increase in LGBTQ awareness and advocacy
With the recent increase in LGBTQ awareness and advocacy, several people are slowly breaking free from the fear of coming out. Identifying as gay or lesbian was considered a taboo not so long ago, which forced a lot of people to hide and shy away from their sexuality.
The good news is, even black women are part of these recent developments. We keep on seeing ebony lesbians coming out openly and living their best lives. In case you are a black woman attracted to other women, do not fear coming out as a black lesbian. We have, therefore, put up a list of some of the famous ebony lesbians. Let’s get straight to it.
Amandla Stenberg
Our first beautiful black lesbian is the gorgeous Amandla Stenberg. Amanda, born in 1998, is an American Actress and singer who’s appeared on Time’s most influential teenager list more than once.
Steinberg, who came to the limelight after appearing as Rue in The Hunger Games, came out on June 18th, 2018, during an interview with the famous King Princess from Wonderland, who happens to be her current girlfriend.
Raven Symone
Raven Symone, also known as Christina Pearman, knew she was gay from a young age of 12. The amazing American singer, songwriter, rapper, dancer, and producer came out of the closet in college after being pushed by one of her fellow cast members.
Symone feared coming out, believing that it would affect her brand since she was part of The Cosby Show. She officially referred to herself as a lesbian in 2016 during a panel discussion. The beautiful black lesbian is a staunch supporter of legalizing same-sex marriages.
Barbara Jordan
Barbara Jordan was undoubtedly one of the earliest black lesbians. She was a national figure and a Law Professor at the University of Texas at Austin. Barbara was married to Nancy Earl, who she spent a larger part of her life with.
Barbara did not come out during her life. The rumors about her being gay were confirmed when her long-life partner was mentioned at The Houston Chronicle Obituary. This amazing black lesbian spent her entire life advocating for the black community. She died in 1996.
Samira Wiley
Samira Wiley is an American actress who has appeared in several TV projects. This gorgeous black woman was born in 1987 in Washington, DC. She is married to Lauren Morelli, who was an Orange Is the New Black writer.
Samira Wiley, unlike other black lesbians, didn’t have the chance to come out on her own. She was outed by one of her ‘Orange Is the New Black’ costars, an experience that made her sad. She has then taken up LGBT characters in different shows.
Roxane Gay
Roxane Gay has a lot of accolades to her name. This beautiful black lesbian is an American writer, editor, professor, and social commentator. She is known for her famous book, The Bad Feminist, which came out in 2014.
Roxane Gay came out through her publications and had been living as an open lesbian life with her partner Debbie Millman, who, just like her, is a writer and educator.
Lena Waithe
Whose head doesn’t turn at the mention of Lena Waithe? This beautiful black lesbian is an American Screenwriter, producer, and actress, best known for the Netflix comedy, Master of None. The 35-year-old actress from Chicago was married to Alana Mayo, who she reportedly parted ways with in early 2020.
Lena celebrated her coming out story in a ‘Thanksgiving episode,’ in the show Master of None, where she played Denise.
Rutina Wesley
Rutina is a gorgeous American actress best known for her role as Tara Thornton in the famous True Blood. She was first married to her former classmate Jacob Fishel, who she later divorced and got engaged to Shonda, a chef from New Orleans.
Rutina came out as a lesbian in a heartfelt Instagram Engagement post in 2017, where she also announced her engagement to Shonda.
Wanda Sykes
You probably know Wonder Sykes, the American actress, comedian, and writer. Guess what? She is a lesbian. This beautiful black lesbian has two children. She was first married to Dave Hall, who she later divorced in 1998 and later married Alex Niedbalski.
Wanda Sykes came out as a lesbian in November 2008 at a same-sex marriage rally in Las Vegas.
Felicia Pearson
You must be familiar with Snoop if you watched The Wire. Felicia Pearson is a gorgeous actress, author, and rapper, who was born in Baltimore. Felicia once dated Adrienne, but they later separated in 2017. Adrienne decided to go back to the husband to salvage her married life.
She might have had alluded to being a lesbian in The Wire while playing Snoop in the last episode of Season 4.
Linda Perry
Linda Perry, the fantastic American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer, is living openly as a lesbian. This gorgeous singer was married to Sara Gilbert, but later separated in September 2019, after five years of being together.
From 2009 to 2010, Linda was engaged to Clementine Ford. She publicly came out as a lesbian when she told a journalist from The Advocate that she had loved women all through her life.
Jannelle Monae
I am pretty sure that you have listened to Yoga, which is one of Janelle’s biggest hits. Monae is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, actress, and producer signed to Atlantic Records. It is believed that the gorgeous black lesbian once dated Tessa Thompson, who came out as bisexual in early 2019.
Janelle came out as pansexual in an interview released in Rolling Stone. Janelle is, however, known to be private with her personal life.
Hennessy Carolina
Hennessy, who doesn’t mind living her lesbian life publicly, is a sister to the famous rapper Cardi B. Hennessy is a reality TV personality, model, makeup artist, and an entertainer. This beautiful black lesbian is in a relationship with Michelle Diaz.
Hennesy came out as bisexual on June 6th, 2018, when she posted a photo of her and the girlfriend on Instagram.
Tessa Thompson
We did mention Tessa Thompson when talking about Janelle Monae. Tessa, also known as Tessa Lynne Thompson, is an American singer and actress who was born and raised in Los Angeles. Tessa is married to actress Elsa Pataky.
Tessa came out during an interview with Porter Magazine, where she alluded to dating Janelle Monae at the moment.
Laverne Cox
You have seen Lavender Cox on your screen multiple times campaigning for LGBTQ+ rights. This beautiful black trans is an American actress and LGBTQ+ advocate. Apart from activism, she also a lawyer.
Laverne’s coming out of the closet was motivated by Candis Cayne.
Keke Palmer
Keke Palmer is an amazing American actress, singer-songwriter, and media personality who was born and raised in Illinois. Keke took a lesbian role in Pimp, where she had a relationship with Haley Ram, acting as Nikki.
Angel Haze
Raykeea Raeen Wilson, popularly known as Angel Haze, is an American rapper and singer who is best known for her album Dirty Gold. Angel was born in Detroit but later grew up in Brooklyn. Angel came out when she told Fusion Tv in an interview that she would best refer to herself as pansexual. She also uses her music to denote her sexuality. Angel once dated Ireland Baldwin.
Tracy Chapman
If you have ever listened to the track ‘First Car’, you already know that Tracy Chapman is super talented. Tracy is an American singer and songwriter who has grabbed several Grammy awards. Tracy is known for keeping her life private.
Tracy dated Alice Walker in the Mid 90s, a relation that only came to the limelight when it had already ended. Her track, ‘First Car,’ was at some point a lesbian anthem.
Yo! Majesty
Yo! Majesty is a popular hip-hop group made up of Jwl B, Shunda K, and Shon B. All the members are openly living as lesbians and identify as Christians. The band publicly identified as lesbians from the onset, rapping about sex and God in most of their songs.
Azealia Banks
Azaelia is an American rapper who was born and bred in Harlem. This beautiful black lesbian is also a singer, songwriter, producer, and actress. Azalea came out in an interview with The New York Times, where she termed herself a bisexual woman who does not conform to other people’s terms.
The rapper is reportedly dating Jesse Bradford.
Dai Burger
Dainene Alexia Baldwin, popularly known as Dai Burger, is an American rapper from Queens. Dai has been vocal in fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and encouraging people to come out. Dai came out through her music, which mainly talks about queerness. Little is known about Dai burger’s girlfriend or relationship.
Meshell Ndegeocello
Michelle Lynn Johnson, popularly known as Meshell Ndegeocello, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and bassist. Meshell was openly bi in her 90s. She came out through her songs, which were mainly about loving and making love to women.
Meshell married Alison Riley in 2005.
THEESatisfaction
THEESatisfaction was an American duo made up of Irons and Catherine. The pair was based in Seattle. The two, however, split up in 2016 after eight years of performing music together. The two had matching thriller tattoos and open identified as queer women.
In an interview with The Quietus, Stas, who was one of the members, confirmed that they grew up as queer women.
Siya
Siya, officially known as Michele Sherman, doesn’t fear being labeled a lesbian. The American Hip Hop recording artist was born in California. Her sexuality gave her a hard time building a career since most people were not ready to work with her.
Siya came out as a lesbian through her music, which she uses as a means of dealing with all she has gone through in her life. She has managed to keep her life private, and therefore, knowing about her previous or present relationship is quite challenging.
Tish Hyman
Tish Hyman, popularly known as Tish, is a black Singer, songwriter, and rapper. Tish was born in New York but began her career in Los Angeles. Tish came to terms with being a lesbian, which she addresses in her music. She has managed to keep her life private, and all we know is that this beautiful black lesbian is dating a Russian woman.
YoungM.A
Young M.A is undoubtedly one of the most famous lesbian rappers in America. She talks about her sexuality in her rap music. She also doubles up as an entrepreneur. In 2019, however, Young M.A refused to identify as a lesbian when Jason Lee asked her of Hollywood Unlocked.
Over the years, Young MA has been in a relationship with Ariana Fletcher, Bernice Burgos, and Tori Brixx.
Be Steadwell
Be Steadwell is a famous songwriter, singer, and filmmaker from Washington DC. She mainly majors in R&B and Queer Pop. Her songs are made of rich LGBTQ content. The singer conducts different workshops for LQBTQ youths.
In her song ‘A letter to my ex,’ Be Steadwell addresses her breakup, which saw her dreams of walking down the aisle with her ex go up in flames.
Syd tha Kid
Sydney Loren Bennett, popularly known as Syd that Kid, is an American singer and songwriter. Syd is a founding member of The Internet, a band in Los Angeles. In an interview with LA Weekly, Sid denoted hate for the word lesbian, preferring to be labeled as gay. Syd keeps her personal life private, and therefore knowing who she has dated or not is not easy.
Robin Roberts
Ending our list is the sensational newscaster Robin Roberts. This amazing black woman grew up in the Mississippi. Robin Roberts came out as gay in an open Facebook post in 2014. She is dating Amber Laign, a licensed massage therapist.
Conclusion
You should freely accept and feel proud of your sexuality. Do not shy away because of the purported ridicule or the degenerating opinions from homophobes. We have looked at some of the world’s famous ebony lesbians who have managed to break free and embrace their sexuality. I hope that this will give you the strength to come out and live your best life.