This week marks the beginning of Adwoa Aboah’s newest endeavor, in which she’ll be able to amplify her passion and activism with the support of British lifestyle brand Jo Malone London. Aboah is a woman of many gifts and titles – she’s known as an international supermodel, mental health activist, founder of nonprofit Gurls Talk and now, Global Ambassador.
In her new role, Aboah will join forces with Jo Malone London to bring mental health awareness to the forefront and amplify the work that the organization has been committed to for the past decade. “I’m very grateful for this partnership as it puts mental health at the forefront of our collaboration, we seriously align in our passions,” she said in the press release. “I’m really excited to challenge tradition, by attracting new audiences to Jo Malone London because of the values it champions. I want people to know about the work that Jo Malone London has been doing for mental health charities for years.”
For Aboah, who is the founder of Gurls Talk, a community-led organization dedicated to the mental health and well-being of women and young girls globally, it was natural for her to partner with Jo Malone London after discovering the brand’s ethos aligned with her sole passion. While being an avid supporter years before, Aboah may have not been able to foresee this moment that led her to now becoming the face of a brand that truly cares – making it delightfully surreal.
And in true Jo Malone London fashion, Aboah’s new role was announced along with the brand’s latest fragrance campaign, which features her favorite scent, English Pear & Fuschia – shop the collection here.
Couple-Care is a captivating ESSENCE.com series highlighting inspiring partnerships in our community. Each pair discusses how “couple-care” sustains their relationship, as well as the self-care lessons they’ve learned from each other. In this print iteration of the column, “Rooted in Love,” three aspirational duos—Will & Heather Packer, Wes & Dawn Moore and DeWanna Bonner & Alyssa Thomas—pull back the curtain on what keeps their love strong.
If there is going to be a Love & Basketball 2, let it be based on Alyssa Thomas and DeWanna Bonner’s love story. The WNBA superstars, who both play on the Connecticut Suns team, have been together for four years—and engaged since the WNBA All-Star Weekend in 2023.
So how did they first meet? “I knew her from basketball, of course—playing against one another in the WNBA,” DeWanna explains, between giggles, over the phone. “She swears I was stalking her social media.” But that wasn’t the case. DeWanna was innocently looking at Alyssa’s stories—as anyone would. “I didn’t even know that people could see you watched their story,” she says.
After DeWanna told a mutual friend she was crushing on Alyssa, the friend spilled the beans, “and it went from there,” DeWanna explains. But they remained “just friends” for a long time. Then, in 2020, DeWanna signed to the Suns. “We had nothing else to do but to get to know each other better,” she says. “And that led down this current path.”
Not only have they found true love in the last four years, but the pro athletes are grateful that they get to do what they love for work. “To play basketball as your job—what better job is there?” Alyssa exclaims. “I’ve been fortunate to travel the world and play in countries I probably never would have even imagined visiting. Basketball’s taken me on a journey.” DeWanna echoes these sentiments. “I also love that my two daughters get to watch me play and do something I love,” she adds. “The hope is for them to play one day. And not having to go into the office every day is nice, too.”
With the two now essentially coworkers, they have a keen understanding that keeping their relationship healthy is all about balance, with an emphasis on self- and couple-care. “It’s tough balancing your relationship and job,” Alyssa says. “We’re always playing. We’re always in game mode. But the moment we leave the gym, we try to disconnect from basketball, do other things together and not think about it so much.”
On the other side of that, she says, “it’s also important to know when we need our time alone. It’s all about doing what we can to be the best versions of ourselves, so that we can have the best relationship.” Here, the dream team goes into detail about the wellness practices that keep their relationship fresh as they juggle professional basketball, parenthood and more.
Photography by Ariel Cobbert
Their favorite couple-care memory
DeWanna: When we were overseas for her 30th birthday, she was in the middle of a pretty intense season at the time. We decided to do a staycation at the Four Seasons, to celebrate her birthday and chill out. We checked in there, got a nice view—and we booked a spa appointment. It was very relaxing. Just took our mind off things and made us feel at home. We stayed there for two or three days, and just ordered room service and vibed out a little bit.
Their individual self-care routines
DeWanna: I’m a nails-and-hair girl. I’m always going to be into beauty things, and I love spending time just relaxing. But I don’t really have too much downtime, especially when I’m in the off-season. Pretty much my kids are around all the time. But once I drop them off at school, I am either—
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Alyssa: —in bed.
DeWanna: Or, like today—I’m going to find a nail shop. I also love walking around Target and just being a mom. I honestly look forward to the day when I retire, and then I can just be a stay-at-home mom.
Alyssa: For self-care, I like to detail our cars. It’s a way for me to just hyper-focus on something and take my mind off whatever is going on, in basketball or in the world. Also, whenever I have an opportunity to sit outside and listen to music, I do that. I’m big on listening to music.
Their joint wellness routine
Alyssa: A lot of our time is spent sitting outside, relaxing, going to see a movie. Anything we can do to just disconnect from basketball.
DeWanna: We’re spa queens. If there’s a spa involved somewhere, we’re definitely going. We also try to disconnect from basketball and have date nights, and go to our favorite restaurants, and things like that. I think it’s all about pouring into each other—understanding what she needs in the relationship to make it successful. How can I be the best version of myself and make sure that we are continuing to grow?
The self-care lessons they’ve learned from each other
DeWanna: She helps me with my anxiety, especially during the season. I’m a high-stress person—not just during the season but in general. I don’t like unknown things. I think she calms me down and reminds me that everything’s going to work out. And it always does.
Alyssa: I always say she’s my conscience. During basketball season, I’m pretty intense and I want to win. She always talks with me, to make me think further about things I’ve said or done that I probably wouldn’t have otherwise thought twice about.
The beauty products they’ve introduced to each other
DeWanna: Alyssa has definitely improved my skin care routine. I wasn’t big on it at first. I felt like I had naturally good skin, so I’d just wash my face with whatever and put on some moisturizer. She’d tell me, “You need this and you need that. This is for this, and this is for this.” I was like, “Oh, God.” Now she just orders all my skin care stuff for me, and I just use it. I don’t know a lot about that stuff, but she’s on TikTok and loves it. She finds all this information there. But I refuse to get TikTok, because I don’t want to get addicted to it.