The Top 30 Most Desirable Black Women of the Past 20 Years: 27-25

Rank #27

Name: Amerie






Overall Average: 6.81

• Natural Beauty: #20 (6.96)



• Sex Appeal: #14 (7.45)



• Class: #22 (6.73)



• Personality: #28 (6.27)



• Talent: #27 (5.45)



• Mother's Approval: #21 (6.36)



• Maternal Instincts: #29 (5.00)



• "Ride or Die-ness": #28 (5.55)



• Reputation: #24 (6.55)



• Originality: #27 (5.59)

Commentary: Amerie has a special place on this countdown, it really seems like the industry just can't seem to shake her. Think about it, she has been a one hit wonder nearly five times. Sure, everyone knows the first single off of her albums, but I challenge you to even hum any of her second track.... Don't worry, I'll wait.

Rank #26

Name: Lauren London

Overall Average: 6.94

• Natural Beauty: #8 (8.13


• Sex Appeal: #10 (7.71)


• Class: #28 (5.75)


• Personality: #22 (6.42)


• Talent: #23 ((6.25)


• Mother's Approval: #26 (5.58)


• Maternal Instincts: #22 (6.08)


• "Ride or Die-ness": #14 (7.17)


• Reputation: # 30 (4.83)


• Originality: #28 (5.45)

Commentary: Ms. London once was a bright new face in Hollywood; the kind of girl you can take home to your mother. A couple years later and now she is just Lil' Wayne's BM, You HAVE to question the judgement of a woman who has unprotected sex with that guy.

Rank: #25

Name: Angela Simmons

Overall Average: 7.08

• Natural Beauty: #23 (6.55)
• Sex Appeal: #30 (5.91)
• Class: #13 (7.50)
• Personality: #15 (7.10)
• Talent: #30 (4.85)
• Mother's Approval: #13 (7.27)
• Maternal Instincts: #26 (5.75)
• Ride or Die-ness: #30 (5.35)
• Reputation: #22 (6.75)
• Originalty: #26 ((5.60)

Commentary: Baby sister comes in second again. Dating Bow Wow definitely doesn't help your chances on this list. Not to mention she had a hand in designing the signature shoe of the dusty female...

The Top 30 Most Desirable Black Women of the Past 20 Years: 30-28

Rank: #30

Name: Ashanti


Overall Average: 6.23

• Natural Beauty: #28 (5.92)
• Sex Appeal: #25 (6.75)
• Class: #29 (5.75)
• Personality: #29 (5.50)
• Talent: #26 (5.75)
• Mother's Approval: #28 (5.17)
• Maternal Instincts: #30 (4.92)
• "Ride-or-Die-ness": #16 (6.83)
• Reputation: #29 (5.58)
• Originality: #31 (4.92)

Commentary: Horrible showing by the "First Lady of Murder Inc." (LOL!)...apparently trying to fill the void left by Aaliyah doesn't win you many originality points. It also doesn't help that she sounds like someone singing in the shower in all her songs. Still though, looking at some of her rankings you have to wonder if men in general just DON'T like her...or maybe the competition is just that heavy...we shall see.

Rank: #29

Name: Free

Overall Average: 6.46

• Natural Beauty: #29 (5.54)
• Sex Appeal: Tied for #23 (6.79)
• Class: #26 (6.00)
• Personality: #14 (7.21)
• Talent: #31 (4.25)
• Mother's Approval: #29 (5.17)
• Maternal Instincts: Tied for #21 (6.08)
• "Ride-or-Die-ness": #22 (6.25)
• Reputation: #20 (6.83)
• Originality: #30 (5.08)

Commentary: The former host of BET's 106 & Park landed in the middle of the pack in personality but was done in by her perceived lack of talent and originality since she's pretty much known for announcing OTHER people's work. You have to wonder how much damage her sexually explicit verse on the "Whisper Song" remix did to certain categories like Class and Mother's Approval since men generally prefer their women to be freaky behind closed doors only. Plus...has anyone seen her lately?

Rank: #28

Name: Kimora Lee

Overall Average: 6.49

• Natural Beauty: #21 (6.77)
• Sex Appeal: #31 (5.68)
• Class: #14 (7.30)
• Personality: #30 (5.10)
• Talent: #29 (5.10)
• Mother's Approval: #30 (4.60)
• Maternal Instincts: #15 (6.90)
• "Ride-or-Die-ness": #31 (3.70)
• Reputation: Tied for #27 (6.00)
• Originality: #16 (6.90)

Commentary: Obviously the ex-wife of Russell Simmons has seen her reputation dragged through the mud as a result of her perceived gold-digging tactics in taking him to the bank. Even before that something about her seemed superficial and fake hence the horrible personality rating. Apparently she doesn't even get credit for her "Baby Phat" products as is reflected in the awful Talent ranking. All of that aside though, it's clear that men don't appreciate women who keep their eye$ on the prize at all times.

The Top 30 Most Desirable Black Women of the Past 20 Years: The One That Didn't Make It

In honor of Black History Month, we've decided to recognize some of the most outstanding Black women of recent times. We developed a rating system designed to determine who is the most well-rounded (and thus most desirable) out of the women selected by the numerous individuals we polled. The categories are as follows:

• Natural Beauty


• Sex Appeal


• Class


• Personality


• Talent


• Mother's Approval (To what extent would your mother approve if you brought a woman like her home?)


• Maternal Instincts (What kind of mother do you think she would be?)


• "Ride-or-Die-ness"


• Reputation


• Originality
  

Obviously, some of the categories are based purely on perceptions, but as the saying goes "perception is reality" and besides it's all up for debate. Each woman was assigned a number on a scale from 1 to 10 (10 being the highest) in the aforementioned categories. Those scores were then averaged to arrive at an overall score out of 10 which was then used to rank them in numerical order. We will be counting down from 30-1, posting a few results per day so be sure to follow the blog and check it daily to see who claimed the top spot.

Here's one that didn't quite make cut:

Name: Nicki Minaj

Overall Average: 4.79

Rankings:

• Natural Beauty: 30th (4.54)


• Sex Appeal: 20th (7.17)


• Class: 31st (2.58)


• Personality: 31st (4.58)


• Talent: 28th (5.42)


• Mother's Approval: 31st (2.25)


• Maternal Instincts: 31st (2.82)


• "Ride-or-Die-ness": 26th (5.75)


• Reputation: 31st (3.42)


• Originality: 30th (5.17)

Commentary: This pretty much says that any woman patterning herself after Ms. Minaj is actually making a fool out of herself. She's annoying, ridiculous, classless, etc. and her sex appeal is NOT enough to overcome these fatal flaws.

This countdown is a peek inside the male psyche as it pertains to the way we view and perceive women and their qualities. Be sure to provide your feedback at the bottom of the posts!

Valentine’s Day: A day for love or a day for hate?

As February 14 approaches, singles in increasing numbers search through their phone books for romantic potentials. While shuffling through names they hope to stumble across one that produces the feeling—the feeling of romantic connection forged through trust, mutual like and attraction, and time invested. Is this search in vain? Well, if you have to “search” for a person with whom you feel connected, then you probably do not share such a connection with anyone. This realization can be depressing. Valentine’s Day, though explicitly a day for lovers to express their affection for one another, implicitly serves as a reminder to singles that they are alone.

It comes as no surprise then that many people (mostly singles) openly dread the holiday. Such people spend the holiday torturing themselves over past relationships gone sour, silently envying couples who giddily profess their love, or plunging into a navy blue depression. How startlingly ironic is it that such behaviors find expression on Valentine’s Day?

Given our devotion to our readership, some of whom are single, we would be remiss if we did not share alternative ways to think about and enjoy Valentine’s Day. If you are single, what follows is one of the best ways to think about Valentine’s Day: It is just another day. Indeed, the “importance” of this day comes from its tradition, acceptance in popular culture, and label as a day for lovers. True lovers know that every day is Valentine’s Day. With this said, we encourage singles to fight the urge to “be with someone” on Valentine’s Day just for the sake of the holiday. This approach only addresses the symptoms of loneliness while virtually ignoring its source.

Rather than spending Valentine’s Day like an envious, self-loathing grouch, we suggest that you spend it in one of following ways:

• Host a “Singles Ready to Mingle” Party—there are many singles out there just as eager as you are to stave off boredom and have a good time. One of the best ways to beat loneliness is to surround yourself with people! Buy some drinks, turn on some music, and party!




• Invite your single friends over and commiserate—Misery loves company. Invite some of your equally miserable close friends over so you can bemoan your single status before a welcoming crowd.




• Call up an “old faithful”—Lol. That’s right. Call up a “friend with benefits” and get it in for the night. Worry about your single status tomorrow.
  
  

In close, spending Valentine’s Day single does not have to be dreadful. Indeed, you can have a great time during Valentine’s Day by seeking alternative sources of enjoyment (like the alternatives we suggest). Above all, remember to view Valentine’s Day as “just another day” because at the end of the day that is exactly what it is.