Vulgar Geniuses

Unable to make waves in his acting career, David Crownson took his mother's advice, boarded a plane, and headed to Ghana to press the reset button. Three months later, after binging on Crouching Tiger, Hidden, Dragon, and Buffy, HARRIET TUBMAN DEMON SLAYER was born. This series from Kingwood Comics fuses history and fantasy as Harriet Tubman frees enslaved black men and women from the clutches of...

In Bethany C. Morrow's newest novel CHERISH FARRAH the calls are coming from inside the house, and so are the screams. Our fiction pick for July will keep you cool for the rest of summer as it sends chills down your spine days after you've read the last sentence. Farrah Turner is a 17-year-old Black girl who plays a game of dominance as she manipulates her way into the home of Cherrish Whitman, be...

We're channeling our inner Minnie Ripperton as we take a walk down memory lane in Alejandro Varela’s debut novel, The Town of Babylon. We talk to him about centering his story around Andrés, a Queer Latinx college professor who returns home to care for his sick father in the small suburban town of Babylon. On the heels of dealing with his husband’s infidelity, he attends his 20-year class reunion,...

Sex, desire, and autonomy drip from the pages of our guest author, Alyssa Songsiridej's debut novel, LITTLE RABBIT. We explore this body of work as she reveals to us how she longed to bring forth a novel where female characters allowed themselves to be pulled under by their desire without being damaged by their male love interest.  A 30 year-old queer and burgeoning writer begins to unearth t...

Candice Iloh’s sophomore novel BREAK THIS HOUSE gifts, readers, with Yaminah, a teenager attempting to balance the life she has been rebuilding since she and her father moved from their hometown of Obsidian, MI., to Brooklyn, NY. In an attempt to maintain her close relationships, Yaminah is suddenly struck with news that leaves her blindsided and reeling from grief. Join us on this next episode as...

In 2020, The Vulgar Geniuses raised money to give Eccleston Elementary’s 5th-grade students a personal copy of Jason Reynolds’ Ghost, this was made possible by Orlando’s only Black-owned online bookstore, Kizzy’s Books & More. Trenessa Williams talks with us about how her parents pushed her to follow her dreams and fill a 20-year-old void by bringing Black books to the literary scene. She also...

From West Virginia University Press comes middle school teacher turned debut author Neema Avashia to talk about her memoir Another Appalachia: Coming Up Queer & Indian in a Mountain Place. Neema takes readers on a journey to discover the family and community that raised her, as she discovered who she was as a Queer girl in the south. Join us for this laugh-out-loud conversation where we learn...

WHEN WE FALL APART is the debut novel from author Soon Wiley. At first appearance, this story begins as a mystery when ex-pat Korean American Min-jin Ford launches an investigation to seek out the truth behind the death of his girlfriend. Was it a suicide, or was she murdered? This novel unfolds to be more as it brings its readers to the intersection of race, nationality, and duality of identity....

The culinary scene is thriving in the City Beautiful, with Orlando destined to be the next stop on your foodie adventures. Co-owners Chef Lordfer Lalicon and Jamilyn Bailey chat about their restaurant KAYA. This new fine dining experience will bring Filipino cuisine to the center stage and will surely leave you wanting for more! Our conversation with Lordfer and Jamilyn focuses on the importance o...

We’re pulling out the heavy hitters for this exclusive episode of The Vulgar Geniuses Podcast. Co-authored by Jeff Yang, Philip Wang, & Phill Yu comes the New York Times best-selling book RISE: A Pop History of Asian America from the Nineties to Now. Jeff & Phil join us in conversation to talk about their groundbreaking book that covers significant moments in Asian American History that ar...

Live from Orlando, Florida, it is the 2nd Annual Vulgar Geniuses Awards! Join us as we honor this past year’s spectacular literary masters, emerging filmmakers, groundbreaking artists and musicians for their extraordinary works.

We're joined by writer Minda Honey, founder, and creator of the digital alt-indie magazine TAUNT. We talk with her about her forthcoming memoir, AN ANTHOLOGY OF ASSHOLES, from Little A. Minda talks to us about what life was like navigating through her twenties, exploring the wonderfully messy world of dating and heartbreak, and how coming back to Kentucky allowed her to reconcile the restlessness...

In the New York Times bestselling novel Olga Dies Dreaming, we are brought into the world of champagne wishes and caviar dreams. Olga Acevedo is a wedding planner whose keen eye for detail and savviness fuels her superpower to curate the most beautiful weddings for New York's elite. While she spends her time helping others take a new step into love, Olga struggles to find footing.  On this ep...

The PBS animated short, Jelly, Ben & Pogo, premiered in Oct. 2021. It made waves in television as the first cartoon to feature Filipinos as lead characters on a major children's network. The show centers around a sister and brother, who embark on spectacular adventures with their sea monster friend, Pogo. Creator & writer Jalysa Leva sits down with us to talk about answering the call to be...

It's the most wonderful time of the year! April is right around the corner, and we're are gearing up to celebrate a major milestone. That's right! The Vulgar Geniuses will be crossing the threshold of a new year, as we are turning two years old!  On today's special episode of the Vulgar Geniuses Podcast, we fill you in on our plans for a month-long celebration. We're having a party, and you a...

After captivating readers with her debut memoir Reading Lolita in Tehran, Azar Nafisi returns with her fifth book, Read Dangerously: The Subversive Power of Literature in Troubled Times. Nafisi implores the reader to look to the power of literature as America wrestles with censorship in the aftermath of the Trump presidency. In our conversation with Azar Nafisi, she makes her case for us to be dil...

Jason Mott's award-winning novel HELL OF A BOOK is a bold and imaginative story that takes readers through a multidimensional universe where magical realism, humor, and breaking of the fourth wall, examine love and grief. Mott's protagonist embarks upon a book tour, but soon the unnamed author finds himself followed by a young Black boy who may or may not be imaginary.  On this episode of The...

Set in a fictional suburb of New Orleans, THE LAST SUSPICIOUS HOLDOUT dissects the lives of African Americans during the 15 years between the Reagan era to the night before Obama is elected president. Each story finds itself connected by threads of recurring characters exploring the effects of the emergence of crack cocaine in the early 90s to neighborhoods ravaged by gentrification. In this episo...

LEONOR WILL NEVER DIE took audiences by surprise this year at the Sundance Film Festival. This debut film came from the creative mind of Director and Screenwriter Martika Ramirez Escobar. Combining magical realism and action reminiscent of the 80s, we meet Leonor, a once-prominent name in the film industry, who now finds herself struggling to make ends meet. When attempting to work her way back in...

IMAKEMADBEATS is standing on the precipice of the dawning of a new day in Memphis, Tennessee. In one hand, he holds a beat machine, and in the other, he has the deed to the most sought-after property known as the Orange Mound Tower, worth $50 million.  Music producer, film screenwriter, and community leader, James Dukes, joins us to talk about his award-winning short film THE DEVIL WILL RUN....

In this episode, we speak to New York Times bestselling author and National Book award finalist Ibi Zoboi about her recently released biography 𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑹 𝑪𝑯𝑰𝑳𝑫: 𝑨 𝑩𝑰𝑶𝑳𝑶𝑮𝑰𝑪𝑨𝑳 𝑪𝑶𝑵𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑳𝑳𝑨𝑻𝑰𝑶𝑵 𝑶𝑭 𝑶𝑪𝑻𝑨𝑽𝑰𝑨 𝑩𝑼𝑻𝑳𝑬𝑹. This stunning and imaginative story tells the life of a young Octavia learning to dream beyond the stars to create stories where Black people live in futuristic worlds. Ibi Zoboi's book marries pros...

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑹𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝑺𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅 is the newest poetry chapbook from writer Mant¿s (Tyra Jamison). This multifaceted work expands over themes of transformation and liberation, with the Black Femme at the center of each piece. This book comes from the publishing hands of author Deesha Philyaw and artist Vanessa German. In our interview with Mant¿s, we talk about the writers who have influenced their work, the...

Writer/Director Adamma Ebo & Producer Adanne Ebo debuted their film, Honk For Jesus. Save Your Soul. this year at the Sundance Film Festival. After a major scandal rocks the congregation at the Wander to Greater Paths Church, Pastor Lee-Curtis Childs (Sterling K. Brown) and his wife Trinitie (Regina Hall) attempt to bring his flock back home. The Ebo Sisters sit down with us talk about their j...

In 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝑮𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝑴𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔 Frida Liu had a very bad day. After receiving a phone call from the police that her child was in their custody, Frida must explain why she left her 18-month-old baby home alone for two hours. Finding herself in a fight for her child's life, Frida is court-ordered to spend one year in a highly guarded rehab facility to learn how to become a good mother.  We speak...

Malinda Lo, author of Last Night At The Telegraph Club and newly-minted recipient of the 2021 National Book Award, joins us on today's episode. We talk about her highly celebrated novel and the necessity of seeing herself reflected in the books that she writes. Last Night at the Telegraph Club is a story of a Queer teenage Chinese American girl in the mid-1950s who falls in love and must now come...