Let me be clear in saying, I’m talking Louisiana Creole descent. Sorry if you clicked and were looking for one of the many other kinds. But where was I?

Frenchcreole.com identifies Creole people as a broad cultural group of people of all races who share a French or Spanish background. No matter how you come to the conclusion that one is Creole (and please, let’s not get into the colorstruck aspects of it all), there are many people who identify as such, and they speak a wide variety of languages. In our random travels through the Internet (or da Intanetz as we like to call it), we were surprised to find a number of celebrities who are of the Louisiana Creole heritage. If you’re nosey like us, you probably want to know who. Check it out.

Source: drumlessons.com

Sheila E.

Sheila Escovedo is hands down one of the coolest people to ever pick up a set of drumsticks and go to town on the drums, and if you didn’t know, she’s also of Mexican and Louisiana Creole heritage. Her father, famous drummer Pete Escovedo, is Mexican-American, while her mother, Juanita Escovedo (formerly Gardere), is French and black. I’ve been a fan since homegirl showed up in Krush Groove and dropped The Glamorous Life, but I can say that I didn’t know she was Creole…

Source: vogue.co.uk

Those lips! Mercy! If there’s one thing that gets a man on my side, it probably is the set of pillows he has resting on his face, and Sacha M’Baye has a VERY nice pair. M’Baye is a semi-pro footballer, but if you’ve ever seen him, it’s probably from all the modeling work he also does. The French and Senegalese fella has been making a big name for himself on runways all over the world and in ads for huge fashion houses and brands, including Burberry, Calvin Klein, Gap, American Eagle, DSquared2, and more. Tell us what you think of the long, lean and luscious model after you check out our gallery in honor of his hotness.

When you see a pair of “red bottoms,” as the rap world has so affectionately come to label Christian Louboutin shoes, you know who they belong to, and the French shoemaker wants to make sure things stay that way.

On Tuesday, the luxury label battled with with another well-known French fashion house, Yves Saint Laurent, in appeals court in an attempt to overturn a decision made by Federal Judge Victor Marrero last August that denied Louboutin’s request to stop YSL from selling a line of shoes with red tops and bottoms.

“Louboutin’s claim would cast a red cloud over the whole industry, cramping what other designers could do while allowing Louboutin to paint with a full palette,” Judge Marrero wrote in his opinion, suggesting that the trademark the brand was granted in 2008 to use red for the soles of it’s shoes was given in error. He argued that color performs a creative function and doesn’t identify or advertise a commercial source. “Louboutin would thus be able to market a total outfit in red, while other designers would not.”

Attorney Harley Lewin argued strongly against that suggestion before a three-judge panel, noting that red soles are synonymous with his client’s brand.

“Christian Louboutin has created one of the more iconic trademarks of the 21st century. Louboutin turned a pedestrian item into a thing of beauty.”

YSL’s counsel, David Bernstein, of course, wants Judge Marrero’s opinion to be upheld:

“Artists of this type need the full palette of colors available. In order to compete and compete fairly, we need red. We don’t want to find out that we can make green, blue, purple shoes… but we are enjoined from making red.”

If YSL has gone this long without making  a shoe with a red sole, I think they’ll be alright. Everyone knows a red bottom equals Louboutin, and since the brand has only trademarked its shade known as “China Red,” YSL should be content using any other variation in the color pallet. The judges meanwhile are trying to determine whether Judge Marrero properly interpreted trademark law and whether to send the case back to him for additional findings.

What do you think about this issue? Should Christian Louboutin have sole rights to China Red bottoms or should all designers be allowed to use a red sole if they so choose?

Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.

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When will people learn? Blackface works for no one, that is, unless you’re in Bamboozled of course. But anywho, the Queen B did the ultimate no-no (according to a lot of folk) when she most recently posed for French magazine L’Officiel in blackface. The shoot was supposed to be a way to honor the life of Nigerian AfroBeat master Fela Kuti and also to celebrate the 90th birthday of the fashion magazine. But the broohaha over it is reaching its height, as many are wondering why the singer being dressed in African clothing and scrapping the literal “black face” couldn’t have been enough, as if her skin isn’t dark enough to qualify for what an African person looks like. Others have questioned why only her face and not her entire body was colored, or how having a blackface has anything at all to do with Fela Kuti!? The magazine stands by the shoot and throws Sasha Fierce’s alter ego underneath the bus by saying she volunteered to have her face painted:

“She agreed to pose for an incredible fashion shoot, with the theme of African Queen, paying a tribute to the legendary Fela Kuti…A return to her African roots, as you can see on the picture, on which her face was voluntarily darkened.”

Beyoncé is no stranger to controversy over her photoshoots, as many ragged on L’Oreal Paris and the singer/actress for supposedly digitally whitening her skin in one of their ads for Feria hair color. Now on the opposite side of the tracks, she’s in the news for doing blackface.

So is Beyoncé in the wrong for agreeing to go that far for fashion? Is there anything wrong with the magazine spread to you? Is it ever okay to do blackface? Let us know below.