Capturing the fullness of the black experience - A conversation with Shola Gbemi
Listen here to full episode
〰️
Listen here to full episode 〰️
Today’s Guest is an author and project manager specialising in creating social change. He is from the Big Apple also known as NEW YORK. Shola comes onto the podcast to talk about his book They Were Chosen. We talk about the different themes that exist within the characters of this book and how they reflected his own journey. We also talk about his experiences of growing up in NYC and the impact these had on him. This episode is packed full of deep insightful discussions about the male gaze, your purpose and how to enact it every day.
I really enjoyed hearing about Shola’s perspective on purpose. Purpose doesn’t have to be a fixed point it can be ever-evolving as we grow and change. I think this perspective he brought was quite insightful and allows for others to not be pressured by society into thinking they need to have everything together all the time. It’s not necessary and causes stress which doesn’t add to your experience of life.
I am really looking forward to reading his book after this conversation, the themes that are discussed I think are important to our development as individuals. He chose to unpack themes such as mentorship, friendship, mental health, and relationships. All these different themes play huge parts in our lives. Applying friendship to my life, I’ve always been a person that can make friends easily. I think there are two reasons for this. One I am just a people person in general but secondly, I moved schools quite often, so I had to learn how to make friends and survive in school really. Even though I could make friends easily I never felt like I had close friends. I had a few but it didn’t feel like I’ll be friends with this person forever. Until I went to Uni that changed, I have met individuals who I know will be lifelong friends and whom I feel close to. I would say there are even friends who I knew during my childhood who have I solidified my friendships with but that's like two out of 20 so your friendships will change but that’s sometimes a good thing.
I also liked shining the light on the male gaze. For those that do not know what the male gaze is. I thought this YouTube video will help.
I hope you like this episode, go share it with someone you think would enjoy it
