This month in the newsletter is a very special one! We're kicking off our first ever 20Something Series: Black Girl Magic Edition ✨
Every Sunday this month will be taken over by a guest writer who tells a story on how she brought a passion of hers to life. Let me tell you, this series is full of reasons why you must take the leap and go after your dreams. Enough chit-chatting though. It's time to hear from Miss Sydney!
Hey y'all! My name is Sydney (aka Syd). I’m 27, born and raised in Atlanta, GA and have been living in Harlem for about 4.5 years now. I’m a proud Howard grad, BeyHive member, lover of all things TV/Film and a (self-proclaimed) Black pop culture expert. I’m also the co-host of The New Chitlin Circuit, streaming wherever you get your podcasts.
THANK YOU to Ayorinde for considering me as a guest writer for 20Something Stories. Reading the newsletter every week with my morning coffee has become a staple in my Sunday routine, so it’s truly an honor to get to contribute this week!
the story
*text thread*
Lex: “B*tch, let’s podcast! Long version: I looked around and ain’t no film review podcast for low-budget black movies…”
Syd: “Genius idea! Perfect niche and we have the expertise! Nobody else on this planet has spent as much time as us watching low budget black movies”
These are the texts that started Lex and I on our journey to becoming creative partners, producers and co-hosts of ‘The New Chitlin Circuit’ — the only podcast reviewing Black indie films! It was January 2020, and like most people after ringing in the New Year, I was feeling all the energy of a fresh start and ready to tackle my New Year’s resolutions, including focusing more on personal creative projects. So, starting a podcast checked off that box right away.
Lex and I were roommates at Howard and one of our favorite ways to wind down after a long week was a tall glass of cheap Pink Moscato (man, I miss college!) and the Blackest movie we could find, usually a low-budget film. We watched everything from feel-good flicks, like ‘Boy Bye’ to the romance movies starring Marques Houston and the hood movies like ‘Plug Love’ (a personal fave all these years later).
On top of that, movies have been such an integral part of my life for as long as I can remember. According to my mom, I’ve been a movie and TV fanatic my entire life. Growing up, my mom would take my sister and I to the movies every single weekend to see the latest kids’ movie. And if it was a Black movie premiering, it’d become a family affair and my dad would join us. Movies are embedded in our family traditions. I’m the friend that randomly quotes lines from my favorite films in everyday conversation. So it’s safe to say, starting a podcast focused on Black-indie films felt natural.
After our initial text conversation and about two months of planning and brainstorming calls, ‘The New Chitlin Circuit’ was created. Everything seemed to fall into place – we had a unique show name (it’s provocative, it gets the people going), found a studio space and engineer to record with, developed a social media plan, and picked out a few movies to review. Little did we know, our entire plan would be flipped on its head when the week of our first episode release coincided with the global shutdown because of Miss Rona.
the lesson
Before the pandemic, our plan included Lex traveling from DC to Harlem once a month to record the show. We felt REAL official getting to record our first two episodes in a studio with an engineer. Now with the world literally falling apart around us, we had nowhere to record the show, no idea how to record remotely and no real podcast equipment other than our own laptops. But, what we did know was that we had a great idea and had to find a way to keep recording the show and releasing episodes. Consistency, trying everything until we could find what works for us, dedication to our mission, and friendship kept us going.
As my fav CAU alum (and sister) says, “Find a Way or Make One.” We tried everything before finally getting our formula down – FaceTiming while simultaneously recording on GarageBand and syncing our audio with the “clap trick,” recording on plug-in headphones, praying our dialogue matched up, doing free trials of random recording softwares. You name it, we tried it.
And eventually, we figured it out. There were days where we would hit a wall, but we were dedicated to remaining consistent and believed in our mission to highlight Black indie films and the people that make them (a lá 106 & Park for the film girlies). We became our own sound engineer, editor, social media manager, website designer… all of the things.
I cringe a lil bit at the sound quality when listening back to our first few episodes post-studio time, but we had a BALL every session! The real magic in our show is Lex and I’s friendship. It’s always a risk going into business with anyone, especially a friend, but doing it with someone you trust and know is just as committed as you are makes it worth it.
the light
What’s the saying? – “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.”
That’s been the overwhelming feeling working on TNCC over the last three years. Yes, it takes a lot out of us on top of our actual day jobs to produce a show every week, but it’s been so much fun. We’ve become a part of the Black indie film community.
For me, the best part of this journey has been doing it with one of my best friends. We’ve always had a relationship that balances one another out and that has translated into our business partnership. On days when we have to work on the show and I’m not feeling 100%, I know Lex can fill in the gap & vice-versa. We’re 4 seasons and 100+ episodes in, have interviewed filmmakers we never thought would give us the time of day, built a loyal listener base (s/o to the Listener Homegirls!), got a shoutout in a Vulture article, reached over 11K downloads and we’re still just getting started.
If you’re looking for a movie recommendation, a good laugh, or just want to hear two friends kiki for 40 minutes every week, check out The New Chitlin Circuit, streaming everywhere!