An award winning media company committed to sharing the perspectives of people of colour from marginalised genders

Growing up with gal-dem

Our first ever podcast is here! Listen to 'Growing up with gal-dem' on Acast, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Welcome to our first ever podcast, Growing up with gal-dem. Over the course of the series Natty Kasambala and Niellah Arboine invite a different guest to respond to old diary entries, text messages, or letters from their younger selves – nurturing important conversations about growing up.


You can read episode summaries, find episode transcripts, and listen to our latest episodes of Growing up with gal-dem here.

Season 1

  1. Candice Carty Williams on why she’s over being the strong friend
  2. Finding beauty in friendships with Elizabeth Gabrielle Lee
  3. Munroe Bergdorf on ending toxic relationships
  4. Rejecting heteronormativity in queer relationships with Naeem Davis
  5. Sasha Keable on destigmatising mental health and medication
  6. Growing Up With gal-dem live with Anita Sethi, Reni Eddo-Lodge and Mariam Khan

Season 2

  1. Michaela Coel on feedback and ‘taking the note’
  2. Ruby Tandoh on finding strength through friendships
  3. Travis Alabanza on silencing shame and discovering queer spaces
  4. Analysing family ties with Joy Crookes
  5. Emma Dabiri on growing up with boys as a number one hobby
  6. Yomi Adegoke on the power of manifestation
  7. Kelsey Lu on finding freedom
  8. Raveena on growth in and out of relationships
  9. Amanda Seales on setting boundaries online
  10. Motherhood and music with Tiwa Savage
  11. Clara Amfo on what success looks like to her
  12. Letting your guard down with cktrl
  13. Basma Khalifa is obsessed with telling stories
  14. Chanel Miller on the freedom and craft of speaking her truth
  15. Diane Parish on why there is no one way to be black
  16. Aja Barber on how the importance of inclusivity in sustainability
  17. Diane Abbott on maintaining hope as a political activist
  18. Lady Phyll on religion, queerness, and learning to love yourself
  19. Becoming different people with Mariel Richards
  20. Tanya Compas on the beauty of being different
  21. Sharmane Lovegrove on creating her own family and finding home
  22. Nicole Dennis-Benn on growing up with colourism in Jamaica
  23. Family sacrifices and feeling carefree with Sophie Duker
  24. Finding stable ground with Simran Randhawa
  25. Nao on stepping into your other self
  26. The power of words with Nikesh Shukla
  27. Shingai on not being the girl she used to be
  28. Asserting boundaries with Tia Campbell
  29. Rachel Ama on loving her hair
  30. IRL and online communities with Zezi Ifore
  31. Liv Little and Charlie Brinkhurst Cuff on rushing black women syndrome

Season 3

  1. Shydeia Caldwell on leaning into her spirit-led purpose
  2. Naomi Shimada on childhood wisdom
  3. Ericka Hart on black femmes centring themselves
  4. Madam Storm on finding adoration in the BDSM world
  5. Jonathan Nunn on online beef, great kebabs, and the growth of food journalism
  6. Georgina Lawton on passport privilege and travelling responsibly

Season 1 Trailer

Introducing Growing up with gal-dem

Welcome to Growing up with gal-dem, our first ever podcast. Inspired by our book I will not be erased: our stories growing up as people of colour, Liv Little and Charlie Brinkhurst Cuff of gal-dem magazine interview guests with their past diary entries, text messages and letters to uncover valuable lessons on growing up.


Season 1 Episode 1

Candice Carty Williams on why she's over being the strong friend

Kicking off the series, gal-dem speaks to Candice Carty-Williams, author of best-selling novel ‘Queenie’, about continuously being labelled the strong friend and family member. After the death of a close friend in her early twenties, Candice discusses her battle with depression and anxiety, and the pressures facing in the context of her Caribbean upbringing. We hear about the tools she has used over the years to enhance her mental wellbeing and set boundaries and how they inevitably influenced her when writing her hit novel.

Read the transcription here


Season 1 Episode 2

Finding beauty in friendships with Elizabeth Gabrielle Lee

After moving to London from Singapore, artist Elizabeth Gabrielle Lee was shocked by the everyday discrimination and sexualisation she faced and quickly realised that many other East Asian women either had been through or would experience similar issues. This inspired her project Xing – a photography book that explores how East Asian women move through the world. Through collaborating on creative projects, Elizabeth explains the strength and beauty she has found in forging interracial friendships and the solidarity that came with them.

Read the transcription here.


Season 1 Episode 3

Munroe Bergdorf on ending toxic relationships

In this episode of Growing Up with gal-dem,  we sit down with model, LGBTQI+ activist and founder of Goddess Platform, Munroe Bergdorf. A prominent speaker on trans rights, she highlights members of the community and works to combat transphobia through her activism.

Munroe reads text messages from a toxic relationship and shares the difficulties that come with growing apart from a partner. Having been in a relationship with someone with vastly differing views to her own, she reflects on how she removed herself from the situation and started on a journey of self-acceptance.

Read the transcription here


Season 1 Episode 4

Rejecting heteronormativity in queer relationships with Naeem Davis

For the fourth episode of Growing Up with gal-dem, we hear from cultural curator and founder of BBZ, Naeem Davis. Naeem tells us about the LGBTQI+ spaces that helped to shape their identity growing up and how they were inspired to curate spaces that were even more inclusive. We hear about how a trip to San Francisco was a pivotal moment for adopting the term ‘queer’ and how this has influenced how they define themself.

Naeem shares a text they sent a soon-to-be girlfriend, who they chased in the hope of being in a ‘normative’ relationship. Naeem guides us through the importance of maintaining independence in relationships and how pushing boundaries in love is something to be celebrated.

Read the transcription here


Season 1 Episode 5

Sasha Keable on destigmatising mental health and medication

During the fifth episode of Growing Up with gal-dem, singer-songwriter Sasha Keable speaks to gal-dem about her journey with mental health, substance abuse, and why taking medication should be destigmatised. After a lengthy battle with depression, we hear about the importance of therapy at various stages in her life. After seeking out therapy at a period when she was self-harming at a young age, she guides us through how these experiences have shaped her process as a musician.

Read the transcription here.


Season 1 Episode 6

Growing Up With gal-dem live with Anita Sethi, Reni Eddo-Lodge and Mariam Khan

Recording live from Words Weekend festival, on this special episode we’re joined by Reni Eddo-Lodge, journalist and author of ‘Why I’m No Longer Speaking to White People About Race’, Mariam Khan, editor of anthology ‘It’s Not About the Burqa’ and writer, journalist and critic Anita Sethi. In a joint discussion between all three of our literary guests, we speak about encountering casual racism within friendship groups, the complexities of existing in multiple cultures and the impact that has on our affiliation to britishness, and the common expectation of diasporan eldest daughters to take on mothering roles within their families.

Read the transcription here


Season 2 Episode 1

Michaela Coel on feedback and ‘taking the note'

In this episode of Growing Up with gal-dem, we speak to actor, writer, producer and creator of Chewing Gum Michaela Coel. Michaela reads an old blog post from her days in drama school where she reflects on the idea of “taking the note” as a young actor, as well as the limited roles that exist for black women on screen.

Michaela also speaks to us about her experience of being spiked and how this informed her new drama; I May Destroy You, which is available to watch on iPlayer now.

 

Read the transcription here


Season 2 Episode 2

Ruby Tandoh on finding strength in friendships

Joining gal-dem for this episode is writer and cook Ruby Tandoh, who discusses food in lockdown, high expectations and why friends are so important. Having always been hyper-productive, as a teenager Ruby would closely align self-satisfaction with personal targets. A plethora of challenging goals and Ruby’s own high expectations of herself, caused her time to be spread thinly, weighing heavily on her mental state and sense of inner well-being. Here, Ruby discusses how being less busy enabled time to get to know herself and why she wishes she found more support in others growing up.

Read the transcript here


Season 2 Episode 3

Travis Alabanza on silencing shame and discovering queer spaces

Theatre maker, producer and artist Travis Alabanza speaks to gal-dem about the idea of confessions, shame, and their introduction to queer spaces. They discuss the confidence that came with embracing their inner freak and how a pivotal moment at 17 have shaped who they are today.

Read the transcript here


Season 2 Episode 4

Analysing family ties with Joy Crookes

Singer-songwriter and BRIT nominee Joy Crookes joins gal-dem in this episode to explore all things family. Having moved out at a young age, Joy reflects on what it meant to have a ‘chosen’ family as a support network during a time of newfound responsibility and freedom.

Also discussing topics such as generational trauma, Joy shares a restorative, bonding exercise that helped shape her connection with her heritage and her relationship with a loved one.

Read the transcript here


Season 2 Episode 5

Emma Dabiri on growing up with boys as a number one hobby

This week, author and broadcaster Emma Dabiri joins Liv and Charlie to talk about her experiences of growing up black in Ireland and how as a young girl she was held to more rigid standards than her peers. Her number one hobby at the time was boys, and she kept a diary which she speaks through during the show.

Read the transcript here


Season 2 Episode 6

Yomi Adegoke on the power of manifestation

In this episode, gal-dem are joined by journalist, author, and host of Slay In Your Lane podcast and book, Yomi Adegoke as she discusses manifestation, taking up space, and why social media is blurring notions of success. Upon entering an industry traditionally dominated by white, privately educated men, Yomi describes how she forged her own path as a journalist and became the representation she wanted to see growing up.

Read the transcript here