Defining freedom with Dr. Shakkiah Curtis
Black Oxygen
Dr. Curtis shares her complicated relationship with Wisconsin—a "love and hate" dynamic shaped by leaving Milwaukee at 17, experiencing HBCUs and the East Coast, and returning multiple times before finally seeing the opportunity hidden in her home state. She now runs Taylor Nicole Wine and Cupcakes in Madison's Black Business Hub, creating the cultural space she couldn't find as a young woman in the city. Research on Black Women's Success Dr. Curtis's doctoral research followed 14 Black women at CEO level or higher in Fortune 500 companies for two and a half years, uncovering the SCALE...
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Lachrisa Grandberry on Following Your Dreams
Black Oxygen
This week on Black Oxygen, host Angela Russell sits down with the extraordinary Lachrisa Grandberry—singer, actor, writer, speaker, and Milwaukee native whose journey from fifth-grade teacher to professional theater artist is nothing short of inspiring. Lachrisa shares the powerful story of how a fifth-grader named Daniel changed her life by challenging her to chase her own dreams. What started as a promise to audition for one show became a full-time career in theater, supported by a network of Black women mentors who helped her navigate the industry with remarkable success. From opening The...
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Tracy Anderson hustles her way
Black Oxygen
Tracy Anderson returns to Black Oxygen to discuss her unexpected 11-year journey in Madison and a recent career transition. She shares her winding path from theater in Chicago to hotel sales, radio hosting on 93.1 Jams, and community outreach at Big Brothers Big Sisters—where she finally found work she truly loved through service. Tracy opens up about learning to set boundaries, overcoming people-pleasing tendencies, and the challenges of dating as a Black woman in Madison. She reflects on how faith, therapy, and a strong network have helped her navigate this pivot gracefully, and introduces...
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Carla Williams - Beyond Survival
Black Oxygen
In this powerful episode of Black Oxygen, host Angela Russell sits down with Carla Williams, CEO and founder of The View From Here Wellness Collective, for an intimate conversation about self-care, collective care, and what it means for Black women to move from survival to thriving. Carla shares her Wisconsin story—from her family's journey from Chicago to Madison in a car without floors, to building a life rooted in community and care. She opens up about the heartbreak that sparked The View From Here Wellness Collective and her realization that Black women often build their identities...
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Guest Host Ali Muldrow interviews Angela Russell - Rebroadcast
Black Oxygen
On this week’s episode of Black Oxygen, the tables are turned. Regular Black Oxygen guest Ali Muldrow interviews Angela Russell. The friendship vibes are on thick on this episode as they discuss when Angela first started noticing beauty, her relationship with beauty, and travel the 5 senses of beauty. #BlackOxygenPodcast #BlackInMadison #BlackInWisconsin #Friends #DopeBlackPodcasts #BeautyAllAround #Madison #MadisonWI #Madison365
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Debra Gillispie, Mothers Against Gun Violence
Black Oxygen
Debra Gillispie, founder and CEO-President of Mothers Against Gun Violence, is a women of deep faith, resilience, and extraordinary grace and vision. After losing her son Kirk Jr. to gun violence in 2003, Debra transformed her grief into action, creating an organization dedicated to amplifying the voices of families affected by gun violence. In this conversation, she shares her remarkable journey through restorative justice, including meeting the man who killed her son nearly 21 years after her son’s murder. In this episode we discuss practical solutions for gun violence...
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Emily Raclaw - On Your Marq
Black Oxygen
Emily Raclaw is the Director of Marquette University's "On Your Marq” program—one of the nation's top college support programs for neurodiverse students. In this Black Oxygen episode, Emily shares her personal journey of discovering her own ADHD diagnosis in her 30s, and how it shaped her approach to supporting college-bound neurodiverse students. From her unconventional path through German immersion school and living in Germany to becoming a licensed counselor and special education teacher, Emily brings a unique perspective to neurodiversity advocacy, education, and leadership. Key...
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Black Oxygen, from the Archives: Esther Monroe, A Life Well Lived
Black Oxygen
This episode features my grandfather, Esther Monroe, who I call Daddy Monroe, recorded in the spring of 2023 when he was 96 years old—still driving, still living independently, and still sharing the wisdom of nearly a century on this earth. Today, he’s 98, no longer driving or living independently - but is surrounded by family, friends and health care providers that love him tremendously. What you're about to hear is a legacy—a testament to a life extraordinarily well lived. Daddy Monroe was born during the Great Depression, a Black man in the South who witnessed this country transform...
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Semaj Sconiers - Find your breath
Black Oxygen
Semaj Sconiers is a respected educator, mindfulness and wellness practitioner, and a Racial and Gender Justice Practitioner with the YWCA of Dane County. In this episode of Black Oxygen, Semaj shared her personal journey and experiences with mindfulness practices, including her connection to her grandmother and how she came back to her mindfulness practice while in the intensive care unit during a medical emergency. She shares, “in difficult moments, find your breath … it helps you recalibrate.” In addition, Semaj talks about her work as a race and gender...
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Corinda Rainey Moore, PhD - Boots on the ground
Black Oxygen
Dr. Corinda Rainey Moore is a community steward and leader here in Madison, WI. She is a passionate racial equity advocate who believes in leading by example. In this episode of Black Oxygen, Dr. Rainey Moore and I discuss how UW-Madison brought here to Wisconsin, how love kept her here in Wisconsin, and her passion for all things community related. She provides wonderful advice on how to engage in community leadership in honest and authentic ways and reminds us all that if we’re not happy with something we have the power to change it. #BlackOxygen #BlackOxygenPodcast...
info_outlineThis week on Black Oxygen, host Angela Russell sits down with the extraordinary Lachrisa Grandberry—singer, actor, writer, speaker, and Milwaukee native whose journey from fifth-grade teacher to professional theater artist is nothing short of inspiring.
Lachrisa shares the powerful story of how a fifth-grader named Daniel changed her life by challenging her to chase her own dreams. What started as a promise to audition for one show became a full-time career in theater, supported by a network of Black women mentors who helped her navigate the industry with remarkable success.
From opening The Color Purple at Chicago's Goodman Theatre to becoming one of ten fellows selected from 792 applicants for the prestigious Dramatist Guild National Fellowship Program, Lachrisa offers profound insights on overcoming fear, betting on yourself, and the principle that has guided her career: "Don't let the no come from you first."
This conversation explores the radical care found in theater communities, the responsibility we have to show up for each other, and the importance of breaking the brooms and shredding the rugs that keep us silent about our trauma. Lachrisa closes the episode with a stunning reading from her poetry collection, "Shredding Rugs: A Poetic Cleansing."
Key moments include discussions of mentorship, the scariest thing being our own thoughts, finding your people to turn up the volume on positivity, and what it means to have both the strength to hold and the vulnerability to be held.
#BlackOxygenPodcast #BlackInWisconsin #Mentorship #FollowingYourDreams #LachrisaGrandberry #WisconsinTheater #TheColorPurple #ForwardTheater #NorthernSkyTheaterCompany #Dreams
Links for this episode:
https://www.lachrisagrandberry.com/ (https://www.lachrisagrandberry.com/)
https://northernskytheater.com/ (https://northernskytheater.com/)
https://forwardtheater.com/ (https://forwardtheater.com/)
https://www.goodmantheatre.org/ (https://www.goodmantheatre.org/)