Dom Jones

Copywriter. Storyteller. Griot.

United States

With over 10 years of professional writing experience, and having been published on Huffington Post, Blavity, Ebony.com, Black Girl Nerds, and other publications, I bring a fresh and honest voice to my writing. Putting a critical lens on topics ranging from music to politics, and finding the intersections between what's happening at a macro level and what people see in their daily interactions is my specialty.

A 2014 Runner Up in the SF Book Festival, a 2014 International Songwriting Competition Winner, a 2015 NYC Web Festival Official Selection, and a 2019 Canales Project Composer, my work has been recognized in the written, musical, and visual realms. I crave proper punctuation, spelling, grammar and engaging prose - while also recognizing how deep and meaningful communication becomes when the different patois of communities is acknowledged as proper as well.

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Portfolio

Performance & Album Reviews

Music

Blavity
05/22/2016
Black towns, blues and Fantastic Negrito -

It was strange to me when I saw Fantastic Negrito on an episode of Empire. " Actually real, good music on Empire?! No freakin' way." But there he was, getting down with Jamal on the show.

Blavity
04/13/2016
Deifying celebrities: The 'woke' syndrome and Erykah Badu -

Recent comments from Erykah Badu have sparked outrage from her fans. Read her series of tweets below: Okay. So some of y'all are upset. Badu's comments have brought a continuing conversation to the forefront around policing women's sexuality and victim blaming for the actions of men against women.

Blavity
02/25/2016
The importance of buying BJ The Chicago Kid's new album -

BJ The Chicago Kid could easily become the next Tank. And not that sexy, shirtless, crooning, " Please Don't Go," Tank. That bitter, giving-up-soul-music-via-Instagram Tank. Why? Because he's an actual musician, who has found the magic balance between musicianship and aural relevance.

Interviews

Blavity
03/26/2016
Alex Isley: The legacy of the Isleys in jazz rendition -

I first discovered Alex Isley while digitally crate digging on Soundcloud, a practice that has led to the discovery of many amazing, albeit lesser known, artists. I listened through all of Love/Art Memoirs, Alex's then-latest EP. She was speaking to the lover in all of us on this project: Hopeful, deeply immersed, struggling with a broken heart.

Blavity
03/28/2016
The Nina Simone film we should all be watching -

Now that Zoe Saldana has been thoroughly read, we can focus on another important element of Nina Simone's remembrance: Giving her a film that actually authentically depicts her life in its complexity, struggle and brilliance. I saw the Netflix documentary, What Happened, Miss Nina Simone?, which I found demoralizing in its title and horrifying to watch.

Blavity
03/11/2016
Words with activist, lawyer and "White Privilege II" contributor, Nikkita Oliver -

Nikkita Oliver is a law scholar. What does it mean for a member and ally of an oppressed group to be thoroughly versed in the mechanisms used to proliferate oppression? During a time when elders are hesitant to endorse the next iteration of the civil rights movement ( Black Lives Matter), citing lack of leadership and/or vision, how beneficial is combining activism with legal acumen?

Culture & Society

Blavity
07/12/2016
Is corporate America trying to be woke or trendy? -

When Deray was arrested this past week, he was wearing one of Twitter's new 'Stay Woke' shirts that the company has branded under their diversity group called "Blackbirds." This isn't the first of the many recent messages from corporations attempting to address the rising tensions around police brutality and its consequences.

Teen Vogue
06/29/2016
5 Things to Do When You're Feeling Nervous About Networking

Research the event Who wants to go to an event about big data if they're trying to get a job in non-profit law? It's important to read up on networking events that you find, as lots of them will have specific themes for specific industries.

EBONY
Divesting from the Reality Show Movement

OPINION] Blavity.com writer Dom Jones asks why we do not object to portrayals of Blackness on Reality TV as we do in many other mediums Even before I ever saw one episode of The Real Housewives of Atlanta, I was done with the way black people were being portrayed in the media, specifically in reality television.

The Huffington Post
07/26/2012
United We Stand, Opportunity Divided We Fall

I was born in Oakland, California, a city with a rich history of both beauty and violence. Young people are often used as scapegoats for the crime-ridden parts of Oakland, while their potential goes unnoticed. Here, to the naked eye, a young man is only a hoodlum in a black hoodie, sagging jeans, and sneakers.

Wellness

Blavity
05/17/2016
The body positivity movement is not for me yet -

I'm a plus-sized woman. I've been teased about many things, including being a darker-skinned black girl/woman, but never anything so much as my size. You would think that the burgeoning 'body positivity' movement would be a beacon for someone like me.

Blavity
05/05/2016
Why 'side piece' and 'bae' gotta go -

I recently saw the photo below on my Facebook timeline. It speaks volumes about the state of the union: The relationships between men and women in the black community, specifically. While many still consider friendship the basis of monogamy, there are those who feel there is reward in being the 'side piece' or the ever elusive, unofficial 'bae.'

Blavity
03/29/2016
Kehlani is you: Empathy in the online community -

Earlier this year, Kehlani was up for her first Grammy. This week, Kehlani was hospitalized after attempting to commit suicide, the R&B singer revealed in a now-deleted Instagram post. "Today I wanted to leave this earth," Kehlani, 20 - whose last name is Parrish, though she goes by her first name professionally - captioned a photo of an IV in her arm as she rested in a hospital bed.