What's Ray Saying Podcast: History Through The Eyes Of A Born Storyteller

 I first heard of the What's Ray Saying podcast from Demetrius Bagley, the Executive Director of the Black Podcasting Awards. Demetrius mentioned that this podcast had won multiple awards at the 2024 awards ceremony, so I had to check it out. I'm glad I did because this is one of the most narratively vibrant podcasts in the audio verse.

What is, What's Ray Saying about? Let Ray tell you: "From the repository of all Black knowledge, hidden away in the Western mountains of North Carolina...this podcast has been the triangulation of my entire life and to a perspective of the Black experience."

In the first episode in April 2016, Ray discusses life after slavery ended in the Southern United States.  In graphic terms, Ray explains that newly freed slaves were sometimes murdered by their former masters in retribution for the quest for freedom. Sadly, newly freed Blacks didn't know their family connections since slaves were interbred indiscriminately, so family lineage was often difficult or impossible to decipher. We learn that Black men could be imprisoned, beaten, or lynched for even looking at a White woman. 

Two of my other favorite episodes include the January 23, 2018, show called "Black American Naming Practices,"  when Ray explains how Africans brought over on slave ships were given English names and expected to use them despite not knowing the language. When railroads dominated transportation, Black porters in Pullman cars were all called George, a sobriquet for George Pullman, who owned the company that built the sleeping cars (and other railroad cars) and the industry. Later, Ray tells listeners that Malcolm X, the 60s Black activist, chose the name "X" to represent the loss of his family's African name during slavery. He was born Malcolm Little. 

 In the August 2019 episode, Ray discusses the complex relationship between Blacks and Native Americans. The show reveals how groups deemed to be subservient to the dominant group, Whites, sometimes collaborate and sometimes compete to get ahead in a society where they are required to be submissive.

The marketing pitch for the podcast says: "Enter a world of Southern-baked personal narratives, interwoven with Black American history, all told through the lens of Ray Christian's remarkable life. In each episode, the award-winning storyteller, combat veteran, historian, and devoted father of six, invites you to become part of his community, as he shares stories from the scenic mountains of Appalachia."

Let's find out who "Ray" is. Dr. Raymond Christian is a retired U.S. Army paratrooper who grew up on the poverty-ridden streets of Richmond, VA. The son of illiterate parents, his love for the written word sparked his dreams of a different life and led to many adventures, including seeming impossible educational achievements and life as an amateur farmer and professional family-man.

Ray is a Fulbright Specialist Scholar in Education with expertise in oral history and personal narrative. He is the only specialist in this field on the Fulbright roster, which makes him a uniquely qualified educator, facilitator, performer, and creator. 

At the Ray Christian School of Audio Production, he built a podcast from the ground up, teaching himself the necessary skills along the way. Today, What's Ray Saying? is part of the PRX family of podcasts and has won numerous national awards and recognitions.

It's commendable that Ray uses his unique combination of education and world experience to teach, inspire, and entertain.  From professional development workshops and fundraisers to keynote addresses, he uses the spoken word to connect to audiences and leave them encouraged and inspired to take on any challenge they might face.

 

Ray Christian has an MA in Public History and an EdS/ EdD in Education. His stories have been heard on the Moth Radio Hour, Snap Judgment, Spooked, and the Risk podcast.

As I mentioned earlier, Ray won two awards at the 2024 Black Podcasting Awards -- Best Solo Winner and Best History Podcast.

It's no secret that Ray has some of the most advanced narrative skills in the industry. His deep, rich voice never rushes the story. Instead, he uses pauses, silence, and emphasis to punctuate his tales with meaning and resonance.

I do admire how Ray and his team infuse energy into their evergreen episodes. First, they are classified as WRS Classics, a smart move that indie podcasts should emulate. As Danny Brown of Be A Better Podcaster always emphasizes, "You can promote traffic to your podcast by focusing time and effort in your archives."

Second, Ray explains at the opening of these classics that these older episodes sound different because they were made when he began the podcast by himself, but he insists that they were made with love.

What's Ray Saying takes a deeper view into Black life in America by examining the intersection of history, narrative, and experience. We need people like Ray to offer us an honest, informed, and "I lived it" viewpoint. Too often today, we have politicians and self-appointed culture warriors attempting to revise history through book bans, suppressing the history of oppressed groups, or simply refusing to accept any narrative in which the ruling class feels threatened.