9 episodes

Hosted by #1 New York Times best-selling author Kwame Alexander, Why Fathers Cry explores lessons we’ve learned - and unlearned - and the ones we are still learning. Stories about longing, love, and loss. Journeys guided by faith and forgiveness - of others, yes, but also of SELF - past, present, and future. Aspects of fatherhood from a multitude of perspectives. And how getting vulnerable and getting real is the connective tissue that binds us together, gives us strength, defines our purpose, and feeds our soul.

Featuring intimate conversations anchored in poetry, with guests including James Beard Award-winning educator and author Bryant Terry, Oregon Poet Laureate Anis Mojgani, and more. Inspired by Kwame Alexander’s memoir, Why Fathers Cry at Night (May 2023, Little, Brown and Company).

Produced for Big Sea Entertainment by Sarah Grace McCandless. Studio audio engineering by Edgar Diaz. Post-production by Jeremy Brieske at Burst Marketing. Theme music, ”Saint State Street,” composed by Joshua Gabriel and Bryant Terry.

Why Fathers Cry with Kwame Alexander Big Sea Entertainment

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.3 • 13 Ratings

Hosted by #1 New York Times best-selling author Kwame Alexander, Why Fathers Cry explores lessons we’ve learned - and unlearned - and the ones we are still learning. Stories about longing, love, and loss. Journeys guided by faith and forgiveness - of others, yes, but also of SELF - past, present, and future. Aspects of fatherhood from a multitude of perspectives. And how getting vulnerable and getting real is the connective tissue that binds us together, gives us strength, defines our purpose, and feeds our soul.

Featuring intimate conversations anchored in poetry, with guests including James Beard Award-winning educator and author Bryant Terry, Oregon Poet Laureate Anis Mojgani, and more. Inspired by Kwame Alexander’s memoir, Why Fathers Cry at Night (May 2023, Little, Brown and Company).

Produced for Big Sea Entertainment by Sarah Grace McCandless. Studio audio engineering by Edgar Diaz. Post-production by Jeremy Brieske at Burst Marketing. Theme music, ”Saint State Street,” composed by Joshua Gabriel and Bryant Terry.

    Part II: "Portrait of a Father" with Special Guest Nandi Alexander-Hinton - Why Fathers Cry: One Year Later Special

    Part II: "Portrait of a Father" with Special Guest Nandi Alexander-Hinton - Why Fathers Cry: One Year Later Special

    So many of us have had a fallout with someone once held dear, or know someone in this scenario. In Part II of the Why Fathers Cry: One Year Later special, Kwame Alexander opens up about his own experience on this front in the most important conversation he’s had throughout the series – and in his life – with his eldest daughter, Nandi. Join us for a deeply personal, honest, and inspiring father-and-daughter dialogue, as Kwame and Nandi open their hearts and examine what each has discovered about themselves and each other – plus reveal some incredible, life-changing news.

    • 44 min
    Part I: "Love Lessons" with Tinesha Davis & Nikki Shannon Smith - Why Fathers Cry: One Year Later Special

    Part I: "Love Lessons" with Tinesha Davis & Nikki Shannon Smith - Why Fathers Cry: One Year Later Special

    It’s amazing what can happen in a year, and Kwame Alexander can speak to that firsthand, with deep heart. In Part I of the Why Fathers Cry: One Year Later special, Kwame reveals how his life has changed and what he’s learned since the May 2023 release of his memoir, Why Fathers Cry at Night. Joining Kwame in conversation are two dear friends and fellow writers, Tinesha Davis and Nikki Shannon Smith.

    • 40 min
    ”Why Fathers Cry” with Dr. E. Curtis Alexander

    ”Why Fathers Cry” with Dr. E. Curtis Alexander

    As the first season of Why Fathers Cry comes to a close, Kwame Alexander brings it full circle in this pinnacle conversation with someone who has come up in every single episode, and throughout the memoir that inspired the series: his own father, Dr. E. Curtis Alexander.

    • 52 min
    ”How We Made You” with W. Kamau Bell

    ”How We Made You” with W. Kamau Bell

    In this special episode of WHY FATHERS CRY, Kwame Alexander bears all with filmmaker,  comedian, and New York Times bestselling author W. Kamau Bell, in front of a live audience in Berkeley, California. With a deeper dive into the stories behind the stories shared in Kwame’s memoir, one poignant question leaves him speechless.

    Join us for a no holds barred conversation as Kamau and Kwame reveal with both humor and heart some of their most vulnerable moments as fathers of daughters, as partners, and as sons, exploring how we can give more grace to those we love.

    • 48 min
    ”Portrait of Newlyweds: 1967” with Jonathan Eig

    ”Portrait of Newlyweds: 1967” with Jonathan Eig

    Photos feed memories, but our literal and figurative snapshots from seminal childhood moments often informs how we later show up as parents, as partners… as people. In the latest episode of WHY FATHERS CRY, Kwame Alexander explores this notion with Jonathan Eig, bestselling author of six books, including his most recent, KING: A LIFE.

    Acclaimed as a “master storyteller” by filmmaker Ken Burns, Jonathan is a world renowned journalist and biographer, and a true expert when it comes to researching our past to understand our present. Join us as Kwame and Jonathan look at their own histories as sons, the perceptions that were formed, and how the truths they know now help them navigate the world as fathers themselves.

    • 38 min
    ”Portrait of a Mother & Son” with John Haynes III

    ”Portrait of a Mother & Son” with John Haynes III

    Grief takes permanent residency in our hearts. A houseguest that never leaves. In the latest episode of WHY FATHERS CRY, Kwame Alexander goes deep on the experience of losing his own mother, in a candid conversation with his longtime advisor and dear friend John Haynes III… who also knows this specific type of loss firsthand.

    • 38 min

Customer Reviews

4.3 out of 5
13 Ratings

13 Ratings

dahvoo718 ,

Kwame the Great!

Love this podcast. Its honest & sincere and i appreciate the books that my kids read. The finale i listen to many times like a lesson on Real Life. Your Baba deserves a “ Big Up “ and honors to your Queen Mommy aseAseASE!

flipstar ,

Can’t wait to share with my father

Kwame Alexander is incredible. This is my new favorite podcast — so authentic, such fascinating conversation & vulnerability. I know and feel that this will be powerful & healing for my own father to hear. Thank you Kwame Alexander for your empathetic interviewing. What an epic creation & space for crucial community! ♥️

Indi Ru ,

What Fathers Deserve

All fathers need a space to share what’s on their hearts and I am in full support of it. As a mother to two sons, I’m so happy one of their favorite authors has created a masterpiece like this! I’m so excited for you!

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