Black Boomer Besties from Brooklyn

People don’t relish talking about pain. Valid. So let’s talk about pain relief. Dana Karen (DK) Ciccone’s journey with pain started suddenly at age 13 while performing a solo in the musical Godspell at a local theater. It was her effort to seek (and find) relief that led to her commitment to help others move their bodies in order to “conquer chronic pain, increase stress resilience, and reclaim an...

For several years Ange has adopted a daily writing practice that she attributes to changing her life.   She describes this, now ritual, as a stream of consciousness style that strengthens her connection to God, answers questions, challenges assumptions, and allows her to be her most vulnerable, without judgment. Lately, she has opened her writing time for others to join to reap the benefits of the...

Katt Williams said whaaaat???  In his recent interview on Club Shay Shay , Shannon Sharp’s popular online show, comedian Katt Williams almost broke the internet.  His nearly 3 hour appearance skyrocketed to 37 million views within hours. He had to “tell the truth couldn’t let the lies stand” after some fellow comedic contemporaries were earlier guests. And boy did he go all in. He had folks clutch...

How long do you keep your clothing? If you’re anything like Leslie, decades; scores, even. Leslie admits that the sweater she is wearing was gifted to her by their dear friend ( guest on S1E10 ), the actress Kim Coles nearly 30 years ago.  She worries that at this rate, her wardrobe will likely outlive her.  Angie calls her out and Leslie finally admits “I got too much” before her segue into the m...

To hear these Besties talk, one would think that one of them is a doctor!  But all jokes aside, Leslie is not giving medical advice here. The Besties discuss a recent experience when faced with the high costs of prescription drugs and healthcare in general in America. Leslie’s in shock at learning that her new copayment will be for her migraine medication - several thousand dollars (her headache d...

Are you OK with not being everybody’s cup of tea or do you prefer that everyone thinks you’re the bee’s knees? People pleasing may be just too much pressure for The Besties.    So when Les asks: “Who wouldn’t want to be partnered with you [Ang]?”, a deep discussion ensues about how we bring our authentic selves to relationships with respect, grace, and truth as necessary components. With these in...

Hope your Christmas Day - if it’s your tradition - was everything you hoped. Leslie struggles with this season and couldn’t be happier that January is almost here. No, she’s not particularly looking forward to starting a new year, rather she's thrilled that the Christmas season is drawing to a close.  In this episode Leslie explains to Angella  her “scrooge-esque” reticence to celebrate the j...

Would any fears arise if you were to consider having a boudoir photoshoot? This week’s guest may put all of them to rest. Olesha Haskett is a published photographer whose focus on boudoir made her aware of specific needs of Black women/female identifying people that were not being met. She created community for Black boudoir photographers and unapologetically educates on how others can become more...

When Leslie had a little fender bender with a parked car, and the owner nowhere in sight, she had a decision to  make.  Should she leave a note  with  her information or would it be ok if she left, hoping the owner’s insurance would cover the cost?  What do you think she did? After all, it was an accident and isn’t that what insurance is for? The besties were not in agreement on every point but as...

Because it’s the start of the gift giving season, the Besties have decided to give you a priceless gift with Part 2 of the 2 part series with Estate Planning Attorney Karl Chen. In fact, they see it more as a love gift to your families. Angella and Leslie continue their conversation with Karl who offers clear and candid information on how to jumpstart creating your “Generational Wealth Blueprint”....

This week they bring to you Part 1 of a two part interview with Karl Chen, Esq.   Karl is an estate and business planning attorney whose practice revolves around Estate Planning, Probate Matters and Business Law issues for businesses and individuals. Before they get into financial matters, though, the old high school friends meander down memory lane. Clearly, their classmates from NYC’s elite Broo...

This episode comes out of the Besties Vault, recorded back at the start of our season 2. The Besties began a discussion about a few interesting documentaries and have decided to delve deeper into them as separate episodes this season.   The 1619 Project chronicles African Americans from the first enslaved Africans brought to America in 1619. Another is Contradiction , which examines the role of th...

This week has been a week of deadlines for Ang - commitments to theater, making custom wigs, and preparing for her first (of many, God-willing) talk on the topic of Black Hair Culture. Leslie keeps firing questions like she’s sitting at the feet of a sage - LOL. There’s so much more than meets the eye when it comes to the culture of Black hair and Ang just wants to shout it from the rooftops. Did...

The Besties start Season 5 with a  heady discussion about voting and the devastation caused by the war in Israel.  Today is Election Day in the US where many local and state representatives will be decided.  Since few voters realize the impact of these elections on their day-to-day lives, focusing instead on the presidential ones every 4 years, Leslie & Angie make a plea for getting out and ma...

The Besties celebrate their one year anniversary and reflect on some of the hilarity and highlights of the past 12 months.  After it took 22 takes to record the 1 min trailer though, Leslie was convinced that her brief stint at podcasting was over. She pushed through and the rest is, well, history.  Enjoy excerpts that take you on a brief journey of the early years, how they bonded despite their d...

Leslie felt left out when Angella appeared on television and didn't tell her about it ahead of time. She couldn’t understand why Angella downplayed it as “no big deal”.  The incident led the Besties into a discussion about the ways in which we tend to judge ourselves and engage in negative self talk.  Others may recognize our accomplishments while we experience imposter syndrome. As Season 4...

Do you ever reflect on your past to remind yourself of the mountains you’ve climbed, the monsters you’ve vanquished, and the lessons you’ve learned? One Bestie does, and thinks it’s a necessity; the other doesn’t and wouldn’t even know where to start. Ange, the entrepreneur and deep thinker, ran into a dilemma as she did some "mining" of her accomplishments throughout her career: she unc...

Open wide and say “AHHH-Mazing”! That’s what Ange and Lez thought of the revelatory information Dr. Nicole McGrath Barnes shared.  Dr. Nicole is a longtime friend and a New Jersey based pediatric dentist who is saving the lives of marginalized children, one mouth at a time. Oral health is the gateway to total health and is a number one preventable disease. Poor oral health can lead to diabetes, he...

Clitoris. Say it out loud: Clit-o-ris. That glorious organ of the female/traditionally female body has been a topic that Angella has brooded over since listening to Maria Rosok’s TED Talk and learning about  Sophia Wallace’s Cliteracy movement (no pun intended), a couple of years ago.  In her then 58 yrs, she had never learned anything about the significance, size, or sensitivity of this important...

You’ll be a fly on the wall in this episode. The Besties catch up after a busy work day and consider, in disbelief, that the 1 yr anniversary of the podcast is fast approaching.   Did Angie manipulate Leslie into becoming her co-host? Why was Leslie apprehensive and when did their roles switch?  At some point in their friendship, Leslie had been the risk-taker while Angie was known for and sought...

Leslie looked at the blank wall in her new pool area and immediately an idea hit her.  She would search for an artist to paint a mural on the wall.  But is that something that people actually do? How does one move a ‘want’ from idea to inception? Leslie’s search led her to the Orlando area based artist Delia Miller.  As you’ll learn, Delia’s talents stretch way beyond her 20 years. In this episode...

Does one really need a “bestie”?  That Ride or Die, Against All Odds, Knows Where the Skeletons Are Buried pal who just seems to ‘get you’? Ang doesn’t think it's a requirement and just when she thinks Les has been convinced, no dice.  What they absolutely do agree on is the integrity, trust and freedom that continues to strengthen their special bond; and both hope others can find the same. S...

Leslie lost a friend last week. She wanted to honor him by speaking his name and saying goodbye; something she wasn't able to do because he went into solitude a few years before his death. Dr Andrew Citron left behind two daughters and a wife of 29 years when he lost his two year battle with a rare brain cancer.  Leslie first met Andy 16 years ago when she interviewed with him for her current...

The Besties separately were brought to tears when they first viewed Ira’s (Ayirani) art - strong, feminine, queer, love-filled, flower-powerful, beautiful, voluptuous, all the things that feel right with the world.  Ira is an illustrator from New York whose work primarily focuses on the experience of the South Asian Queer-identified community. Their soft-spoken and shy demeanor belies the courageo...

It started out innocently enough - Leslie called Angie to talk about what she called a “pet peeve”. Why do some Black women wear satin sleep bonnets outside the house?  In this episode you’ll hear the besties discuss this seemingly superficial issue and watch it turn into a more serious conversation about respectability politics. Did Dr Martin Luther King Jr and his fellow marchers get any less vi...