Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay are joined by Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, former mayor of Baltimore and current Executive Director of the NBPA Foundation to discuss activism and philanthropy in the NBA (3:13), and serving as Mayor during civil unrest following the death of Freddie Gray (21:38).

Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
Guest: Stephanie Rawlings-Blake
Producers: Donnie Beacham Jr. and Ashleigh Smith 
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Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Empowering Change

Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay dissect the biggest topics in Black culture, politics, and sports. Two times per week, they will wade into the most important and timely conversations, frequently inviting guests on the podcast and occasionally debating each other.

Society & Culture

Personal Journals

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

Emergency podcast alert! Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay react to the release of a 2016 surveillance video that shows an altercation between Diddy and his then-girlfriend, Cassie Ventura. They give their thoughts on the possible outcomes from the release of the video and their overall reflections on the situation.

Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
Producer: Ashleigh Smith
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Diddy’s Video: The Emergence, the Revelations, and the Power of Money

Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay start the show talking about the controversial speech Chiefs Kicker Harrison Butker gave to Benedictine College’s 2024 graduate class and the NFL’s response (05:18) and the early showdown between Biden and Trump (23:03). Then, they are joined by Rhymefest to talk about the reason why he is running for the school board in Chicago, the problems within the school system after the pandemic, and the fracture of the infrastructure within the black community (50:26).

Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
Guest: Rhymefest
Producer: Ashleigh Smith
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Butker’s Speech, Presidential Debates, and The Power and Service of Art with Rhymefest

Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay start the show by talking about how they celebrated Mother’s Day and how it was a huge day for the BBI (09:29). Then, they discuss the sizable student walk out during Jerry Seinfeld’s Duke University commencement speech (15:01), before Van addresses the sentencing of his cousin and former basketball player, Glen Davis (50:27).

Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
Producer: Ashleigh Smith
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Mother’s Day, Graduation Protests, and Trump’s Hannibal Lecter Love

Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay discuss Questlove’s reaction to the Drake and Kendrick Lamar beef (06:40), before giving their first impressions of Pastor Henderson’s response to the backlash to his “hush” video (32:38). Then, they dive into the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas that disappointingly fell through (37:53). They end the show talking about the perplexing interview with Vivek Ramaswamy and Ann Coulter (1:03:54).

Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
Producer: Ashleigh Smith
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Hypocrisy in Hip-Hop, the End of a Grifter, and Ceasefire Talks

Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay start the episode by taking a moment to say goodbye to friend Darius Morris (24:04). Then, they get into the latest with Drake versus Kendrick Lamar and how this could be the end for the beef in total (27:20). Later, the Honorable Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome of Baton Rouge comes on the show to talk about the new, predominantly white town of St. George and what it means for the state (1:45:15).

Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay
Guest: Mayor Sharon Weston Broome
Producer: Ashleigh Smith
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Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and Empowering Change

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