Black Girl Nerds

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds Podcast, we celebrate the SXSW Film and TV Festival currently underway with guests Bomani J. Story and Laya DeLeon Hayes and Kyla Frye discusses her latest project 'Payday'! Segment 1: Vicaria is a brilliant teenager who believes death is a disease that can be cured. After the brutal and sudden murder of her brother, she embarks on a dangerous journey to bring him back to life. Inspired by Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, 'The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster' thematically challenges our ideas of life and death. Host: Jamie Segment 2: Kyla Frye is a multifaceted, award-winning actress who hails from the East end of London.  From being the first Black woman to take on the iconic role of Sandra in Jonathan Harvey’s Beautiful Thing, to donning her khakis as a soldier with Tom Cruise in 'Edge of Tomorrow', Kyla’s unwavering presence on stage and screen brings the audience on a thrilling journey full of love and drama. Host: Ryanne Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's BGN Podcast Extra, ahead of tonight's episode, we interview actor Javicia Leslie.  Javicia will appear as Batwoman in the CW series 'The Flash' airing at 8/7c. Javicia Leslie is an actress, visionary and philanthropist committed to making her mark on the world. She is best known for her reign over Gotham City as Ryan Wilder in D.C.'s “Batwoman”. Her casting made global history as the first bisexual Black actress to portray Batwoman. Since her debut in 2019, she has quickly become recognized as one of young Hollywood's most heralded stars and was featured on The Hollywood Reporter’s highly coveted “Next Big Thing'' list. Host: Ryanne Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast we chat with actor Ayesha Harris of 'Daisy Jones and the Six' and filmmaker Muta' Ali of 'Cassius X: Becoming Ali'.  Segment 1: Born and raised in the Long Beach and Inland Empire areas of southern California, Ayesha lived many lives before pursuing a career in acting full time. Ayesha can next be seen in the upcoming Amazon Prime miniseries “Daisy Jones and the Six,” opposite Riley Keough, Sam Claflin, and Suki Waterhouse. Adapted from Taylor Jenkins Reid’s wildly popular historical fiction novel of the same name, the series follows the rise and fall of a fictional LA rock band in the 1970s – in the guise of Fleetwood Mac – while exploring the reason behind their split at the height of their success.  Host: Ryanne Segment 2: Muta’Ali is an award winning film director whose latest feature documentary release is Cassius X: Becoming Ali. He received an NAACP Image Award nomination for Best Director of a Documentary for his critically acclaimed Yusuf Hawkins: Storm Over Brooklyn and his feature documentary debut was Life’s Essentials with Ruby Dee, featuring Harry Belafonte, Alan Alda, Phylicia Rashad, Spike Lee and others. Muta’Ali is currently directing his next feature documentary on a wildly popular product invented by black entrepreneurs and driven into the ground by predatory executives. Host: Ryanne Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds Podcast, we welcome multi-hyphenate Rodney Barnes and actor William Jackson Harper. Segment 1: Rodney Barnes is an award-winning writer, producer, and comic book creator whose vibrant and emphatic creative voice has established him as a Hollywood mainstay. From writing on Adult Swim’s The Boondocks, Everybody Hates Chris to Hulu’s Wu-Tang: An American Saga and HBO's Winning Time, Barnes has displayed versatility across a variety of genres in the industry’s largest and most influential programs. His newly founded Zombie Love Studios, a graphic novel production studio that will both adapt and create original graphic novels, beginning with the release of his latest graphic novel,  "Blacula: Return of The King". Host: Jamie and Ryanne Segment 2: William Jackson Harper, is an actor and playwright. He is best known for his role as Chidi Anagonye on the NBC comedy The Good Place, for which he was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy. He currently can be seen in Peacock's The Resort and is starring as Quaz in Marvel Studios' Ant-Man and The Wasp Quantumania. Host: Jamie Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we welcome legendary actor of the stage and screen, Alfre Woodard. Alfre Woodard currently stars in the animated Disney series Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. She plays Mimi, the grandmother to superheroine Lunella Fayette aka Moon Girl. Woodard has received various accolades, including four Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and three Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as nominations for an Academy Award and two Grammy Awards.  She chats with BGN about her role on the Disney animated series and culture of the Oscars.  Host: Jamie Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds Podcast we interview actor Skyla I’Lece and tech entrepreneur DeJuan Strickland. Segment 1: Skyla’s will appear on the upcoming Disney+ basketball drama series, The Crossover. Poetry and basketball collide in this powerful new series about 14-year-old twin brothers who come of age on and off court, and this inspirational and emotional family drama is narrated through lyrical poetry. Skyla plays female lead ‘Alexis’ (known as ‘Miss Sweet Tea’ in the novel), a talented musician who has just moved back to the neighborhood and becomes intertwined with the twin brothers. NBA star LeBron James serves as an executive producer. The Crossover will debut on Disney Channel on April 4, 2023 then will drop the following day on Disney+. Host: Ryanne Segment 2: DeJuan Strickland is a 14-year old scholar who enjoys gaming, anime and comics. He has launched 2 comic books of his own called "Techboy" and "Science Girl". He is a member of the National Black Society of Engineers Junior Chapter. He's an advocate for anti-bullying and proceeds of his comic goes to the organization Therapy For Black Kids. Host: Jamie  Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we interview actor Kyla Pratt and comedian Vir Das.  Segment 1: Kyla Pratt reprises her role as Penny Proud in Disney+'s "The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder," the long-anticipated revival of the groundbreaking animated series "The Proud Family." Host: Ryanne Segment 2: Das’ latest offering Landing, his fourth Netflix special, is a show about the personal reflection and existential turmoil Vir unwittingly thrust himself into by giving that speech last year. It’s a show about freedom, foolishness, the west, the east, and what it means to be a citizen of one nation in a global world.  Host: Ryanne Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we welcome guest Travis Hopson of Punch Drink Critics to chat with us about the best and worst films out of Sundance 2023.  Now that the festival has wrapped, here's our takeaways of what films you should be looking for in 2023. Host: Jamie and Jeanine Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast we're celebrating the films coming out of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival!  Featured in this episode are filmmakers D. Smith of 'Kokomo City', Milisuthando Bongela of 'Milisuthando' and actor Travina Springer of 'To Live and Die and Live. The 2023 Festival is January 19–29, 2023, in person in Park City, Salt Lake City, and the Sundance Resort, along with a selection of films available online across the country January 24–29. Segment 1: D. Smith is the director of 'Kokomo City', a film about  four Black transgender sex workers explore the dichotomy between the Black community and themselves while confronting issues long avoided.  Host: Jamie Segment 2: Milisuthando Bongela is the director of 'Milisuthando'. This penetrating coming-of-age personal essay on love and what it means to become human in the context of race explores the memories and experiences of Milisuthando Bongela, who grew up within apartheid without knowing it was happening until it was over. Host: Jeanine Segment 3: Travina Springer stars in 'To Live and Die and Live' a story of a man who returns home to Detroit to bury his stepfather and is thrust into settling his accounts, but Muhammad’s struggles with depression and addiction may finish him before he finishes the task. Host: Jamie Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax

In this week's episode of the Black Girl Nerds podcast, we interview Guslagie Malanga who stars in the French film Saint Omer directed by Alice Diop.  The film premiered at the Venice and Toronto International Film Festivals and was entered for Best International Film for the 2023 Oscars. In Saint Omer, Rama is a novelist who attends the trial of Laurence Coly (Guslagie Malanga), a young woman accused of killing her 15-month-old daughter. Testimonies from witnesses and Coly's own words soon shake Rama's convictions. Host: Jamie Music by: Sammus Edited by: Jamie Broadnax