Lola Olateju Shares Her Joy
She’s building the world she wants to live in, one story at a time.
Hot springs, American cider, how to pickle tomatoes, growing up with conservative parents, the Minnesota State Fair, our shared experiences moving to different cities without any money or a job: these are just a few of the things Omolola Olateju (or simply Lola) and I talked long about before getting into her own journey of marketing, writing, storytelling, and promoting #blackgirlmagic. She does this via her platform Black Girls Drink, which achieves those goals by “disrupting dated narratives on Black women and beverage one drink at a time.” While Lola’s depths reach much further than just drinks, her ability to amplify and champion important voices from within that space ranges from thoughtful and positive to absolutely crucial and enlightening. She’s also just a really pleasant person to spend an afternoon chatting with. The only way it could have been better is if it had been in an orchard, ciders in hand. Next time.
Lola is making a difference around the clock. By day, she handles digital strategy for a nonprofit working to protect the rights of LGBTQIA+ Americans. By nights and weekends, she writes about and shares stories from historically suppressed voices in hospitality through Black Girls Drink, all from her home in the Finger Lakes area of New York State.
She didn’t intend to end up in the rustic region known for making some of the country’s best wine and cider. But when COVID-19 shuttered the hospitality industry across New York City — where she and her partner lived, worked, and subsequently lost their jobs — there weren’t a lot of options. They “decided to fast-track one of our life goals, which is to work in wine.” They weren’t sure what exactly they wanted, or what was even available, but figured why not go for it? When the remote non-profit gig she had picked up went from part-time to full-time, it seemed like now or never.
“Once we moved up here, honestly, it just holds you,” she says. “It’s such a beautiful place. I fell in love.”
Lola’s winding road to New York began 40 years ago in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota, where, as the oldest of six children, her large and “rambunctious” family with Nigerian roots went through a series of ups-and-downs that helped her channel her ultimate goal in life: finding joy. “Life is successful if how I’m living is in a joyful way,” she explains, saying that while financial security and stability are necessary, she measures success by the happiness and fullness of her friends, family, neighbors, and partner.
Working towards that joyful life isn’t always easy, especially during and after COVID’s effects. Like many people, Lola describes going through severe burnout, exhaustion, and depression brought on by the state of the world. “The last few years didn’t leave me with a lot of space to feel imaginative or creative or playful,” she says. It took a toll on her work for Black Girls Drink, but never erased her desire to continue the work she knew resonated.
With time, vaccines, and therapy (“all in service of building a better world!”), Lola feels like the fog is finally lifting. “I’m starting to see some more renewed purpose and energy,” she says, despite the world and her inner self being irrevocably changed. What hasn’t changed is her overarching goal: “to connect and empower Black women and nonbinary people in the area of drinks” as a formal or informal resource to anyone who works in or simply enjoys the drinks industry and culture.
“One thing I love is connecting people,” she says, especially via social media. “Part of doing Black Girls Drink and being a representative of Black-owned products is keeping a pulse on what’s going on… I’m always looking at research to connect with a deeper understanding of what it means to be underrepresented in the industry I love.”
A huge part of that underrepresentation comes from inequitable barriers that non-white people face when attempting to create something new in alcohol space, something Lola says she’s run into as she and her partner begin steps to build what she hopes to be a viable product line. “The complications of getting these alcohol-related licenses, LOLOLOL!” she laughs, cynically but genuinely. “I really do wonder about the gatekeeping. Right now in the drinks industry, there are financial barriers and resource barriers — it’s really painful.”
One change she believes would help alleviate said barriers would be more BIPOC people getting involved at the legislative level to identify and correct problem areas. “I’d be really curious — and I make some positive assumptions — around how that would change the industry,” she says. “That to me is the next equity front: people in ‘the system.’”
As unsexy as legislative work is, Lola believes it’s everyone’s responsibility to improve their circles in whatever way they can. “Part of my belief around why it's so important for anybody who feels super passionate about any particular issue to raise their voice is because the opposition does not feel afraid. They will always use whatever platform is available to them at any given moment to voice, to destroy, to sow division, to create harm, to create confusion… I think in hospitality, unfortunately, we have to do the work of drowning out voices that are harming us by amplifying our own voices. It’s so important to build a positive, supportive, beautiful community for people to find ways to work together to beat back trolls and harmful voices.”
She knows it’s hard work. But it’s the work she was born to do. “One thing that threads me through all areas of life is my ongoing desire to elevate stories that are unseen, or less seen,” she says. Black Girls Drink is her way of doing that: sharing the blocks building the future she wishes to see. “I’m super pleased to see the rise of more and more people talking about what they enjoy and what they see from their perspective as a Black person in this space,” Lola says. “That brings me a lot of joy.”
Follow Lola on Twitter at @blackgirlsdrink.
Prohibitchin' is made possible by our wonderful sponsors! Hopsbauer is a woman-owned hops brokerage company based in San Diego who brings the best hops from around the world to craft breweries. Find out more by visiting Hopsbauer.com.
Additional sponsorship thanks to Reverend Nat's Hard Cider in Portland, Oregon. Rev Nat's is known for making the most unusual ciders that no one else will make, such as the limited release No Justice No Peach, now available for direct shipping to 42 states. Learn more at revnats.com, and thanks for their generous support!
What I’m Reading
Every single bookish friend I have said I had to read Nightcrawling: A Novel by Leila Mottle. They were right — it’s great, but I’m very grateful for the last poolside reunion. It’s far from a “happy” ending, but that tiny glimpse of hope let me close the book satisfied, not devastated. Buy it at your favorite indie bookstore or borrow it from your local library ASAP.
What I’m Writing
I recently had my first byline in Washington Post about (you guessed it) cider that may appeal to beer lovers. (Book preview what?) Huge thanks to Bryan Roth, the recently retired director for the North American Guild of Beer Writers, who put my name (and a few of my amazing colleagues’ names) in the editor’s ear. It’s good to know good folks.
What I’m Watching
I normally can’t stand cooking competition shows — the manufactured drama, absence of real-life scenarios, the absurd music and lighting… I could go on. (My one exception is the original Iron Chef, which is great.) But when my kid asked to watch Is It Cake? on Netflix, I found myself unable to tear my eyes away from the ridiculous show of trickery and illusion. If it’s good enough to keep my five-year-old entertained, it’s good enough for me.
Do you know of a woman or non-binary person working in beverage alcohol who hasn’t seen the spotlight—and should? Nominate them for a future feature!