers you follow. Are you actively supporting content created by and starring dark-skinned women, or are you only seeing them in "supporting" roles?
- Support the "Fenty Effect" in other industries. When a brand makes an effort to be genuinely inclusive in its product development (not just its marketing), reward them with your business. This applies to tech, medical devices (like pulse oximeters that work on dark skin), and fashion.
- Follow the creators, not just the stars. Support photographers like Nadine Ijewere or directors like Melina Matsoukas who are changing the visual aesthetics of how dark skin is captured on film.
- Educate yourself on the history of colorism. Read The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison or Caste by Isabel Wilkerson to understand the systemic roots of why these barriers existed in the first place.
The shift we are seeing today isn't a fluke. It's the result of decades of advocacy by women who refused to be relegated to the shadows. As the digital world becomes more visual, the demand for authentic representation is only going to grow. The "standard" is no longer a single point on a map; it's a vast, beautiful spectrum that is finally getting its due.