Damon, Jordan, and Tony are curious – are you ready to go beyond the surface level? 

We’re winding down our 11th (!!) season with the classic tradition of responding to questions from our Surface Level insiders. We’re also starting a new tradition of the Surface Level Commenter Awards! This episode is a fun little after party where we crown the messiest commenter, hottest take, most confused comment and the biggest award, most curious commenter. Plus, Jordan and Tony try their hand at guessing Black famous trivia, and we all know how that goes with those two. 

So buckle up and come have some fun with us to close out the year on a high note. 

You can join the conversation on socials and let us know your thoughts. 

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – Is being mainstream famous better than being Black famous? 

In today’s social media era many are in pursuit of some type of fame. But while some rise to new heights, they often get questions and judgement about who they’re in it for and why. 

The Surface Level crew sits down with multi-hyphenate creator Brandon Kyle Goodman to dig into identity, visibility, and whether mainstream approval is overrated.

You can join the conversation on socials and let us know your thoughts.

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – How much can you respect your family members who don’t respect your queerness? 

Being Black & Queer in a place like New York, it can be very easy to curate our lives to only interact with people who respect our queerness. But we can’t always do that with family, and in Black families respecting elders is important too, sometimes regardless of how much they respect your queerness. 

The internet’s favorite viral queer chef William Coleman joins us for this intimate conversation about how to survive the cookout. The group talks about the moments they’ve let slide, the moments they’ve had to stand up to family, and how they each approach this tricky question of respect. 

You can join the conversation on socials and let us know your thoughts.

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – Can white gay men ever truly belong in Black queer spaces?

Now this one’s gonna have the girls fired up! We’ve all seen them. They pop up from time to time. Sometimes causing confusion, sometimes controversy, and sometimes delight. White gays are at the Black functions, so how do we feel about them? 

In this episode, the hosts talk about their feelings on this white presence, what white allyship looks like to them, how to tell the good ones apart, whether some spaces should be homogenous, and yes, who they think is Blue Eye’d Soul. 

Join us for this ki and feel free to chime in online too.

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – Is prioritizing Black joy really an act of defiance?

“Joy as Resistance” is a nice catchphrase that’s been taking the Black internet by storm. The phrase has mass appeal and some say political strategy to it too, but in the face of extreme threats to personal liberties and even freedom of speech, is it the strategy really appropriate for this moment? 

Brooklyn’s powerhouse viral city councilman Chi Osse joins us to dig into these questions. He talks about his strategy for this moment as an elected official, while the hosts question their level of involvement as citizens. The conversation even delves into questions of personal liberty vs collective liberation when thinking of the growing movement of Black people going from escapism to actually leaving the US altogether. 

You can join the conversation on socials and let us know your thoughts.

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – Does hiding sex make us safer or is it more dangerous?

Many people hide sexual encounters in order to control and manage public opinion, or just because they’re a private lady. But does that secrecy open us up to more trauma? 

In this especially dynamic episode, the hosts dive into this topic with a pastor and LGBTQ ally, Kristian A Smith. They get into the up and down sides of being private about sex and Kristian opens up about his thoughts on why the church should heal its relationship to sex and sexuality. 

We getting vulnerable y’all! You can join the conversation on socials and let us know your thoughts.

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – Can you be too loud and proud?

We’ve all either had those moments or seen those moments where we or someone in our orbit is wearing their queerness out loud but very hyped up. They’re usually causing a scene of some sort, whether in person or online. And for some that’s always an expression of freedom whereas other queers feel it works against the community. 

On today’s episode, Broadway and reality TV star Robert Hartwell joins us to unpack the dilemma of if it’s possible to be too loud and proud. Respectability buzzwords aside, the question forces hosts and our guest to outline what freedom looks like to them, what they consider obnoxious or harmful representation and why. Buckle up for this one! 

You can join the conversation on socials and let us know your thoughts.

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Damon, Jordan and Tony are curious – Who’s to blame for the mainstreaming of Black language?

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Damon, Jordan, and Tony are curious – what's your experience been on the apps?

We are excited to welcome our friences Greg, Tylan & Hector to our Surface Level family. They help us explore different end uses for apps like Jack'd because we are way more than hookups. Whether is research for the social scene of a new city or just casual conversation the apps have become a meeting ground for our community.

We know a lot, but we don’t know it all, so join the conversation on social and let us know your thoughts.

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Damon, Jordan, and Tony are curious – where’s the line between secrecy and privacy?

This National Black HIV/AIDS Day, we had the privilege of hosting Harlem Stage Presents: Surface Level Live, powered by Gilead Sciences. We are grateful for those who were able to join us in person, and we’re beyond excited to share the experience digitally with our Surface Level Insiders who couldn’t be there.

During Part 2 of this special series, we are excited to welcome producer, writer, and director Patrik-Ian Polk to our Surface Level family. We continue the conversation with a unique perspective on sexual health from a member of our community who lived through the AIDS crisis. We also discuss how his beloved work, such as Noah’s Arc, has addressed issues related to sexual health, the evolution of expectations surrounding the disclosure of HIV status over time, and the fine line between secrecy and privacy. It was an honor to have this conversation with someone we admire, and we are excited to share this raw and honest discussion with our audience.

We know a lot, but we don’t know it all, so join the conversation on social and let us know your thoughts.

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