Season Two Of The Black Healing Remixed Podcast: Healing Journeys

 When you read a podcast marketing pitch so poetic and pristine like this one, you know the podcast will be ear-worthy.

"The Black Healing Remixed podcast is the front porch, the kitchen island, and that perfect seat on the couch where honest and transformative talks about healing and wellness unfold. Each episode celebrates Black healing in all its forms—beautiful, messy, imperfect, and joyous—while giving listeners the language and practical resources to embrace their own healing journeys."

After reading that statement, I'm ready to not only listen to season two, but go back and listen to season one, which I missed.

 The Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective (BEAM) announced the return of Black Healing Remixed: The Podcast for its second season on January 30th, 2024.

Hosted by Yolo Akili Robinson, BEAM’s Executive Director, award-winning author, and facilitator, alongside Natalie Patterson, BEAM’s Director of Training and Programs, teaching artist, and nationally acclaimed poet, this season continues to redefine Black wellness with powerful, unfiltered conversations that blend ancestral wisdom with today’s modern problems.

For season two, the good people at BEAM ask: "What does it mean to be well? And to cultivate well-being in everyday life?"

 The Black Healing Remix Podcast returns to answer questions like these. This new season continues to redefine Black wellness with powerful, unfiltered conversations that blend ancestral wisdom with today’s modern problems.

BEAM wants us to know that season two brings together a powerful lineup of guests, including renowned healers, advocates, and cultural voices who offer new perspectives on Black healing and wellness.

The first episode, that dropped on January 30th, featured Antonia Hylton, Emmy and Peabody award-winning author of Madness: Race & Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum. This inaugural second-season episode unpacks the troubling history of Crownsville State Hospital in Maryland and its reflection on modern mental health and prison systems.

I've listened to this episode, and it is powerful in its graphic descriptions of racism in health care. Hylton, a superb narrator and an incisive purveyor of history, explains, "We know the visible aspects of Jim Crow like separate water fountains and bathrooms." Then, Hylton describes the discrimination and unequal treatment in health care that Black people have experienced and continue to deal with.

At one point, host Robinson asks her about Crownsville, and Hylton explains that Black people committed to the facility actually had to build it first.

Crownsville was established in 1911 as a segregated hospital for African-American patients with mental illness. During its operation, the hospital faced chronic issues with overcrowding, underfunding, and poor conditions. In 1963, it was finally desegregated. It was closed in 2004 due to declining patient population and financial difficulties, and now exists as a park, community center, and historical museum.

As a co-host, Robinson is solid, asking leading questions and then getting out of the way so that the guest can shine. Natalie Patterson seems to bring a different energy than Robinson, and that's the sign of combustible chemistry that excites the listeners. They're good together and on their own.

I also was able to listen to the second episode featuring Tabitha Brown, celebrated actress, vegan lifestyle influencer, and author. On the show, she shared her journey to success and how she remains grounded by embracing her Southern roots.

The show was a powerful reminder of the importance of authenticity, rejecting societal (so-called) norms, and living true to who you are.

I commend the episode structure of the show. In the beginning, the synch beat intro music plays while listeners receive a summary of the guest and their topic from host Robinson. The intro music returns for a few seconds and then the interview starts. This structure reinforces an effective communications strategy: Tell them what you are going to tell them. Then tell them. Then remind them what you just told them.

What is BEAM, the organization that produces this podcast?BEAM is a national training, movement building, and grant making institution that is dedicated to the healing, wellness, and liberation of Black and marginalized communities.

BEAM is a national organization with a network across the United States. The organization has in-person monthly healing circles in our hub cities (Los Angeles & Atlanta) and coordinates with its network to provide funding, events, and in-person trainings in cities across the country.

"This season is giving insight into community and lived experience, tips on turning pain into promise and of course, laughter and a good time," says Patterson, underscoring the podcast’s mission for honesty, joy and growth.

Besides Hylton and Brown, season two brings together a powerful lineup of guests, including renowned healers, advocates, and cultural voices who offer new perspectives on Black healing and wellness; Courtney B. Vance, Dr. Robin L. Smith, and Devin Michael Lowe explore Black masculinity, mental health, and the power of vulnerability.

Morgan Parker, poet, and novelist, discusses her latest book You Give What You Pay For, which navigates personal struggles and systemic injustices.

Season two also features Dr. Jennifer Mullan, author of the national bestselling Decolonizing Therapy: Oppression, Historical Trauma & Politicizing Your Practice, and Dr. Evan Auguste, Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Massachusetts.

In a time of social and cultural change, Black Healing Remixed is a space for connection and understanding. The second season opener with Hylton is an inspiring start to the new year and Black History Month.

New episodes will drop monthly on the last Thursday of each month. The episodes are also available to watch on YouTube. BEAM urges listeners and viewers to join the conversation on its social channels for more conversations and resources.