Jenee Darden

Jeneé Darden is a proud nerdy, prissy, outspoken Black woman from Oakland and founder of Cocoa Fly.com. An award-winning journalist, Jeneé has reported for such outlets as NPR, Time magazine, Los Angeles Times, Ebony, Marketplace, KQED and KALW. In 2005, she contributed reporting on the London 7/7 transit bombings for Time magazine’s Europe edition. Jeneé hosts the blog and podcast CocoaFly.com.

Her first book, When a Purple Rose Blooms, is a collection of essays and poetry about Black womanhood. She shares her experiences with love, sex, race and mental health. Currently, she is pitching a book about Black sexuality. Visit CocoaFly.com to read her research series Under the Covers: The Popularity and Debate Over Black Erotic Literature.

Jeneé is a mental health advocate and public speaker who shares her own personal story of living with depression and anxiety. She first merged her passion for mental health awareness and love for media as host of the award-winning podcast Mental Health and Wellness Radio.

The daughter of former O.J. Simpson prosecutor Christopher Darden, Jeneé holds a BA in ethnic studies from UC San Diego and a master’s in journalism from the University of Southern California. She lives in the Bay Area where she enjoys dancing, performing spoken word and watching superhero movies. Follow her at www.jeneedarden.com.