Going Through It

Tracy sits down with Naj Austin, Founder and CEO of Ethel’s Club and Somewhere Good. Naj shares what prompted her to create Ethel’s Club and the questions she faced as a young, Black entrepreneur in the startup world.

Tracy chats with Essence Magazine’s Entertainment Director, Cori Murray, to talk about the lessons she learned working at the longstanding media company and the importance of supporting the multitudes of Black culture.

Tracy is joined by awarding-winning actress and performer, Danielle Brooks. The pair talk about the surprises in store for Danielle when she gave birth to her first child.

Tracy and Ilhan Omar, U.S. Representative from Minnesota’s 5th district, discuss Ilhan’s journey from Somalia to America and how she remains strong amid criticism on the public stage.

Tracy and Josie Duffy Rice, President of The Appeal and host of Justice in America, unpack violence and police brutality, the Black Lives Matter movement, and how Josie re-evaluated what “making change” meant for her career.

Back for a second season, Tracy Clayton hosts Going Through It, a podcast featuring 14 notable Black women discussing a pivotal moment when they decided it was time to make a change.

In 1999, Antje Danielson wanted to start a car-sharing company. But she was a scientist, not a businesswoman, and she knew she couldn’t do it alone. After launching Zipcar with her friend Robin Chase, Danielson had to come to terms with one of her biggest mistakes: asking a close friend to become an equal partner in her company. Danielson tells host Ann Friedman what happened when Chase fired her, and why her choice to walk away ultimately saved the company. 

In 2012, Ellen Pao was fighting discrimination on two fronts: in the courtroom, where she brought a gender discrimination lawsuit against her former employer Kleiner Perkins, and at work, where she attempted to change the culture of Reddit as its interim CEO. Before the end of that year, Pao both lost her case, and resigned. She talks to host Ann Friedman about her decision to keep working to change the tech industry, even after everything fell apart.

When Charlotte Cho moved to South Korea, she didn’t have a professional passion or much of a plan. But she did discover the power of the 10-step skin care routine. Now, she’s the founder of Soko Glam, one of the largest retailers of Korean beauty products in the United States. Cho tells host Ann Friedman about how she learned to invest in her company, and herself. 

Years before broadcast journalist Soledad O’Brien delivered the news to millions of Americans, she was an entry-level reporter in San Francisco. To become the news anchor she wanted to be, O’Brien had to make strategic decisions. She talks to host Ann Friedman about what happened when that first on-air position — which was her dream role at the time — started looking like a dead-end job.