Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso

Today we are joined by legendary writer Margaret Atwood! We begin with her new collection of essays, Burning Questions (4:18), which wrestle with catastrophe (4:59), growing up in the wilderness (7:05) under egalitarian parents (10:00), and how she circumvented the traditional roles for women of the 1950s (12:20). She also shares some personal stories: her first book signing event (15:40), the day she met her late husband Graeme Gibson (17:20), and the innumerable ways in which he'd shape her life (20:11).On the back-half we discuss the historical antecedents behind The Handmaid’s Tale (24:11), its renewed relevance amid threats to Roe v. Wade (25:43), the debate around ‘the writer as political agent’ (29:53), patriarchal gatekeeping inside the publishing industry (32:42), the limits of art-making (34:20), and why she continues to write at age 82 (39:17). To close, Margaret reads from both her elegiac poem Dearly (40:05) and her essay “Polonia” (45:27).To submit a comment, question, or reflection for our upcoming mailbag episode, write us at mail@talkeasypod.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we’re in conversation with author, voting rights activist, and gubernatorial candidate for the state of Georgia: Stacey Abrams. To begin, we talk about the systemic challenges that small business owners face (4:26), the impact of Georgia’s new voting laws (8:38), the threat of election subversion (11:52), what a functional democracy could look like (14:40), the lessons learned from her 2018 bid for Governor (18:14), and how she plans to win in 2022 (22:12). On the back half, Abrams reflects on growing up in the south (26:00), her earliest political ambitions (31:49), and how literature has offered a human complexity not always granted to people in politics (36:34), especially Black women in positions of power (38:07). As we leave, Stacey shares a personal story about her first visit to the governor’s mansion (41:53), the need to move past tribalism (46:34), and why she still wants to be in this fight in 2022 and beyond (48:31). Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Comedian and documentary host W. Kamau Bell has built a career out of having difficult conversations. Today, he returns to the show with his latest project, the four-part docuseries We Need to Talk About Cosby.We begin with Kamau's reluctance to talk about Bill Cosby (7:35), whose legacy became something he decided to publicly grapple with (8:30) and examine chronologically through this piece (10:17). Kamau speaks on his approach to the series (13:10), the integral women who helped create it (14:40), and a formative United Shades of America moment that transformed the way he encounters and tells painful stories (16:24).On the back half, we unpack Cosby’s impact on Black history and representation (24:00), how he changed the stunt industry (27:53), a philosophy on truth that became embedded in the documentary (34:38), and how the project permanently altered Kamau’s course (35:04). Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this special episode, educator Dr. James Whitfield tells his remarkable story. Whitfield made headlines recently after being fired as Principal of Colleyville Heritage High School in Texas. The reason? A conservative community alleged he was adding Critical Race Theory to the curriculum. (To be clear: he was not.)But how did this happen? Whitfield begins by sharing a presentation he co-lead on diversity in our schools (5:41), an impassioned email he wrote to parents in aftermath of George Floyd’s unjust murder (10:00) and the eventual backlash that came from it (15:27), leading to accusations of Whitfield bringing CRT into the classrooms (24:05). Then came the “controversial” photos of Dr. Whitfield and his wife (26:40), revealing the deep-seated racism of his community (28:14). A community that uses the cover of Christianity to spread exclusionary and bigoted rhetoric (34:36).On the back half, Dr. Whitfield explains how he’d like to see American history taught in schools (41:48), what has (and hasn’t) changed since he sent that email in 2020 (47:28), the parallels between his dreams of being an educator and his late mother’s (54:11), and why he refuses to be invisible after everything that’s happened (59:46). Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Glory Edim, founder of Well-Read Black Girl, joins us today for a special episode! In 2015, she founded the Brooklyn-based book club and online community. Two years later, a literary festival emerged. This month, she launched Well-Read Black Girl with Glory Edim by Pushkin Industries.We begin with Glory’s daily morning journal (3:30), the mission behind her new podcast (4:28) and the “literary kickback” she hopes it becomes (5:35). As the debate over Critical Race Theory continues (7:24), she reflects on the importance of “offering space” to writers of color (10:24) and how her work has been shaped by authors like Audre Lorde (13:00), Maya Angelou (14:00), and bell hooks (15:00).On the back-half, Glory shares memories from a childhood of “mothering herself” (18:26), the archive she created of her father before his passing (21:19), and how Well-Read Black Girl transformed her pain into something bigger than herself (27:00). Before we go, we turn to a poem from Honey, I Love by Eloise Greenfield (31:39), a formative senior yearbook quote (36:34), and where Glory hopes to go in the years ahead (37:30). Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cate Blanchett, the award-winning actress known for her roles in 'Elizabeth' and 'Nightmare Alley,' shares her journey of artistic discovery. She discusses her transformative role in 'Nightmare Alley,' reflecting on themes of truth and deception. Cate reminisces about her father's influence and an enlightening encounter with a psychic. Parenthood reshaped her creative purpose, while embracing 'divine dissatisfaction' has become a part of her artistic journey. She also touches on her affinity for imperfection and the complexities of identity in her craft.

This week we sit with legendary bandleader of The Roots, Questlove! On the heels of his directorial debut, Summer of Soul, we discuss his winding road to making the documentary: from a trip to Japan (9:00) to a cold pitch backstage at The Tonight Show (10:30) to releasing the film last year (12:30). He also explains the cultural significance of the Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969 (15:39), the indescribable warmth of analogue sound (17:11), and why B.B. King’s Why I Sing the Blues endures (18:03).Then, in the spirit of Summer of Soul, we dive into the musical past of Questlove: listening to Sly & the Family Stone in the bathtub at age six (19:56), Stevie Wonder and Curtis Mayfield at age 2, performing in a traveling band with his parents (23:35), before eventually creating The Roots (28:35).With distance, Questlove reflects on the group’s European excursion (34:34), the infamous Philadelphia jam sessions that placed The Roots in a larger, cultural context (39:30), how his definition of success has evolved with age (41:17), and the profound final words of his manager Richard Nichols (44:12). To close, we sit with the words of Nina Simone (48:43) and how they’ve inspired Questlove to preserve and restore the history of Black music for future generations (51:36).To submit a question, comment, or reflection for our mailbag episode, write us at mail@talkeasypod.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re joined by actor and producer Tessa Thompson! To begin, we talk about Thompson’s entry point into her new film Passing (7:56), a pivotal scene starring Bill Camp (11:08), the groundbreaking work of writers Nella Larsen (13:05) and Zora Neale Hurston (15:33), and how moviemaking keeps Tessa connected to something greater (19:37). On the back half, she shares her earliest inclinations toward acting (22:20) and activism (26:43), growing up in Los Angeles to creative parents (24:17), reckoning with her own ambition (30:19), how she learned to take up space in Hollywood (31:10), why she recently launched her own production company, Viva Maude (33:31), and what her success would’ve meant to her late grandmother (38:58).To submit a question, comment, or reflection for our upcoming mailbag episode, write us at mail@talkeasypod.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ezra Klein is a columnist for The New York Times, the host of The Ezra Klein Show, and the author of Why We’re Polarized. He joins us this week to unpack the debate around school closures in the wake of Omicron (6:00), President Biden’s push to pass voting rights legislation (11:30), the GOP’s “precinct strategy” to win local elections (16:24), and what Democrats need to do ahead of the November midterms (23:00).On the back-half, Ezra reflects on his early years covering Washington (29:35), his decision to leave VOX for The New York Times (34:37), his role in today’s media landscape (38:10), and where he’s finding hope in 2022 (45:29).To submit a question, comment, or reflection for our mailbag episode, write us at mail@talkeasypod.com. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re back! This week we sit with musician Alana Haim, star of the film from director Paul Thomas Anderson, Licorice Pizza. Making her acting debut, Alana shares the serendipitous backstory that led to the project (6:00), the “7th grade forever theory” that helped her get inside the character of Alana Kane (13:17), a high school house party where she baked cake and fell in love (17:30), and the fortuitous afternoon she met future co-star Cooper Hoffman (23:23). In the back half, we talk about the early days of HAIM (30:33) and how art helps transcend our own limitations (36:50), culminating in the night Alana drove a six-wheeler truck up (and down) the pitch black hills of the San Fernando Valley (35:55), as co-star Bradley Cooper rode shotgun. We also discuss the forthcoming HAIM tour (39:08), the song she is most excited to perform from Women in Music pt. III, and what she hopes for as she enters her thirties (41:30). Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.