Charity City Arts is launching a new podcast series called ‘Community Conversations’. The podcast will look at the lives of black and mixed-race black members of Nottingham’s creative community. It is hosted by arts journalist Rachel Willcocks, with a different guest appearing each week.
The podcast will explore its guests’ creative processes, the 2020 anti-racism protests and mental health. They will also look at entrepreneurship and the guests’ experiences of navigating the pandemic.
The guests on the six-part series are:
- MELONYX – a Nottingham based duo making modern black-British Soul music
- Jeremy Prince – a Rave, Drum’n’Bass and House DJ and co-organiser of Nottingham Carnival
- Norma Gregory – a historian, broadcaster, heritage consultant and arts curator
- Nathaniel Wilson – founder of Mimm & Nottingham Street Food Club
- Michaela Spencer – poet and founder of Truth Mental Health
- Ramario Chevoy – a model, stylist, dance teacher and social media influencer
The Community Conversations podcast is one part of a bigger programme called CATALYST. The programme of activities was devised by Saziso Phiri, City Arts’ first ‘Curator in Residence’. It is a response to commitments made by the organisation following the Summer 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. It also includes support for local artist Honey Williams and photographer Richard Chung to be Artists in Residence at City Arts’ building in Hockley. They will be mounting a series of exhibitions, that explore anti-black racism, currently postponed due to the lockdown.
Saziso Phiri, City Arts’ Curator in Residence, said:
“I wanted to produce a series in which highlighted some of Nottingham’s creative community, providing insight and inspiration for listeners, particularly for aspiring creatives of African-Caribbean heritage. Whilst it was still important to still speak about racism, it was also important to give space for discussion outside of it - a space where they could speak passionately about what drives their creativity. The experiences of black people are not monolithic and our identities are much more than the struggles and suffering of racism.”
Rachel Willcocks interviews Norma Gregory. Photo by Artist in Residence Richard Chung, 2020
Suzannah Bedford, City Arts Director, said:
“We are really excited to launch this podcast. It highlights the experiences of some of the most passionate drivers of creativity in Nottingham. Starting with the programme Saziso has designed for us, we aim to create a culture of investing in, listening to and amplifying marginalized voices at City Arts. We will do this by working with artists that reflect the diversity of our city.”
The first episode of Community Conversations is now online. The guest is Jeremy Prince, a pioneering Rave, Drum’n’Bass and House DJ in Nottingham and co-organiser of Nottingham Carnival.
Community Conversations will be available for download and listening on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Overcast, Pocket Casts, RadioPublic, YouTube and the City Arts website.
