If you've ever wanted to see what #BlackBoyJoy looks like in the flesh, look no further than model and actor Broderick Hunter.
One scroll down his Twitter and Insta feed will not only have you craving chocolate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but it will leave you refreshed by his authenticity, humility, and humor. With a career that boasts walking runways and securing campaigns for some of fashion's biggest names, to starring in hit shows on television, Broderick is definitely one to watch for.
Back in Cali and fresh off a flight from New York, he is at ease and light-hearted in our meeting. It didn't take long for the conversation to smoothly transition from a formal interview to a talk between old friends. We converse and banter as if we've known each other for years and it's immediately clear to see why he's maintained longevity in his career and in the industry. Broderick is genuine and purposeful in everything he says and does. He doesn't hold back or spare the truth. He's true to himself, no matter what it looks like or how it may come off to others, something he says he's mastered seemingly since birth.
"I've always been a real organic type of person. I've never tried to put up facades. I don't like to tell people what they want to hear. I've always been a real person, that's just how I've been my entire life," he explained. "When my career started going and I got into modeling, it just kind of translated into that. It just never really changed. When people gravitate towards me, they always say how carefree and wild I am so I try to carry that over into my regular life and my 'celebrity' life."
And while others may feel the need to alter their personality once they've reached a certain level of success, Broderick definitely knows better. The 6'2'' Cali native has learned a thing or two about keeping his self-worth in tact. He knows that it's not just what you do in this world that matters, but who you are and who you become in the process. Being in the industry for almost 10 years, he's fully aware of how important it is to keep your character and integrity intact.
"I'm not a product of what I do and my success, I'm a product of the type of person I am. My parents have always taught me to just be a good person, you know? You could be flat broke but if you're a good person, you'll always have love and support. So I always lead with that foot first. Sometimes I feel, in this industry, people don't really know how to separate what they do from who they are."
"I'm not a product of what I do and my success, I'm a product of the type of person I am."
"We're in an era of microwave success now where a lot of great things are happening to people very quickly. You can upload a video tomorrow and then any of these major pop stars can come up on it and next thing you know, you're walking the red carpet at the VMAs. That's how quick things can happen."
Though he's definitely not mad at newcomers who have forged their way into the spotlight, he understands that the rules of the game have changed. He warns however, that while social media can aid in your success, it can also make you miss steps that help build and keep you grounded when you go through the trenches, which is something he knows firsthand. Broderick's journey was one that was met with rejection and resistance early on. In another interview with Bold TV, he makes mention of the fact that various industry insiders were very apprehensive in considering him for campaigns and shows. They cited his athletic build, his dark skin, and the fact that he was a black male as reasons why he wouldn't be a good fit.
Looking back, he sees that ultimately it all worked out for the better as he has been able to continuously amass a great level of success despite the naysayers. Nowadays, he likes to use his social media platforms as a tool to engage with his followers and fans, something that he says is done on purpose.
"I have to use social media now to bring my brand to where it is, but it's a tool for me. Social media is a tool not lifeline for me. I'm all for the way the industry is going now, it's a lot more entertaining. You're able to get an idea of who people are before you ever meet them," he said. "That's not to say that's EXACTLY who they are but you can gauge their personality from what they post and everything. I really feel like opening up and being personable with people has really helped my brand get to where it is. It allows people to know that I'm a real person, I'm a regular person."
And personable he is. The minute you find yourself on Broderick's Twitter page, you become instantly intrigued and invested in his interactions with women and you may find yourself getting gassed up by him on anything from your edges to your melanin to your makeup. That's because for him, championing and hyping up black women specifically is something he stans for. Early on before modeling and acting caught his eye, the black women in his life had it first. He credits everything he's learned to black women, from hair-care, skin-care, self-care, and the like.
He says that he realized the value they brought into his life at a young age and made it a point to uplift, revere, and adore black women openly and without shame. And in an industry that likes to celebrate features akin to ours and not us, he believes that it's not only important but very necessary.
"I've always campaigned for black women because I saw early on the value that they had, not only in my life but the value they brought to the world. As I started to grow up and through my basketball stages and everything, I value and appreciate all women, but black women were always important to me. I've seen how they've helped me grow and the things that they've taught me. Everything I know, I've learned from black women."
"Everything I know, I've learned from black women."
He continued, "In my career, I started to see how devalued the black woman was and how much they were not celebrated the way I celebrated them. So I made it a point to always campaign for what I believe in and I've always believed in the rights, the love, and the information that a black woman has to offer. I really push for that because I want people to have the same experience I had and see the things I see in black women and what they can do. So, when I got to the point in my career where I felt like I really had a voice that would echo, I made it a point to love and support black women. I love to gas my sisters."
And it's pretty safe to say that his sisters love him. Amidst crazy comments and DMs from those who try to do the absolute most vying for his attention, when it comes to dating he says all he's really looking for is someone who knows how to hold their own. A humble woman who is secure in herself and has things going for herself. Someone who's not looking to attach themselves to him for clout's sake, but someone who's interested in building together.
"Obviously looks attract but when it comes to dating I look for reciprocity. Beauty doesn't impress me anymore. I look for inner qualities like how she was raised, how she treats other people, and if she has fashion sense because I don't mind my girl dressing me. And if she can throw down in the kitchen that's a plus too."
All I have to say is, where do I sign up?
For more on Broderick, keep up with him on Instagram.
Featured image by Ron Adar / Shutterstock.com
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Skylar sees things differently. At the time, she was shooting content on her iPhone. Temi came into the picture with a new perspective, an understanding of tech, and, eventually, a camera. “He doesn't give himself enough credit,” Skylar says. “He wasn't just my tripod. He wasn't just standing behind the camera and going ‘click.’ He was giving advice. He was giving me insight to how I could look at things from a different perspective. And I was like, 'Oh, he’s an artist.' I think it was maybe a heartbeat of that kind of energy of like, ‘Baby, can you take this picture?’ And it turned so quickly into, we're partners. We can work together in a way where we're advancing each other's creative thinking.”
The pair often says they’re two sides of the same coin. Skylar is an Aquarius. She attended art school, paints, and loves poetry. She’s more than happy to let the couple’s management firm and agency, Kensington Grey, handle their admin work. And, she loves to sleep in. Temi, on the other hand, wakes up early. He’s a Virgo. He loves a to-do list and regularly checks in on the couple’s brand partnerships spreadsheet to make sure everything is on track.
Because his storytelling was steeped in his love of technology, he didn’t always think of himself as a creative person. “Where I [am] the dreamer who wants to pluck things out of the sky and spend all day with my head in the clouds, Temi [is] so good at grounding me and helping me figure out how to make things make sense on paper. We just work together in such a complimentary way,” Skylar says.
It’s been more than six years since Brooklyn-based couple Temi and Skylar started dating, and nearly four since they cemented their working relationship. On TikTok and Instagram, the couple’s travel, fashion, and home content regularly rack up hundreds of thousands of views. They’ve worked with brands such as Coach, Aesop, Away, and Liquid IV, bringing their vibrant perspectives to every campaign they execute. Still, nearly two years since both Temi and Skylar committed to full-time content creation and creative directing, the couple says their romantic connection remains their priority.
“We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting,” Skylar says.
Working from home can make it hard to separate work from personal life for any entrepreneur. It can be even more challenging when your business partner is also your lover. Temi and Skylar had already used couples therapy as a tool to help them effectively communicate with one another. When they ran into challenges while working together, their therapist helped them set physical boundaries to help combat the issues.
"We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting."
“It actually took us doing very specific physical things to create boundaries between work and play in our relationship,” Skylar says. “So, for instance, we will only have conversations about work when we're out of bed or we're at the table or in the office. Initially, when we started, we had to light a candle to say that, 'Okay, this is a space where we're connecting, we’re not talking about work.' We needed really hard boundaries at the top. And then it became a little bit more organic.”
The boundaries have been crucial to implement, especially because the couple began working together so naturally. When the pair first met, Skylar was NY-based a social strategist for BuzzFeed and was using content creation to drive business to her lingerie company. She was shooting her own content. Temi was working for Microsoft in D.C. He’d recently traded in his DJing equipment for a camera. “I've always loved taking pictures,” he says. “Even when I was a kid, my African mother would wake me up at 3:00 a.m. [during a] party, and be like, 'Come take the family picture.'”
Growing up, Temi says he watched his parents support each other and be the true definition of partners. He knew he wanted the same for his own relationship. But, the couple also wanted to make sure they were being financially responsible. The pair didn’t quit their traditional jobs until they’d saved up two years' worth of their cost of living. And, Temi received his Master of Business Administration from New York University with the knowledge that it could either help him advance in his corporate career or be applicable to his business with Skylar.
Temi and SkylarCj Hart @hartbreakToday, they say their working relationship is more of a “quiet dance.” They still implement some of the boundaries they learned in therapy, but they also lean into their natural strengths and deep love for one another. When we speak, Temi has planned a date for the couple to see Princess Mononoke in 4K IMAX and added it to their Notion so they can factor it into their busy schedules. “I fully plan to date for the rest of my life,” he says.
Skylar says the couple doesn’t just wait for date nights to check in with one another, though. This often happens in the mornings, after Temi has made her peppermint tea and poured himself a cup of coffee. When they ask each other how they slept, she says, it’s not just a “nicety.” It’s a genuine question meant to foster connection.
“A lot of it happens during the day in the midst of work. We'll stop and we'll hug. Or we’ll slow dance in the kitchen,” she says. “Sometimes it's hard to set a whole date night when you have 7,000 things going on. So, we must grasp these moments and check in when we can. And I think it's become so organic to us that I actually didn't even realize how often we do it. But all day long, we're like, 'Are you good? I felt like your energy shifted,' because we're best friends, we just know. We just feel it happen.”
What’s better than being in love? Building wealth while doing it. Watch Making Cents here for real stories of couples who make money moves together.
Featured image by Cj Hart @hartbreak