Stories from the Heart of Culture: Celebrating Black Voices at Audible

Our Hear My Story program elevates Black voices year-round. This month, we introduced thought-provoking Audible Originals from cultural icons, literary luminaries, and world-renowned performers.

In the inspiring series Unity in the Community, Queen Latifah introduces listeners to everyday people working to make positive change in their neighborhoods. In the Cut with Ghetto Gastro dives into the dishes and cultures that shape the New York City foodscape with guests like Questlove and Black Thought. Some People Have Real Problems, from NYT bestselling author Brit Bennett (The Vanishing Half), and performed by Tessa Thompson (Westworld, Thor: Ragnarok), is a riveting short about how choices change a life.

Also in February, we dropped four more episodes from the series Till Today, with White House correspondent April Ryan examining Orion Pictures’ critically acclaimed film Till, and the impact of Mamie Till-Mobley's work, with guests like Whoopi Goldberg and #MeToo founder Tarana Burke; and in Coming Home, from bestselling author and Audible customer favorite Kennedy Ryan, music and storytelling come together when a group of estranged friends return to their HBCU, featuring performances from Southern University’s famous marching band, Human Jukebox.

Looking ahead, on March 7, the highly anticipated Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast premieres. This Audible Original podcast offers listeners a chance to hear the First Lady’s inspiring conversations from her Fall 2022 book tour with friends like Ellen DeGeneres, Tyler Perry, Conan O’Brien, Oprah Winfrey, and more. The conversations go beyond the book, exploring topics like building meaningful relationships; issues connected to race, gender, and visibility; the habits and principles that can help adapt to change and overcome obstacles; and the importance of lighting up for others to reveal the richness and potential around us. This is the first release from our multi-project deal with President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground production company, announced last year.

Also on March 7, Colin Kaepernick’s Audible Original Change the Game debuts, bringing the renowned activist and athlete’s childhood story to vivid life with a full cast of performers, including actor Jaden Michael and Kaepernick himself.

On March 9, Queen Latifah’s Audible Original, Monumental: Harriet Tubman and Newark’s Liberation Movement, releases, weaving together the story of Harriet Tubman’s fight for freedom with that of the abolitionist movement in Newark. Monumental will be part of a permanent audio installation at a new monument honoring Harriet Tubman, set to be unveiled in Newark, also on March 9.

Listeners can find Hear My Story content more easily than ever in the Audible app, and our editors have curated content by Black storytellers across a multitude of genres, including documentary, memoir, literary fiction, romance, fantasy, and more on the Audible blog.

Audible employee events during the month included a panel discussion with members of Audible’s ACX team, creatives who’ve used ACX’s service, and Amazon Publishing on the ways in which the service supports Black writers and our employees in becoming self-published authors.

Audible’s Black Employee Network (BEN) led a discussion between our executive editor Christopher Farley and author Richard Stengel about his Audible Original Mandela: The Lost Tapes, which reveals never-before-heard audio from Stengel’s interviews with the late, Nobel Prize-winning South African president. The discussion was accompanied by South African jazz artist and composer Siya Makuzeni, who shared her behind-the-scenes experience of composing music for the series. BEN also hosted a session for employees in which members of our talent and recruiting teams, as well as customer care and quality assurance, shared the many opportunities Audible offers for career development, such as mentorships, training, and tuition reimbursement.

Finally, we were able to come together in person for BEN’s social hour mid-month, where many had the chance to share their talents in the group’s Black Expressions Show, an entertaining reminder that we not only produce content with amazing creatives—we get to work alongside them, as well.