After being renamed editor-in-chief at VIBE, the country’s top urban culture magazine, Danyel Smith is poised to usher the magazine into the future. Smith replaced Mimi Valdés after the Wicks Group, a private equity firm focused on selected segments of the communications, information, and media industries, purchased the magazine. More than 20 employees were let go almost immediately after the purchase.
“Having been a part of the VIBE team from nearly the beginning, it’s great to return,” Smith says. “I look forward to contributing to the growth of not only the publication, but also to the VIBE brand.” VIBE was launched by Quincy Jones in 1993.