Go Black Boy Go

Jalen Thompson

“Go Black Boy Go” is a podcast where I share personal reflections on Black queer identity & Black masculinity. Join me, Jalen Thompson, as I navigate raw, intimate, & hilarious conversations with friends, family, artists, & intellectuals about Black & queer culture, life, & history. New episodes every Saturday.

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Top 10 Go Black Boy Go Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Go Black Boy Go episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Go Black Boy Go for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Go Black Boy Go episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Black Christmas TV History: The Variety Special

Go Black Boy Go

12/24/20 • 22 min

The Christmas variety special is a staple on television during the holiday season, but black musicians have been historically barred from hosting their own Christmas themed specials. In this episode, discuss the evolution of the Black Christmas variety special. NOTE: This is the early stages of some research I've been doing on Black Christmas TV History. And comments or suggestions are greatly appreciated!

Follow Go Black Boy Go on Twitter / IG @goblackboygo. Listen on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, and Podbean and wherever else you get your podcasts. DON'T FORGET to leave a review on iTunes and share the episodes on your social medias!

Christmas Music Videos & Variety Specials

The Nat King Cole Show:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wiPAg7NqRZY&list=PLqpoib1cR6hwoVWh0bMEv8gHTV6aclzEG&index=37&t=13s&ab_channel=reelblack

Kurtis Blow’s Christmas Rappin’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xUFnGWWtoQ&ab_channel=ChristmasTimeTV

Run DMC’s Christmas In Hollis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OR07r0ZMFb8&ab_channel=RUNDMCVEVO

This is Christmas: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trFv63cMk4M&ab_channel=LutherVandrossVEVO

Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to You:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zdsBvXegt0&t=1s&ab_channel=StarlightMedia

A Legendary Christmas with John and Chrissy:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRjfq6QUjGM&ab_channel=johnlegendVEVO

Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2bx3FzgJ6o&ab_channel=MariahCareyVEVO

References

I use the phrase “the afterlives of slavery” from black feminist scholar Saidiya Hartman’s Lose Your Mother

History of Christmas: https://www.history.com/topics/christmas/history-of-christmas

The Slave Experience of the Holidays: https://docsouth.unc.edu/highlights/holidays.html

How slaves celebrated Christmas in America: https://thegrio.com/2013/12/25/how-slaves-celebrated-christmas/

Chapter 22 “Christmas Festivities” from Incidents in the Life of A Slave Girl

Chapter 10 from Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass

Diane Werts, Christmas on Television: https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Television-Praeger-Collection/dp/0275983315

Joanna Wilson, Christmas TV History, episode 4: Variety: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/p

Hearing Back from Programs

Go Black Boy Go

07/10/20 • 25 min

*Originally released July 9, 2018*

In this episode, Jalen gives a few tips on hearing back from programs.

Recap of tips:

Tip #1: Get back in touch with professors at the beginning of the semester.

Tip #2: Even though it might not feel like it, you’re interviewing them, not the other way around.

Tip #3: Prepare questions: about the program, about your research interests, about the weather etc.

Tip #4: You know when a program is not for you. It’s a feeling.

Tip #5: Find someone (a professor, a mentor, a peer) you can talk to about the whole experience.

Tip #6: Just because you don’t go to the school, doesn’t mean you have to stop talking to the professor.

Tip #7: You don’t have to rush to make a decision.

Tip #8: Rejecting Programs is harder than you think.

Tip #9: Take advantage of visitation weekends.

Follow Go Black Boy Go on Twitter / Instagram @goblackboygo, the host on Twitter @jalenthompso. Listen on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, and Podbean and wherever else you get your podcasts. DON'T FORGET to leave a review on iTunes and share the episodes on your social medias!

Research.

Go Black Boy Go

07/09/20 • 24 min

*Originally released May 27, 2018*

Research. Prepare. Apply. These are the steps you should take in applying to graduate school. For the next few episodes Jalen covers these three steps. In this segment, he discusses researching grad programs.

Links:

"You Had Me at Black": Instragram: (@you-had-me-at-black)/ https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools / Research internships: www.csuohio.edu/mcnair-scholars/opportunities (Even though it says it's for McNair Scholars, I believe their are some openings for students who are not McNair Scholars.)/ You can also go to Google and type in "summer research internship programs" and see what you find.

REVIEW: All-Stars 5, Episode 5

Go Black Boy Go

07/07/20 • 48 min

Jalen and his best Judy Will discuss The Snatch Game of Love.

Music-DJ Tony Playboi-I Was Waiting On You At The Door: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxbE6nnoKkA / Follow the Judys: Will’s Instagram @willyum.jpeg; Jalen’s Podcast on Instagram & Twitter @goblackboygo

REVIEW: All Stars 5

Go Black Boy Go

06/16/20 • 55 min

Best Judys Will and Jalen discuss the first two episodes of All Stars 5.

Seeing Queer (feat. Fred Bouie)

Go Black Boy Go

06/16/20 • 81 min

Jalen has a conversation about queer media representation with his friend and filmmaker, Fred Bouie.

Media Discussed:

The Golden Girls

Will & Grace

My So Called Life

The Real World: San Fransisco

That’s So Raven

Noah’s Arc

Queer as Folk

Please Like Me

Brokeback Mountain

Glee

Drag Race

Moonlight

Call Me By Your Name

Love, Simon

Alex Strangelove

If Beale Street Could Talk

Pain and Glory

Filmmakers Mentioned:

Marlon Riggs

Issac Julien

Follow Go Black Boy Go on Twitter / Instagram @goblackboygo, the host on Twitter @jalenthompso and Fred on IG @bouie.fred.l. NonFiction & Animated Mind:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoj_Twpszz8snixT-xwEhCA/featured. Listen on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, and Podbean!