Classic Man Crush Monday #MCM: Jidenna

So we all know what today is, right? It’s Man Crush Monday or #MCM for all you digital savvy darlings. Though I dabble in the occasional Monday morning routine of checking the #MCM hashtag for Insta-cuties, if there’s one thing that catches my eye more than great looks, it’s a man with a mission. Enter the “Classic Man” himself – recording artist Jidenna. After leaving my former career in magazine editorial, I’ve since given over my celebrity interview duties in favor of other LBS activities like photoshoots, business travel and the like.

But when the opportunity arose to interview up-and-comer Jidenna, I took it. Simply because he’s dope. And it doesn’t hurt that his producer and road DJ – Nana Kwabena – happens to be a college friend of mine. Or that he has a cosign from Janelle Monae. I pretty much bow down to anything she touches. Because.  Janelle Monae.

He has a radio hit that has topped the charts for the majority of 2015 (Go on, sing it. “You can be mean when you look this clean, I’m a classic man…”) and above all of the newcomer’s fame and notoriety, he actually has a mission behind his music. As part of Janelle Monae’s Wondaland camp, he can be seen on tour performing brilliant music dubbed a new genre called “Swank”, but also using his time to take a stand for social justice issues. Here’s what I discovered when I sat down with him after his performance at the Made In America Festival:

LoveBrownSugar: What is your definition of a classic man?

Jidenna: A classic man is a man that everybody knows and respects in the neighborhood. He’s distinguished but not necessarily by fashion so much, it’s his character. He could be a sanitation worker, a frat boy, a barber, a gangster. It doesn’t really matter what his occupation is. It matters how he does it, how he goes about keeping his composure and poise within the neighborhood.

So now I’m going to switch it up and ask – what is a classic “woman”?

A classic woman is a woman who believes that anything a man can do, she can fix. She’s a woman that can meander through the world, anywhere from the oval office, to the classroom, to the streets, to a strip club. She can go anywhere but when she walks in the room, she commands that room.

I love your style, it’s really dope. What’s your inspiration?

There are three main inspirations for my style. One was my father. In the 70’s, he used to wear three-piece suits and he walked with a cane. He was an engineer though, so he was like a fly (ass) engineer. Second, the old Jim Crow Era. It’s super important to me that we recognize that we’re in the new Jim Crow Era. Of course now with phones, everybody can see it now, but that’s been going on for us since we got here. So I wanted to represent for the old Jim Crow and make it a symbol of the new Jim Crow. Third, I’d say certain designers like Oswald Boateng. Oswald is fresh – his cuts, his use of color. He was one of the first high fashion designers to really implement African color and fabric on the runway, so I love what he’s done.

Last question for all my girls who are currently obsessed – how do you maintain your beard?

Nothing but juices and berries!

5 Things You (Probably) Didn’t Know About Jidenna

1. He used to be a demonstrator for social justice in the San Francisco/Bay Area focusing on high incarceration rates of Black/Latino men.

2. He taught in NYC schools in areas like the South Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens and Manhattan.

3. His name in Igbo means to “embrace the father”.

4. He attended Milton Academy (one of the best boarding schools in the country) and Stanford University (smart or nah?).

5. His late father Oliver Mobisson was a chief.

I don’t know about you, but I’m even more intrigued to see what he comes up with next. And I’m now officially inspired to keep the Classic #MCM man crushes going. Because who wants a man crush when you can have a classic man crush – hello? Email me if you have any suggestions for the feature: christina(at)lovebrownsugar(dot)com

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