“For little kids like us growing up in the South to see someone that looked like you on the screen is super important, but I now need the white person to see the Asian story. I need the Asian person to see the Black story — representation matters on a lot of fronts.”  

Keith Chow is the founder of the Nerds of Color, where Raman was recently a guest on one of Keith’s podcasts — “Southern Fried Asian.” Typically, stories about Asian Americans are centered on the experiences of those who grew up on the coasts -- New York, Southern California, the Bay Area -- where large and diverse Asian Americans communities have lived and thrived for decades. On Southern Fried Asian, Keith takes a look at a part of  the country that isn't typically associated with these stories and unpack what it means to be Asian American in the American South. Keith grew up in rural Virginia, and as you know, Raman grew up in (the suburbs of) the great state of Alabama, so was really interested to have a chat with Keith to compare notes on solving racism with podcasts, what politics ought to look like in the South, the secret identities of superheroes, and of course, mom’s channa bhatura. Beyond being a podcast impresario, Keith is also one of the original creators of Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology, alongside Jeff Yang, Parry Shen, and Jerry Ma. Keith’s writing has appeared in The New York Times and NBC News. Vanity Fair has called him an “incisive interviewer and chummy conversationalist” - so it’s no wonder that Raman and Keith got along famously...

LEARN ABOUT KEITH

• https://southernfriedasian.libsyn.com/
• twitter.com/southernasians // instagram.com/southernfriedasians
• Hardnocmedia.com
• BOOK: Secret Identities: The Asian American Superhero Anthology - goodreads.com/book/show/5416739-secret-identities

MENTIONS

• BOOK: The Loneliest Americans (Jay Caspian Kang) - goodreads.com/en/book/show/58145392
• NAME: Kal-El (Clark Kent) - babynames.com/name/kal-el
• FILM: Always Be My Maybe (2019) - imdb.com/title/tt7374948/

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“I didn't realize how much I missed live events — and then I did that first in-person again. And the laughter is amazing - this is what that energy feels like. So for me having the vaccines helps me be able to do that.”  

Andrew Tarvin is a Humor Engineer. He’s also a longtime FrieMMd of the Pod, and Raman’s other, other podcast host. Drew  joins us for another conversation about the importance of getting your latest COVID latest vaccine - sponsored by the US department of Health & Human Services. Drew’s an internationally known speaker and trainer - who once a digital nomad, now travels the world with his wife and young daughter. We chat about how vaccines have changed his work and life for the better - making so much more possible. Also, why vanilla milkshakes aren’t necessarily a bad thing for being an honorary Modern Minority (host)

LEARN ABOUT DREW

• DrewTarvin.com
• “the Skill of Humor” - youtu.be/MdZAMSyn_As
• Our OTHER Pod: “Learnings from Leaders” - pgalums.com/podcast

MENTIONS:

• PLACE: Panama: youtu.be/fuKDBPw8wQA
• PLACE: Suriname: wikipedia.org/wiki/Suriname
• BOOK: Humor Seriously: goodreads.com/en/book/show/52578860
• PLACE: Graeter’s Ice Cream (Cincinnati)
• COMEDY: Nate Bargatze “Hello World” - amazon.com/Nate-Bargatze-Hello-World/dp/B0B856WWSB

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

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“People have their assumptions about my faith...and I love getting to change every perception”

Sarah Z Salem is an Egyptian American Muslim in Atlanta by way of Philly. Sarah’s not our first Muslim American guest, but for the month of Ramadan we wanted to feature diverse voices from the culture. As a community advocate, Sarah strives to bring forward voices and stories of those most impacted by climate change and injustice. And as a practicing Muslim - she’s spent most of her life navigating her faith while also deepening her sense of self and identity. Be it her choice to cover (or not cover) her hair, being a cancer survivor, and even finding love - Sarah shares how she has always challenged the assumptions and perceptions that others may have - to shift the narrative. And she’s not stopping anytime soon.

This episode originally aired in April 2021 and is part of our celebration of Muslim American voices and stories this Ramadan.

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

LEARN ABOUT SARAH

• instagram.com/sarah311z/
• gridalternatives.org/headquarters/about/staff/hq-sarah-salem

MENTIONS:

• FILM: “Someone Great” (2019) - imdb.com/title/tt8075260/
• PERSON: Malcolm X - wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_X

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“Who controls the rhythm of the algorithm?” 

Azhar Usman is a Muslim American writer, actor, comedian, producer - and many other things - of Indian descent (by way of Chicago). Dave Chappelle once declared, “Azhar’s like a comedian from the future.” One of the most outspoken voices of his generation, Azhar’s a writer & Co-Executive Producer for Hulu’s award-winning RAMY (stop what you’re doing and watch this show NOW). Marvel Studios recently also announced that Azhar would be joining the MCU in the highly anticipated Disney+ show MS.MARVEL (Raman fan-girls over the comic it’s based on). Azhar’s worked on comedic projects for Netflix, Hannibal Buress, Mo Amer, and Hasan Minhaj (he served as a writer for Minhaj’s epic 2017 White House Correspondents Dinner speech). Azhar co-created ‘ALLAH MADE ME FUNNY–The Official Muslim Comedy Tour’ (which toured 20+ countries across 5 continents), toured India for the US State Department as part of “Make Chai Not War”, was named one of ‘The 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World’ (Georgetown University), and called ‘America’s Funniest Muslim’ by CNN.  Oh and he’s a father of four, former attorney, and dotcom entrepreneur - so at least we know his parents are proud of something. As we continue our conversations with Muslim Americans for the Holy month of Ramadan - this is a deep one you’re going to enjoy, so buckle your seat belts...

This episode originally aired in April 2021 and is part of our celebration of Muslim American voices and stories this Ramadan.

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

LEARN ABOUT AZHAR

• Azhar.com
• @azharcomedy (Instagram, Twitter)
• youtube.com/user/azharusman

MENTIONS

• TV: Ramy (Hulu): imdb.com/title/tt7649694
• TV: 90 Day Fiancé - imdb.com/title/tt3469050
• BOOK: The White Tiger (Aravind Adiga): goodreads.com/book/show/1768603.The_White_Tiger
• PERSON: Mansur Al-Hallaj ابو المغيث الحسين بن منصور الحلاج‎ (Sufi Mystic): wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Hallaj

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“Privilege is occupying more space than is reasonably allotted for one person.”

Misha Euceph is podcast. A Pakistani-American writer, podcast host, and producer - Misha also happens to be Founder & CEO of Dustlight Productions, the critically acclaimed podcast studio that has worked on podcast projects with Spotify, Bruce Springsteen, Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Rolling Stone, and many more. She’s also the creator and host of the podcast "Tell Them, I Am" - a series about the small defining moments in our lives— where the voices are all Muslim, but the stories are universal. the NY Times, LA Times, TIME, The Atlantic, Esquire, Cosmopolitan, and Huffington Post, have named it among their best podcasts. Misha is also frequently featured on IGTV, McSweeney’s, and The Wall Street Journal. Basically, Misha and Dustlight want to make mission-driven podcasts for and with awesome people. Misha only got her podcasting start in 2017, and has quickly become an important voice for today's times, speaking on storytelling, identity, and ethical entrepreneurship.

This great, funny conversation on identity and belonging comes from longtime FrieMMd of the Pod Rajiv Satyal, on HIS talk show "What Do You Bring To The Table" — where Rajiv spotlights prominent South Asian voices. Rajiv has spoken with Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Comedian Hasan Minhaj, author Deepak Chopra, influencer Lilly Singh, journalist Manu Raju, TV personality Tan France, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and many more. You can SEE lots more of Rajiv's video conversations at WatchRajiv.com. 

LEARN ABOUT MISHA

• mishaeuceph.com
• dustlight.co
• instagram.com/meuceph // twitter.com/meuceph
• HowToMakeaPodcast.org
• RAJIV’S TALKSHOW: WatchRajiv.com

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“A lot of people have stopped wearing masks, but In terms of service industries and entertainment, if you take a look around, we're all still wearing them. The bodies we are putting out onto a stage are human bodies and if we can find a way to make sure they're protected, of course, we'll do that. We love our actors, we love our performers, and it's an easy thing for us to do.”

Jhanay Williams is a Caribbean-American creative marketer, theater producer and entrepreneur. She has several years of experience in international marketing, business development, brand strategy, and digital advertising. She holds a Master's Degree in Global Communications, with a focus in Visual & Material Culture. Jhanay is passionate about building unique, personalized, and creative stories for brands globally – backed by her academic background in art, languages, and international communications, as well as 24+ countries visited before the age of 24. 

You’ll love this fresh take on seeing the world through a different lens. Jhanay chats with us about how she’s been told that she “speaks White,” and how her global travels taught her to be an expert outsider, but also helped her to discover her own identity and place in the world. Jhanay gives us an inside look into the entertainment industry today, and how crowds coming together in-person to watch their favorite singers, dancers and entertainers are protected by crews who are committed to keeping everyone healthy with updated vaccines and regimented COVID protocols behind-the-scenes.

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

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“Our original WHY for all of this was so folks could get a better sense of what someone else's experience is like.” “...but we're NOT an Asian podcast - this is an American podcast.”

After TWO HUNDRED episodes, Sharon & Raman reflect on where we’ve been (with you), and where we’re going. We grapple with the heavier questions of why do we even DO this podcast, and why should we keep it going (and if so, how)? It’s a friendly reflection and discussion that’s equal parts realistic and hopeful, and we want you to weigh in. What do you think? Email us himom@modmypod.com. Not only will we send you some stickers (LOL), but YOUR take on our podcast will help us figure out what we want do next

MENTIONS

• Hassan MInhaj + Ronny Chiang have it out: youtu.be/szWiVSCwdSk
• BOOK: Storyworthy: goodreads.com/en/book/show/37786022
• RESTAURANT: Nyonya - yelp.com/biz/nyonya-new-york

GUESTS (Past, Present Co-Hosts, Future Wishlist):

• PAST GUESTS (we want to bring back): Eric Rivera, Gene Luen Yang, Mariko Tamaki, Mira Jacob, Mita Mallick, Suzy Shinn, Tyanne Binal
• FUTURE GUESTS (we want on the show): Bob Gilbreath, Dan Santat, Fareed Zakaria, Jessica Alba, Kara Swisher, Marques Brownlee, Mehdi Hasan, Michelle Yeoh, Misha Euceph, Patrick H Willems, Rajiv & Drew’s Moms, Rivers Cuomo, Sharon’s Dad
• POTENTIAL GUEST CO-HOSTS (?): Drew Tarvin, Rajiv Satyal, Matt Story, Seif Hamid, Steven Wakabayashi, Suzanne Sinatra

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“You have to meet patients where they are — having a fact-sharing conversation, respecting their choices and opinions, and taking care of people. That gets me further than judgment.”

Dr. Bhavik Kumar is a family physician and serves as the medical director for primary and trans care at Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast based in Houston — where he has been an abortion provider in his home state of Texas since 2015. He completed med school at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, and did his residency and fellowship in Bronx, New York, and also has his Masters in Public Health at Columbia University. Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, there’s been increased chaos and confusion across the country. Communities of color have always had difficulty accessing abortion, whether due to abortion stigma, medical disinformation, language barriers, immigration status, or racism in the health care system. Roe's overturn has hit minority communities the hardest. With so much disinformation, and frankly stigmas in our communities that embolden anti-abortion views, we wanted to unpack how Dr. Bhavik navigates it all - running from his experience becoming an abortion provider, and how he’s been working with patients, especially with immigrants and communities of color. 

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

LEARN ABOUT DR. BHAVIK

• aclu.org/bio/dr-bhavik-kumar
• twitter.com/txabortiondoc

MENTIONS

• BOOK: Middlesex (Jeffrey Eugenides) - goodreads.com/book/show/2187.Middlesex
• BOOK: She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb) - goodreads.com/book/show/5203.She_s_Come_Undone
• PERSON: Loretta Ross (Sister Song) - wikipedia.org/wiki/Loretta_Ross

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“Everyone has something that’s extraordinary, but it's not based on just limiting yourself to being the only person.”

Paris Hatcher is an amazing force — a black queer visionary feminist who is the executive director at Black Feminist Future. She also runs another organization called Black Freedom Outfitters, which aims to get folks outside and into nature. Paris is very passionate about women's rights, very passionate about queer rights, very passionate about empowering more black feminists in the world, and her unique self experience of being at the intersection of many of these things gives her a very unique perspective. From growing up in Greensboro, North Carolina, to creaitng new roots and connections in Atlanta, Paris has had an amazing journey - inspiring many and expanding her efforts to include more and make a real difference for folks in underserved and marginalized communities.

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

LEARN ABOUT PARIS

• Blackfeministfuture.org
• Blackfreedomoutfitters.com
• instagram.com/harrietsrevenge
• twitter.com/parishatcher
• itsnicethat.com/news/black-feminist-future-abortion-is-freedom-advertising-221122
• essence.com/op-ed/feminist-realities-reproductive-justice/
• sjiportalproject.com/participant/paris-hatcher/

MENTIONS

• PLACE: Iceland: wikipedia.org/wiki/Iceland
• SHOW: 227 / Sandra: imdb.com/title/tt0088470/
• PERSON: Nanny of the Maroons: wikipedia.org/wiki/Nanny_of_the_Maroons
• PERSON: Harriet Tubman: wikipedia.org/wiki/Harriet_Tubman
• PERSON: Audrey Lord: wikipedia.org/wiki/Audre_Lorde

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“There isn't a way to be or behave that's connected to a color in my view. But I think there are some cultural norms that exist.”

What does it even mean to “talk white” or “act black”? Kenyatte Nelson might live in Liverpool, but his life and career have spanned Charleston (SC), Tallahassee (FL), Cincinnati (OH), Geneva (CH), and Manchester (UK). Once declared Esquire’s best dressed man (2008), this tall, dark, and handsome (brand) man shares his thoughts on the importance of empathy, kindness, and names - despite being often misunderstood, misinterpreted, or feared (even in a suit). As a Black man, Kenyatte thinks about the bias in his own mind, and what burdens he’s passing onto (or shielding from) his son. Hear our discussion on what we don’t want ANY of our children to feel and how different the world would (could?) be if we were all more comfortable owning up to our mistakes.

This episode originally aired in October 2020 and is part of our celebration of Black voices and stories this February.

LEARN ABOUT KENYATTE

• instagram.com/beautifulnoun
• twitter.com/beautifulnoun

MENTIONS - 

• SONG: “the Mask” (Fugees) t- https://spoti.fi/3ojWi4P
• TV: Fleabag - imdb.com/title/tt5687612
• BOOK: “The Art of Possibility” (Rosamund Stone Zander) - goodreads.com/book/show/85697.The_Art_of_Possibility

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