4 minute read
7 Wellness and Black Mental Health Podcasts to Watch in 2022
1- Live Hangouts Tahyira Keeps It Too Reel with Tahyira Savanna
Tahyira was prematurely diagnosed with bipolar disorder after being placed on a 5150 hold in Los Angeles, California back in 2017. She had only been living there for six months and had never experienced a psychotic break from reality. It was scary. This podcast is Tahyira’s second run at podcasting. She launched another version of the pod in 2019 when she was in group therapy in New York City. Realizing she was too fragile of a patient to share anything, she scrapped the podcast in place of continuing her live Instagram-hosted show Live Hangouts with @iletthegoodtimesroll. Then in 2020, the pandemic hit the world and mental health seemed like the only thing to talk about. Especially, after the very public death of George Floyd. She put out the first episode, Anger vs Woke, as a way to be there with her fellow Black Americans. Where is there space to be loud about our mental health and how we feel about being Black in America? She produces the show independently, and it is now in its second season. Her goal for the podcast listeners is to seek solutions, find advocacy, and build community. Black Americans are suffering silently and Tahyira is too loud to be quiet about it. You can find the podcast here (insert link)
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https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/livehangouts-tahyira-keeps-it-too-reel/id1517815801
2- The SonRise Project with Kelli Richardson Lawson
Sponsored and distributed by Oprah’s OWN network, Kelli Richardson Lawson launched a companion podcast under the same name as her nonprofit organization, The SonRise Project. The organization intends to empower Black families in the areas of mental illness through transparent story sharing. Lawson’s son was diagnosed to her and her husband’s surprise in 2018. She claims that her life on the outside looking in seemed, picture-perfect, but behind the scenes she was a mother feeling scared, lost, and helpless.She found community and used her platform for good. Lawson has worked with Fortune 500 brands such P&G, BET, and DELL under her own marketing company, Joy Collective. If you’re looking for a safe space, this is one. You can find the podcast here
https://www.oprahdaily.com/entertainment/ a37708847/sonrise-project-podcast-kellirichardson-lawson-interview/
3- Mind Body Wealth with Lauren Simmons
Lauren Simmons made big financial headlines back in 2017 becoming the youngest stock trader at the New York Stock Exchange at the age of 23. Her podcast, as she says in her own words, is not about what stocks to invest in or how to
get rich quick ideas, it is a space where Black wealth empowerment meets real financial realities. Simmons promotes a mind, body, and wealth mantra where money finds its way onto the table without starting with silver spoons. New episodes are available here
Mind Body Wealth with Lauren Simmons
4- Be Well Sis with Cassandre Dunbar
With the tagline, ‘Get Inspired to Live Your Best Life!’ Dunbar’s passion and education collide on this medically inspired Black woman wellness podcast. Through her experiences as a doctor and as a mother, Dunbar says she realized the lack of knowledge readily available to other women who look like her. She says the underrepresentation and alienation of Black wellness spaces are what triggered her to get involved. It always starts with a true WHY. Dunbar, like the other pods on our list, curates a safe space. Wellness has been too long synonymous with Whiteness and White privilege.
Be Well Sis: The Podcast on Apple Podcasts
5- JungleRose Podcast with Jae Sumone and Marley 6- Battle Fatigue with AJ and Dalin
Created to amplify the plight of Black women, Jae and Marley launched JungleRose to be a pipeline to address the false narrative.Be Well Sis: The Podcast on Apple Podcasts Most of the stories told about Blacks in America are through the lens of white males. That has totally got to change. The co-stars brag about being Black and excellent all the while creating a community that deals with real-world issues like personal growth and spirituality. New episodes are available every Wednesday JungleRose Podcast on Apple Podcasts
Produced by a white women-run brand Larj Media, we find AJ and Dalin the two Black males at the helm of this very on-time perspective on male mental health. The two pride themselves on keeping it real, discussing Black pop culture as they exist in a climate that tells them their skin is a threat. The show hopes to foster community as we discover more about our self-identity. New episodes are released every week Battle Fatigue on Apple Podcasts
7- Theories and Thoughts with Arnya and Fancy
Launched as a companion podcast for Black media site, SwagHer Magazine, the brand’s CEO Fancy, and CEO of the Ladi CEO brand, Arnya T.M. Davis, host this thought-provoking podcast. It is all about Black girl magic as the two candidly discuss tough topics like mental health, student loan debt, and Covid-19 as it relates to the Afro-American community, and supporting Black-owned businesses. You can find the podcast here https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/
