Play It Forward

Hana Mire is a Somali documentarian working to change the perceptions of people around the world through her work, including her unreleased project “A Nation’s Hope;” a story on two generations of the Somali Women's basketball team. She shares with Chinny and Emmett how she first got into filmmaking, and what drove her to pursue the story on the women’s team. Through their conversation, we learn the power that cinema can have in changing perceptions and inspiring others to create positive change.

Want to learn more about Hana and her project? Follow her on Instagram @hana.fab8, and don’t hesitate to DM her if you are interested in supporting “A Nation’s Hope.”

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by

LeBaron Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by

LeBaron Leath

Podcast Cover Art by:

Adam Hawkins

In today’s episode, Chinny and Emmett welcome Tim Rasmussen who not only has a degree in Peace Transformation, but is also the host of the podcast Pop Violence. The Play It Forward team borrows Pop Violence’s concept of reviewing “movie/films that interlace critical perspectives about violence, justice, conflict, and peace” by discussing the film ‘Sound of Metal’. Through their conversation, themes from the movie begin to align with some of PeacePlayers core values such as ‘inside out transformation’ and ‘seeing people as people’. Listen to learn how!

For those who have not yet seen ‘Sound of Metal’, We forgot to provide a description of the movie in the episode so here’s one from Rotten Tomatoes:

“During a series of adrenaline-fueled one-night gigs, itinerant punk-metal drummer Ruben (Riz Ahmed) begins to experience intermittent hearing loss. When a specialist tells him his condition will rapidly worsen, he thinks his music career — and with it his life — is over. His bandmate and girlfriend Lou (Olivia Cooke) checks the recovering heroin addict into a secluded sober house for the deaf in hopes it will prevent a relapse and help him learn to adapt to his new situation. But after being welcomed into a community that accepts him just as he is, Ruben has to choose between his equilibrium and the drive to reclaim the life he once knew. Utilizing startling, innovative sound design techniques, director Darius Marder takes audiences inside Ruben’s experience to vividly recreate his journey into a rarely examined world.”

Love movies and peace building and social justice? Be sure to check out Tim’s podcast, PopViolence and follow its instagram account @pop.violence for news on the show! Chinny and Emmett were guests on the show and they discussed the movie ‘Invictus’!

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Podcast Cover Art by:

Adam Hawkins

Today’s episode is a spectacular one. Chinny and Emmett are delighted to be joined by Raptors 905 Vice President of Basketball & Franchise Operations, Courtney Charles. From taking his son to high school for the first time to the Toronto Raptors front office, Courntey shares with us the power of looking inside ourselves to recognize our full potential, and by overcoming that mental hurdle, we can fully realize the number of opportunities out there for us. Not just that, but by looking inward before looking outward, we can see people not as objects, but as people. Lots of great learning in this one, so be sure to listen to the whole thing!

Check out the Fifty for Free organization here, https://fiftyforfree.com/

Learn more about East Metro Youth Services here, https://www.ementalhealth.ca/index.php?m=record&ID=10099

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by

LeBaron Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by

LeBaron Leath

Today’s episode is a spectacular one. Chinny and Emmett are delighted to be joined by Raptors 905 Vice President of Basketball & Franchise Operations, Courtney Charles. From taking his son to high school for the first time to the Toronto Raptors front office, Courntey shares with us the power of looking inside ourselves to recognize our full potential, and by overcoming that mental hurdle, we can fully realize the number of opportunities out there for us. Not just that, but by looking inward before looking outward, we can see people not as objects, but as people. Lots of great learning in this one, so be sure to listen to the whole thing!

Check out the Fifty for Free organization here, https://fiftyforfree.com/

Learn more about East Metro Youth Services here, https://www.ementalhealth.ca/index.php?m=record&ID=10099

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by

LeBaron Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by

LeBaron Leath

In this wide sweeping conversation, hosts Chinny and Emmett sit down with legendary basketball player, broadcaster, and professor, Len Elmore! They dig into what made Len an all time rebounder in college and his career in the NBA, what it was like to call nationally broadcasted basketball games, and how he views athletes’ role in the past, present and future of social activism. Hearing Len’s passion and insight was a real pleasure and we hope you enjoy it!

Follow Len on twitter @LenElmore, and here some more reading recommendations from Len!

The Autobiography of Malcolm X

The Revolt of The Black Athlete - Harry Edwards

The Heritage - Howard Bryant

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by

LeBaron Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by

LeBaron Leath

Have you ever wondered what makes a professional athlete tick? How do the elite executives function? In today’s episode, Chinny and Emmett delve into the subject with an expert in the field of performance psychology, Brian Levenson. They discuss some of the 12 strong skills Brian coaches his clients in before they delve into the differences between preparation and performance. Our hosts ask the hard-hitting questions and Brian provides insightful answers that we hope will leave you all wondering what you can do to improve your performance!

To learn more about the subjects discussed in today’s episode, visit Brian’s website https://www.strongskills.co/, check out his book Shift Your Mind: 9 Mental Shifts to Thrive in Preparation and Performance, and give his podcast “Intentional Performers” a listen!

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by:

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by:

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Podcast Cover Art by:

Adam Hawkins

Being a professional athlete is a dream come true for many. But what happens if that dream ends abruptly or comes to its natural conclusion? Are athletes prepared for life after sport? In today’s episode with legendary WNBA all-star Alana Beard, Chinny and Emmett dive into what it takes to be a professional female athlete and how the women’s basketball game has changed over the years. From there, Chinny and Alana delve into the lack of equitable options for female athletes once their careers have come to end. There are really great lessons to be had from today’s conversation on equity and being your authentic self. We hope you enjoy it!

Learn more about Alana’s initiative’s Transition Play and 318 Foundation here - https://transitionplay.com/, https://www.318foundation.org/.

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by:

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by:

Podcast Cover Art by:

Chinny and Emmett are joined this week by one of the biggest names in Sports Agency, Arn Tellem. They dive right in by asking Arn what was the last thing he did for the first time and how that relates to his current role as the Vice Chairman of the Detroit Pistons. From that personal conversation, they discuss how we can become agents for change no matter where we find ourselves in life.

To learn more about the Pistons Community Conversations, visit https://www.nba.com/pistons/why-detroit-pistons-encouraged-youths-lead-conversation-during-community-zoom-call

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by:

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by:

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Podcast Cover Art by:

Adam Hawkins

Chinny and Emmett are joined this week by one of the biggest names in Sports Agency, Arn Tellem. They dive right in by asking Arn what was the last thing he did for the first time and how that relates to his current role as the Vice Chairman of the Detroit Pistons. From that personal conversation, they discuss how we can become agents for change no matter where we find ourselves in life.

To learn more about the Pistons Community Conversations, visit https://www.nba.com/pistons/why-detroit-pistons-encouraged-youths-lead-conversation-during-community-zoom-call

Interested in learning more about PeacePlayers mission to build a more peaceful and equitable world? Visit our website https://peaceplayers.org/play-it-forward-podcast/ and check out our social handles.

The Play It Forward podcast is produced by:

Chinny Nwagbo

Emmett Shepard

Leif Frymire

Rifka Miyara

The Play It Forward podcast is edited by

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Animation, music and sound effects created and designed by

Le Baron “Dock” Leath

Podcast Cover Art by:

Adam Hawkins

From the incredible non-proft of PeacePlayers International, comes a new and fresh podcast called Play It Forward. Through the lens of activism in sports presented by PeacePlayers International, Chinny Nwagbo and Emmett Shepard will host conversations with youth leaders, community organizers, industry experts and those using sport as a tool for positive change around the world. 

They both  firmly believe that the way to a more peaceful and equitable society, starts with an uncomfortable conversation about issues that affect us all. And, The Play it Forward Podcast: allows us to shift perspectives and see the humanity in others.