Kamau opens the episode recalling Misty Copeland’s surprise appearance at the Oscars shortly after her hip replacement, marveling at her return to elite performance so soon after surgery and the physical demands of ballet.

Copeland explains she had her farewell performance at American Ballet Theatre (ABT) after a 25‑year career, then learned she needed a hip replacement, which she welcomed as a solution to debilitating pain.

Misty and Kamau discuss the importance of accessibility to ballet and how her foundation brings free, culturally responsive ballet classes with live musicians into Black and brown communities.

They talk about Misty’s work with the legendary Prince, who pushed her to improvise on tour, boosting her confidence and drawing new audiences to ballet.

The conversation closes with advice to young Black and brown girls to stay rooted in joy, seek mentors, and remain open to support, and with a call for audiences to invest in the arts by attending performances and supporting organizations like the Misty Copeland Foundation.

You can support the Misty Copeland Foundation at mistycopelandfoundation.org

Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Part of the Pushkin Network.

Kamau opens the episode recalling Misty Copeland&rsquo;s surprise appearance at the Oscars shortly after her hip replacement, marveling at her return to elite performance so soon after surgery and the physical demands of ballet.
Copeland explains she had her farewell performance at American Ballet Theatre (ABT) after a 25‑year career, then learned she needed a hip replacement, which she welcomed as a solution to debilitating pain.
Misty and Kamau discuss the importance of accessibility to ballet and how her foundation brings free, culturally responsive ballet classes with live musicians into Black and brown communities.
They talk about Misty&rsquo;s work with the legendary Prince, who pushed her to improvise on tour, boosting her confidence and drawing new audiences to ballet.
The conversation closes with advice to young Black and brown girls to stay rooted in joy, seek mentors, and remain open to support, and with a call for audiences to invest in the arts by attending performances and supporting organizations like the Misty Copeland Foundation.
You can support the Misty Copeland Foundation at <a href="http://mistycopelandfoundation.org">mistycopelandfoundation.org</a>
Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Part of the Pushkin Network.

Kamau Bell is known for embracing uncomfortable conversations that acknowledge differences, confront embarrassment, and change people’s perspectives. Throughout his career, Kamau has talked with everyone from KKK members to Oprah Winfrey to strangers on the streets. Each time, Kamau fills these conversations with humor, heart, and intellect, showing that a simple conversation can lead to surprising revelations and spark change, one person at a time.

Kamau brings all that and more to his new weekly podcast, Who’s With Me? Inspired by Kamau’s popular Substack newsletter of the same name, Who’s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times. 

In every episode, Kamau addresses what has caught his attention in the current cultural or political landscape. He also sits down with someone he admires deeply—a time for Kamau to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place. Kamau will talk to celebrities, his fellow comedians, his fellow Oaklanders, activists, and sometimes he will talk to someone like Daveed Diggs, who is all of that in one body. So… who’s with Kamau? New episodes every Wednesday. 

Kamau Bell is known for embracing uncomfortable conversations that acknowledge differences, confront embarrassment, and change people&rsquo;s perspectives. Throughout his career, Kamau has talked with everyone from KKK members to Oprah Winfrey to strangers on the streets. Each time, Kamau fills these conversations with humor, heart, and intellect, showing that a simple conversation can lead to surprising revelations and spark change, one person at a time.
Kamau brings all that and more to his new weekly podcast,&nbsp;Who&rsquo;s With Me? Inspired by Kamau&rsquo;s popular Substack newsletter of the same name, Who&rsquo;s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times.&nbsp;
In every episode, Kamau addresses what has caught his attention in the current cultural or political landscape. He also sits down with someone he admires deeply&mdash;a time for Kamau to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place. Kamau will talk to celebrities, his fellow comedians, his fellow Oaklanders, activists, and sometimes he will talk to someone like Daveed Diggs, who is all of that in one body. So&hellip; who&rsquo;s with Kamau? New episodes every Wednesday.&nbsp;

Who's with Me? with W. Kamau Bell

Who’s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times. Every Wednesday, stand-up comedian W. Kamau Bell sits down with someone he admires deeply to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place.

W. Kamau Bell is a Peabody Award winner, 4X Emmy Award winner, documentary filmmaker, Celebrity Jeopardy! champion, Official Ambassador of the band Fishbone, self-proclaimed #1 Bruce Lee Expert (non-Asian division), part-time activist, and full-time family man. Kamau is also known for his CNN docuseries United Shades of America, his four-part docuseries We Need To Talk About Cosby, and for scrawling “HAHA!” over his enemies’ faces on his Instagram account.

Who&rsquo;s With Me? is more than just a simple question. It is an invitation to connect, a call to action, and a reassuring pat on the shoulder in these increasingly hectic times. Every Wednesday, stand-up comedian W. Kamau Bell sits down with someone he admires deeply to give them their flowers, ask his most burning questions, and invite his guest to give him and his audience homework on how to make the world a better place.
W. Kamau Bell is a Peabody Award winner, 4X Emmy Award winner, documentary filmmaker, Celebrity Jeopardy! champion, Official Ambassador of the band Fishbone, self-proclaimed #1 Bruce Lee Expert (non-Asian division), part-time activist, and full-time family man. Kamau is also known for his CNN docuseries United Shades of America, his four-part docuseries We Need To Talk About Cosby, and for scrawling &ldquo;HAHA!&rdquo; over his enemies&rsquo; faces on his Instagram account.

Misty Copeland on Reinventing Ballet and Herself

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/1070395f-d4aa-4b4d-94d7-b481001d0515/transcript

Kamau sits down with Leslie Jones for a raw, funny, and fiercely honest journey through becoming one of Saturday Night Live’s most unforgettable forces, and why she ultimately had to walk away. She explains the emotional grind of SNL, and the insane internet reaction to the announcement of an all-female Ghostbusters.

Jones traces how Chris Rock helped propel her toward Saturday Night Live, including the controversy over SNL’s lack of Black women and her long‑gestating “slave joke,” written from a bad date in 1999 and eventually used in her audition for SNL and on Weekend Update. 

She describes arriving at SNL as a writer, the brutal table reads, and the psychological grind of the show’s 200‑hour weeks, breaking down the Monday-Saturday schedule in detail.

Jones explains how profound family losses—her parents dying within a year and her brother a decade later—pushed her into fearless living and fueled her pursuit of comedy.

She shares behind‑the‑scenes SNL stories; from Black Trump and Weekend Update chemistry to how sketches live or die, and why “the good ones always want to leave.”

Later, Jones recounts the racist abuse and hacking she endured after Ghostbusters, including leaked nudes, and uses it to talk about social media toxicity and the fragility of fandom.

To support Brown Bag Lady’s mission to feed LA’s homeless community, visit brownbaglady.org, and donate to Planned Parenthood at plannedparenthood.org .

Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Part of the Pushkin Network.

Kamau sits down with Leslie Jones for a raw, funny, and fiercely honest journey through becoming one of Saturday Night Live&rsquo;s most unforgettable forces, and why she ultimately had to walk away. She explains the emotional grind of SNL, and the insane internet reaction to the announcement of an all-female Ghostbusters.
Jones traces how Chris Rock helped propel her toward Saturday Night Live, including the controversy over SNL&rsquo;s lack of Black women and her long‑gestating &ldquo;slave joke,&rdquo; written from a bad date in 1999 and eventually used in her audition for SNL and on Weekend Update.&nbsp;
She describes arriving at SNL as a writer, the brutal table reads, and the psychological grind of the show&rsquo;s 200‑hour weeks, breaking down the Monday-Saturday schedule in detail.
Jones explains how profound family losses&mdash;her parents dying within a year and her brother a decade later&mdash;pushed her into fearless living and fueled her pursuit of comedy.
She shares behind‑the‑scenes SNL stories; from Black Trump and Weekend Update chemistry to how sketches live or die, and why &ldquo;the good ones always want to leave.&rdquo;
Later, Jones recounts the racist abuse and hacking she endured after Ghostbusters, including leaked nudes, and uses it to talk about social media toxicity and the fragility of fandom.
To support Brown Bag Lady&rsquo;s mission to feed LA&rsquo;s homeless community, visit <a href="https://www.brownbaglady.org/">brownbaglady.org</a>, and donate to Planned Parenthood at <a href="http://plannedparenthood.org">plannedparenthood.org</a> .
Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Part of the Pushkin Network.

Leslie Jones on Knowing Your Worth

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/2875a366-5f40-4fe7-9a8b-b48f0043fa6b/transcript

Kamau sits down with the outspoken multihyphenate Eddie Huang to discuss his evolution as a chef and writer.

Kamau gives Huang flowers for his moral clarity and refusal to let Hollywood reshape his identity. Eddie describes himself as blunt, and is guided by a strong internal compass that his wife and close collaborators help refine.

They discuss code-switching and how Huang leverages being perceived as nonthreatening, while his “pen game” and willingness to speak truth can feel threatening in a different way.

The conversation shifts to Huang’s debut novel, Come Undone, an autofictional work about Hubie, a rough-edged TV chef and traveler clearly modeled on himself. The final draft was written in five intense days while juggling childcare and marriage, with a disciplined daily routine and tight domestic deadlines that he believes improve his work.

Huang embraces polarized reactions to his work. He prefers “five stars or zero stars” because, to him, that’s evidence that he has told a specific, truthful story.

Kamau and Huang discuss his fraught history with ABC’s Fresh Off the Boat, the sitcom based on his book of the same name.

They connect this to broader frustrations with Hollywood’s risk-averse, IP-driven system and contrast it with the relative artistic sanctity of publishing, where Huang works closely with publisher Chris Jackson, whom he calls the premier progressive editor championing writers like Ta-Nehisi Coates and others who push boundaries and speak truth to power.

They also touch on Eddie’s relationship with Anthony Bourdain, who he describes as a generous mentor who shared their disillusionment with travel TV’s demand for “happy endings” in a world where most people don’t get them.

The National Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 800-799-7233 or text BEGIN to 88788. Find the Anti Police-Terror Project at antipoliceterrorproject.org and Live Free at livefreeusa.org .

Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Part of the Pushkin Network.

Kamau sits down with the outspoken multihyphenate Eddie Huang to discuss his evolution as a chef and writer.
Kamau gives Huang flowers for his moral clarity and refusal to let Hollywood reshape his identity. Eddie describes himself as blunt, and is guided by a strong internal compass that his wife and close collaborators help refine.
They discuss code-switching and how Huang leverages being perceived as nonthreatening, while his &ldquo;pen game&rdquo; and willingness to speak truth can feel threatening in a different way.
The conversation shifts to Huang&rsquo;s debut novel, Come Undone, an autofictional work about Hubie, a rough-edged TV chef and traveler clearly modeled on himself. The final draft was written in five intense days while juggling childcare and marriage, with a disciplined daily routine and tight domestic deadlines that he believes improve his work.
Huang embraces polarized reactions to his work. He prefers &ldquo;five stars or zero stars&rdquo; because, to him, that&rsquo;s evidence that he has told a specific, truthful story.
Kamau and Huang discuss his fraught history with ABC&rsquo;s Fresh Off the Boat, the sitcom based on his book of the same name.
They connect this to broader frustrations with Hollywood&rsquo;s risk-averse, IP-driven system and contrast it with the relative artistic sanctity of publishing, where Huang works closely with publisher Chris Jackson, whom he calls the premier progressive editor championing writers like Ta-Nehisi Coates and others who push boundaries and speak truth to power.
They also touch on Eddie&rsquo;s relationship with Anthony Bourdain, who he describes as a generous mentor who shared their disillusionment with travel TV&rsquo;s demand for &ldquo;happy endings&rdquo; in a world where most people don&rsquo;t get them.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline can be reached at 800-799-7233 or text BEGIN to 88788. Find the Anti Police-Terror Project at <a href="http://antipoliceterrorproject.org">antipoliceterrorproject.org</a> and Live Free at <a href="http://livefreeusa.org">livefreeusa.org</a> .
Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Part of the Pushkin Network.

Eddie Huang on The Cost of Personal Truth

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/61d785a6-fd64-426a-8153-b4880048c632/transcript

W. Kamau Bell talks with economist, author, and former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich about his lifelong fight against inequality, his journey through four presidential administrations, the capture of American democracy by big money, and why he refuses to give up on social justice.

Kamau opens the show by “giving Robert his flowers” for being one of the few public figures who have remained focused on social justice and inequality throughout their lives without wavering.

Reich reflects on how widening inequality, corporate money in politics, and a Democratic “Faustian bargain” with the wealthy long predated Donald Trump.

Reich traces his politics back to being bullied as a very short child and protected by an older boy, Mickey Schwerner, who was later murdered by the Ku Klux Klan as a civil rights worker.

Reich recounts how this commitment led him into the anti-Vietnam War movement, organizing students for Eugene McCarthy’s 1968 presidential campaign, then into a Rhodes Scholarship, where he met Bill Clinton, and later to serving in the Carter-era Federal Trade Commission and eventually to becoming Clinton’s Secretary of Labor.

Kamau and Reich also discuss Reich’s evolution into a pop culture figure, generational identity, and staying connected with younger people.

Turning to the present, Reich warns against despair in the face of authoritarianism, neo-fascism, and bigotry, arguing that hopelessness is exactly what those forces want so people will give up and cede everything.

The conversation also turns to war and foreign policy: Reich strongly supports Ukraine’s defense, condemns the war in Iran as “really, really stupid,” and calls Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a dangerous war criminal whose actions have turned Israel into a pariah, while stressing that opposing Netanyahu is not antisemitic.

Donate to the ACLU at action.aclu.org and support Common Cause at commoncause.org.

Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd. Distributed by Pushkin Industries.

W. Kamau Bell talks with economist, author, and former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich about his lifelong fight against inequality, his journey through four presidential administrations, the capture of American democracy by big money, and why he refuses to give up on social justice.
Kamau opens the show by &ldquo;giving Robert his flowers&rdquo; for being one of the few public figures who have remained focused on social justice and inequality throughout their lives without wavering.
Reich reflects on how widening inequality, corporate money in politics, and a Democratic &ldquo;Faustian bargain&rdquo; with the wealthy long predated Donald Trump.
Reich traces his politics back to being bullied as a very short child and protected by an older boy, Mickey Schwerner, who was later murdered by the Ku Klux Klan as a civil rights worker.
Reich recounts how this commitment led him into the anti-Vietnam War movement, organizing students for Eugene McCarthy&rsquo;s 1968 presidential campaign, then into a Rhodes Scholarship, where he met Bill Clinton, and later to serving in the Carter-era Federal Trade Commission and eventually to becoming Clinton&rsquo;s Secretary of Labor.
Kamau and Reich also discuss Reich&rsquo;s evolution into a pop culture figure, generational identity, and staying connected with younger people.
Turning to the present, Reich warns against despair in the face of authoritarianism, neo-fascism, and bigotry, arguing that hopelessness is exactly what those forces want so people will give up and cede everything.
The conversation also turns to war and foreign policy: Reich strongly supports Ukraine&rsquo;s defense, condemns the war in Iran as &ldquo;really, really stupid,&rdquo; and calls Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a dangerous war criminal whose actions have turned Israel into a pariah, while stressing that opposing Netanyahu is not antisemitic.
Donate to the ACLU at action.aclu.org and support Common Cause at commoncause.org.
Who's With Me is produced by Rabbit Grin Productions. Music by Chris Dowd.&nbsp;Distributed by Pushkin Industries.

Robert Reich on The Fight for a Fair America

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/12049da7-958e-4076-82e1-b479016dc7ab/transcript

Misty Copeland on Reinventing Ballet and Herself

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