An Interview with Dr. Reiland Rabaka: Professor and Author

We begin this episode by talking with Dr. Reiland Rabaka, professor of African, African American, and Caribbean Studies in the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of Colorado, Boulder. He has written multiple books and has done extensive research in the field of black radical history, black radical politics, black social movements, black feminist theory, black sexuality studies, black popular culture, black popular music, critical race theory, and decolonial theory.

Whew! That’s a long list of credentials, and you will learn within moments of listening to him on the podcast that he is passionate about his work. We had a blast talking with him, not only because of the wealth of knowledge that he shared, but also because of the gracious, open space he welcomed us into as we talked about racial inequality and music’s influence in the Civil Rights Movement of the 50s and 60s and in the Black Lives Matter movement today.

An Interview with Loretta Medeiros, MT-BC

It was fun to “cross paths” with a fellow classmate and colleague, Loretta Medeiros. We both attended Saint Mary of-the-Woods College in Indiana for our music therapy equivalency program. I had begun a conversation on a music therapy Facebook page, asking the question about diversity in the field of music therapy, and it was clear that Loretta was passionate about the subject. That led to our interview on the podcast.

She has so many great ideas to share, including ways that we can keep working toward greater diversity in the field of music therapy. We talk about the importance of connecting with our patients/clients, and how culture is a key ingredient in making that connection. We live in a diverse world, yet the majority of music therapists are white and female. Loretta and I talk through ways to think bigger and dream of what the professional music therapy network can look like one day.

Friends Fun Trivia!

Friends trivia is a little slice of “Jill joy” to end the episode (plus you could win a prize!). If you have no interest in this segment, no worries. You can just stop listening, knowing that you heard everything important up to this point. But if you’d like to participate in the fun, take a listen and be one of three listeners to record a message and answer the question correctly.

The first three to answer correctly will receive a copy of W. E. B. Du Bois’s book The Souls of Black Folk. So take a listen and go to speakpipe.com and give me your answer to the question: who is Ross speaking to (in the clip that we share)?! Be sure to leave your contact information!