As technology becomes more and more integrated into our daily lives, and more and more forms of media are being used to connect with the people around, it is no wonder that podcasts are beginning to make their mark on the social media world. Six in every ten Americans are familiar with the word “podcasting”—which, if you’ve been around any person over thirty, you will know that the word is not in many people’s vocabularies. The best way for me to explain what a podcast is to my elderly aunt is to say “it’s like a radio in your phone.”
Regardless, podcasting has become a way of life to many people, and listening to these shows has become a satisfying hobby to others. One podcast in particular is titled The Read. The summary on their website explains the show better than I ever could.
“Join Kid Fury and Crissle for their weekly podcast covering hip-hop and pop culture’s most trying stars. Throwing shade and spilling tea with a flippant and humorous attitude, no star is safe from Fury and Crissle unless their name is Beyoncé. (Or Blue Ivy.) As transplants to NYC, The Read also serves as an on-air therapy session for two friends trying to adjust to life and rats in the big city.”
Kid Fury is a comedian from Miami. He has gone on multiple tours around the country, named Furious Thoughts Live!, and is forcibly making himself a staple in comedy and culture. Crissle a writer from Oklahoma. Her work has been published in ESSENCE Magazine, and she’s been featured on multiple panels to discuss race, gender, and sexuality. Both of them are black, queer, and not to be played with.
As you can probably tell, this podcast is meant for comedic purposes—but, in reality, there is so much more to this show than what meets the eye. There are four segments in each episode.
Black Excellence, which is when Kid Fury announces some of the amazing things done by black people in the week. Sick Sad World—or, though constantly lamented by Crissle, BITCH YOU GUESSED IT!—which is when they chat and “throw shade” at the ridiculous amount of shit that plagues the celebrity world. Listener Letters, which is when they answer questions and give advice to three of us listeners’ crazy problems and situations.
And then there is The Read, the last segment in which they go on an emotion-filled rant about whatever is bothering or has bothered them on that week. This can range from a variety of things, such as Kid Fury telling a story about some of the rude people he encounters in his day, or Crissle going off on a news report about something extremely idiotic. Kid Fury could go off on a celebrity being homophobic, and Crissle could berate the extremely exhausting Trump Administration (as well as America in whole). Nothing is off-limits; some would describe it as the best part of the show, hence the podcasts’ title.
Either way, not only has this podcast made me a lot more socially aware, but it has gotten me through a lot of bad times. You won’t just find something entertaining when you choose to listen to The Read; you won’t just find a good laugh, or nod your head knowingly at an amazing statement made by one of the two. When you choose to subscribe to The Read and their weekly nonsense, you will be finding a pair of friends that can relate to you in a way that nobody else around you probably could. You’ll be finding a pair of people who you won’t be able to go a week without.
