Class of Hope and Change

Shantel is from Oak Park, Illinois and was living in the western suburbs of Chicago at the time of her interview. Her days were spent “going to work, coming home, trying my best not to bring any of my work home…and on the weekends, making sure I find somewhere really good to eat.”

Shantel’s Most Likely To Is: "Most Likely to Spend an Obscene Amount of Money on Food"

We began the conversation by talking about what amount of spending counts as an “obscene” amount of money for her. We also discussed the influence that street wear culture has had in her life, including the top sneaker purchases she has made in her life so far.

Shantel shared some of her earliest memories of Twitter, and she spoke about the most important people she follows on social media.

Towards the end of our conversation, Shantel shared her thoughts about the current state of Chicago, the U.S., and her generation’s ability to unite and bring about change.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep18-shantel/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Massamba was born in the U.S and spent his childhood in Senegal and New York City. He was living in New York City at the time of his interview. His typical daily schedule was “work, work out, pray…and movies.”

Massamba’s Most Likely To Is: "Most Likely to Affect Many People, Especially Teenagers"

He reflected on what gives him the ability to connect with teenage youth, and explained why he plans to focus on teenagers specifically.

Massamba talked about the benefits of traveling, shared his explanation for the nearly worldwide acceptance of American pop culture & entertainment, and recounted some his experiences from his time studying abroad in Sweden.

We spoke about what he sees when looks out at our country and our world, and Massamba ended the conversation by asking if he could have the last word…which he did:

“My last word is that I would [encourage] people to travel more and be more curious….Have the habit of double-checking. Be more curious, [don’t] just listen to whatever [is being] presented.”

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep17-massamba/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Dante is from Brooklyn, New York. At the time of his inter-view, he was living in New York City and spending his days “working on an app with a team, running around the city, and traveling.”

Dante’s Most Likely To Is: "Most Likely to Make a Major Impact on His Friends & Family"

He explained why his goal is to impact his friends and his family as opposed to “the whole world”, and talked about the most important people he follows, on-and-offline.

We spoke about how his priorities have changed over the past few years, and Dante explained why he’s optimistic about the future.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep16-dante/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Ashley is from the Chicagoland area, “the Western suburbs… the ‘Wood, specifically,” and was living in the suburbs of Chicago at the time of her interview. She was spending her days, “working my 9-to-5, and doing work for a master’s program … so that’s where all of my time goes.”

Ashley’s Most Likely To Is: "Most Likely to Take It One Day At a Time"

She explained how she’s come to that perspective on life, and spoke about how her sense of self has evolved over the past few years.

Ashley talked about why her family is so important to her, and she explained what she means when says she does not 'follow' anyone on social media.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep15-ashley/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Leodus is from Chicago, Illinois, where he was still living at the time of his interview. He spent his days “renting [out apartments], doing construction, talking to tenants, talking to investors, and building this startup I have called Styleteq.”

Leodus’s Most Likely To Is: "Most Likely to Become a Billionaire"

He recalled the point in his life when he became interested in running his own business, and explained how it made his perspective on college different from many of his peers.

Leodus shared his journey of personal growth since he graduated from college, and discussed how learning from the example of successful entrepreneurs motivates him to succeed.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by Abjo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep14-leodus/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Toshawna is from “a small but really prominent village” in Guyana, South America. At the time of her interview, she was completing her final semester of college in New York City, living in Brooklyn, and spending her days “planning, organizing, [and] trying to get a lot of work done for multiple projects.”

Toshawna’s “Most Likely To” Is: Most Likely To Start Something New

She spoke about what has changed for her over the past few years; including appreciating certain things more now than she did in the past, and learning to embrace being in a new setting instead of fearing it.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep13-toshawna/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Steven is from Brooklyn, New York. He was still living in Brooklyn, New York at the time of his interview, and was spending his days “either at work or with my family.”

Steven’s Most Likely To Is: "Most Likely To Succeed"

As the first person we’ve featured who used the phrase “most likely to succeed”, we asked Steven to explain why he chose those words.

He reflected on his journey of personal growth during the past eight years; including how he chooses who to follow, both on social media and in real life.

Our conversation concluded with a discussion about what Steven sees when he looks at his city and our country.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep12-steven/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Faith is from Brooklyn, New York, where she was still living at the time of her interview. She spent her days “working, preparing to back to college, and being a full-time mom.”

Faith’s Most Likely To is: "Most Likely to Be Inspirational"

We talked about how she chooses who to interact with on social media, and she explained when she started thinking of herself as an inspirational person.

Faith described her journey of personal growth over the past few years, and we talked about what she sees as looks at her city and at our country.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep11-faith/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Aquillia is from Palmdale, California and grew up in Chicago, Illinois, where she was living at the time of her interview. Her “days, nights, and some weekends” were spent teaching ninth grade reading at a high school in Chicago.

Aquillia’s Most Likely To is: "Most Likely to Reinvent Herself"

She explained what kind of reinventing she’s doing at this point in her life, and why she embraces the label ‘awkward’.

We talked about the power of families that find a way to work together, and the impact her family upbringing has had on her life.

Aquillia explained how she uses social media, and discussed the different elements she sees within her generation.

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Intro Theme Music - "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep10-aquillia/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!

Jason is from Brooklyn, New York, “by way of Grenada, West Indies.” He was a third-year college student living in Washington D.C. at the time of his interview, and spent his days “studying and doing lots of reading.”

Jason’s Most Likely To is: "Most Likely To Be At A Crossroads"

He explained why he believes strongly in the importance of learning about his cultural history, and talked about his experience as a student at an HBCU (Historically Black College & University).

Jason talked about the most important people he follows, both in his life and on social media, and he concluded our conversation by describing what will need to occur in order for change to happen.

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Intro Theme Music: "Chega Para Mim" by AbJo

See photos of our guest, and pick up your copy of the companion book at https://classofhc.com/ep9-jason/

Join the conversation on Twitter: https://bit.ly/2Nd2H1C and on Instagram: https://bit.ly/2Z4jPgg

Thanks for listening!