Today we’d like to introduce you to Talib Jasir.
Hi Talib, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I’ve always been creative. I’ve been writing since childhood and creating visually for almost 20 years. Audio storytelling was always a dream of mine ever since my first exposure to it as a teen sitting in the back of my mother’s car listening to a radio soap opera.
In 2017, I finally realized my dream by writing, casting, directing, and producing a limited series fiction podcast, “The Fussings: Until One of Us is Dead”. This led me to seek and attempt to build a community of other Black audio fiction creators to share experiences, support, and resources. I founded Afros & Audio in 2018 to fill the need. However, at that time, audio fiction by us and for us wasn’t as mainstream as it is today so after a year, I was ready to do my typical creative, “oh well, I tried” pivot.
This time was different, though. I had never felt so connected to something I had created, and I knew three things to be certain. Podcasting was growing in popularity and showed no signs of slowing down, and the name and logo for Afros & Audio were two of my proudest creations. So, instead of quitting, I reached out to an acquaintance who had a long-standing podcast, and he suggested that I do events. Our meeting was 20 minutes in a busy and distracting shared office space in Uptown New York, and to this day, I think he was suggesting a few 2-hour meetups.
If you knew me then, you’d know that I wasn’t the most confident about what I was capable of as a creative or entrepreneur, but I decided that for once in my life, I was going to bet on my vision. In June 2019, Afros & Audio Podcast Festival was held in Brooklyn, NY, and cemented the event as the first two-day conference for and by Black indie podcast creatives and audio professionals.
October 21–22, 2023, will mark the 5th anniversary of the conference and because Baltimore is my birthplace, I wanted to bring the conference “home” to celebrate the achievements of our podcasting community. The conference will be held at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History and Culture or virtually on the Whova Event App.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I recently watched a documentary where Doc Rivers, NBA coach, for the Celtics, said, “Pressure is a privilege.” Doc went on to say: that the privilege is in the achievement of having positioned yourself to feel pressure and to not run from it but at it — head-on.
The road hasn’t been smooth but I’m grateful for all the ways that it has stretched my belief in what I’m capable of as a founder/CEO, how to ask for support when it’s needed, and the power of being a mission-focused service; committed to community and collaboration.
Limited resources have been a challenge since the beginning of this journey. There rarely seems to be “enough,” but through this journey, I’ve learned that I am enough, and so are the early and current supporters, attendees, speakers, volunteers, sponsors, and donors.
Despite the many obstacles Afros & Audio has survived and thrived to our 5th year of service to our podcast community, and I truly believe that the road will become increasingly smoother.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
As a dual-certified life coach, I’ve been the silent partner to dozens of high-performing creatives and business owners in various industries since 2015. Creatively, I am an author, visual artist, and podcast producer. Professionally, I am a founder. CEO, and Visionary. I know the experiences, challenges, and mental and emotional barriers of ambitious and accomplished people because I’ve been there and am still on my journey.
My mission is to convince creatives and entrepreneurs (at any level) that their talent, skills, greatness, and expression are a responsibility not only to themselves but to that stranger that will receive permission to be who they are because of their work. Too often we center our self-doubt and fears; negating the people who would benefit from our decision to show up and share our brilliance with the world.
I am most proud of what’s to come because of the foundation that has been built. In 2017, I couldn’t have dreamed that a limited series podcast would lead to the 5th anniversary of a conference that wasn’t even on my radar at the time.
One of my coaching philosophies that I share with clients is, “As you manifest your vision, your vision will manifest you.” It took a long time for me to understand that to experience the life I wanted, I would have to get off the sidelines. And once in the game there is still work to be done and challenges to overcome. But our lives progress and expand along the path to our goals which then proves that there are no finish lines, only mile markers.
It’s why I create the work that I do, coach the clients that I want to work with, and founded the Afros & Audio Podcast Festival. Today, I can say that I’m proud of the journey so far.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
Since 2022, there have been several newsworthy upsets in the podcast industry. If there is an interest in learning what’s been going on in podcasting, there are many articles, think pieces, and social media commentary about the failures of certain conglomerates and the choices that were made to capitalize on the advertisement dollars and consumerism of podcasts.
During the pandemic, many people began to fear that audio-only social platforms would replace podcasting. That didn’t happen. Now, AI is a hot topic; but we don’t yet know how it will impact our industry and whether it will be positive or negative. In my opinion, instead of fearing or avoiding technological advancements and innovations we must evolve, adjust, and innovate to remain relevant and viable. The reality is everything is and will continue to change and we either choose to keep up or get left behind.
Podcast creators have a stake in the viability of our industry as a career, creative, or entrepreneurial path. Afros & Audio and our community partner, The Black Podcasters Association’s mission is to ensure that Black podcast creatives and professionals receive the information, support, and resources needed to sustain their audio projects, products, and services. Demanding an equitable playing field, staying informed of trends and forecasts, and having the ability to earn a living can increase the number of active podcasts by Black identified creators in the global market and convert listeners who often rely on their default sources of entertainment and news from traditional outlets of radio, TV, and video-on-demand platforms.
Although podcasting isn’t new, it is early enough to still be shaped in ways that benefit the content creators who contribute to the many successes we’ve experienced in the industry. The recent shake-ups have been a needed eye-opener for stakeholders like myself and the community Afros & Audio serves. As an influencer, I want podcasters to understand that without our content there is no podcast industry, which makes us the most powerful people in the room. If we never get that, podcasting will look like any other media industry where only a select few profits and everyone else is disposable and expendable.
In my opinion, the industry will grow from these setbacks, learn from our mistakes, and may exceed our future expectations as human behaviors and needs consistently evolve with the times, which means that the need for short-form and on-the-go edutainment is on the rise and podcasts are a major solution from visual only content.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/afrosandaudio
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afrosandaudio
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/afrosandaudio
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/afros-audio-llc/
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/afros_and_audio
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnBvQ5SEDJb1S_AHHjdhTNg
- Other: https://www.vanguardpn.com/
Image Credits
Greyscale BioImage (Manny Almonte)
