Malaika Collective

Malaika Collective For us, by us. Malaika Apparel. "Malaika" means "angel" in Swahili. Malaika Apparel at it's core aims to embody a distinguishable form of revolution. and Ghana.

The apparel line is mainly purposed to help uplift, empower and ultimately bridge the gap within the Black/African diaspora. This brand is a practice that defies contemporary norms and aims to celebrate all people of color. The inspiration of Malaika Apparel is a challenge to the social conditions where Black representation is limited to its appropriation. Malaika Apparel is thus a call for agency

and the empowerment of the Black/African Diaspora. Envisioned in the spring of 2015, Rita Bunatal started to create designs that were inspired by the happiness, pain, frustration, joy, anger and excitement she felt in the midst of not only being a first generation African attending college, but also as a black woman living between the U.S. As a Communications Major, she was inspired by various misrepresentations of the narratives surrounding Black bodies in the media, as well as the misunderstanding of each other within the diaspora . Malaika Apparel is dedicated to exhibiting fearless pride. This space is a place where people of color can buy apparel that tells the story of Black/ POC excellence. Malaika Apparel also creates a space for allies to show their solidarity with the essential Pro-Black movements that are ongoing and extremely necessary. Through this brand, we hope to also create products that also focus on the complexities of identity formations. Currently, Rita Bunatal is a senior at Ithaca College pursuing her B.S. in Communication Management and Design with a Corporate Communications focus and minors in African Diaspora studies & Communication studies. She identifies as a Ghanaian - Kenyan American & a Pan-African womanist. She is also very interested in exploring the complex identity formations of young Africans who continue to live between Africa and the United States. The designs created will be inspired by the experiences of a young diasporan & woman of color hoping to merge both experiences through simple and powerful designs.

Sometimes the work you’re meant to do has to wait for the right partnership.Last June, we had everything ready for our J...
05/11/2026

Sometimes the work you’re meant to do has to wait for the right partnership.

Last June, we had everything ready for our Juneteenth activation except the one thing that mattered most: funding. Partnerships fell through. Resources disappeared. We had the vision, the community, the team, but we couldn’t make it happen.

So we waited. Rebuilt. Kept showing up.

And this year, we’re back. 🕺🏽🙂‍↕️

Thanks to , is bringing Made Here to Little West 12th Street on June 20 as part of their Summer Goals series—and the location itself is part of the story.

In the early 1900s, Black New Yorkers called Little West 12th Street “the old negroes’ causeway.” The Meatpacking District held space for us then, a place where Black families gathered, worked, and built community in a city that tried to push us to the margins.
We’re returning to that street with intention.

Made Here is built on the Sankofa principle: look back to move forward. We’re creating a living archive on Juneteenth—a space where you can gather, create, remember, and celebrate. Seven hours of programming designed to honor where we’ve been and claim where we’re going.

This is what the Harlem Renaissance was: Black creatives building their own stages, telling their own stories, creating their own economy. Made Here carries that energy into 2026.
Last year’s setback taught me something I needed to learn: other people’s “no” doesn’t define what’s possible. You regroup. You find the partners who see the vision. You keep building.

saw what we were trying to do and said yes. That partnership is what makes June 20 possible.
If you’re in NYC on Juneteenth, come through.

📍 Little West 12th Street
🗓️ June 20, 11am-6pm
🎟️ Free and open to everyone

Comment JUNETEENTH for your free RSVP link!

More details coming soon. For now, I’m grateful we get to do this work in a neighborhood that’s always held space for us.
See you on the 20th. ✨

Everyone has A LOT to say about bad AI flyers.Meanwhile, small brands, founders, and community-led organizations are sti...
04/22/2026

Everyone has A LOT to say about bad AI flyers.

Meanwhile, small brands, founders, and community-led organizations are still out here needing content that looks polished, makes sense for their brand, and doesn’t take forever to pull together.

So instead of adding to the pile-on, we built an offer that actually helps.

Introducing 📂 The Content Kit ✨

A limited-time offer from Malaika Collective for custom branded Canva templates built around your real content needs.

This is for the founders, small teams, creators, and community-centered organizations that need content support without dragging themselves through a huge design process.

You send us your brand assets, content buckets, and inspo.
We create a custom Canva template kit that’s polished, easy to edit, and made to help you show up with more clarity and consistency.

What’s included:
• custom branded Canva templates
• designs shaped around your content buckets
• editable files
• 1 round of edits
• 7 business day turnaround

We created this because too many good brands are doing meaningful work with content that doesn’t reflect the care behind it.

We’re opening 10 spots for this round.

Comment CONTENT KIT or tap the link in our bio to learn more.

Last night, Ryan Coogler won his first Oscar and Michael B. Jordan won his. MBJ’s speech at that podium said everything ...
03/16/2026

Last night, Ryan Coogler won his first Oscar and Michael B. Jordan won his. MBJ’s speech at that podium said everything about what creative partnership produces when it’s built with real intention. He looked at Coogler and said “You’re an amazing, amazing person. I’m so honored to call you a collaborator and a friend, and you gave me an opportunity and space for me to be seen.” Twelve years of building, and that’s what it came down to.

Sinners made history — 16 Oscar nominations, 4 wins, $369M at the box office, a record that surpassed Titanic and La La Land. Coogler became the most-awarded Black director in BAFTA history. His DP Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first woman to ever win Best Cinematography at the Oscars. Every single one of those milestones traces back to a creative ecosystem built with intention, over time, by people who chose each other before any of it was guaranteed.

Black creative duos have always operated this way. Spike Lee and Denzel Washington built some of the most culturally significant films in American cinema together. John Singleton gave Tupac one of his most iconic roles before either of them had anything to prove. The throughline across all of it is the same — somebody brought somebody with them on the way up.

That’s the part that gets lost in the highlight reel. Coogler built infrastructure and filled it with people he trusted. When he rose, his collaborators rose with him. Autumn Durald Arkapaw made Oscar history because someone who believed in her work kept putting her in the room. Lifting as we climb has always been the model for Black creatives who build with longevity in mind.

Swipe through for the full breakdown and what every Black creative entrepreneur building right now needs to take from it.

Who’s your creative partner?
Tag them below. 👀

03/11/2026

And at the end of the day, we are all still so deeply connected.

a much needed womens history month mood board! shout out to the baddies running businesses, managing marketing teams, pi...
03/03/2026

a much needed womens history month mood board!

shout out to the baddies running businesses, managing marketing teams, pitching, filing 1099’s, and doing all the things to build your dream life 🥹✨🪄

take what you need, angels 🤍⭐️

We told y’all we were coming in for in 2026! 🔥 x are bringing you 🛠️ The Creative Block 📂 — our first virtual co-workin...
03/02/2026

We told y’all we were coming in for in 2026! 🔥

x are bringing you

🛠️ The Creative Block 📂 — our first virtual co-working session this month!

Intentional space for creatives and founders to actually work on their projects, connect with each other, and share resources that move us forward.

No panels. No pitching. Just dedicated time to lock in on your work alongside people who get it.

We’re bringing back the energy of co-creating together — working on our individual projects but bouncing ideas off each other, swapping skills, figuring things out in real time. That collaboration is what built Malaika from the beginning, and we’re creating space for that to happen for you.

If you’re juggling your day job and your real work, if you’re tired of building alone, if you need community that actually shows up — this is for you.

Comment “CO WORK” below and we’ll send you the link! Space is intentionally intimate so grab your spot ✨

The ecosystem is growing. 🧡We built the Malaika Talent Directory because Black creatives shouldn’t have to hustle twice ...
02/20/2026

The ecosystem is growing. 🧡

We built the Malaika Talent Directory because Black creatives shouldn’t have to hustle twice as hard just to get in front of the right people.

That changes here 🙂‍↕️

Comment “DIRECTORY” and we’ll DM you the 🔗 to apply👇🏾

The Creative Brief is finally here 🗂️For a long time, we watched creatives and founders carry brilliant ideas with no on...
02/19/2026

The Creative Brief is finally here 🗂️

For a long time, we watched creatives and founders carry brilliant ideas with no one in their corner who truly understood the intersection of culture, creativity, and business. People building on their lunch breaks, logging off their 9-5 just to log into their own business, pouring into their craft while trying to figure out how to make it actually pay. Talented, focused, and ready — just needing the right conversation to unlock the next move.

So…we built this.

The Creative Brief is a 60-minute 1:1 strategy session with our Founder and Creative Director, designed for creatives, founders, and brand builders who are ready to stop guessing and start moving with a real plan.

Rita has gone from $500 months to $15,000 months. She knows what shifts things. And she built this session to give you a direct line to everything she’s learned, without the 10+ years it took to learn it.

You’ll get into your brand, clarity, your offers, how you’re making money, partnerships, events, fundraising — wherever and whatever the work is, that’s where this session goes.

You’ll leave with a custom action plan, session notes, and a personal follow-up from Rita. Not a mood board. A plan.

Spots are limited for February - grab yours! ✨

Bad Bunny performed at the Super Bowl and reminded us why cultural storytelling matters.Entirely in Spanish. No English...
02/10/2026

Bad Bunny performed at the Super Bowl and reminded us why cultural storytelling matters.

Entirely in Spanish. No English lyrics. No translation.

Just 13 minutes of Puerto Rican culture on one of the most-watched stages in existence.
Here’s what got me: he used visual storytelling to make millions of us across the diaspora feel seen. The casita. Those plastic chairs we all recognize. The jíbaro in the sugar cane fields. The electric poles sparking during “El Apagón.” Every image was a reference point, a memory, a shared language.

Hyper-specific cultural storytelling deepens connection. When you center your community in your narrative, people who share your references feel recognized. People outside your community witness something real.

Watching the diaspora respond to this performance was watching people feel unified because he trusted our specificity to speak for itself.

That’s the lesson here: cultural specificity is the foundation.

Swipe through for the breakdown.

📸 High-Fidelity Editorial Analysis

Bad Bunny performed at the Super Bowl and reminded us why cultural storytelling matters.Entirely in Spanish. No English ...
02/10/2026

Bad Bunny performed at the Super Bowl and reminded us why cultural storytelling matters.

Entirely in Spanish. No English lyrics. No translation.

Just 13 minutes of Puerto Rican culture on one of the most-watched stages in existence.
Here’s what got me: he used visual storytelling to make millions of us across the diaspora feel seen. The casita. Those plastic chairs we all recognize. The jíbaro in the sugar cane fields. The electric poles sparking during “El Apagón.” Every image was a reference point, a memory, a shared language.

Hyper-specific cultural storytelling deepens connection. When you center your community in your narrative, people who share your references feel recognized. People outside your community witness something real.

Watching the diaspora respond to this performance was watching people feel unified because he trusted our specificity to speak for itself.

That’s the lesson here. Cultural specificity is the foundation.
Swipe through for the breakdown.

Swipe through for the breakdown.

📸 High-Fidelity Editorial Analysis

Address

New York, NY

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Malaika Collective posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Malaika Collective:

Shortcuts

Featured

Share

Category