Kierna Mayo facts for kids

Kierna Mayo is an American writer, editor, and leader in the media world. She started her career in journalism as one of the first writers for The Source magazine. Later, Mayo helped start Honey magazine in 1999. She also became the editor-in-chief of Ebony. Today, Mayo is a vice president and executive editor at Random House and Roc Nation's publishing group, Roc Lit 101.

About Kierna Mayo's Life

Early Years and Education

Kierna Mayo was born and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. When she was a teenager, she loved hip-hop music. She went to Murry Bergtraum High School with famous musicians like Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad. They were both members of the group A Tribe Called Quest. Mayo later earned her college degree from Hampton University.

Her Work in Journalism

Mayo began her career as a writer and editor at The Source magazine. She worked there for four years. In her writing, she often spoke out against unfair treatment of women in the music industry. She also defended hip-hop music from common criticisms.

In 1999, Mayo helped create Honey magazine. She was the first editor-in-chief of this magazine. Honey was a lifestyle and fashion magazine published every two months. It was made for young women from different cultures. Mayo and her co-founder, Joicelyn Dingle, later sold the magazine. It closed in 2003 because of disagreements with the new owner and money problems.

Mayo became the editorial director for Ebony magazine in 2011. She was promoted to editor-in-chief in 2015. She left her job in 2016 after Ebony was sold to new owners. Later that year, she became a senior vice president at Interactive One.

Since 2021, she has been a vice president and executive editor at One World/Roc Lit 101. This is a publishing group that releases books.

Other Projects and Contributions

Kierna Mayo has also written for books. She wrote the introduction for Joan Morgan's book, She Begat This: 20 Years of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (2018). She also wrote an essay called “Hip-Hop Heroines” for the Smithsonian Anthology of Hip-Hop and Rap (2021).

Mayo has appeared as a speaker in films. These include On the Record and We Need to Talk About Cosby.

She was also part of a human rights group called the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement.

Awards and Honors

• 2015 – Named to The Root 100 list
• 2020 – Honored at the Equality Now Gala