{blackbabes} Beyoncé Becomes A Billionaire, Joins Husband Jay-Z On Forbes Elite List

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Pop icon Beyoncé has joined her husband Jay-Z along with Taylor Swift, Bruce Springsteen and Rihanna as the fifth musician on the Forbes list of global billionaires, the publication said today.

Her addition to the "three comma" club follows recent blockbuster tours, albums and related revenue. The Cowboy Carter Tour, which ran through last July, grossed more than $400 million in ticket sales, per Pollstar, and another $50 million in merchandise sold at the shows, according to Forbes estimates. Beyoncé did a special Cowboy Carter halftime show for Netflix's first Christmas Day NFL game a year ago, collecting an estimated $50 million, the pub said.

It said The Renaissance World Tour took in nearly $600 million. Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé grossed circa $44 million globally, according to Box Office Mojo.

The superstar's business interests including full rights to her hugely valuable catalog are run through Parkwood Entertainment, which she launched in 2010.

Forbes said earlier this month that director James Cameron had joined another shortlist, of filmmakers who have reached billionaire status, which includes George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson and Tyler Perry.

Cameron's Avatar (2009) and Avatar: The Way Of Water (2022) are two of the top three highest grossing films of all times. Juggernaut Avatar: Fire And Ash opened Dec. 19 and has passed $760 million globally.

Cameron, the helmer behind Titanic and the Terminator franchise, recently demurred when asked about his net worth. "I wish I was a billionaire," he told Puck in a podcast interview. "The billionaire thing assumes certain deals that didn't exist, one, and, two, that I've never spent a dime in 30 years."

Other media and entertainment folks populating the Forbes real- time billionaires club include Rupert Murdoch and family, Donald Newhouse, Charlie Ergen, John Malone, David Geffen, Arnon Milchan, Barry Diller Oprah Wifrey and Jerry Seinfeld.

Headlining the list are tech titans Elon Musk, Larry Page, Larry Ellison, Jeff Bezos, Sergey Brin and Mark Zuckerberg, with Bernard Arnault and family, Jensen Huang, Warren Buffet and Steve Ballmer rounding out the top ten.

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{blackbabes} Venus Williams weds Andrea Preti in Florida as part of a 5-day celebration of their union

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PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Venus Williams and Andrea Preti are married, the tennis great announced Tuesday on social media.

Williams and Preti became wife and husband over the weekend in Palm Beach, Florida, as part of a five-day celebration.

After becoming the second-oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match in July, the 45-year-old Williams gave thanks to her fiance, who was in the stands at the DC Open. Preti is a Danish-born Italian model and actor, according to the website IMDB.

Williams hadn't played in a tournament in 16 months until entering the event in Washington.

The seven-time Grand Slams singles champion plans to play in a 33rd straight season on the WTA Tour, starting in Auckland in January.

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{blackbabes} ‘Sinners’ Dominates With Record 21 Black Reel Awards Nominations

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Warner Bros' Sinner flat-out dominated with a record 21 nominations for the 2026 Black Reel Awards, nearly lapping the field. See the full list of noms revealed today below.

Ryan Coogler's pic starring Michael B. Jordan in dual roles will vie in every major category including Outstanding Film, Director, Lead & Supporting Performance and has a whopping four noms for Outstanding Song.

A24's Spike Lee joint Highest 2 Lowest is next with 11 nominations, followed by Magnolia Pictures' 40 Acres and Picturehouse's On Becoming a Guinea Fowl with nine each. Sony's One of Them Days scored eight noms, and Amazon MGM's Hedda got six.

"The Black Reel Awards have always been about celebrating the brilliance and resilience of Black storytellers," founder and director Tim Gordon said. "This year's nominees represent the very best of our culture, creativity, and community."

Here are the nominees for the 26th annual Black Reel Awards:

OUTSTANDING FILM

Hedda
Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Gabrielle Nadig, Nia DaCosta, Tessa Thompson, producers

Highest 2 Lowest
Todd Black & Jason Michael Berman, producers

One of Them Days
Issa Rae, Deniese Davis, Sara Rastogi, James Lopez, Poppy Hank, producers

Sinners
Zinzi Coogler, Sev Ohanian, Ryan Coogler, producers

Wicked: For Good
Marc Platt & David Stone, producers

OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR

Ryan Coogler
Sinners

Nia DaCosta
Hedda

Spike Lee
Highest 2 Lowest

Rungano Nyoni
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

R.T. Thorne
40 Acres

OUTSTANDING LEAD PERFORMANCE

Danielle Deadwyler
40 Acres

Cynthia Erivo
Wicked: For Good

André Holland
Love, Brooklyn

Chase Infiniti
One Battle After Another

Dwayne Johnson
The Smashing Machine

Michael B. Jordan
Sinners

Jonathan Majors
Magazine Dreams

Keke Palmer
One of Them Days

Tessa Thompson
Hedda

Denzel Washington
Highest 2 Lowest

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING PERFORMANCE

Miles Canton
Sinners

Regina Hall
One Battle After Another

Damson Idris
F1

David Jonsson
The Long Walk

Delroy Lindo
Sinners

Wunmi Mosaku
Sinners

Da'Vine Joy Randolph
Eternity

A$AP Rocky
Highest 2 Lowest

Teyana Taylor
One Battle After Another

Jeffrey Wright
Highest 2 Lowest

OUTSTANDING SCREENPLAY

Ryan Coogler
Sinners

Nia DaCosta
Hedda

Rungano Nyoni
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Syreeta Singleton
One of Them Days

R.T. Thorne
40 Acres

OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY

Being Eddie
Angus Wall, director
In Whose Name?
Nico Ballesteros, director

Orwell: 2+2=5
Raoul Peck, director

Songs From the Hole
Contessa Gayles, director

The Perfect Neighbor
Geeta Gandbhir, director

OUTSTANDING ENSEMBLE

40 Acres
Stephanie Gorin, casting director

Highest 2 Lowest
Kim Coleman, casting director

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
Isabella Odoffin, casting director

One of Them Days
Nicole Abellera & Jeanne McCarthy, casting directors

Sinners
Francine Maisler, casting director

OUTSTANDING INTERNATIONAL FILM

My Father's Shadow
United Kingdom

Night Call
Belgium

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
Zambia, UK, Ireland

Souleymane's Story
France

We Were Here – The Untold History of Black Africans in Renaissance Europe
Germany

OUTSTANDING VOICE PERFORMANCE

Danielle Brooks
The Bad Guys 2

Quinta Brunson
Zootopia 2

Idris Elba
Zootopia 2

Anthony Ramos
The Bad Guys 2

Zoe Saldana
Avatar: Fire and Ash

OUTSTANDING SCORE

Freaky Tales
Raphael Saadiq, composer

Hedda
Hildur Guðnadóttir, composer

Highest 2 Lowest
Howard Drossin, composer

Sinners
Ludwig Göransson, composer

The Eyes of Ghana
Kris Bowers, composer

OUTSTANDING ORIGINAL SONG

"Highest 2 Lowest" from Highest 2 Lowest
Aiyana-Lee Anderson, performer
Aiyana-Lee Anderson & Nicole Daciana Anderson, writers

"I Lied to You" from Sinners
Miles Canton, performer
Raphael Saadiq & Ludwig Göransson, writers

"Last Time (I Seen the Sun)" from Sinners
Miles Canton & Alice Smith, performers
Miles Canton, Alice Smith & Ludwig Göransson, writers

"Pale, Pale Moon" from Sinners
Brittany Howard, performer
Brittany Howard & Ludwig Göransson, writers

"Sinners" from Sinners
Rod Wave, performer
Darius Povillunas, Kyris D'Asia, Rod Wave & Tarkan Kozluklu, writers

OUTSTANDING SOUNDTRACK

Freaky Tales
Highest 2 Lowest
One of Them Days
Sinners
Wicked: For Good

OUTSTANDING INDEPENDENT FILM

40 Acres
R.T. Thorne, director

Love, Brooklyn
Rachael Holder, director

Magazine Dreams
Elijah Bynum, director

My Father's Shadow
Akinola Davies Jr., director

On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
Rungano Nyoni, director

OUTSTANDING INDEPENDENT DOCUMENTARY

BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions
Kahlil Joseph, director

The Eyes of Ghana
Ben Proudfoot, director

Fatherless No More
Kayla Johnson, director

Seeds
Brittany Shyne, director

We Were Here – The Untold History of Black Africans in Renaissance Europe
Fred Kudjo Kuwornu, director

OUTSTANDING SHORT FILM

The Devil is Busy
Geeta Gandbhir & Christalyn Hampton, directors

JULES
Tiffany Abney, director

Walk in the Light
Princella Smith, director

OUTSTANDING EMERGING DIRECTOR

Akinola Davies Jr.
My Father's Shadow

Rachael Holder
Love, Brooklyn

Kahlil Joseph
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions

Rungano Nyoni
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

R.T. Thorne
40 Acres

OUTSTANDING BREAKTHROUGH PERFORMANCE

Miles Canton
Sinners

Susan Chardy
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Naya Desir-Johnson
Sarah's Oil

Damson Idris
F1

Chase Infiniti
One Battle After Another

Jayme Lawson
Sinners

A$AP Rocky
Highest 2 Lowest

Abou Sangaré
Souleymane's Story

SZA
One Of Them Days

Tyriq Withers
HIM

OUTSTANDING FIRST SCREENPLAY

Nnamdi Asmougha
The Knife

Akinola Davies Jr. & Wale Davies
My Father's Shadow

Rungano Nyoni
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Syreeta Singleton
One of Them Days

R.T. Thorne
40 Acres

OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY

Autumn Durald Arkapaw
Sinners

Jermaine Canute Bradley Edwards
My Father's Shadow

Kira Kelly
HIM

Malik Hassan Sayeed
After the Hunt

Brittany Shyne
Seeds

OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN

Charlene Akuamoah
40 Acres

Estelle Don Banda
On Becoming a Guinea Fowl

Ruth E. Carter
Sinners

Francine Jamison-Tanchuck
Highest 2 Lowest

Paul Tazewell
Wicked: For Good

OUTSTANDING EDITING

Ronald Bronstein & Benny Safdie
The Smashing Machine

Kahli Joseph, Luke Lynch & Paul Rogers
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions

Taylor Joy Mason
HIM

Michael P. Shawver
Sinners

Malika Zouhali-Worrall
Seeds

OUTSTANDING HAIR & MAKEUP

Amber Aprin & Mele Egbe
My Dead Friend Zoe

Ken Diaz, Mike Fontaine, Sian Richards & Shunika Terry
Sinners

Antonio Hines & Chancelle Mulela
40 Acres

Kazu Hiro, Felix Fox & Mia Neal
The Smashing Machine

Vonda K. Morris & Nikki Wright
One of Them Days

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION DESIGN

Ramsey Avery, production designer; Rosemary Brandenburg, set decorator
Captain America: Brave New world

Hannah Beachler, production designer; Monique Champagne, set decorator
Sinners

Cara Brower, production designer; Stella Fox, set decorator
Hedda

James Chinlund, production designer; Marcia Calosio, Mike Keel & Frank Okay, set decorators
The Smashing Machine

Nathan Crowley, production designer; Lee Sanders, set decorator
Wicked: For Good

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{blackbabes} Kadeem Hardison, Jasmine Guy, Cree Summer & Darryl M. Bell To Reprise Roles In ‘A Different World’ Sequel Series

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Fans of the original A Different World series rejoice.

Jasmine Guy, Kadeem Hardison, Cree Summer, and Darryl M. Bell are coming back together for the Netflix spinoff series, reprising their roles from the mothership series. The quad will recur throughout the season.

The single-camera comedy will have 10 half-hour episodes from showrunner and executive producer Felicia Pride. Debbie Allen, who produced, directed, and acted in the OG series, will executive produce and direct three episodes of the continuation, including the premiere.

Pride and Allen shared their excitement over the team coming back together for a new generation.

"A Different World is back!!! YAY!!  We are over the moon to bring this much-anticipated sequel with our returning legacy stars Kadeem Hardison, Jasmine Guy, Cree Summer, and Darryl M. Bell! These beloved characters are returning in a major way that respects their history while engaging exciting storylines that are relevant to issues of today," they shared in a joint statement.

They continued, "Throughout the season, fans will have a chance to reunite with these O.G. characters and see how their lives have evolved into 'A Different World.' And as the story unfolds, there will be more cast surprises in store for longtime fans. We can't wait for lovers of the show to experience this new chapter as a real continuation of the legacy show, and we're excited to welcome new audiences to Hillman." 

The series centers on Deborah Wayne (Maleah Joi Moon), the youngest daughter of Hillman College's finest, Dwayne Wayne (Hardison) and Whitney Gilbert (Guy), as she enters her freshman year at their HBCU alma mater and finds the shadow of her parents difficult to escape. She sets out to build her own legacy – while having the time of her life – alongside a whole new generation of Hillman's best and brightest.

Summer returns as Freddie Brooks and Bell as Ron "Ronaldus" Johnson, as Whitley would call him. The new cast also includes Alijah Kai as Rashida, Chibuikem Uche as Kojo, Cornell Young IV as Shaquille, Jordan Aaron Hall as Amir, and Kennedi Reece as Hazel.

Netflix ordered a pilot back in March, followed by an order to series last month. Deadline broke the news last August that a sequel series of A Different World was in the works at the streamer. The show received a series order last month.

The original A Different World, a spinoff of The Cosby Show, followed Denise Huxtable (Lisa Bonet) and her new classmates at Hillman College, a fictional historically Black college. Though Bonet exited after one season, the show continued with the leading cast of Guy, Hardison, Dawnn Lewis, Bell, Sinbad, Charnele Brown, Summer, and Glynn Turman.

The retooled second season continued to follow the students' lives, with the love story between Guy's Whitley Gilbert and Hardison's Dwayne Wayne at the center. Dwayne, famous for his glasses that flipped up, finally put a ring on it in the Season 5 episode "Save the Best For Last." Though Whitley was adamant she didn't want children, she discovers she's pregnant in "When One Door Closes," the penultimate episode of the series, and everyone is elated. However, things get somber when Dwayne reveals he's accepted a job in Japan, where he and his wife will raise their family — a different world.

The A Different World sequel comes from Pride, Allen, and Mandy Summers, Tom Werner, Gina Prince-Bythewood, and Reggie Bythewood. Allen, Werner, Prince-Bythewood, and Bythewood all worked on the original multi-camera series, which ran on NBC for six seasons with Carsey-Werner producing. Bill Cosby created both shows.

Hardison is repped by Global Artists Agency and Untitled Entertainment; Guy is repped by Kass Management; Summer is repped by Innovative Artists and Untitled Entertainment; Bell is repped by Mosaic.

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{blackbabes} Netflix Adds 10 To Cast Of Eugene Ashe Romance ‘Don’t Ever Wonder’ Starring Nia Long & Larenz Tate

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Netflix has added 10 to the cast of its Nia Long-Larenz Tate romance, newly titled Don't Ever Wonder. The newcomers are Blair Underwood (Longlegs), Laz Alonso (The Boys), Susan Kelechi Watson (This Is Us), Pauletta Washington (Reasonable Doubt), Dennis Haysbert (Flamin' Hot), Chante Adams (A Journal for Jordan), Algee Smith (Euphoria), Grasie Mercedes (Grand Crew), Navia Robinson (Raven's Home) and Yolonda Ross (The Chi).

Inspired by the album Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite, the film's logline is being kept under wraps.

Eugene Ashe (Sylvie's Love) is directing from a script he wrote with Kay Oyegun. Producers include James Lopez, Charles D. King, and Poppy Hanks for Macro Film Studios. The executive producers are Maxwell, John D. Hammond, Long, and Tate. We were recently first to report on the film's lead castings.

Underwood is repped by Thruline, CAA, and Felker Toczek Suddleson; Alonso by Independent Artist Group, Authentic, and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman; Kelechi Watson by UTA, Authentic, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman; Washington by WME; Haysbert by Independent Artists Group, GS Management, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman; Adams by UTA, Linden Entertainment, and Jackoway Austen Tyerman; Smith by UTA, Neon Kite, and Goodman, Genow, Schenkman; Mercedes by Artists First; Robinson by CESD and Entertainment 360; and Ross by Daniel Rozenberg Business Management, Principal Entertainment LA, and Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz.

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{blackbabes} Vivica A. Fox Signs With Innovative Artists Entertainment

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The Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Independence Day star has inked with Innovative Artists in all areas, we have learned.

Actress, writer, and producer Vivica A. Fox recently appeared in the movie The Christmas Campaign as well as A Christmas Murder Mystery.

She is well known for her roles as Jasmine Dubrow in the $817M-plus grossing Roland Emmerich sci-fi blockbuster Independence Day, as Vernita Green in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill (which just had its full Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 saga re-released last weekend by Lionsgate), Maxine in Soul Food, and Shate Smith in Two Can Play That Game.

She directed the BET+ biographical crime drama film, First Lady of BMF: The Tonesa Welch Story, for which she received an NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Directing in a Television Movie or Special.

On the television side, Fox has starred in Keeping Up with the Joneses, Empire, and 1-800-Missing for which she won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series. She has appeared in Black-ish, Degrassi: The Next Generation, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Fox was also a contestant on season 3 of Dancing with the Stars and appeared as herself on Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Miss Universe, and RuPaul's Drag Race.

Fox has produced and starred in over 25 The Wrong… franchise television thriller films for Lifetime.

After successful collaborations with major brands such as Cadillac, Google, and Carshield, Fox launched her own hair company, The Vivica Fox Hair Collection.

The multi-hyphenate also hosted the podcast Hustling With Vivica A. Fox with Dr. Phil's Stage 29 Productions, which ran for two years and authored the book Every Day I'm Hustling.

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{blackbabes} Serena Williams says she is not coming back to tennis

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Serena Williams threw cold water on the idea that she might be preparing to return to tennis, writing on social media Tuesday that she is "NOT coming back," after a spokesman for the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said the 23-time Grand Slam champion had registered with the sport's drug-testing body.

That is the first step that would be required by a player seeking to come out of retirement.

The 44-year-old Williams, one of the greats of the game, has not competed since bidding farewell at the 2022 U.S. Open. At the time, Williams said she didn't want to use the word "retiring" and instead declared that she was "evolving" away from tennis.

It was not clear when or where — or even if — Williams actually will play again, and she later posted: "Omg yall I'm NOT coming back. This wildfire is crazy."

Her agent did not immediately return a request for comment.

In a statement emailed to The Associated Press, U.S. Tennis Association spokesman Brendan McIntyre said: "We are aware that Serena has filed the necessary paperwork with the International Tennis Integrity Agency to reenter the International Registered Testing Pool. If Serena decides to return and compete at the professional level, together with her fans, we will enthusiastically welcome the return of one of the greatest champions in the history of our sport."

Williams was one of the biggest stars of any sport, a dominant talent on the court and still someone drawing attention away from it. If she were to end up returning to the tour, it would be a significant story line, of course.

Her decision to place her name back in the testing pool with the ITIA, which oversees anti-doping and anti-corruption efforts, was first reported by Bounces.

"She is on the list and back in the testing pool," ITIA spokesman Adrian Bassett wrote to the AP on Tuesday.

Athletes returning to testing need to provide information on their whereabouts — details on their location when they are not at an official event and times when they are available to give samples. Someone who retires while they are on the list and later comes back needs to be available for testing for six months before they are allowed to return to competition.

Williams' older sister, Venus, returned to competition this July at age 45 after nearly 1 1/2 years away from the tour; she never had announced her retirement. At the U.S. Open, Venus became the oldest player to play singles at the American Grand Slam tournament since 1981.

When Venus, a seven-time major singles champion, came back at the DC Open, she spoke about wishing Serena would join her back on tour. They claimed 14 Grand Slam doubles titles as a pair.

"I keep saying to my team: The only thing that would make this better is if she was here. Like, we always did everything together, so of course I miss her," Venus said at the time when asked about a video on social media that showed Serena swinging a racket. "But if she comes back, I'm sure she'll let y'all know

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{blackbabes} Serena Williams re-enters drug testing pool in step toward comeback

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Serena Williams has taken the first step that would be required ahead of a comeback to tennis, registering with the sport's drug-testing body, a spokesman for the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) said Tuesday.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion, one of the greats of the game, has not competed since bidding farewell at the 2022 U.S. Open. At the time, Williams said she didn't want to use the word "retiring" and instead declared that she was "evolving" away from tennis.

It was not immediately clear when or where — or even if — Williams actually will play again. Her agent did not immediately return a request for comment.

Williams, who is now 44, was one of the biggest stars of any sport, a dominant talent on the court and still someone drawing attention away from it. If she does end up returning to the tour, it would be a significant story line.

Her decision to place her name back in the testing pool with the ITIA, which oversees anti-doping and anti-corruption efforts, was first reported by Bounces.

"She is on the list and back in the testing pool," ITIA spokesman Adrian Bassett wrote to The Associated Press on Tuesday.

Athletes returning to testing need to provide information on their whereabouts — details on their location when they are not at an official event and times when they are available to give samples. Someone who retires while they are on the list and later comes back needs to be available for testing for six months before they are allowed to return to competition.

Williams' older sister, Venus, returned to competition this July at age 45 after nearly 1 1/2 years away from the tour; she never had announced her retirement. At the U.S. Open, Venus became the oldest player to play singles at the American Grand Slam tournament since 1981.

When Venus, a seven-time major singles champion, came back at the DC Open, she spoke about wishing Serena would join her back on tour. They claimed 14 Grand Slam doubles titles as a pair.

"I keep saying to my team: The only thing that would make this better is if she was here. Like, we always did everything together, so of course I miss her," Venus said at the time when asked about a video on social media that showed Serena swinging a racket. "But if she comes back, I'm sure she'll let y'all know."

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{blackbabes} Serena Williams speaks out on ‘negativity’ she faced as a black woman in sport

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Tennis icon Serena Williams has reflected on the significant shift in discussions surrounding black women in sport, noting a positive evolution since her own trailblazing career.

Speaking in the latest cover story for Net-A-Porter's digital title Porter, the athlete, who secured 23 Grand Slam titles over a 27-year professional journey, shared insights into the resilience she cultivated as a black woman navigating the world of professional tennis.

Williams candidly addressed the challenges she faced, stating: "Growing up and being black in tennis, it's just like, well, that comes with negativity. I don't hear the noise. Everyone is entitled to their opinion."

Her entry into the predominantly white sport was notoriously difficult, with reports of criticism and racial bias marking much of her career. However, she now observes a marked improvement for the next generation.

"No one's calling these girls the (things) I was called. People would say we were like men and all this other stuff," Williams revealed, as she expressed that she is "so happy that girls nowadays don't have to go through it as much."

Widely credited for her transformative influence on the game, Williams played 1,011 matches on the WTA Tour, facing opponents born across four decades, solidifying her status as statistically the greatest player of her era.

Despite her meticulous preparation for life after professional sport, Williams, who retired in 2022, admits the transition has been challenging.

"No matter how prepared you are to retire, and particularly from doing something every day at such a high level, it's hard. I really prepped myself the best way I could but it's still something that's a little difficult," she explained.

She added: "I want to bring in more clarity, confidence that I made the right decisions and that you don't always have to live only for your children. I'm discovering me again."

The mother of two also emphasised her long-held desire to be a parent and her commitment to family life.

"I want to be around my family," she affirmed. "I'm cooking every night that I'm home. I'm home 29 nights a month… Sometimes I'll fly to New York, do what I need to do, fly back and be home in time for dinner."

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