Serena Williams Looks Fierce with Face Paint on Essence Global Fashion Issue Cover

Serena Williams is the cover girl for Essence's Global Fashion Issue, rocking some face paint as she put her game face on.

Thanks to the success of this year's Essence Festival which celebrated its 25th anniversary in July, they hope to continue making bold moves as they go forward. One of the changes they made is to re-design their magazine cover.

Focused on Black Excellence, Essence aimed to highlight Black creatives in art, fashion, culture, and business.

Of course, there is no one more fitting to represent all of these but Serena Williams, who is not just a tennis superstar, but a fashion designer and a businesswoman as well.

Serena's Impact

Rocking face paint done by Nigerian artist Laolu Senbanjo, Serena put on her fiercest face as she donned the cover of the magazine. On the cover, they wrote: "SERENA WILLIAMS: THE ART OF MAKING AN IMPACT."

Fans of the magazine will be treated to shots of the tennis great sporting clothing made by designers such as Carolina Herrera, Talbot Runhof, Issey Miyake, and Giuseppe Zanotti among many others.

Essence's Redesign

Essence's Chief Content & Creative Officer MoAna Luu shares just how happy they are to have Serena grace the very first cover of their new redesign, saying:

“We are beyond ecstatic to have Serena Williams—one of the most photographed women on the planet—to be the muse for our September Global Fashion issue. This issue promises to be one of ESSENCE’s biggest with a fresh new redesign. We also brought the best Black creatives in the world—including visual artist Laolu, who gave us Serena’s stunning face painting for the cover—to present all of the stunning visuals that you see.”

Fans may expect Williams to open up about tennis, her body, motherhood, and her latest investments.

A Crowd Favorite

Serena Williams is no stranger to being a cover girl for various magazines and brands, as she's been gracing them year after year. In 2019 alone, though, she's done so many memorable once-in-a-lifetime shoots, such as that of Essence and Wheaties.

Wheaties is a legendary cereal brand by General Mills that started placing stellar athletes on their cereal boxes that supported their slogan, "The Breakfast of Champions."

This tradition has been passed on since 1934, and now, Serena Williams becomes the second black woman tennis player to grace the box's front cover.

So many companies see Serena Williams as a "no-brainer" when it comes to being an all-around woman, as she can literally do everything: play sports, run businesses, model, design clothes, and juggle motherhood all at the same time.