Before You Go

10 Episodes
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By: Nicole Franklin, Bryant Monteilh

A First-Person Podcast with 100-year-old guests. It's a sit-down with history. The conversation many never get to have...until now. Hosts: Nicole Franklin and Bryant Monteilh. Visit us at BeforeYouGo.TV.

Before You Go: Join Us for News
01/24/2023

We've got exciting news coming up--which may explain why Before You Go will be in Memphis a number of times to set up for Season 4. Sign up for our Before You Go newsletter and find out!! Here's the link: https://forms.gle/VQRAmVRdrefDmFjo7 Thanks, BYG Fam! 

 


Before You Go: Motor City Charm
#16
10/07/2022

Betty Chavis spent years as a star recruiter for Michigan Technological University.  If young people of color were to find their way far North to Houghton, MI, they needed someone to trust. Michigan Tech turned to Ms. Chavis, a Detroit native who grew up exploring all of her curiosities. An early career in dance led to sharing the stage with the best as in Katherine Dunham. Then Ms. Chavis formed her own company, performed for legends and opened her own charm center for Motown's finest. Detroit and its suburbs were her playground, and her heartbreak.  Hosts Nicole Franklin and Br...


Before You Go: Undying Love Devotion and Respect
#15
09/24/2022

When Ajuma Muhammad was approached with a four-year old Black boy terrorizing the classroom, he relied on his years of practice and observations from his world travels to address  the  client's concerns. As we continue to perpetuate a climate where stress and distress affect the life expectancy of Black men, dedicated professionals like Mr. Muhammad are even more in demand. His loving and familial approach to healing definitely stem from African roots. This author of 101 Proven and Effective Strategies for Empowering Black Boys has  thoughts on how life's choices and  care for one another are the answer to productive live...


Before You Go: The Ballot The Bullet The Incarcerated Seniors
#15
09/24/2022

Audiences tune in to Before You Go for first-hand accounts of the lives of our seniors. What about those of a certain age behind bars? Is death-by-incarceration being discussed enough in mainstream conversation? Formerly incarcerated Yusef Jones is currently out on parole after being sentenced to 30 to 60 years in a correctional facility known for its large population of lifers. In discussing the reality of coming into the system as a young man and leaving as a senior, Mr. Jones  shares rare insight into how to survive behind bars. Education, mentoring  and hope are first and foremost, according to our gue...


Before You Go: The South Bend Stop on The Underground Railroad
#14
08/29/2022

Career educator and Michiana griot Brother Sage and wife Charlotte Pfeifer Gillam, a community advocate, activist and pioneering politician share a loving approach to African American history. Community  is everything to this South Bend, Indiana couple who hail from various locations prior to their current home including Ohio, Michigan and East St. Louis, IL.  In this episode they give an audio tour of the travels of enslaved peoples via the Midwestern Underground Railroad route  and its conditions at the time. The two are also generous with their advice on pursuing education, the power of HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Uni...


Before You Go: Fannie Lou Hamer Takes Center Stage
#13
08/22/2022

Diana Solomon-Glover answered the call from her friend and musical collaborator Chandler Carter to pursue a commission by the Santa Fe Opera for new works.  They presented the story of Fannie Lou Hamer as an opera, won the commission and  the upcoming debut is sure to be a theatrical experience like no other.

Diana is a longtime friend of Before You Go co-host Nicole Franklin. In this interview, Franklin and Bryant Monteilh learn first-hand how classical  music and African American stories are what audiences have been waiting for, and in which Diana brings a lifetime of classical mus...


Before You Go: Canada Emancipation Day
#12
08/22/2022

August 1 in Canada is cause for a joyous occasion:  Emancipation Day! Before You Go was honored to hear all about the journey to commemorating the freeing of enslaved people from Rosemary Sadlier OOnt (Order of Ontario), a champion of African Canadian education for Canadian residents. Just like crusader Opal Lee's efforts pushed national holiday status for Juneteenth in the United States, Sadlier spent a lifetime bringing  African Canadian history to national recognition.

Unlike the United States and South America, slavery was abolished across the British Commonwealth (which includes Canada) in 1834.

Sadlier, a prolific author and pa...


Before You Go: Five Stars for a Two Star Major General
#11
07/22/2022

When this two star major general shared details of his military and Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD)  experience with our show, we knew it would be special. For the hosts there was also a jaw-dropping moment  (or two)  due to Major General Gravett's courage, agility, incredible heart and humility.  Hold onto your seat! 

This talented  hero, awarded the Medal of Valor, also  shares crucial information  that addresses the health and wellness of veterans, especially in California where he was appointed as a cabinet member to oversee their benefits. This Major General takes his role very seriously. and for this...


Before You Go: Return To Buffalo
#10
07/18/2022

Before You Go first interviewed Mother Doyle days after the terrorist attack where an 18 year-old white supremacist dressed in tactical gear fatally wounded 10 people in his mission to kill all the Black people he could. Mother Doyle does her usual grocery run on Saturdays at 2pm. She would have been there had she not gone to pick up her dry cleaning that afternoon. Unfortunately her friend and writing colleague Kat Massey was shopping that day and became victim to this horrific tragedy.

Mother Doyle is a columnist of 44 years for the city's oldest Black newspaper, The Buffalo...


Before You Go: Seniors on Skid Row
#9
07/04/2022

Rev. Andy Bales has  fought to end homelessness in Los Angeles County for more than three decades.  His tales of life on the streets of Skid Row illustrate the emergency situation in which Los Angeles has found itself. An average of 5.5 people die daily in LA County when they are  unhoused. Bales and his team at Union Rescue Mission have provided housing, counseling, job programs and much more. Seniors end up homeless for a variety of reasons. When they do they find themselves in a situation that is said to reduce life expectancy by nearly 30 years.  

This epis...