Ordinary Thoughts

We're talking to Harlem-native artist and poet, The Bee.

Tune in to learn more about how they turned personal struggles into powerful performances, winning their first competition, and navigating the complex world of professional poetry.

Moments:

1:32 Meet The Bee 

4:26 Learning poetry and finding inspiration 

7:20 Challenges as a young person in poetry 

10:12 Balancing personal vulnerability and public performance 

13:18 Themes in Bee’s writing and real-life impact 

18:58 Thinking about audience 

21:30 Writing vs performing and some history on spoken word

33:45 Highlights of the year 2024 and looking ahead at 2025

38:15 Advice to aspiring poets 

43:50 Some of Bee’s favorite things 

Connect with The Bee:

https://www.instagram.com/thebee.theartist/

We're talking to Priscilla Agyeman, the visionary behind Saddie Baddies®, a platform dedicated to reshaping mental health discourse for young Black, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous, and multiracial communities. As a creative entrepreneur, thought leader, and mental health activist, Priscilla founded Saddie Baddies® in 2019 to address the gaps in digital conversations about mental health. Since then, the community has gone on to develop important mental health resources, The Soft Life podcast, many online and IRL events, and more! 

In this episode, we explore the realities of balancing full-time jobs with entrepreneurship, the importance of mental health, and what self-care looks like for community leaders. We’ll also dive into the impact of Saddie Baddies® and its partnerships with some of our favorite brands.

Moments: 

1:40 Meet Priscilla, founder of Saddie Baddies 

4:20 Influences on mental health advocacy and entrepreneurship 

8:20 The journey to founding Saddie Baddies 

18:20 Redefining self-care and healing while balancing 9-5 and a 5-9

38:32 Remaining authentic to your mission while collaborating with big brands

41:28 The microscope on Black and Brown creators

50:17 Advice to aspiring creative entrepreneurs 

54:28 Some of Priscilla’s favorite things 

Connet with Priscilla:

Instagram

Follow Saddie Baddies

Listen to the Soft Life Podcast

More Important Links

Leisly Ann Roman is a writer and poet whose work explores the intersections of cultural identity, mental health, and personal resilience. 

Born and raised in New York City as the eldest daughter of Dominican-immigrant parents, Leisly has been shaped by her experiences and the diverse cultures around her.

A passionate advocate for mental health, Leisly Ann's poetry addresses themes like cultural expectations, self-doubt, and the struggles of living with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and disordered eating.

In this episode, we dive into her journey through poetry and mental health, discuss the impact of cultural expectations on self-perception, and explore her path to healing. 

Moments: 

1:30 Meet Leisly Ann

3:00 Early inspirations 

7:38 Writing from lived experience 

10:32 Publishing and working with Alegría

16:25 Writing in English and Spanish as a first-gen kid

25:36 Community and support systems

31:40 Advice to her younger self 

36:40 Creative process and pressure for a second book 

39:38 Some of Leisly-Ann’s favorite things 

Connect with Leisly Ann:

On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_literaryhope/#

Purchase her book: https://linktr.ee/leislyann_

Everyday at the crack of dawn, Zhane’l Speaks enjoys sipping her chamomile tea as she writes about the one thing that intrigues her the most - love. For as long as she can remember, she has always been fascinated by love. Love enthralls her soul and pulls her closer to her purpose. Though love is a concept she follows, she does not keep her work within bounds. She enjoys writing tasteful erotica and screenplays that mimic poetry. 

Zhane’l Speaks work has been featured on platforms such as; Rest Assured Podcast, Indie Author Tuesday, ColorBloc Magazine, and Substack.

Moments: 

1:17 meet Zhane’l 

3:08 childhood and inspiration 

5:13 vulnerability in writing and deciding on what to share

8:06 challenges in writing 

11:08 audience and purpose 

14:12 storytelling through visual arts and creative direction 

19:50 spike lee and pursuing filmmaking 

23:18 community building, social burnout, and taking time to find your people 

29:26 untapped creative outlets and future plans 

31:30 2024 wins and reflecting on the year 

34:21 advice for emerging storytellers 

36:20 some of Zhane’l’s favorite things 

Connect with Zhane’l Speaks

On Instagram 

On Substack 

ShakinDaWorld is a rapper, singer, guitarist, and poet from Queens, New York. We’re talking to him about his introduction to poetry and music, his experiences as a mentor and teacher in those spaces, and what’s ahead for Troublemakers Collective.

Moments:

Today we’re talking to Gabriel Ramirez, a Queer Afro-Caribbean poet, activist, and teaching artist whose powerful work serves as a catalyst for healing and social change.  Their work has been featured in Huffington Post, VIBE Magazine, Blavity, Upworthy, and in renowned publications like POETRY Magazine and The Breakbeat Poets Vol. 4: LatiNEXT, and more. 

Gabriel’s writing and performance shine a spotlight on mental health, Afro-Latinidad, self-care, masculinity, and the African Diaspora. Gabriel is also deeply committed to mentoring young voices through workshops, coaching, and performances, using poetry to inspire self-expression. Today, we dive into the art of performance, the importance of authenticity, and how Gabriel builds community through their work.

PRE ORDER "If Pit Bulls Had a God It'd Be a Pit Bull" today.

Connect with Gabriel:

Join us in supporting @chantelleadanna and her Free Mind campaign with @ifundwomen! Together, we can create space for Black women writers to share their stories, heal, and inspire. Your participation can make a real impact! Contribute here: [https://www.ifundwomen.com/projects/free-mind] 

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Chantelle Adanna is a Nigerian-American literary artist, self-published author, spoken word poet, and self-love advocate based in Los Angeles, California. Chántelle writes for women of color, particularly Black women, helping them to feel their own emotions when they are too busy carrying everyone else’s. 

In 2019, she self-published her memoir, My Soul Told On Me, and has since continued to create powerful literary works, including journals, online workshops and resources. Stay tuned as we explore her journey, her creative process, and her vision for embracing vulnerability, redefining narratives in mental health and self-care, and uplifting women through words.

Connect with Chantelle on Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/chantelleadanna/

Chantelle’s Important Links: 

https://linktr.ee/chantelleadanna

Aley Arion is a true multi-hyphenate and multi-passionate creative, who calls herself a 'creative hope-dealer.' From her roots as an OG blogger to becoming a lifestyle and wellness writer, Aley shares stories that inspire through fashion, advice, and everyday life. 

Her work has been featured on platforms like xoNecole, Essence, and her Substack community, Creative Girl Check-In. As the founder of Black Girl Playground, Aley has created a social wellness collective that brings joy and play into the digital world, reconnecting us all with our inner child. I can’t wait to dive into her journey today!

Moments: 

1:26 Meet Aley

4:06 Black Girl Playground 

6:55 Defining “play” and wellness

10:08 Challenges in community building 

14:24 Work/life “balance”

17:51 Creative writing and burnout 

21:07 Building a personal brand 

24:58 Authenticity and social media 

29:35 Creative blocks and finding inspiration 

32:15 Brand building and launching Black Girl Playground

37:32 How to get involved and the future of BGP

43:47 Advice for aspiring content creators, founders, etc. 

46:02 Some of Aley’s favorite things 

Connect with Aley: 

Patricia Encarnación is an Afro-Dominican visual artist and scholar whose work critically engages with colonial legacies and the socio-cultural layers within Afro-diasporic communities. Focusing on the Caribbean, Latin America, and its diaspora, Patricia explores material culture, collective memory, and cultural identity to challenge and recontextualize tropes of Caribbean and tropical aesthetics.

Patricia's work has been featured in prominent platforms like Documenta 15, the Tribeca Festival Artist Program Award, the NADA Art Fair, and Afro Syncretic at NYU. She has also exhibited at the Museum of Latin American Art in California and has been selected twice for The Centro Leon Jiménez Biennial in Santiago, Dominican Republic, earning several prestigious fellowships and awards. We’re diving into her journey as a visual artist, deconstructing cultural narratives, redefining Afro-diasporic art, leading with love, and so much more. 

Moments: 

2:00 Meet Patricia

5:05 Interdisciplinary arts and training in graphic design 

8:15 Natural and Afro-Caribbean influences in Patricia’s work

14:05 Identity, Blackness, and intersectionality, and community 

22:35 Challenges with white institutions in the arts 

33:38 Division and segregation among Black diasporas in the US 

38:35 Tropical Limerence and our misunderstanding of love 

50:45 Epigenetics of the Tropics, Showing at Superposition Gallery at NADA House on Governors Island, NY

57:45 Legacy, ancestry, and understanding Caribbean history to understand American History

1:00:40 Advice to visual artists

1:03:10 Some of Patricia's favorite things

Connect with Patricia:

Bonafide Rojas is a poet, musician, and proud Nuyorican Bronx native. Bonafide is the author of four collections of poetry, including Pelo Bueno: A Day in the Life of a Nuyorican Poet, When the City Sleeps, Renovatio, and Notes on the Return to the Island, and most recently, Excelsior: New & Collected Poems. 

A former slam champion and Def Poetry Jam performer and lead guitarist of the rock group Mona Passage, Bonafide walks us through his journey and artistic evolution in writing and music, some hot takes on the early days of Hip Hop and where we’re at today, his vision for the future of Nuyorican poetry, and so much more.

Moments:

1:38 Bonafide talks growing up in the Bronx and early influences

5:45 Wu-Tang and the evolution of Hip Hop

13:10 What it is to be Nuyorican

24:55 Music vs. poetry and overcoming imposter syndrome

32:05 His new book Excelsior, and publishing books over the years

40:10 performing live on some legendary stages

49:45 advice for emerging musicians, poets, and performers

53:51 some of Bonafide’s favorite things

Connect with Bonafide Rojas: