11 episodes

Fantastic Blackness is a bimonthly podcast by Tavia Nyong’o and Shanté Paradigm Smalls focused on Black Queer Trans art, politics, aesthetics, and news. Features interviews with artmakers, reviews of art shows, stage plays, books, film and television, and topical discussion.

Fantastic Blackness Fantastic Blackness

    • Arts
    • 5.0 • 8 Ratings

Fantastic Blackness is a bimonthly podcast by Tavia Nyong’o and Shanté Paradigm Smalls focused on Black Queer Trans art, politics, aesthetics, and news. Features interviews with artmakers, reviews of art shows, stage plays, books, film and television, and topical discussion.

    In The Bleak Midwinter

    In The Bleak Midwinter

    Hosts Shanté Paradigm Smalls and Tavia Nyong'o dig into why horror is trending in Black entertainment today. They discuss how horror, like comedy, allows space for the unsayable or the indelicate, and how Black horror can directly address the everyday horrors of racism and gender terrorism, heightened by and contrasted with more supernatural effects.

    • 47 min
    Hip Hop Heresies

    Hip Hop Heresies

    Hosts Shanté Paradigm Smalls and Tavia Nyong'o discuss Shanté's new book, Hip Hop Heresies: Queer Aesthetics in New York City
    Thanks to our ace producer Alex van Gils and to NYU Press for the cover image of Hip Hop Heresies. Artwork by Qrky. Music in this episode by B.Q.E. “Understand/Overstand” and Blocka Beats, “Peace and Grow.” Peace Out!

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr
    Branden Jacobs-Jenkins pt. 2

    Branden Jacobs-Jenkins pt. 2

    In this two part conversation with MacArthur Genius Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Shanté and Tav discuss making black theater and television now. In addition to Branden’s work on adapting Octavia Butler’s novel Kindred (1979) and Alan Moore’s Watchmen (1986) to the screen, topics discussed include #WhiteTheaterWeSeeYou , #BlackLiveMatter, and the enduring influence of Performance Studies on all three.
    Part 2 of 2.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 50 min
    Branden Jacobs-Jenkins pt. 1

    Branden Jacobs-Jenkins pt. 1

    In this two part conversation with MacArthur Genius Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Shanté and Tav discuss making black theater and television now. In addition to Branden’s work on adapting Octavia Butler’s novel Kindred (1979) and Alan Moore’s Watchmen (1986) to the screen, topics discussed include #WhiteTheaterWeSeeYou , #BlackLiveMatter, and the enduring influence of Performance Studies on all three.
    Part 1 of 2.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 53 min
    Spooky Pride

    Spooky Pride

    For the first episode of season two of Fantastic Blackness, hosts Tav and Shanté discuss Lovecraft Country, and what could have been (and may still be if picked up by another streaming service or network) on Season 2.
    For show notes, check out the substack:
    https://fantasticblackness.substack.com/p/spooky-pride-2021-hbos-lovecraft

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 59 min
    Becoming Human

    Becoming Human

    Hosts Shanté and Tav sit down with author Zakiyyah Iman Jackson to break down her new book: Becoming Black: Matter and Meaning in an Antiblack World. You can find Professor Jackson's book on her website: https://www.zakiyyahimanjackson.com.
    Cover art contains artwork from the book's original cover art by Nandipha Mntambo, the piece is called Europa, from 2008.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    • 1 hr 8 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
8 Ratings

8 Ratings

BPMasterman ,

Captivating, nuanced, and brilliant. Giving me EVERYTHING!

It is so incredible to be able to sit in on the conversations between two of my favorite thinkers on blackness and/in popular culture! Worth every second of listening! I cannot wait to hear the new episodes as they are released.

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