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What is the sound of a breaking heart? How do you grow a new one in the echo of loss? Celebrated jazz vocalist Nnenna Freelon is back with the second season of her award-winning podcast Great Grief. Each episode is a meditative and uplifting journey of story and song, exploring loss, love, and how to move forward with grief as a constant companion.
About Nnenna Freelon
Nnenna Freelon (host/creator) is a Grammy-nominated jazz vocalist, music educator, arts advocate, producer and arranger who has achieved international acclaim in both recording and live performance. @OfficialNnenna
Click [] to listen to Nnenna on NPR's Weekend Edition in May 2021.
And [] to watch the music video for "Time Traveler" from Nnenna's new album.
And [] to check out Nnenna in Essence Magazine from July 2021.
Meet the Team
Stacia Brown (producer) is a writer and audio producer. She's the creator of two podcasts: The Rise of Charm City, a docuseries on Baltimore's lesser-known Black history and Hope Chest, an audio diary that features her daughter, Story. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College's MFA Creative Writing program, Stacia has written about parenting, social justice, and pop culture for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New Republic and several other publications. On Twitter .
Sean Roux (producer/engineer) comes from the pro-production houses and music recording studios of San Francisco, CA where he worked in radio, film and music. Those projects included people like Robin Williams, Patrick Stewart and artists like Santana, Dave Matthews, Stanley Jordan, Deftones and Metallica. Sean鈥檚 love of audio and video production followed him back to the East Coast where he has worked on music production and artist development with local acts like American Aquarium, King Mez, Inflowential (Kooley High) and Nick Hagelin. On Twitter .
Lindsay Foster Thomas (executive producer) is a multiplatform journalist and audio storyteller, Lindsay is a graduate of Columbia University's School of Journalism and Hampton University. Her expertise includes innovative audience engagement, live events and productions with an attention to diversity. On Twitter .
(musical accompanist) is a pianist, composer and educator born and based in Raleigh, NC. Andrew's debut album as a leader, , was released in April 2019. He performs with his own trio (THRIO) and as a musical accompanist on various projects. As a creator, he strives to be empathic and joyful through his art. Andrew studied music at North Carolina Central University in Durham, NC. Eagle Pride!
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Grief is a woman with plenty to say. This shape-shifting step-sister of ours wasn鈥檛 originally a part of the plan, but now she is coming with鈥攏o choice there. But did you know you also have the ability to shape your grief? It's true, but first, you must be willing to meet her where she lives. In this episode of Great Grief, Nnenna Freelon asks us to consider what happens if we stop running from our grief, sit down, and listen to her for a change. Read a transcript of this episode. This is episode one in our four-part season of Great Grief with Nnenna Freelon, "Wailing Women," exploring the profound beauty and irreparable losses we experience as Black women through story and song. Listen to all four episodes, touching on the shock of widowhood, the bittersweet of sisterhood, and the love-hate journeys many of us have with our hair. As we give voice to the wailing women within, we find more than tears. --- Unlike other podcasts on grief, Great Grief by Grammy-nominated vocalist Nnenna Freelon doesn鈥檛 give you a blueprint for how to get over it. Instead, she offers her own experiences as a wife, a sister, a Black woman, and a powerful jazz artist to help you get into it. Each four-episode season is organized around topics that intertwine our grief experiences鈥攖opics like sisterhood, the inevitability of change, and Black love. A new collection drops every quarter, accompanied by a live opportunity for us to gather around our griefs in different cities across the South. Season 1 is available now on all podcast platforms. Learn more about Great Grief and find upcoming live events near you. Check out the archive of essays in Scalawag's grief & other loves series. Join the Great Grief Facebook community.
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Grief is your shape-shifting step-sister. While she wasn't originally part of the plan, now she is coming with鈥攏o choice there. In order to shape your grief, you must first be willing to meet her where she lives. With "Wailing Women," the first four-part installment of Great Grief, Nnenna Freelon uses story and song to explore the profound beauty and irreparable losses we experience as Black women. When grief has broken not only the lover's heart but the sister's heart, the little girl, and the woman self, these layers live in thick and disorderly kinship. How does a sister speak to the widow? What does a daughter whisper to the wife? And what is our grief saying through it all? Join Scalawag on September 13, 2023, for the official launch of Great Grief with Nnenna Freelon, season 1: "Wailing Women." --- Unlike other podcasts on grief, Great Grief by Grammy-nominated vocalist Nnenna Freelon doesn鈥檛 give you a blueprint for how to get over it. Instead, she offers her own experiences as a wife, a sister, a Black woman, and a powerful jazz artist to help you get into it. Each four-episode season is organized around topics that intertwine our grief experiences, topics like sisterhood, the inevitability of change, and Black love. A new collection drops every quarter, accompanied by a live opportunity for us to gather around our griefs in different cities across the South. Learn more: https://scalawagmagazine.org/great-grief/