The NAACP is launching original podcast series “Our Culture, Our Stories,” promising intimate and “unfiltered” conversations with an array of media and entertainment luminaries about navigating adversity, celebrating excellence and fostering community strength.
Guests appearing in the 12-episode series include: actors Sterling K. Brown, Ryan Michelle Bathé, Hill Harper and Aja Naomi King; comedian Roy Wood Jr.; documentary filmmaker Dawn Porter; Oscar-winning costume designer Ruth Carter; academic and TV personality Henry Louis Gates; journalists Scott Evans and Trymaine Lee; authors Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, Brea Baker and LaDarrion Williams; and actor-social activist Kendrick Sampson. Additional guests are to be announced later.
“Our Culture, Our Stories” premieres Thursday, Jan. 9, on major podcast platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts. The podcast is a companion to the NAACP Image Awards, celebrating excellence in the arts. Nominees for the 2025 Image Awards are to be announced Tuesday (Jan. 7). New episodes of “Our Culture, Our Stories” will be released biweekly leading up to the 56th NAACP Image Awards, airing live on BET and CBS on Feb. 22.
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The inaugural episode of “Our Culture, Our Stories” features Image Award winner Sterling K. Brown and his wife, actor Ryan Michelle Bathé, who “share insights into navigating the demands of Hollywood while upholding their values, principles and artistic integrity,” according to the NAACP. The parents of two discuss the cultural significance of the NAACP Image Awards, highlighting its impact on amplifying Black voices and driving social change, along with faith, aspirations and more.
“The NAACP Image Awards and ‘Our Culture, Our Stories’ are powerful platforms that do more than celebrate the accomplishments of Black icons and trailblazers — they demand change,” NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson said in a statement. “They remind us that true progress requires breaking down barriers and creating real opportunities where talent, passion and vision can thrive, allowing the next generation of activists, creators and entertainers to rise up with power and purpose, and transform the future.”
“Our Culture, Our Stories” is produced by the NAACP. The series provides a “safe space for celebrities, authors, actors, musicians, activists and other noteworthy personalities to share stories of triumph and unity,” according to the organization. “Within our shifting political and social surroundings, the telling of Black stories is more important than ever and ‘Our Culture, Our Stories’ offers a vibrant platform for such candid and exclusive conversations.”
Regarding the podcast’s launch, Kyle Bowser, senior VP of the NAACP Hollywood Bureau, said, “Black entertainers serve as proxies on behalf of a 42 million member community that consistently generates brilliant cultural assets ravenously consumed around the world. Their tenacity, resilience, and undeniable talent produce remarkable renderings of Black life that principally shape mainstream culture. The NAACP Image Awards and ‘Our Culture, Our Stories’ are franchises that spotlight the bold leaders and emerging trends that drive global commerce and narrative. The growing platform of NAACP media assets amplify the voices and properly credits the sources of humanity’s most influential cultural expressions.”
(Pictured above, l. to r.: Sterling K. Brown, Roy Wood Jr., Ruth Carter, Dawn Porter)