Brown Sugar: The Podcast

Episode 10: #adulting

Sat, 29 May 2021 13:00:00 +0100

In the final episode of Season 2, we reminisce on our not-so-smooth transition from university students to young 20-somethings with full-time jobs. We share our horror stories from missed flights to maxed out overdrafts and discuss how our relationship with money has changed from our teenage years to present day.

Episode 9: But Where Are You Really From?

Sat, 15 May 2021 12:00:00 +0100

In episode 9, we explore the nuances of having a hybrid identity - being an ethnic “minority” raised in a white majority country. With our special guest, Vietnamese-German Jeuni Tran, from the platform @hyphenative, we discuss the similarities between the Asian and African diasporas. We address the discrimination faced by both communities and how we can better form solidarity and be allies to each other.

Get in touch and share your thoughts with us on our IG at @brownsugarpod or email at brownsugarpod18@gmail.com.

Episode 8: Back To The Streets

Sat, 24 Apr 2021 11:00:00 +0100

This past year has been a difficult one for most. We know we’re all sick of talking about the pandemic, and most of all, we’re sick of being inside. But the light at the end of the tunnel is steadily approaching, and as things are opening back up, it means the turn up is on the horizon. So in this episode, we share some of our favourite night-out memories, discuss the dos and donts of partying and explore some of the political meanings behind clubbing.
So consider this your podcast prees to June 21st.

Episode 7: 'Black Excellence' - does it do more harm than good?

Sat, 10 Apr 2021 13:00:00 +0100

In Episode 7 we are joined by special guest Fe Oj of The Motion Podcast to discuss the notion of 'black excellence'. We explore its historical roots in opposition to slavery and oppression. However, who defines what 'excellence' looks like? Is promoting 'exceptionalism' even more harmful? To deconstruct viewing blackness through a monolithic lens, we discuss the importance of epistemic agency and continually defining blackness on an individual, rather than societal, level.

Episode 6: But Your Boyfriend Isn't Here

Sat, 27 Mar 2021 12:00:00 +0000

TW: Topics around Sexual assault, harassment and violence are discussed

In episode 6, we talk about how although misogynistic microagressions might seem "micro", they are one of the foundations that uphold the extreme acts of gender-based assault and violence.

In order to bridge the gap between genders in this important discussion, we have special guest Peter Andu (@thepgpodcast) to talk practically about how men can do better to tackle misogyny and toxic masculinity.

Episode 5: White Saviourism and the African Algorithm

Sat, 13 Mar 2021 11:00:00 +0000

In episode 5, we talk about the importance of authentic allyship and the fine line between allyship, saviourism and performative activism. We also have a special guest, Meghan Wimlett, who helps us navigate these muddy waters.

Episode 4: Is My Doctor a Racist?

Sat, 27 Feb 2021 11:00:00 +0000

Today's health-focused episode sheds light on the intersection between racial inequality and poor health outcomes for the black community.

We dissect the foundations of racism within clinical trials and the medical curriculum. We then discuss how this can trickle into clinical practice and the disproportionately higher rate that black women die during childbirth. We also discuss the poor uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine among the black community. Finally, we touch on barriers to seeking mental health care among the black community and the importance of representation in the psychiatric field.

We propose solutions to how, during a pandemic, the health system can benefit public health by looking at how better serve its minority communities.

Episode 3: Friend Zoned

Sat, 13 Feb 2021 13:00:00 +0000

Inspired by the podcast "Call Your Girlfriend" by Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman, the Brown Sugar ladies discuss platonic relationships, particularly female friendships, and how friends often make connections based on "stories of sameness".

But what happens when your friends are just too different from you? Can you brush it off as just a friendship fight or does it ultimately end in friendship divorce?

Lastly, we discuss the different levels of friendship and the delineation between good friends and best friends!

So, this episode is going to be discussing the friend zone - how to get in and stay in the friend zone, and what happens when your arse gets kicked to the curb?

Episode 2: Make Politics Great Again- Do Middle Grounds Exist?

Sat, 30 Jan 2021 11:00:00 +0000

In episode 2, we discuss the polarisation of politics and whether we can or should find middle grounds with views that are so different from our own. We also take part in a "radical rethinking challenge" where we each research and explain the opposite side to one of our beliefs.

Episode 1: Featuring Yomi

Sat, 16 Jan 2021 12:00:00 +0000

Your favourite girls are back, and for the first episode of Season 2, we've brought a friend, Yomi Adegoke! Yomi is an award-winning journalist and co-author of Slay in Your Lane and Loud black Girls. Join us as we find out more about her, hear her take on Brown Sugar Season 1, and discuss her views on Black Love.

Episode 10: Lessons To Our Younger Selves

Sat, 19 Sep 2020 12:00:00 +0100

In Episode 10, the season finale, we have a candid conversation with the most special of guests, our lovely parents!

Aside from raising these three cracking young ladies, they have plenty of accomplishments and valuable life lessons. Tune in to hear them dish their advice on relationships, careers, parenting and more!

Does Aky's dad bring up Singapore as much as she does? Is Hannah's mum as much of a romantic as Hannah? And, does Rachelle's mum talk as much as she does?

#GrabYourTea

Episode 9: Black to Work

Sat, 05 Sep 2020 14:00:00 +0100

In Episode 9, we are joined by tech start-up founder David Fisayo to explore the issues faced by young black professionals in the UK. We discuss code switching and how facets of black identity can be perceived as unprofessional. Finally, we also discuss the morality of “playing the game” to be seen in white-majority workplaces. To wrap up, David then provides some insight into his career-defining moments that led him from KPMG to starting his own company.

Episode 8: "Politics Over Punani" (Part 2)

Sat, 22 Aug 2020 11:00:00 +0100

Episode 8 is Part 2 of our discussion around whether you can be pro-black and date outside your race. Joined by special guests Noni and Ore, we dig deeper into gender differences within this debate and whether it is fair to gatekeep other members of the black community. Finally, we share more of our own experiences with interracial dating.

Episode 7: Politics Over Punani (Part 1)

Sat, 08 Aug 2020 13:00:00 +0100

This week's episode is centred around the question of if you can be pro-black and date outside your race. To dissect this question, we’ll be discussing what exactly being “pro-black means, the importance of the black family and whether or not who you date is a political statement. To conclude, we’ll go through some of our favourite/least favourite celebrity examples! In this two part episode, we're joined by two special guests of the pod Noni and Ore to give us their views.

Episode 6: Brown Sugar Spills the Tea

Sat, 25 Jul 2020 11:00:00 +0100

In Episode 6, we play a card game called 'We're Not Really Strangers' which aims to dig deep and reveal intimate truths. We reveal our biggest fears, insecurities, embarrassing memories and life lessons and learn not only more about each other, but our own selves!

Episode 5: How To Win The Oppression Olympics

Sat, 11 Jul 2020 13:00:00 +0100

In episode 5, we dabble in a game of the Oppression Olympics i.e. the competition that arises when minority groups try to ascertain which group is the most oppressed, competing for a "prize": a seat at the table.

Are there finite seats at the table or should we be breaking down the table of the oppressors and be making our own?

Lastly, can an intersectional lens facilitate solidarity across different communities?

Episode 4: This Court Deems You Cancelled

Sat, 27 Jun 2020 12:00:00 +0100

In Episode 4, we'll have a chance to dissect what exactly "Cancel Culture" is and the many nuances to this ever expanding debate through a fun game of to cancel or to keep. We’ll also be joined by two guests Diyora Shadijanova and Xi Bovell to see what they have to say about the debate. Diyora talks with us about the evolution of the term itself, and the complex relationship that exists between cancel culture, activism and social media. Xi highlights today's conflation of cancel culture and collective action, and then gives us some pointers for some actions we can do instead of "cancelling". Lastly, we finish with a self-inflicted exposé of some of our worst and most "cancellable" online statuses of the past.

Episode 3: When Do You Off Your Wig?

Sat, 13 Jun 2020 02:00:00 +0100

This episode centers around dating as a black woman. We discuss the beauty standards surrounding hair and when we'd feel comfortable being wigless in front of a new partner. Black women face a constant seesaw of being either fetishised or deemed undesirable. This is compounded by cultural expectations and being asked "when will you marry!" at every family gathering. We break down how to set your standards confidently and believe that you don't need to 'settle' in order to settle down.

Episode 2: #StopBlackPeople

Sat, 30 May 2020 12:00:00 +0100

In Episode 2, we dissect a term called 'white fragility' (coined by sociologist Robin D'Angelo), which describes the disbelief and sensitivity that white people exhibit when they are told they are complicit in society’s institutional racism.

Should the onus be on people of colour to keep having these exhausting conversations? Or should the supposed ally be in charge of their own “wokeness"?

Lastly, we discuss reverse racism and epistemic violence, and why tweeting #StopWhitePeople and #StopBlackPeople are NOT the same thing...

Get To Know Brown Sugar

Sat, 16 May 2020 05:00:00 +0100

Get to know Brown Sugar!

Find out why we went to prison, why Aky finds incorrectly used apostrophes so frustrating, what Hannah would do with a million dollars and about Rachelle's awful dress sense in our Get to Know Me tag!

Grab your tea, we'll bring the sugar!

Episode 1: Where Have All The Good Men Gone?

Sat, 16 May 2020 01:00:00 +0100

In our dating episode, we give you advice on whether to give someone a shot, or put them in the bin and go back to your Argos catalogue of suitors. We play Horror Story Trivia, where we dish out our worst dating stories and share how we’ve handled rejection, ghosting and saying goodbye to the ones that got away. The uncut version of this episode included a total of 30 minutes of us crying with laughter, so you’re in for a treat!