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.
About that Spooky Life
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.
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Assata Shakur: In Her Own Words
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.
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The Slave Revolt They Tried to Erase
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.
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Gloria Richardson and The Revolutionary Road to Change
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.
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Dick Gregory and The Art of Subversive Comedy (with Josh Johnson)
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.
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Show Notes
Gue...
How to Expose a Genocide: The George Washington Williams Story
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 th...
The Future According to Octavia Butler
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 s...
Introducing About That Life on video
Lessons from the defiant ones– past and present. Coming August 26, 2026.
Introducing About That Life with Garrison Hayes
Lessons from the defiant ones– past and present. Coming August 26, 2026.
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