April: A Month of Hibernation
the calm before the storm, recent obsessions, and supporting friends.
This post will be part of my monthly sensory roundup series, where I share everything I loved reading, hearing, watching, and experiencing in the past month that made me feel something.
A few times every year, I have periods where I go completely offline to focus on what’s in front of me. These periods of hibernation are usually about 2-3 weeks at a time, and I’ve learned are absolutely critical for my mental health and personal development. Constantly sharing my life, and consuming other people’s on a daily basis, does nothing good for my ongoing sanity or peace of mind.
These mini hibernation periods, are where I go deep internally and refocus on the things I’m passionate about, get more connected to the people I love, and clear out the clutter in my brain. I find that my thoughts are clearer, my vision for my big ideas easier to map out, and I spend more of my time naturally gravitating back to the things I truly enjoy. That’s why I laugh a little internally every time people tell me that I’ll make a great content creator/influencer. I’m way too temperamental for that, and having to be online every day, sharing my life and adopting trends, will push me over the edge.
This latest hibernation felt especially important. May 2025 is shaping up to be one of the busiest months of my life: five trips (work and personal), twelve flights, and a new city every few days. With so much socializing and "on" time ahead, I needed to reset and recalibrate before it all kicks off.
If taking long breaks offline, especially from TikTok, isn’t already part of your routine, I highly recommend it. The clarity you gain is unmatched, and the ripple effects can be felt long after you plug back in.
So, what do I usually consume or get into when I’m not deep in the scroll? Here are a few highlights from my April hibernation:
Watching
I watched so much great media over the past couple of weeks that I couldn’t wait to share. I feel they resonated even more because I wasn’t inundated by, or seeking out the viewpoints and thoughts of other people sharing their opinions and takeaways to see if we were aligned. Here are my favorites:
Documentaries
Number One On The Call Sheet (Apple TV) - Starting with this one because weeks later I still can’t stop thinking about it. When I saw the trailer, I immediately knew it was right up my alley, so much so, that I renewed my Apple TV subscription just to watch it. The documentary had two episodes, each featuring the leading men and women of Hollywood respectively. The cast was absolutely stacked, sharing their journeys and experiences coming up in Hollywood. No surprise the women’s episode was my favorite, directed by the brilliant Shola Lynch. It added a more emotional element to the conversation sharing the stories and experiences of leading ladies like Angela Bassett, Whoopi Goldberg (brilliant), Nia Long, Gabrielle Union, Alfre Woodard, Viola Davis, Halle Berry and more. I highly highly recommend watching this one.
The Making of Vogue’s Met Gala Issue (YouTube) - I think we’re all collectively holding our breath waiting to see what everyone brings to this year’s Met Gala. This year’s theme Superfine: Tailoring Black Style", a celebration of Black dandyism and the impact of tailoring on Black identity, is absolutely brilliant and the fact that they have 4 Black Men as co-chairs (first time in history), makes for an amazing story. I came across this video one night on YouTube documenting a photo shoot for this years Met Gala theme that brought together an unbelievable amount of Black talent for a shoot styled by Law Roach. If you’d like to see the behind the scenes of the shoot and learn a little more about Dandyism ahead of the Gala on Monday, this video gives some great insight. Sharing some of my favorite photos from the shoot below. You can find the full story and more photos on Vogue and GQ.
“I’m half Nigerian. There’s nothing more dandy than an African man dressed to the nines, really showing out, going to a party or a wedding.”
-Ayo Edebiri
Talent: Jerry Lorenzo, LaKeith Stanfield, Myha'la, Jon Batiste, Jeremy Pope, Yara Shahidi, Aaron Pierre, Janelle Monae, Teyana Taylor, Ryan Destiny, Dapper Dan, Spike Lee Love On The Spectrum (Netflix) - I already wrote a whole piece on my love for this docuseries that follows individuals on the autism spectrum, as they navigate the world of dating and relationships. It really captures a refreshing insight into the different ways people on the spectrum present, what love and relationships look like for them, and how in many ways, they are better at dating than many of us are.
Court of Gold (Netflix) - I know next to nothing about sports, but give me a good sports documentary and I’m in. There’s something endlessly inspiring about watching athletes devote every ounce of themselves; physically, mentally, emotionally, for one shot at greatness.
Lately, basketball documentaries have been my favorite (MJ’s The Last Dance should be required viewing). Court of Gold follows the USA Basketball team’s road to the 2024 Olympics and their fight for gold, a title that once felt guaranteed but now faces fierce global competition. What made this doc so good was the access we had: we also see the journeys of teams like France and Canada, bringing emotional depth and perspective to every game. I was hooked from start to finish.
This past month has highlighted for me my love (obsession) with documentaries, and that medium of storytelling. It’s sparked a desire to learn more about the art form so I’ve started watching documentary filmmaking classes on MasterClass starting with the legend Ava DuVernay’s class.
If you have any must watch documentaries you think I should add to my list, let me know below.
Movies/TV
Love Jones (Prime) - In Number One On The Call Sheet, Nia Long shared some insight into on why she thinks this film had such an impact on the culture, which then of course made me want to go back and rewatch it. At this point, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve watched Love Jones over the years. I could probably quote the whole thing if there was money on the line ha! In watching it over, it reminded me that there really is nothing better than a classic 90s beauty. Every scene Nia looked absolutely beautiful with little to no makeup on. If you’ve never watched this movie, I honestly have no words. One of my favorite Black Love movies of all time. It never gets old.
Her style in the movie was absolutely amazing. When Life Gives You Tangerines (Netflix) - I’m not a huge K-drama fan but now and then one pops up that grabs my attention. When Life Gives You Tangerines kept trending and coming up on my recommended list on Netflix that I decided to look into the synopsis. It looked interesting and the theme I kept finding was that it was an incredibly heavy and emotional show. One day I was in the throws of my luteal phase and was dying for a good cry so I decided to give it a go. Brilliant, brilliant storytelling about a couple and their love story across 50 years. If you’re in the mood for some emotional romance mixed in with a little humor I highly recommend. I did have to take a break after around episode 6 because the tears were getting to be too much, I came across someone’s comment on Reddit saying they were severely dehydrated watching the show from all the tears and honestly, felt.
Pop The Balloon Live (Netflix) - To balance things out, I was looking to watch something lighter to shift from all the deeper, more informational content I’d been consuming so far. Over the weekend, my friend Sade and I decided to give Pop The Balloon another shot. I say another shot because if you’re not familiar with the saga, the first episode of the live series tanked, and I, like many people, had no plans to watch it again. But thankfully it looks like they took a lot of the feedback and notes from the first episode and tightened up the next couple of episodes. If you’re looking for some light, no brain cells required TV, I think I can safely recommend this one as of today. People have said the OG YouTube version is much better, and has much more episodes, so you can give that a shot too.
Hearing
Podcasts
In the spirit of limiting what I’m consuming, I’ve also found myself unintentionally listening to less and less podcasts. I’ve been hyper focused on one or two at a time I feel are delivering really good content that I can get into week after week.
One of my absolute favorites lately has been Michelle Obama’s IMO Podcast with her brother Craig Robinson. Her first few guests; Issa Rae, Elaine Welteroth, Tracee Ellis Ross, and Jay Shetty are all some of my favorite people on the Internet, and who I’d consider my dream dinner lineup.
I’ve loved every conversation so far but my absolute favorite right now is my fashion icons’ Tracee Ellis Ross’s episode, as they help a listener navigate a dilemma around dating. Michelle said in the episode that one of her favorite things about Tracee is that vulnerability is her currency and you see that so clearly in this conversation. As I shared earlier this month, vulnerability is the way we all have better relationships and live truly full lives, and you see that displayed so clearly in the way Tracee speaks and lives. I highly recommend this episode.
Music
My most played songs of the month are: Jessie Reyez’s GOLIATH and CUDN’T B ME. She’s having such a moment and I’m loving everything she’s putting out.
If you love her music, she’s heading out on tour this summer. You can check for stops in your city here.
Reading
I’ve read so little this year because I feel like my life has been so on the go, that I’ve hardly had a moment to sit for a long period of time and just read. One of the few things I’m excited for with all the flying coming up in May, is that I’ll have long periods to just sit in planes and airports, so I plan to read a lot more, and catch up on some of the things that have been on my list.
But over the past month here are the things I’ve read or at least cracked open:
Dream Count by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - It truly hurts me to say this as it’s now no secret how much of a fan I am of Ms. Adichie, but I didn’t love this latest release. After how much I promoted and shared the book, I feel I owed you all an honest review. With the book club this past month, I was obligated to finish the book, but that’s unfortunately what it felt like; an obligation, rather than something I enjoyed. For me the flow of the book felt disjointed and I just didn’t resonate with the plot as much as I thought I would. A number of people that signed up for the book club reached out to me beforehand sharing that they were having a hard time getting through it, but at the time I found that so hard to believe till I cracked it open myself. Unfortunately, many people weren’t able to finish the book ahead of our book club meet up so couldn’t attend, which I think speaks to the book itself, but we still had a fun, productive conversation. If you read it, do you agree or do you feel like I just didn’t get it? Would love to hear more thoughts on this because it truly hurts me to not like something she’s put out.
The Artists Way - As of the time of writing this I am officially entering week 9 of my Artists Way journey. One of the most talked about aspects of the book is how things start aligning in your life in uncanny ways, so much so that after each week author Julia Cameron asks you to document them. This has been the absolute craziest part of the journey for me personally, and these synchronicities have happened way to many times now for them to be a coincidence. I plan on writing a full post on my Artists Way experience when I’m done, but if you’re in the place where you need a creative reawakening, I highly recommend dedicating 12 weeks of your life to this book, morning pages, artists dates, and the weekly tasks.
Matriarch by Tina Knowles - Last week Tina Knowles released her highly anticipated memoir Matriarch. I’m only a few pages in as of the time I’m typing this, but I’m already hooked and looking forward to diving into the life and stories of the woman behind the icons Beyonce and Solange. She is currently on tour for the book as well and unsurprisingly she’s not making it to Dallas. But if you’re a fan of hers and want to hit up one of her stops here’s all the dates.
On Substack: People on Substack write their damn pens off. I love this platform so much for the way it’s allowed more talented writers to express themselves without the gatekeep of legacy media. I know there have been many think pieces written about how platforms like substack are diluting the integrity of journalism, but I for one am here for it.
Two pieces that made me feel something recently:
I loved this incredibly vulnerable piece by Alex Hill of Food & Feelings on the need for a soft landing, especially when you’re deemed a “strong” person. Read it here.
I also loved “The Gentle Art of Being Seen: Reframing Personal Branding,” by Camille Mendoza which felt deeply & personally relevant for someone that loves to live their life offline, but in some ways and some days needs to show up online.
Experiencing
The absolute highlight of my hibernation month was actually coming out of hibernation, finally leaving Dallas, and flying to Oakland last weekend to support my girl Sade for the launch of her Supper Club Series. Sade is the founder of Fola Chops where she curates dinners and Nigerian menus with a vegan twist. She catered the speaker dinner for AfroKlash last year, and till this day we all still talk about the food she made for us. She’s a brilliant chef and hosted a dinner at her beautiful home with an amazing menu of Nigerian dishes like Jollof Rice and Egusi but with a vegan touch.
It was so beautiful seeing a table filled with people from all backgrounds, enjoying her food in conversation about life, passions, and the things that fill us up. If you’d like to stay updated on her events or interested in her menus follow along on Instagram. Proud of you girl!
Before You Go
At the end of March’s post, I wrote: “my prayer is that we all find balance. I know many of you are high achievers with a never ending to do list, but being able to find balance between the things we love and the things that keep us sane is so critical.”
I was very intentional about that this month and definitely found more balance in my life. Overall, April was an absolutely incredible month for many reasons, which I’m mostly attributing to my hibernation, as it allowed me to truly pay attention to all the alignment and synchronicity happening in my life at the moment.
I have so much that I’m looking forward to in May (Cowboy Carter show, seeing my family, exciting trip to London) that my prayer is to remember to stay present and take in all the goodness happening in my life.
See you for May’s drop! Let me know if any of this resonated, you have thoughts on any of the media I consumed, or if you’re now inspired to take more hibernation seasons.
Keep Klashing,
Bosola.