Becoming the People Podcast with Prentis Hemphill

This episode was originally aired on July 1st 2024. Kai Cheng Thom - MSW, Qualified Mediator, Somatic Sex Educator, performance artist, community healer, award-winning writer, and author of Falling Back in Love with Being Human joins us for this episode. A consummate dreamer and believer in revolutionary potential, Kai brings radical love to her work and this conversation. Join us while Kai and Prentis geek out about exciting and dangerous things like monster-making, harm and revenge, + queer...

Transcribed - Published: 3 June 2026

This episode first aired in July 2024. Prentis is joined by the National Director of the Working Families Party, Maurice Mitchell. Maurice shares the roots of his organizing; reminds us of our power as a people and inspires us to continue to conjure and build a compelling vision toward the worlds we dream of. Support the organizations that Maurice mentioned in the episode: Working Families PartyMovement for Black LivesYou can check out Prentis' new book What It Takes to Heal is available now...

Transcribed - Published: 27 May 2026

We won't be dropping a new episode this week, as Prentis is away mourning the passing of their father. To honor this tender moment we are resharing an episode from last season with Transformative grief activist, movement strategist, and writer Malkia Devich Cyril. Malkia shares stories and wisdom from their personal experience of loss, the possibility that emerges when we attend to our grief, and their insight about how we choose to grieve can determine how we can change the world. Than...

Transcribed - Published: 20 May 2026

Death doula, author and trainer, Alua Arthur, is a clear voice of what death could be if we brought it into the center of our lives. Alua brings her profound wisdom from confronting the existential and seemingly unfaceable realities of death. In this episode she breaks down the tastiest five layer fear of death cake and shares what’s possible for all of us when we hold death with reverence. Check out Alua’s Book Briefly Perfectly HumanGoing with Grace Death Doula TrainingFollow Alua on Instag...

Transcribed - Published: 13 May 2026

Prentis addresses the rolling back of the Voting Rights Act and the impacts on our hope and imagination. They remind us of the power and audacity of the visionary ancestors that dared to dream before us, and encourage us to practice recovering our imagination to envision what we want next for our future. Join us on our new Youtube channel for the Imposing Beauty on Our Future Livestream - get your tickets here! Listen to the Dunums - Casual Planes Album Support the show The Becoming the Peopl...

Transcribed - Published: 6 May 2026

Aisha Nyandoro is the CEO of Springboard To Opportunities and leader in the campaign to end generational poverty through guaranteed income. She joins Prentis this week to talk about her program Magnolia Mother’s Trust. They also discuss what the true meaning of wealth is and how our institutions shape the idea of who is worthy and deserved. Aisha brings a call of radical resourcing and shares her vision for what’s possible if our communities didn’t have to live in scarcity and we actually sup...

Transcribed - Published: 29 April 2026

Prentis is sharing a rageful invitation and calling all Traitors to the Project of Patriarchy. They are sharing their thoughts on how the manosphere manipulates men’s pain for more power, and how we need more traitors to reshape what it means to be a good man. An hour after Prentis recorded this episode about patriarchal violence, they read the news about the man who took the lives of his wife and children in Shreveport. The femicide, as Tarana Burke reminds us, doesn't even slow down for us ...

Transcribed - Published: 22 April 2026

Posthumanist thinker, poet, teacher, author and our favorite trickster, Báyò Akómoláfé is on the podcast again. Prentis and Báyò get lost in this episode as they traverse Blackness, radical non-completion, AI, and the second fall of humanity. Check out Dr. Akómoláfé’s new book, Selah Follow Báyò on InstagramIf you enjoyed this episode, listen to Báyò’s first conversation with Prentis from the Finding Our Way podcast.Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: ...

Transcribed - Published: 15 April 2026

This week’s episode is centered around cultivating a relationship with self that is non-contingent. A self that is not tied to or determined by the myths of human beings. They are exploring how to activate a sense of belonging to something bigger to help us build the most powerful, authentic and potent versions of ourselves. If you want to dive deeper into this conversation about the Contingent Self - Join the Patreon!RSVP for the free Being the ground: Toolkit for care and connection in cris...

Transcribed - Published: 8 April 2026

Author Melissa Febos is here to talk about her book The Dry Season - a memoir of her year of celibacy. Prentis and Melissa explore how to build a true understanding of our interiors, erotic energy outside of sex, and what it means to truly hold power in this world. Check out Melissa’s book - The Dry Season and follow her on Instagram @MelissaFebosThe Uses of the Erotic by Audre Lorde Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound E...

Transcribed - Published: 1 April 2026

In this week’s mini-episode, Prentis is talking about the kind of movement they want to b a part of. A movement rooted in empathy, filled with curiosity and where we take the risks to traverse the distance between each other. They are addressing one of the crises of our time – our inability to connect with each other and to meet people where they are at. They share their vision for exploring the doorways that help us connect across worldviews and what’s possible when we can meet in contradict...

Transcribed - Published: 25 March 2026

Ai-jen Poo, the Executive Director the Domestic Workers Alliance joins Prentis this week to share her vision for how care is the foundation to democracy and how we get free.They explore how caregivers are futurists, imagining how human life could be different if care were at the center. Follow Ai-Jen on InstagramCheck our her book The Age of DignitySupport the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing: Michael Ma...

Transcribed - Published: 18 March 2026

This week’s mini episode is a love letter to children. Prentis reflects on how they are carrying the greatest weight of cruelty in our time—and why failing to protect them betrays our future. Prentis also shares an invocation to James Baldwin and borrows from his moral clarity to ask what it means to intervene when children are being harmed. Apply for the Becoming the People In-Person Training May 6-9thRSVP for the Being the ground: Toolkit for care and connection in crisis response webinar A...

Transcribed - Published: 11 March 2026

Dean Spade joins the pod this week to discuss his book, Love in a Fucked Up World: How to Build Relationships, Hook Up and Raise Hell Together. He brings a sharp, layered perspective on how we are shaped by the systems around us—and how we can wake up to the patterns of control we’ve internalized. Together, we explore what it means to turn our relationships into spaces for healing, liberation, and deeper connection. Get Dean’s book, Love in a F*cked Up WorldFollow Dean on InstagramCommun...

Transcribed - Published: 3 March 2026

Sendolo Diaminah is here to point us to the pathway of hallelujah! Co-Director of the Carolina Federation and community strategist, Sendolo brings profound wisdom for how we’re abdicating our power, shares how she is guided by prophetic wisdom and offers inspiration for how we can all take more potent action in our lives. - Support Carolina Federation Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing: Michae...

Transcribed - Published: 24 February 2026

In this week’s mini-episode, Prentis reflects on their time in Minneapolis, what the Epstein files are revealing to us about shame and patriarchy, and how the performance of shock is tied to our own need to be innocent. Join us over on Patreon to watch the full episode and come explore these themes and topics together - @Prentishemphill Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing: Michael MaineOriginal ...

Transcribed - Published: 17 February 2026

Activist, advocate, author, and co-founder of the me too movement, Tarana Burke joins Prentis for this episode. Tarana is sharing the portals that me too has opened and made possible in our culture, her framework on the solvability of sexual violence, and how we shouldn’t believe the lie that we can’t break apart systems of power. CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains conversation of sexual violence and child sexual abuse. If you are triggered by that, please be choiceful how you listen to t...

Transcribed - Published: 10 February 2026

In this week’s mini-episode, Prentis explores the complexities of burnout and the importance of using our agency to make meaningful action in the world. Join us over on Patreon to watch the full episode and come explore these themes and topics together - @Prentishemphill Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing: Michael MaineOriginal Music: Mayyadda

Transcribed - Published: 3 February 2026

The artists and producers from the powerful film, Songs from the Hole, join Prentis for this episode. JJ’88, Contessa Gayles and richie reseda shared their process of making the film about ’88s journey of incarceration, healing, and gaining freedom through a beautiful unfolding of forgiveness. Shownotes: Songs from the Hole on NetflixJJ’88 InstagramContessa Gayles Instagramrichie reseda InstagramQuestion Culture websiteCommunity Healing plan Support the show The Becoming the People Podca...

Transcribed - Published: 27 January 2026

Join Prentis for their first mini-episode. They are sharing their thoughts on how to accept the reality of our world right now, so that we can move with our fear towards presence and action. Watch the full video episode and join the conversation on Patreon @Prentishemphill Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing: Michael MaineOriginal Music: Mayyadda

Transcribed - Published: 20 January 2026

Samin Nosrat, cook, teacher, and author, joins Prentis to kick off the new season. This is a tender conversation, and Samin shares her journey of family, healing, and how she wants to make a simple and profound offering to the world. Check out Samin’s new book Good Things Recipes and Rituals to Share with People You Love: A Cookbook and follow her on Instagram @ciaosamin This season, I’m amping up my Patreon page -- come be part of these conversations and help resource the podcast @Pren...

Transcribed - Published: 13 January 2026

We’re back, friends! We continue to dive into the question, how do we become the people of our time? How do we grow up and make connections in this time of isolation, enemy-making and destruction? Come over to Patreon as we connect, grapple and discuss this, and many other questions of how to build a world we want together. Join me here: @Prentishemphill Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing...

Transcribed - Published: 8 January 2026

Prentis is joined by BTP’s Executive Producer, devon de Leña to tackle your questions. We delve into Prentis' book-writing process for What It Takes to Heal, how to find courage in fearful moments, and the power that celebrating our weirdness offers us. A big thank you to everyone who submitted questions, tuned in, and shared our episodes this season. Special thanks to our Patrons for their vital support. You can learn more about Prentis’ work below Prentis' new book What It Takes to He...

Transcribed - Published: 9 September 2024

In this week’s episode, we gather to honor the luminous legacy of Audre Lorde through the lens of Alexis Pauline Gumbs' radiant new book, Survival Is a Promise. Alexis joins us to unveil the journey of crafting Audre's biography, a tribute to the vibrant pulse and power of Audre’s words and practice. Together, we revel in the profound lessons Audre imparted on us about survival, courage, and love. Alexis’ new book is available now, Survival Is a Promise: The Eternal Life of Audre Lorde and yo...

Transcribed - Published: 26 August 2024

In this special episode, we feature an engaging and thought-provoking conversation from Prentis’ book tour for What It Takes to Heal. Recorded live in Seattle, Washington, acclaimed author Ijeoma Oluo interviews Prentis about the themes from their book. In this lively and insightful dialogue, Ijeoma and Prentis explore the transformative power of healing within organizing movements. They discuss the critical differences between our reactions vs. responses and delve into how collective healing...

Transcribed - Published: 12 August 2024

In this timely episode, Prentis is joined by the National Director of the Working Families Party, Maurice Mitchell. Maurice shares the roots of his organizing; reminds us of our power as a people and inspires us to continue to conjure and build a compelling vision toward the worlds we dream of. Support the organizations that Maurice mentioned in the episode: Working Families PartyMovement for Black LivesYou can check out Prentis' new book What It Takes to Heal is available now. Follow @prent...

Transcribed - Published: 29 July 2024

In this powerful episode, Prentis is joined by transformative grief activist, movement strategist, writer, Malkia Devich Cyril. Malkia shares stories and wisdom from their personal experience of loss, the possibility that emerges when we attend to our grief, and their insight about how we choose to grieve can determine how we can change the world. Read the full transcript for this conversation here. Follow Malkia on Instagram @culturejedi and find out more about the projects they mentioned in...

Transcribed - Published: 15 July 2024

Kai Cheng Thom - MSW, Qualified Mediator, Somatic Sex Educator, performance artist, community healer, award-winning writer, and author of Falling Back in Love with Being Human joins us for this episode. A consummate dreamer and believer in revolutionary potential, Kai brings radical love to her work and this conversation. Join us while Kai and Prentis geek out about exciting and dangerous things like monster-making, harm and revenge, + queerness and love. Read the full transcript of this conv...

Transcribed - Published: 1 July 2024

In this episode of Becoming the People, we ask you to bear witness to artist, researcher, writer, and founder of the Palestine Heirloom Seed Library, Vivien Sansour. Vivien shares her profound wisdom with Prentis as they explore the challenges of surviving systems built on the ways of living dead. She shares her prayers for the Palestinian people and how seeds hold the hope and stories of her people amidst atrocity. You can read the full transcript of this conversation here. Prentis' new bo...

Transcribed - Published: 17 June 2024

In Becoming the People’s inaugural episode, Prentis is joined by their dear friend adrienne maree brown. adrienne interviews Prentis about their upcoming book, What it Takes to Heal: How Transforming Ourselves Can Change the World. These two friends discuss Prentis’ journey of writing this book, the role that transformational characters play in change work, and why we should prioritize healing in this painful moment of history. Read the full transcript of this conversation here. Prentis' new...

Transcribed - Published: 3 June 2024

From Prentis Hemphill, the host and producer of the Finding Our Way podcast comes a new podcast: Becoming the People. Prentis is in conversation with the thinkers, creators, and doers who are exploring some of the most relevant questions of this moment: What will it take for us to change as a species? How do we create relationships that lead to transformation, and what will it take for us to heal? We hope this podcast helps us uncover the path of how to become the people of our time. Re...

Transcribed - Published: 14 May 2024

This is a revisited episode with Richie Reseda from July 18th, 2022. _____ Music, film, content producer, and founder of Question Culture, Richie Reseda, helps us explore the pyramid of patriarchy, how to respond to harm within our communities, and the impact of shame on our connections with each other. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentinstitute.org Follow us on Instagram @findin...

Transcribed - Published: 29 April 2024

Revisit this episode with Alexis Pauline Gumbs which originally aired October 19th, 2020. ___ In this episode, Prentis meets with Queer Black Troublemaker, Black Feminist Love Evangelist, and author of the upcoming book Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons from Marine Mammals, Alexis Pauline Gumbs. Listen as Alexis moves us through time to relearn and remember the lessons of those who have brought us to now and the lineages from which we have come. Find the show notes + transcript on our websi...

Transcribed - Published: 22 April 2024

We are revisting this beautiful conversation with Rowen White from May 24th, 2021. _______ In this episode, Prentis sits down with farmer, seedkeeper, and Indigenous seed and food sovereignty activist, Rowen White. Rowen is the founder and Creative Director of Sierra Seeds, an organic seed cooperative focusing on local seed production and education. Listen as these two explore how seeds operate as gateways to our lineage and how our current disconnection manifests as grief...

Transcribed - Published: 15 April 2024

Revisit this conversation between Prentis + Mariame Kaba from July 5th, 2021. _____ In this episode, Prentis sits with activist, organizer, educator, and author, Mariame Kaba, to discuss abolition and its connection to healing work. This conversation asks us to confront difficult truths about our enacting of relationship, our striving for innocence, and how much we might actually draw pleasure from punishment. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come...

Transcribed - Published: 8 April 2024

We revisit this conversation with Kazu Haga about Navigating Conflict. This episode originally aired May 31st 2021. ______ Kazu Haga is the founder of the East Point Peace Academy, a core member of the Ahimsa Collective, and the author of Healing Resistance: A Radically Different Response to Harm. In this episode, Prentis and Kazu examine our definitions and enactments of accountability and pose the question, "Who do we become when harm occurs?" Find the show notes + transcript on our...

Transcribed - Published: 1 April 2024

We revisit this conversation with adrienne maree brown from our first season. This episode originally aired on August 9th, 2020. ______ In this episode, Prentis sits down with podcast host, doula, pleasure-activist, and writer, Adrienne Maree Brown, to discuss the moment in which we find ourselves, the futures that we can make possible, and the gift of satisfaction. Take a listen as these two friends look both inward and outward at the potential for a more just reality. Find the show notes ...

Transcribed - Published: 25 March 2024

Join the FOW team as we wrap up season 3. Prentis will be answering your questions and Eddie and devon join in to share our gratitudes and reflections on what the past three seasons have meant to us. Ways to Stay Engaged with us in the Future: Please keep returning to these episodes and sharing them with your community.Check out the FOW sessions which are 11 pre-recorded practices from our guests over the past three seasons.Stay connected with us on Patreon, we have visual journals of t...

Transcribed - Published: 26 September 2022

Our friend, Sonya Renee Taylor, has returned to grace us with her brilliance in the last guest episode of season 3. Sonya brings her wisdom on integrity, wholeness, and creating the conditions to have our greatest impact in the world. Episode 7 is out now on #applepodcasts #spotify and all the major podcast platforms. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Follow us on Instagram @findingourwaypodcast Come practice with us at The Embodiment Instit...

Transcribed - Published: 12 September 2022

In this episode, author, political strategist, and organizer, Alicia Garza, breaks down what power is, how we build it and why we need it in order to build a more equitable society. Alicia founded the Black Futures Lab to make Black communities powerful in politics. She is the co-creator of #BlackLivesMatter and the Black Lives Matter Global Network, serves as the Strategy & Partnerships Director for the National Domestic Workers Alliance, and is a co-founder of Supermajority, a new home...

Transcribed - Published: 29 August 2022

Join us for some moss talk, discovering the infinite from within our own space and how to resist the attention economy with Jenny Odell. Jenny Odell is an Oakland-based artist, writer, and birder whose work attempts to shift our perception of the everyday and cultivate endangered forms of attention. A former studio art instructor at Stanford, she is the author of How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy and is currently at work on a second book. Find the show notes + transcript on ...

Transcribed - Published: 15 August 2022

Dr. Jamaica Heolimeleikalani Osorio is a Kanaka Maoli wahine artist, activist, scholar and storyteller joins us for episode four. In this episode Jamaica shares her experience as a kiaʻi, a protector of land and water. She helps us understand how aloha ‘āina is a powerful source of learning, love and relationship. We also explore the tenacious power of Hawai’i and how it exists outside of colonial projections. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Fo...

Transcribed - Published: 1 August 2022

Music, film, content producer, and founder of Question Culture, Richie Reseda, helps us explore the pyramid of patriarchy, how to respond to harm within our communities, and the impact of shame on our connections with each other. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentinstitute.org Follow us on Instagram @findingourwaypodcast Stay up to date on Prentis' work by joining our newsletter T...

Transcribed - Published: 18 July 2022

Acclaimed writer, performer, and public speaker ALOK joins Prentis for our first guest episode of season 3. ALOK and Prentis connect on their mutual Texan roots, the power of practicing self-forgiveness and compassion, and how friendship is the answer to most of the existential questions in the world. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentinstitute.org Follow us on Instagram @fin...

Transcribed - Published: 4 July 2022

Welcome back to season 3 of Finding Our Way. In this episode, Prentis shares what our team has been up to in our time away and where we are heading this season. We hope you accept the invitation to explore the inner workings and intricacies of change with us. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentinstitute.org Follow us on Instagram @findingourwaypodcast Stay up to date on P...

Transcribed - Published: 20 June 2022

As we close out this season of Finding Our Way, Prentis reflects on the journey so far, the questions we continue to move with, and what is still to come for season two. The Finding Our Way Team includes: Prentis Hemphill - Host and Producer Eddie Hemphill - Co-Producer + Editor devon de Leña - Co-Producer + Visual Design Support the show The Becoming the People Podcast Team: Producers: Prentis Hemphill & devon de LeñaSound Engineer and Editing: Michael MaineOriginal Music: Mayyadda

Transcribed - Published: 12 July 2021

In this episode, Prentis sits with activist, organizer, educator, and author, Mariame Kaba, to discuss abolition and its connection to healing work. This conversation asks us to confront difficult truths about our enacting of relationship, our striving for innocence, and how much we might actually draw pleasure from punishment. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentinstitute.org Follo...

Transcribed - Published: 5 July 2021

In this episode, Prentis is joined by educator, strategist, trainer, speaker, cultural critic, and Dream Defenders co-founder, Phillip Agnew. They discuss his most recent efforts to organize with Black Men Build, the foundational nature of cultural work, and the potential held within the reimagining of our definitions and enacting of masculinity. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimenti...

Transcribed - Published: 28 June 2021

As we near the closing of season 2, Prentis and Eddie take questions submitted by listeners on this very special Ask Us Anything episode! Listen as they discuss creativity, the lineage of Prentis' work, and what goes into shaping a season. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentinstitute.org Follow us on Instagram @findingourwaypodcast Stay up to date on Prentis' work by joining our ne...

Transcribed - Published: 21 June 2021

Priya Parker is a facilitator, strategic advisor, the acclaimed author of The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why it Matters, and one of Prentis' newest friends. Listen as these two reflect on where we've been in the past year, what we have the opportunity to bring forward, and the ever-shifting dynamics of power when two or more people meet. Find the show notes + transcript on our website: www.findingourwaypodcast.com Come practice with us at The Embodiment Institute: www.theembodimentins...

Transcribed - Published: 14 June 2021