"Keepin' it real" is a phrase born out of hip-hop in the 1990s, but it still resonates today.

In modern pop culture, we've come to expect our creators to be the characters they portray and to have lived the stories they tell. But is that fair?

And more importantly, does that expectation make for inherently better art? Is a song less moving if the person performing it didn't write it? Are black stories more authentic only when told by black creators? Should Hollywood ignore identity politics and cast actors in any role regardless of race, gender, sexual identity or background?

On today’s episode, we ask these questions.