This is the Sound of My Voice

What's Ray Saying?

Ray Christian

Blackhistory, Storyteller, Blackculture, History, Story, Storytelling, Arts, Slam, Africanamerican

5 • 625 Ratings

🗓️ 29 November 2023

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

A young Ray Christian becomes captivated by the mysterious voices coming out of the radio and quickly discovers that there are rules and repercussions to being Black and talking a certain way.

What’s Ray Saying? is created, hosted, and written by Ray Christian and recorded in the great state of North Carolina. Mark Pagán is the senior producer. Jonathan Cabral is the associate producer. Story editing by Mark Pagán with development support from The Moth. Sound design by Rebecca Seidel. Original music comes from RJ Christian and Blue Dot Sessions.

To find out more about What Ray’s Saying? visit us on Facebook, Twitter, or at whatraysaying.com.

This series is supported by PRX, The Moth, and listeners like you.

Transcript

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0:00.0	We were both in very interesting points in our lives.
0:04.0	He was stationed at Fort Bragg, and I was in grad school in Florida.
0:07.5	He posted a message on a message board on AOL.
0:10.8	I responded to his message.
0:13.5	We messaged each other on AOL back and forth for a while, and then he said, you know, why don't you call me?
0:23.4	This is my wife, Tiffany.
0:25.6	But over 25 years ago, she was just Tiffany and I was just Ray.
0:30.7	Two people meeting how, I suppose, some people met at the time on a message board.
0:37.1	This was right after Whitney Houston's movie Waiting to Exhale had come out.
0:42.3	So I was in this very empowered frame of mind, and I don't want to be stupid and play, but I still am going to call this strange man that I've been corresponding with on a message board.
0:58.5	I must have done something right because she decided I was worth contacted.
1:02.3	And all I had were my words and my voice to make a good impression.
1:06.3	Obviously, his voice sounded good. I kept talking to him.
1:09.6	It was a soothing voice. It was a soothing voice.
1:11.1	It was a pleasant voice.
1:12.9	I heard it for hours on end.
1:15.6	So that month, my phone bill was higher than my rent.
1:19.0	That was April of 1996.
1:24.3	And we were engaged in November and married in January.
1:28.3	What I love about Tiffany's voice is how encouraging, soothing, and so very southern it sounds in my ear, the sound of home.
1:45.1	And I don't know if I'd say it was the sound of my voice that hooked Tiffany, but it didn't
1:49.9	hurt.
	...

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