All Ways - An Ode to Black Women

Terry Blade’s All Ways – An Ode to Black Women is a cinematic elegy—crafted as both tender tribute and sober reminder. Directed, written, and produced by Blade himself, the three-minute, thirty-eight-second music short film unfolds in vivid digital portraiture, filmed by Cotton. It transcends stereotype by celebrating the multifaceted nature of Black womanhood—her many expressions, her scope of transformation, and her unyielding resilience. Conceived from the personal inspiration of Blade's mother, the work asks a poignant question: When are Black women allowed to be fully themselves—complex, evolving, sacred?

Eschewing the confines of struggle-defined narratives, Blade instead honors Black women on their own terms—presenting a quietly radical anthem of selfhood, strength, and sacred identity. Drawing on the intellectual legacy of feminist thinkers like Patricia Hill Collins and Bell Hooks, the video moves in spiritual conversation with figures such as Simone Leigh and Carrie Mae Weems, extending their visual and cultural lineage. It is an act of reverent defiance and lyrical devotion—healing without erasure, poignant without indulgence.

Critics and institutions alike recognized its artistry and social resonance. The piece received the California Music Video Awards' Social Justice and Hope Award, and was nominated for a Josie Music Awards Social Impact Video of the Year as well as a Berlin Commercial Awards nod for Music Video: Cultural Impact.

In All Ways, Terry Blade moves beyond music to claim a creative universe where Black women are glorified in motion, in form, in voice—and always in full color.