Hey listeners we're on a break for a few weeks cooking up some amazing

shows for you our upcoming season is going to be so good I can't wait to share some of

the amazing voices taking us on this journey of Black liberation.

In the meantime, we wanted to introduce you to a few dynamic creators who in interesting ways

are thinking about the ways love can be a pathway towards

black liberation. This week we have Danielle Smith, author, award-winning journalist,

producer, creator, and host of Black Girl Songbook on Spotify.

She has a new book coming later this month called Shine Bright, a very personal history of

black women in pop. It comes out April 25th, so go pre-order it right now.

In the 90s, Danielle was a fixture in the hip-hop in R&B scene. And as the editor-in-chief of vibe, she's responsible for some of the most iconic interviews and images of the

greats that we still reference to this day.

One thing that you should know about Danielle is that she loves us. She loves black women. So this book she

wrote is a very personal look at the music industry from her eyes. The ways black

women have shaped music and culture in the United States and the world.

Here's our conversation.

What were your earliest memories of music?

Do you remember the feeling that it brought you?

Do I remember the feeling that it brought you?

Do I remember the feeling?

I'm living off that feeling even still right now.

Are you kidding me?

Like my first experience with music. My mother bought my sister and I the Jackson Five's album,

...