Podcast
About That Life
To fully understand what we’re living through right now, we need to dig deeper into our history. Hosted by award-winning journalist Garrison Hayes, About That Life uncovers unsung and overlooked figures from Black history who challenged the status quo — from Gloria Richardson to George Washington Williams. Each episode traces the defiant, strategic and deeply human choices they made and sits down with people whose life and work connects to their legacy. The fight for justice has always had a playbook. And these stories provide the blueprint for a better future.
- History chart
- #84
- Episodes
- 8
- Releases
- Every two weeks
- Typical length
- 29 min
- On air since
- 2026
- Latest episode
- 5 days ago
Episodes
8 episodes, newest first
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37 min
About that Spooky Life
Show notes
Black history is full of stories that’ll make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. Not because of ghosts but because they actually happened! We’re joined by podcast hosts Deante Kyle (Grits & Eggs), Big Ice Cup Kat (Grits & Eggs), comedian Jamila Bell and creator Lynae Vanee who each share a shocking true tale.
Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack
Show Notes
Guests:
Want to learn more?
Read:Witch Queens, Voodoo Spirits, and Hoodoo Saints
The Making of HaitiFollow Garrison
Senior Producer: Kristen Bennett
Producer: Matt Gant
Story Editor: Casey Miner
Fact Checker: Sarah McClure
Researcher & Archival Producer: Caitlin Riggsbee
Original Music & Sound Design: Kyle Murdock
Executive Producer: N’Jeri Eaton
Head of Brand & Audience: Anhelo Reyes
Head of Video: Tonja Thigpen
Huge thanks to our partners at American Experiments
Special thanks to REVOLT Studios
To Kevin, Allie, Dom, Simone, and last but not least — Mr. Benjamin.
Additional Materials
Pittsburgh Courier
Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images
Lionsgate
Felicia Blue
Library of Congress
Formulanone
Shawn Harqauil
Historic New Orleans Collection
Loxahatchee River Historical SocietyPatricia Brintle
Gerard Valchin/Haitian Art Society
Jacques-Richard Chéry
UNESCO
Warner Bros. Pictures
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images
Evan Vucci
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27 min
Assata Shakur: In Her Own Words
Show notes
They called her Joanne Chesimard, enemy of the state and one of the FBI’s Most Wanted. But that wasn't the real story. Assata Shakur was a Black freedom fighter. In this episode, journalist and author Santi Elijah Holley helps us dive into Assata’s story. Weaving in Assata’s own poetry read by Lynae Vanee, we tell the story of how Assata became a symbol for something she never was, the lengths the government took to paint her a terrorist, and how she boldly reclaimed her own story and taught us what it means to be free.
Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack
Show Notes
Guest: Santi Elijah Holley website
Want to learn more?
Read:
An Amerikan Family: The Shakurs and the Nation They Created by Santi Elijah Holley
Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur
Follow Garrison
Senior Producer: Kristen Bennett
Producer: Matt Gant
Story Editor: Julie Caine
Fact Checker: Sarah McClure
Production Supervisor: Hugo Salguero
Original music & sound design: Kyle Murdock
Executive Producer: N’Jeri Eaton
Head of Brand & Audience: Anhelo Reyes
Head of Video: Tonja Thigpen
Huge thanks to our partners at American Experiments Special thanks to Lynae Vanee
To Kevin, Allie, Dom, Simone, and last but not least — Mr. Benjamin.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices
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29 min
The Slave Revolt They Tried to Erase
Show notes
In 1811, hundreds of enslaved people in what’s now Louisiana joined together to burn down plantations, free captives, and kill their enslavers. They came from different tribes, spoke different languages, and coordinated across long distances with one goal - freedom. So why haven't we ever heard of it? Journalist Michael Harriot joins us to tell the story of the 1811 German Coast Uprising. Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack
Show Notes
Guest:Michael Harriot
Want to learn more?
Read:
Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America
Watch/ Listen:Drapetomania: Diaspora Wars Part 1: The Multicultural Revolt of 1811 (featuring W. Kamau Bell and Carvell Wallace)
Follow Garrison
Senior Producer: Kristen Bennett
Producer: Matt Gant
Story Editor: Julie Caine
Fact Checker: Sarah McClure
Production Supervisor: Hugo Salguero
Original music & sound design: Kyle Murdock
Executive Producer: N’Jeri Eaton
Head of Brand & Audience: Anhelo Reyes
Head of Video: Tonja Thigpen
Huge thanks to our partners at American Experiments
To Kevin, Allie, Dom, Simone, and last but not least — Mr. Benjamin.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices
-
33 min
Gloria Richardson and The Revolutionary Road to Change
Show notes
When Gloria Richardson pushed a National Guardsman’s bayonet out of her face, she captured the defiant spark that made her one of the most important figures of the civil rights and Black liberation struggles. Governor Wes Moore of Maryland joins Garrison to talk about the lasting legacy of the woman known as “The Lady General of Civil Rights.”
Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack
Show Notes
Guest:Governor Wes Moore
Want to learn more?
Read:
The Struggle is Eternal: Gloria Richardson and Black LiberationCivil War on Race Street: The Civil Rights Movement in Cambridge, Maryland
Watch: Gloria Hayes Richardson Oral History InterviewGloria Richardson Talks About the Civil Rights Movement in Cambridge, Maryland
Follow Garrison
Senior Producer: Kristen Bennett
Producer: Matt Gant
Story Editor: Julie Caine
Fact Checker: Sarah McClure
Production Supervisor: Hugo Salguero
Original music & sound design: Kyle Murdock
Executive Producer: N’Jeri Eaton
Head of Brand & Audience: Anhelo Reyes
Head of Video: Tonja Thigpen
Huge thanks to our partners at American Experiments
To Kevin, Allie, Dom, Simone, and last but not least — Mr. Benjamin.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices
-
27 min
Dick Gregory and The Art of Subversive Comedy (with Josh Johnson)
Season 1, Episode 3
Show notes
How did comedy get so… political? Well, we have Dick Gregory to partially thank for that. Garrison and comedian/The Daily Show host Josh Johnson talk about Gregory’s subversive brand of political comedy, his activism and how he put his values above the fear of being cancelled.
Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack
Show Notes
Guest: Josh Johnson
Want to learn more?
Read:
Dick Gregory’s Political Primer
Watch:
Follow Garrison
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices
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33 min
How to Expose a Genocide: The George Washington Williams Story
Season 1, Episode 2
Show notes
Do you ever feel powerless in the face of an atrocity? Well, that never stopped George Washington Williams, a Black man who went from being a “barely literate” veteran to a crusader who exposed a genocide in the Congo and nearly toppled a king. Garrison and activist Mohammed Elnaiem discuss how we can learn from someone who let his faith and love for Black people around the world guide his actions.
Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack
Show Notes
Guest: Mohammed Elnaiem
Want to learn more?
Read:
George Washington Williams: A Biography
History of the Negro Race: 1619-1880
Watch:
More on the crisis in the Congo:
Follow Garrison
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices
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27 min
The Future According to Octavia Butler
Season 1, Episode 1
Show notes
Episode 1 - The Future According to Octavia Butler
Sci-Fi author Octavia Butler seemed to have predicted our dystopian present over 30 years ago. But can her understanding of history help us change our future? Garrison and Erika Alexander (actor and futurist) discuss the power of radical imagination and the lasting impact of her work.
Who’s a defiant person you think we should feature on the show? Or do you have a story about someone who inspired you to be “about that life"? Leave us a voicemail at 814-326-2866.
Support the show by subscribing on Substack.
Guest: Erika Alexander
Want to learn more?
Read:
Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler
Watch:
Octavia Butler: A Cautionary Tale
Octavia Butler Interview with Julie Dash
Follow Garrison Hayes:
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://megaphone.fm/adchoices
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2 min
Introducing About That Life with Garrison Hayes Trailer
Show notes
Lessons from the defiant ones– past and present. Coming August 26, 2026.
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