Latest news with #YaraShahidi
Los Angeles Times
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Yara Shahidi on Learning, Growth and Pursuing Passions Beyond the Classroom
Actor, producer, optimist and agent for change Yara Shahidi, host of 'The Optimist Project' on Sirius XM, shares insights from her Harvard journey, offering advice on navigating education, discovering passions and continuing personal growth. You've been a strong advocate for education while also pursuing your degree at Harvard. What motivated you to prioritize higher education despite having so many career opportunities? Read The Print Edition: College Preparedness and Affordability Education has always been an integral part of my life – it was never really a question of if, but when and how. My parents instilled this idea that learning is a lifelong adventure, whether that's in a classroom or out in the world. For college specifically, I saw it as an opportunity to explore my curiosities, grow a community, and continue to pour into my growth academically and mentally. In a world in which so much is demanded of us on a daily basis, college felt like one of the few spaces in life in which my primary job was to think and explore. From my Gen Eds about the evolution of morality and pharmaceutical pricing, to my courses on neo-colonialism and resistance movements, Harvard gave me the space to think critically, to interrogate my own beliefs and grow. Many students feel pressure to choose the 'right' college or career path. What advice would you give to those struggling with that decision? I understand that pressure. So many of us come from communities and families that have dealt with so many barriers to entry to higher education, and it feels as though we are receiving this education and degree for more than ourselves, but for everyone who has invested in us. My favorite piece of advice from when I was trying to figure out my own path is when my mama told me that your degree is proof, to yourself and to the world, that you can start and complete a project. This isn't to make light of the vastly different paths college offers to us, but to contextualize that the most valuable part of the learning experience is the life experience – learning how to listen to yourself, learning how to see things through, learning how to learn, and, when need be, learning how to pivot. In our family, we have focused on chasing our curiosities, with the belief that opportunities will blossom from the intersection of our identity and interests. What are some lessons from your own education journey that you think every young person should hear? First: It's OK not to have all the answers. We live in this era where everyone feels the expectation to have a five-year plan by the time they're 17. I'm 25 and still don't know what the next five years will hold for me. Some of the most interesting people I know have taken what many would consider unconventional paths. In fact, we are living in a time in which we are all realizing that to bring about a better world, we cannot rely on the status quo, and we will need to pursue unconventional paths. Second: Let yourself be 'bad' at things. I had to learn (and am still learning) that not every attempt of mine would be a surefire success, and that's part of my growth process. With the very real pressure of having to be the best for doors to open, we can get consumed with looking polished and/or trying to find the 'correct' way of moving. I've had to remind myself, we are not here to know; we are here to learn, and the best learning happens when we give ourselves permission to fumble through something new. Lastly: Your education – whether it's in school or out in the world – is for you. Honor your learning style, expand your worldview, and share your unique creativity and skills with the global community! You juggle so much – acting, activism, and academics. How has college helped you evolve as a person and as a leader? Being a student at Harvard reaffirmed the importance of being a student of life. My college experience was a practice in giving myself permission to grow. Separate from being a public figure because of my career, being a young adult in this day and age comes with some sort of public persona and a feeling of having to be certain to be taken seriously, which, in many ways, is the same as being static. Being in classrooms with people from so many different backgrounds forced me to challenge my own perspectives, deepen the reasoning for my beliefs, and grow curious about topics that had never been on my radar. Being able to balance maintaining a core set of values while engaging with new ideas has helped me maneuver my career, created a source of optimism as we look for brighter futures, and helped me in my evolution into the person I want to be. Your generation is redefining success in so many ways. How do you think young people today can balance passion, purpose, and education? I think it's incredible how we're expanding the definition of success beyond traditional metrics. People want to do things that feel meaningful, and I think this generation has a beautiful sense of community where we are also invested in each other's successes. Life seems like the group project we have to learn to love, and it's up to us to figure out how we want to show up for the group. Our success seems to lie in embracing all of who we are, which allows us to contribute in a way that is unique to us. Allow yourself the freedom to explore different fields – be it arts, sciences, activism or anything else that ignites your curiosity. Remember, it's OK to have multiple passions and to pursue them in various capacities. Finding what fulfills us is the ultimate success. Catch up on Yara's podcast, 'The Optimist Project,' on Sirius XM.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Playboy veteran Lori Harvey shows off her curves in a shiny gold bikini
Lori Harvey showed off her stunning curves in a while enjoying a Mediterranean vacation in a sexy social media post. The model, 28, who was one of the wild ones at the latest Khy Collection launch party in support of friend Kylie Jenner, displayed her toned form in a barely there shimmering gold bikini. The video clip released on social media Monday shows the influencer sitting on the deck of a yacht as it sped across the sapphire blue ocean waters with mountainous terrain behind her. She accessorized with a gold body chain placed around her neck that then cascaded down her torso. The Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist actress added a pop of color with two beaded turquoise anklets. Harvey covered her dark locks with an on-trend straw bucket hat which also protected her flawless complexion from the bright sun. 'Summer is here ✨' the fashionista wrote next to the clip. Her fans went wild over the posting, many of them posting multiple flame emojis to communicate their approval. Actress Yara Shahidi responded with a heart-eyes emoji. Singer and songwriter Tems called the post, 'Hotter than fire.' 'Euro Summer Lori is my fave,' admitted a fan. 'Technically, it's not until 6/20 but we're grateful for the heat stroke!!!❤️☄️' corrected another. Harvey is the daughter of actor and gameshow host Steve Harvey, 68 and his wife Marjorie, 60. In spite of being a petite 5'3", Harvey launched a successful career as a model in 2015, and worked for elite brands including Dolce & Gabbana, Michael Kors, Valentino, and more. In 2021, she used her popularity to launch her cosmetics brand Skin by LH. 'I have very sensitive skin, and I really struggled with [it] as a teenager,' she told Allure. 'Once I got into modeling, I was having really, really bad breakouts because of all the makeup being applied to my face,' she said, explaining that she sometimes would use more than 20 products a day. In 2023, she launched her Yevrah Swim line, which sells high end bikinis and one-piece bathing suits.
Malaysian Reserve
01-06-2025
- Business
- Malaysian Reserve
In New Awareness Campaign, Yara Shahidi Reflects on Growth, Education, and Pursuing Passion
NEW YORK, June 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The path to college can feel overwhelming, for students and families alike. From choosing the right school to navigating financial aid, planning for higher education requires more than academic ambition; it requires access, preparation, and support. That's why Mediaplanet is proud to launch the College Preparedness & Affordability campaign, a national awareness initiative aimed at helping students confidently transition to college life with the resources and guidance they need to thrive. The campaign addresses many angles of the college experience—from academic readiness and financial literacy to mental health, career exploration, and life on campus. By bringing together insights from educators, experts, and real student voices, the College Preparedness & Affordability campaign equips families with the tools to plan ahead, ask the right questions, and make informed decisions that support long-term success and well-being. Featuring an exclusive interview with cover star Yara Shahidi, the campaign is anchored by voices that resonate with today's students. The actress, producer, and recent Harvard graduate reflects on her own academic journey, sharing how she balanced her creative career with coursework, navigated her evolving passions, and stayed grounded through the demands of college life. In her Q&A, Shahidi encourages young people to view education not just as a stepping stone, but as a space for personal growth, curiosity, and purpose. Her story offers inspiration and reassurance to students seeking both direction and fulfillment on their own unique paths. The print component of 'College Preparedness & Affordability' is distributed in today's edition of LA Times. The digital component is distributed nationally, through a vast social media strategy, and across a network of top news sites and partner outlets. To explore the digital version of the campaign, visit: This campaign was made possible with the support of Yara Shahidi, the Education Finance Council, the National Association of College and University Food Services, the National Resource Center for the First Year Experience and Students in Transition, Daniel Lim from 'Limmytalks', Dr. Laurie Santos, The College Tour, Mia Aston and features paid content from HelloCollege, Arizona State University, University of Memphis and Colorado State University.
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
In New Awareness Campaign, Yara Shahidi Reflects on Growth, Education, and Pursuing Passion
NEW YORK, June 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The path to college can feel overwhelming, for students and families alike. From choosing the right school to navigating financial aid, planning for higher education requires more than academic ambition; it requires access, preparation, and support. That's why Mediaplanet is proud to launch the College Preparedness & Affordability campaign, a national awareness initiative aimed at helping students confidently transition to college life with the resources and guidance they need to thrive. The campaign addresses many angles of the college experience—from academic readiness and financial literacy to mental health, career exploration, and life on campus. By bringing together insights from educators, experts, and real student voices, the College Preparedness & Affordability campaign equips families with the tools to plan ahead, ask the right questions, and make informed decisions that support long-term success and well-being. Featuring an exclusive interview with cover star Yara Shahidi, the campaign is anchored by voices that resonate with today's students. The actress, producer, and recent Harvard graduate reflects on her own academic journey, sharing how she balanced her creative career with coursework, navigated her evolving passions, and stayed grounded through the demands of college life. In her Q&A, Shahidi encourages young people to view education not just as a stepping stone, but as a space for personal growth, curiosity, and purpose. Her story offers inspiration and reassurance to students seeking both direction and fulfillment on their own unique paths. The print component of "College Preparedness & Affordability" is distributed in today's edition of LA Times. The digital component is distributed nationally, through a vast social media strategy, and across a network of top news sites and partner outlets. To explore the digital version of the campaign, visit: This campaign was made possible with the support of Yara Shahidi, the Education Finance Council, the National Association of College and University Food Services, the National Resource Center for the First Year Experience and Students in Transition, Daniel Lim from "Limmytalks", Dr. Laurie Santos, The College Tour, Mia Aston and features paid content from HelloCollege, Arizona State University, University of Memphis and Colorado State University. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Mediaplanet Sign in to access your portfolio
Elle
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Elle
Yara Shahidi Gets Ready for Gucci Cruise 2026 And Reveals Her DJ Skills
Yara Shahidi has a busy year of 'hobbying' ahead of her. Along with four—yes, four—movie projects and her own podcast with her mom Keri Shahidi, the Gucci ambassador is also setting aside time to make 'bad' art. Namely, DJ tracks that will never be released. Another thing Shahidi will always make time for is a great fashion moment. The actress attended the Gucci cruise 2026 runway show in Florence, Italy—with her mom in tow, of course—and took ELLE behind the scenes of her pre-show routine and the inspiration behind her look: a double-breasted white vest, black patent leather skirt, chartreuse heels, and a Horsebit clutch. She also gave us the inside scoop on making her podcast, her style journey, and how she'll be spending her summer: micro-journaling and prioritizing her inner hobbyist. It was so beautiful. It was such a fun homage to so many of the archive looks and silhouettes. I really enjoyed it. What I love about being able to attend certain shows is to see a whole look come to fruition. To be able to watch the look that I'm wearing now walk a couple months ago—it's nice to see it in its intended context and then figure out, OK, how do I make it mine? I always love a pop of color and something bright. I just feel like it brings so much nice energy. For the rest of my look, we leaned into what the garment was already doing. There's definitely a bit of a Mod, '60s inspiration, and so we figured out how to gently lean into that with hair and makeup. Luckily, I have a team that is excited by that level of collaboration. No one's trying to outshine any other elements of the look. They're just trying to figure out how to work most cohesively. And so typically, every great moment starts with a lot of Pinterest [boards] and a group text, because I always love giving space for the actual outfit to shine. I'm a bit of a stickler for proportions, of being like, if I have a high collar, nothing by my neck, just so nothing looks like it's competing. The question is always, what are ways to have fun? It's such a privilege to be able to play in this space in the first place that I think there's always a need to not want to take anything too seriously, even aesthetically. That's really where a lot of the fun comes from. Are there textures that we play with that we haven't before? Are there hairstyles and references that I love? And the references range from album covers to random paintings. For the Met [Gala], I showed my hairstylist a random painting of a Persian illustration from the 14th century. I think there's always an element of spontaneity because there's only so much you can plan until you see it on your body and you get the vibe. I think music is the one constant in my life and because I travel so much, the one, very subtle way I can find a sense of normalcy is by listening to something I love. For beauty rituals, honestly, it's a bucket of ice for a face dunk or just ice on my face in general because not only is it good for your nervous system, but it does provide a subtle little snatch. That's a must. I feel like as I've gotten older, my beauty routine has become simpler and simpler. Had we had this conversation a year and a half ago, I would have listed like 15 serums, and I still have those in my cabinet from time to time, but I'm really out here using Cetaphil and calling it a day. Prior to my campaign, I've been a friend of the brand for a while. I think I was 16 when I first started wearing Gucci and going to events, and it's really cool to be able to grow with the brand because their aesthetic continues to evolve as well. There's a sense of kismet, which has made every iteration of Gucci and every iteration of Yara really work, in that there's such a fearlessness in terms of how things are styled. It's always been bold colors, cool textures. I love playing with bedazzlement, playing with the classic oxblood that's out now, or even the silks. That genuine playfulness that comes from the collection is really fun to tap into, because I feel like that's a part of my overall style, which is like, how do you make this feel fun and light? I want to feel like I'm coming in on a cloud. It's surreal because the last time I was in Florence, I was on the back of the buses for Guess Kids, with my bestie Mackenzie Foy. I haven't been since I was seven, but Florence has made such an impact on me and I truly never stopped talking about it. It's fun to be back. The beautiful part of she and I being business partners is that underlying all of the actual work that we do are these constant quality-of-life conversations. What kind of life do we want to live? How do you move with purpose? That is pretty much the basis of what we discuss most days—and books we're reading that help us uncover certain things. That became the catalyst for the podcast because those are the conversations we're having with our peers and colleagues and walking away with such interesting tidbits about how people approach life, whether it be feeling a little lost or trying to re-find your purpose or find balance. So because we were always in these exclusive spaces, having pivotal conversations, we're like, OK, how do we knock the doors down and really bring these conversations to the forefront? I know there are professionals who are asked about their work, but not necessarily what keeps them doing the work, especially as the stakes of our world get higher and higher and all work can seem tougher and harder, and it's harder to feel motivated. I say that as a preamble to the fact that we take away so much from every episode, and that sounds so vague and so cliché, but I don't know how else to put it. We always come in having prepped, thinking about what we want to ask guests and tap into, but what they end up sharing is never necessarily what we plan for. Like Janelle Monáe having a list of affirmations on her Notes app and really under-thinking the whole journaling thing. Sometimes you don't have time to sit down and take out your pretty journal and jot down how you're feeling, but you have the Notes app to quickly document certain things. Then we've had Dr. Laurie Santos, who is giving us the science of happiness and how leaning into being of service is actually self-serving. We find ourselves quoting the podcast frequently in random conversations. People share such impactful bits of things you wouldn't expect that help them keep pushing. I recently had to drop this whole idea. Especially when I was like late teens, early 20s, I was journaling as though somebody was gonna find this. The stakes were so high. From how I'm writing to what I'm writing, talking about 'Dear reader...' I was definitely not journaling for myself. I feel like it dissuaded me from just sitting down and writing out my thoughts because I felt like like, oh, if I didn't have this really polished, complete thing to work through at the time, I wasn't gonna do it. I've finally gotten back into journaling, and it's been nice because I just think part of the practice was getting rid of all the little arbitrary rules I had for myself of like, sometimes it's gonna be an incomplete sentence and sometimes it's gonna be 5 pages. I feel so much better actually having a consistent practice versus trying to be the perfect journaler. The space she's given me to play. So much of why I enjoy fashion is that she supported me through every fashion phase, awkward or not. Whether it be the fact that I refused to wear pants and would only wear skirts and high tops. And then I went to only wearing my Catholic school uniform, even in my free time: plaid skirts, knee high socks, Oxfords. Then to, now I only wear tracksuits, same color, head to toe. I've had many a fashion era, but I think because she'd always give me permission to dress how I felt, it's always been a tool of self-expression for me. I think that's something that she's modeled, too. We have a very dynamic style in that she and I and, surprisingly, my middle brother Sayeed practically share a closet because we have a very similar style. There's never really been any kind of arbitrary rules. And as I've gone down this fashion path, I think it's very easy to take yourself extremely seriously and be like, oh, I need to look super sophisticated. There's a moment for looking very sophisticated and I love those moments, but I think she's always been the one, even in my fittings, to remind me: what makes this you? What makes this fun? And my journey through fashion has been all the much better for it. There's so much that I can't talk about. I know there will be some announcements coming out soon but I think it'll be fun. This is really my first couple of years working without school and having these big parameters on my time. I'm signed on to four movies. And of course, my mother Keri and I, we have the projects that we're developing in the television scripted space, which has been extremely exciting and leans into our genuine love of British television and British TV sensibilities. We have a ball bringing those things to life. And then honestly, last year was my first year as an amateur hobbyist and I'm doubling down this year. I have a rap name, a DJ name, and then I was just trying to figure out what my alternative music name would be. I don't plan on releasing any of this, but I think it's been fun. I have a full DJ setup in my room. It's funny because in a creative industry, it's both a blessing but it also means that you monetize art. It's been really lovely for me to have certain artistic moments that have nothing to do with my career, that I can be unabashedly bad at, because I had to work on being bad at things for a long time. I have hefty plans to be making bad DJ mixes in my room through the summer. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. Yara Shahidi Is Determined to Reclaim Black Joy
