Hello VIPs!
I apologize for being MIA today--particularly after opining about consistency in the last episode! Life--both physically and metaphorically--slapped me alongside the face for that... No, but seriously, I got a facial breakout the day of filming that prevented such activity. I've been having some minor skin issues over the past 6mo-1yr and it reared it's ugly head, turning my head ugly.
That said, we had planned for a short break soon to calibrate and take things in a different direction and, given my current medical condition, we've decided to move that up to now, so to lower the total number of weeks missed. So, you won't see me again until...
Monday, February 28th at 10am EST
...on YouTube--so subscribe if you haven't already!
But it won't just be me... that's right...
We're coming back with a special guest as we celebrate Black History Month!
In lieu of a new episode of our podcast, you should check out one of these podcasts I'll be listening to:
Historically Black
With celebrities including Keegan-Michael Key, Roxane Gay, and Issa Rae narrating, Historically Black uses personal objects to map Black history. Each episode explores the story behind a listener-submitted artifact—a photograph, an instrument, a piece of jewelry—and in the process creates a sort of “people’s museum” that honors the lived experiences of various Black Americans. Created in conjunction with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, it’s a unique and intimate way to approach history, illuminating the ways the personal can be fiercely tied to the political.
Humanity Archive
Founded by Jermaine Fowler, Humanity Archive is an educational website and storytelling podcast that shares untold or underexposed stories from history. “A lot of the stories of history are being told from one perspective,” Fowler said in a recent interview with Vanity Fair. “I saw that gap and I wanted to close it.” While not a historian by trade (he studied business), Fowler sees historical storytelling and the sharing of knowledge as a vocation—as well as a means of fostering empathy and understanding between cultures. A deft storyteller with a sonorous voice, Fowler’s passion for his material is palpable as he unfurls the hidden histories of figures like Crispus Attucks, a martyr of the American revolution, and Benjamin Banneker, a free Black man in the 1700s who challenged Thomas Jefferson’s views on slavery.
School Colors
Hosted by Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman, School Colors is a documentary podcast that follows generations of parents and educators fighting for educational equity in Central Brooklyn. As the hosts tackle topics like gentrification and charter schools, School Colors reveals how race, class, and power heavily impact the quality of education Black students are able to receive. Not only is the podcast impressive in the rigor of its reporting and the sleekness of its production, it also emphasizes the importance of learning history on a local level.