Rooted

In this episode of Rooted , we ask what it really means to make jazz now . From Boston jazz clubs and basement jam sessions to TikTok lives and global stages, Grammy-nominated saxophonist Godwin Louis breaks down how jazz continues to evolve across generations, cultures, and continents. We explore jazz’s deep roots in Black American history, its ties to the African diaspora, and why America so oft...

Rooted digs into reality TV accountability, revisiting America’s Next Top Model through a critical lens that centers Black women and power. Our panel unpacks the now‑iconic “We were all rooting for you!” moment, how a new documentary reframes Tyra Banks and the early‑2000s modeling industry, and what accountability looks like when those traditionally marginalized are positioned as gatekeepers. Sub...

Just days before she was fired by President Trump, Carla Hayden - the first woman and the first African American to serve as the librarian of Congress  - warned about the risk of losing important parts of U.S. history. Hayden and Noelle Trent, the head of Boston's Museum of African American History, spoke with GBH News Rooted Host Paris Alston about their efforts to preserve Black history. Rooted...

Callie Crossley guest hosts Rooted in leading a panel that breaks down the biggest surprises of the 2026 Oscars, from Michael B. Jordan’s groundbreaking win and Ruth E. Carter’s historic nomination milestone to the heated debates around Teyana Taylor’s role, Paul Thomas Anderson’s sweep, and whether the new casting category can push Hollywood toward real representation—all while questioning what t...

On Rooted , we’re unpacking the “Bluey‑to‑Baddies” pipeline—and why tween media feels impossible to find in a world drowning in YouTube algorithms and AI‑generated slop. Paris taps award‑winning animator Chaz Bottoms to break down the brutal realities of making it in cartoons, especially for creators of color. Then Genie Deez and Thy Than, showrunners of the new PBS Kids series Phoebe & Jay ,...

The federal government just slashed how much future nurses, counselors, educators, and social workers can borrow — a move that hits women, Black students, and entire communities like a punch to the gut. Paris Alston digs into how a bureaucratic “reclassification” could gut the nursing pipeline, deepen care shortages, and widen racial health disparities. Then we head to Roxbury, where Children’s Se...

In this episode, we mark 100 years since Carter G. Woodson launched Negro History Week by asking what Black History Month truly means today— and whether it still matters . We hit the streets to hear how everyday people perceive the holiday’s legacy, then sit down with Dr. Kellie Carter Jackson, comedian Jason Cordova, and culture commentator Shane Faiteau for a candid conversation about the ways B...

Graduate student workers are the engine of American universities—teaching classes, grading papers, running labs—and many are doing it while earning less than a barista’s paycheck. In this episode, Paris Alston exposes the brutal reality behind the prestige: retaliation, homelessness, mental health crises, and a 206‑day strike that made history. We hear from a BU grad worker whose fight for surviva...

A raw, cultural breakdown of Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl takeover — from the unity message and Latino representation debate to the nostalgia‑heavy ads that fell flat. Our roundtable featuring equity and justice reporter Trajan Warren, eXpozedtv and #GrindCon founder Katiria Colon, and Auzzy Byrdsell of The Boston Globe dig into the moments that hit, the ones that missed, and why this performance still...

Black families love to joke that “we’re losing recipes,” but what we’re really losing—and sometimes finally confronting—are the unspoken histories baked into every pan of mac and cheese. In this episode, Paris Alston digs into the generational drama simmering beneath our traditions, then sits down with Sarah Amos to unpack the chaotic, brilliant legacy of her father, Wally “Famous” Amos. And if th...

The 2026 Grammys rolled out 3,800 new voters, diverse nominees, and a whole lot of “we promise we’ve changed” energy — but in a world where careers are built on TikTok loops and viral sandwiches, does the gramophone still mean anything? Paris Alston breaks down a night where Bad Bunny used his moment to call out ICE, Kendrick Lamar made history while amplifying lesser-known artists, and the Record...

Black folks have always had a complicated relationship with water—from West African aquatic cultures to the terror of the Middle Passage, from segregated pools to Flint and Jackson. In this episode, Paris Alston dives deep with National Geographic explorer Tara Roberts, who documents slave shipwrecks the world pretends not to care about, and champion rower Arshay Cooper, who’s reclaiming the heali...

Tech giants are cashing in on our data while Black communities face the environmental fallout of data centers and the job‑shifting wave of AI. Paris Alston talks digital sharecropping, climate justice, and the real cost of automation with activists and experts who are pushing back—NAACP’s Abre’ Conner, journalist Willie Blackmore, and tech ethicist Rev. Chris Hope. From polluted neighborhoods to b...

Kendrick Lamar has taken aim at his rival Drake’s biracial identity. President Trump did the same against his rival former Vice President Kamala Harris. Bridging identities and cultures has been part of the Black experience for centuries, so what’s it like for a generation moving into adulthood? Paris Alston talks culture, Frederick Douglass, and the end of racism with two twenty-somethings naviga...

Braids are a way to get 'hang time' but there's new evidence that synthetic hair often contains chemicals - including lead and benzene -  associated with cancer.  Zina Thompson of Zina’s Hair Salon,  Shellee Mendes of Salon Monet and Dr. Joyce Imahiyerobo-Ip of Vibrant Dermatology & Aesthetics joined Paris Alston at the roundtable to discuss the evidence, risks and lack of regulation on hair p...

The Trump administration is dismantling DEI programs, the Republicans control congress, and Democratic Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley says the time is right for reparations. Why now? And what would a reparations law look like? Paris Alston sat down with Rep. Pressley to ask about the timing of a reparations bill and the Democrats response to Trump 2.0.

From Harlem Renaissance rebels to Hollywood stereotypes, Black storytelling has always been a battleground for power. Today, the pen, the lens, and the mic are finally in Black hands but what does that mean when the legacy of racial violence still hangs over us, literally and figuratively? In this  episode of Rooted , playwright Zora Howard unpacks her haunting new work Hang Time , inspired by rea...

Every minute, someone is abused and tech is at the center of it all. From stalking through smart devices to survivors fighting back with screenshots, this episode exposes how technology is both weapon and lifeline. Featuring raw stories, expert insights, and a fight for justice you won’t hear anywhere else.

Inspired by Gucci Mane’s candid Breakfast Club interview, Rooted dives deep into the complex world of conservatorships and Black men’s autonomy over their lives when living with a mental health condition. Featuring owner of the estate planning firm Life & Legacy Counselors, Aimee Griffin; clinical social worker and executive director of Fathers' Uplift, Dr. Charles Daniels; as well as marriage...

As the political climate intensifies under the Trump administration, journalists and media leaders from historically Black-owned outlets and public media’s equity and justice units explore what it means to tell diverse stories in an era of disinformation, censorship, and cultural backlash. This episode examines how legacy and emerging voices are fighting to preserve truth and representation. Find...

Paris speaks with a panel of experts to explore how Black haircare serves as a powerful tool for community care, social activism, and civil liberties in America. Find more content and subscribe to our YouTube channel . 

A year after New England's first affordable, inclusive LGBTQ+ living facility is created, very few people of color are residents. Paris unpacks the inequities that the BIPOC queer senior citizens face with queer theologian Reverend Irene Monroe, author and cultural critic Tre Johnson, public health expert Dr. Angelique Harris, and LGBTQ Elders of Color executive director Paul Glass. Find more cont...

With its roots in voicing the unheard concerns of oft forgotten communities, Hip-Hop has grown into the most profitable genre in the music industry. As Notorious B.I.G. once said, "Mo' Money, Mo' Problems". Between RICO cases, sex trafficking suits, and controversial presidential endorsements one could wonder if Hip-Hop continues to service its origins. Paris unpacks this with her guests. Find mor...

With executive orders aimed at withholding federal funding from jurisdictions with sanctuary policies and a call from Attorney General, Pam Bondi, for several cities to comply with ICE in civil deportation, Paris Alston speaks with Boston City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune about how these issues impact Black immigrants. Find more content and subscribe to our YouTube channel . 

Entering the 2025-2026 school year, Massachusetts, like many states, struggles with dwindling literacy rates among its youth. To better understand the issues happening in and outside the classrooms, Paris invited GrubStreet Black Teaching Fellows, Jonathan Todd and Toni Bee, to unpack their teaching methodologies and experiences working with the underserved youth of the greater Boston area. Find m...