All Of It with Alison Stewart

People know about Rosa Parks’ civil disobedience and her refusal to sit in the back of the bus, but a new documentary examines her lifelong activism, including her support of organizations like the Black Panther Party. We speak to director Yoruba Richen about "The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks."

For our Full Bio selection this Women's History Month, we're learning about political trailblazer, New York congresswoman and presidential candidate Shirley Chisholm. We're speaking all week with Anastasia C. Curwood, director of the Commonwealth Institute for Black Studies and Interim Chair and Professor of History at the University of Kentucky, who authored the new biography Shirley Chisholm: Champion of Black Feminist Power Politics. Today, we hear about how she made the leap from educator to elected official and how became the first Black woman in Congress.

The Jamaican cult classic film "The Harder They Come" is celebrating its 50th anniversary. The story follows Ivan, a singer who leaves his hometown to try to make it as an artist in Kingston. He soon discovers that the music business is not what he thought. Pulitzer-prize winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks wrote the book for a new musical adaptation of the film, which opens tomorrow at Newman Theater. She joins us to talk about "The Harder They Come," and preview her upcoming project, "Plays for the Plague Year," which opens on April 5.

This month, a number of high profile TV series like “Succession,” “Ted Lasso” and “Yellowjackets" return with new seasons. Vulture TV critic and friend of the show Kathryn Van Arendonk joins to discuss these marquee titles as well as share her recommendations for some under the radar shows you should be watching. We’ll also take listener calls.

The COVID pandemic is relatively recent but there is a rich tradition of films about viruses. "Viruses on Film," held at the Brooklyn Academy of Music from March 15 - March 23, will screen a range of films covering outbreaks both imaginary and all too real. We'll discuss it with Steven Thrasher, who co-curated the series for BAM and is the author of "The Viral Underclass: The Human Toll When Inequality and Disease Collide."

After the release of their third album, Cocoa Sugar in 2018, Young Fathers have returned with their fourth studio album, Heavy Heavy. Vocalist and producer Graham "G" Hastings, a member of the Scottish trio formed in Edinburgh in 2008, join us for a listening party.

For our Full Bio selection this Women's History Month, we're learning about political trailblazer, New York congresswoman and presidential candidate Shirley Chisholm. Today, we learn about her family connection to Barbados, moving to Brooklyn and how Chisholm's childhood heroes shaped her worldview and self-image. We're speaking all week with Anastasia C. Curwood, director of the Commonwealth Institute for Black Studies and Interim Chair and Professor of History at the University of Kentucky, who authored the new biography Shirley Chisholm: Champion of Black Feminist Power Politics.

In continuing our Women's History month programming looking at female trailblazers, we turn our attention to female philosophers! Author Regan Penaluna joins us to discuss her new book How to Think Like a Woman: Four Women Philosophers Who Taught Me How to Love the Life of the Mind, which explores the life and careers of Damaris Cudworth Masham, Mary Astell, Catharine Cockburn and Mary Wollstonecraft. 

Who swept, who was snubbed, what were some of the best–and weirdest moments from Sunday’s Academy Awards ceremony? We recap with Gothamist Arts & Culture Editor Ben Yakas and take listener calls.

[Rebroadcast from 4/5/2022] "Everything Everywhere All At Once" is a mind-bending action comedy movie from music video-turned-feature film directors Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert that has swept awards season this year. It follows Michelle Yeoh as Evelyn Wang, a laundromat owner who must finish her taxes and also save the multiverse. Ke Huy Quan plays her kindhearted husband, Waymond, and James Hong plays her not-so-supportive father. They both join us to discuss the film.