Successful Spouses

Doing Their Own Thing
While gold digging hoochie mamas vying to marry rich and successful men will never get old, there is a flip side to that: women with talent and skill and a drive to stand on their own. Blackvoices.com takes a quick look at the successful spouses of famous men.

Successful Spouses

Tracey Edmonds
When it comes to a woman handling her business in the boardroom while maintaining flawless beauty, Tracey Edmonds definitely qualifies among the elite! The savvy 15-year entertainment mogul and award winning producer proved that she could stand on her own two feet despite parenting two sons with former husband Kenneth 'Babyface' Edmonds. Edmonds serves as the CEO of her own production company, Edmonds Entertainment and COO/President of Our Stories Films where she oversees the development and production of projects for urban audiences.

Successful Spouses

Keisha Whitaker
Before tying the knot with the 'Last King of Scottland' actor Forest Whitaker, Keisha Whitaker tied herself to a profitable career as a model with the Ford and Elite agencies where she later ventured off and founded her very own lip gloss line. Although Whitaker had a focus on keeping women's lips moist and shining, she managed to broaden her horizons by executive producing 2008 documentary 'Kassim the Dream.'

Successful Spouses

Earlitha "Cookie" Johnson
Being the wife of a famous athlete is one thing – but nothing compares to being the beloved spouse of the one and only Earvin "Magic" Johnson. Knowing him since 1977 -- they became college sweethearts -- and then enduring his very public disclosure of having the AIDS virus in 1991, Earlitha "Cookie" Johnson is a true testament of a ride or die chick (with all respect due). Nearly 20 years since the news broke, the couple have been an emblem of dexterity and sharp business acumen; while he's aligned with movie theaters, coffee shops, banks and furniture rental companies, she pens a column for Essence magazine and recently founded her own jeans line.

Successful Spouses

Kai Milla Morris
Stevie Wonder may have 25 Grammy Awards to his credit, but one of his most recent prizes is his wife Kai Mila Morris, whom he married in 2001. The Washington, D.C. are native is a former freelance art director who has turned her eye for style into a successful career as a fashion designer. First Lady Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Eva Mendes, and Salma Hayek are just a few of the boldfaced names who have worn her flowing designs, which have gotten high marks amongst the fashion media.

Successful Spouses

Donna Richardson Joyner
A Silver Spring, Maryland native, Donna Richardson-Joyner is a renowned fitness and aerobics instructor, author and sports commentator. Though she's married to influential radio personality Tom Joyner, she has her own media empire, releasing a series of fitness videos, and producing and hosting the TV shows 'Mind, Body, & Spirit' and which air and 'Sweating In The Spirit,' respectively. She has served on the Women's Sports Foundation Board of Trustees and is currently an Advisory Board Member for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Successful Spouses

Kimora Lee
Baby Phat founder Kimora Lee didn't allow her humble beginnings of growing up in St. Louis deter her focus in becoming one of the most influential fashion designers in the hip hop fashion industry. In addition to befriending fellow model and media personality Tyra Banks, Lee also two children with former husband, hip hop impresario Russell Simmons and one newborn son with actor Djimon Hounsou.

Successful Spouses

Alani "LaLa" Vasquez
Making a name for herself as an Atlanta radio DJ early in her career -- alongside chart-topping rapper Ludacris -- helped bigger opportunities to open for Alani "LaLa" Vasquez. After the Brooklyn-bred beauty made her rounds through Howard University's communications program and relocated to Los Angeles to further pursue her career in radio, MTV Networks contracted the Latina to audition for a VJ spot, which she later landed. In March 2007, Vasquez gave birth to her first and only child, Kiyan Carmelo Anthony, with NBA baller Carmelo Anthony.

Successful Spouses

Shante Broadus
Although many were concerned for Snoop Dogg's wife, Shante Broadus, following misleading reports in April 2009 speculating that she was dead in the rapper's basement, she still remains strong by his side. Despite the rapper filing for divorce in 2004, (seven years into the couple's marriage), the couple managed to rekindle their flame and reconcile their wedding vows in January 2008. Today, the pair are happily marred with three children, Corde, Cordell and Cori. Broadus, known as "Boss Lady," manages recording artists, including former chart-topper Lady of Rage. She also launches a clothing line called Cocoa Reed.

Successful Spouses

Tracy Mourning
As the old adage goes: "beside every good man there's a good women." Hence the unique bond and chemistry that former NBA all-star Alonzo Mourning and wife Tracy Mourning have. The happily married couple remains proactive in various charitable events, in addition to opening up their very own high school, the Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Senior High Biscayne Bay Campus in Sept. 2009. The school is expected to enroll an estimated 600 9th and 10th graders. Within two years the school will accommodate grades 9-12 with an estimated 1,600 students.

Successful Spouses