The Echo Chamber

In this weeks episode we sit down and chat with Timi Sotire, editor of the anthology 'Black Joy'. We chat about what joy means to us, the revolutionary act of finding joy and being joyful as black people, and the process behind the production of the book. We chat about our parents, being joyful as a collective and as individuals, and how we're going to cultivate joy.

'Black Joy' is available to purchase where ever you buy your books. Remember your black and independent book retailers!

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In this episode we talk about the press-run and launch of Keisha The Sket by JadeLB. Jade talks about the journey, her emotions and some of the day-to-day realities of the whirlwind publication. Ez talks about her position as close friend to Jade and how it was to observe very closely.

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Find us on Twitter @echochamberpod_ Instagram @theechochamberpod and Facebook @theechochamberpod

In this episode we talk about gendered oppression. We name some of our experiences of gendered violence, as well as how living as women presents specific dangers for us. We talk about the way this has lead to negative experiences in our sexual encounters with men and how these experiences are linked to wider narratives regarding misogyny in society. Jade names the link between misogyny and her desire to distance herself from Keisha The Sket for so many years and we both discuss the unlearning required for us to work towards living freely as Black women in Britain.

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In this weeks episode we talk about love, reviewing bell hooks’ book ‘All About Love’ we discuss our foundational experiences of love and how that has informed our view of and interactions with love throughout our lives. bell hooks theory on love offers a radical, community centred approach to love which we are both challenged and refreshed by. The book encourages us to interrogate our understanding of love which in our case has highlighted the need to unlearn old patterns and beliefs.

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In this weeks episode we discuss School. We both look back on our experiences and very different trajectories in primary school very briefly, and secondary school in greater depth.
Jade reflects on how her experiences of school, at a strict convent, provided academic support and direction she doesn’t remember getting elsewhere. She identifies that the struggles that stand out to her during school were relational, and the ways in which she has avoided processing this truth, while Ez identifies hers as being related to structures and more systematic in nature.
Despite having happy memories of school and identifying how popularity played a massive part in her experience, Ez identifies how her time at two secondary schools shaped a lot for her going forward. She relays how traumatic school experiences have been a theme as she’s spent time in adulthood unpacking childhood trauma.


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In this weeks episode we talk about shadow work. Ez describes shadow work as an act of self care, essential for self love and acceptance. We explore the discomfort and shame that accompanies looking at our shadows whilst acknowledging that shadow work is necessary to push past shame and live liberated lives. We touch on the relationship between shadow work and collective consciousness/collective care, examining how engaging with our shadow supports us to show up in community lovingly and authentically. Shadow work is painful, but important work and we hope this conversation resonates with you.

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In this weeks episode we talk about our journey as writers. Ez talks about grappling with feelings of imposter syndrome in relation to her writing and some of the ways whiteness clouds her ability to engage with diversity within literature. Jade touches on the importance of keeping a diary as a child and the way this nurtured her love for writing and expressing herself through writing. We acknowledge the way our identity differs from what would be considered the traditional archetype of a ‘writer’ and whilst this may come with its limitations it also fuels our desire to tell our stories and the stories of those from marginalised communities.



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In this weeks episode we sit down with special guest Ebinehita Iyere, Founder of Milk Honey Bees. Ebinehita talks about her experience of working with young Black women which led her to study Black girlhood in education. We share memories about when we first engaged with ourselves through a racialised and gendered lens, acknowledging the difficulties Black girls face growing up in the UK.

In this episode we recap on our goals for the year and take stock of the progress we’ve made in relation to the vision boarding exercise we completed in January. Ez spoke about the magic of manifesting a new life in Nigeria as well as some of the difficulties in reaching her financial goals. Jade speaks about the sense of ease and alignment she feels in relation to her housing situation as well as progress with her upcoming book. Traditionally, setting goals has felt anxiety inducing for us so we celebrate our commitment to ourselves and the ways we’re able to map progress in this area of our lives. We send love to anyone working towards specific goals this year as well anyone who struggles with goal setting.

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Ep 67. Have A Break Have A KitKat by The Echo Chamber

In Conversation with a Social Worker ft. Sarah by The Echo Chamber

Ep 65. The Verdict ft. Franklyn Addo by The Echo Chamber

In this episode we discuss our experience of breakdowns. We talk about some of the things we can identify as structural causes of mental breakdowns as well as the interpersonal, relational causes for people to reach breaking point. We talk about how it felt to witness our mums breakdown and Ez talks about how living with Borderline Personality Disorder means she experiences breakdowns regularly and how she is learning to cope with this.

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In this episode we chat with Kadra Abdinasir of CharitySoWhite. We discuss the ways in which structural racism pervades the Third Sector and Charitable organisations, and the ways in which this impacts black recipients of charitable assistance as well as Third Sector employees, both at home and internationally.
Having each had a variable degree of experience in the sector, we start of the conversation sharing our hopes for the sector and end the chat with new fire for the creative ways that white supremacist patriarchy impacts the livelihoods of black people the world over.

Check out the work of CharitySoWhite here:
Twitter - @CharitySoWhite

Find Kadra Abdinasir here:
Twitter - @Kadra_A_


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In this episode we discuss homophobia in the Black community. We share our views on Lil Nas X’s controversial music video - Montero (https://youtu.be/6swmTBVI83k ) and talk about the impact of his use of religious imagery. We discuss the tension between our discomfort, admiration and empathy, and go on to talk about how our Christian upbringings influenced how we engaged with the video. The conversation moves on to directly address our views on homophobia in the Black community, which we identify as the deeper issue. We feel Lil Nas X’s overarching message speaks to the way religion was used in his life to promote an internalised dislike of himself; an experience shared by many people in the LGBTQ+ community. Our hope is that this exploration will encourage people to address the issue of homophobia within the Black community and the need to do better by and for Queer Black people.

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TW: This conversation discusses sexual assault, murder and gendered violence towards womxn.

In this episode we discuss the tragic murder of Sarah Everard, who was abducted and killed on her walk home. Sarah’s murder has sparked a national outcry and opened up the much needed conversation about sexual harassment and violence against womxn and girls. The lead suspect for Sarah’s murder is a serving Metropolitan Police officer and we talk about the abuse of power and the relationship between power and sexual abuse as well as the Mets history of violence towards Black women specifically. We discuss the way race and Blackness have impacted our experience of sexual harassment and the fact Black womxn experience oppression on multiple fronts. Our hearts go out to Sarah’s friends and family at this time and we continue to hope and pray that justice will be served!

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In this episode we sit down with therapist, author and business owner Laura Jayne to discuss her journey into becoming a therapist. Laura touches on her motivations to become a therapist and the fact that young, black, working class people still lack representation in her field. We talk about boundaries required in practising therapy and how this has positively impacted Laura's personal as well as her professional life. We discuss how race plays out in the therapy space and the way cultural competency helps to form safety within the therapeutic relationship. Adding to the discourse about mental health within the Black community, we hope this conversation provides insight from the perspective of a Black therapist.

You can find Laura on Instagram @laurajayneu or Twitter @JayneDee4

Find us on Twitter @echochamberpod_ Instagram @theechochamberpod and Facebook @theechochamberpod

In this episode we discuss our trajectory with money and debt. We talk openly about the relationship between money, debt and our mental health - acknowledging some of the challenges we faced growing up working class and black. We name the fact that our socio-economic backgrounds presented a number of challenges for us regarding our relationship with money and speak about the importance of having to teach ourselves to be financially competent as adults. Jade celebrates the progress she has made in recent years regarding her relationship with money and Ez talks about feeling hopeful that change is on the horizon regarding patterns of poor financial management. Conversations about money can feel uncomfortable, but as we seek to lean in to this discomfort, we hope that speaking on the topic more openly will support us to make the necessary changes in that area of our lives.

In this episode we discuss the politics around diaspora identities generally and in relation to us, personally. Ez talks about home feeling like Eastern Nigeria generally despite it being a vast place made up of several states. She acknowledges the varying definitions of home and how the feeling of being at home manifests in response to surroundings, community and comfortability.
Jade talks about her complex relationship with Britain being the place she has accepted as home to some degree due to a mixed heritage and fractured lineage. She talks about her master's thesis which looks at the spiritual/metaphysical importance of feeling at home and how the disconnect may play out in civic life (using the African American experience as a case study).

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In this episode we give an update on our therapy journeys, looking at the impact accessing regular therapy has had on us. Referring back to the very first episode, we’re able to map our progress in therapy and how for both of us, therapy served as a gateway into prioritising care and wellbeing. We discuss breaks in therapy and the difficult task of finding a new therapist. Jade touches on codependency and boundaries within the therapeutic relationship and the need to be mindful that we are trusting ourselves enough to engage with practices which support us outside of the therapy space. Ez talks about EFT and alternative therapies which she’s found helpful.

We both acknowledge the sacredness of therapy whilst holding up the realisation that majority of the work to self-heal happens outside of therapy space. For anyone interested in starting their journey, please feel free to reach out to us with any questions, we wish you all continued healing on your individual journeys.

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In this episode we talk about our relationship with Intimacy, particularly in relation to sex. We talk about our difficulties with intimacy and how it shows up in sex and relationships, and some of the things that we're learning as we continue to journey in relationship with other people. We set some intentions for the future reflecting how we hope we can engage with in intimacy comfortably, healthily and authentically.


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In this weeks episode we talk about the acts of white terrorism we saw unfold on Capitol Hill last week. We discuss some of the intricacies of citizenship and belonging as black people who live in Britain and America.

We made it to episode 50 AND the end of 2020! In this episode we have a round up of 2020. We talk about the lessons and challenges we faced in 2020, not just as a result of the pandemic that we all collectively experienced, but personal ones too that felt all the more significant given the running context of this year. We also highlight the things that brought us peace, the small mercies we enjoyed and the ways in which we felt we were granted grace.
We enjoyed recording this episode and would like to give a special thanks to Hannah (host of the HanJanRan Show) who came up with the questions we used to frame the second part of the conversation!

Thank you for rocking with us in 2020 - it has been an amazing year for the Echo Chamber thanks to you all!

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In this episode, we talk about podcasting and sharing so much. We reflect on how vulnerable we have been on our podcasting journey, how we've cultivated the courage, and how we reconcile having necessary boundaries and being vulnerable.

Thank you for listening!

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In this episode we sit down with food content creator and influencer @msjoycek and discuss what it’s like running a business as a Black woman. Joyce tells us about her journey to becoming an influencer and discusses some of the challenges she faced as a working class Black woman in her field. We speak about the power of manifestation and the magic that comes from walking in alignment with ones purpose.

Follow @MsJoyceK on Instagram and @IamJoyceK on Twitter to keep up with Joyce’s content.

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In this episode we discuss our experiences as black women in the work place. We touch on microaggressions and some of the difficulties we've face working as young, Black, working class women.

We explain the challenge of having to navigate white fragility at work and how liberal attitudes to race and gender that we come up against in our sectors can sometimes feel more problematic than overt expressions of racism.

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In this episode we sit down with Chantelle from @survivingsocietypodcast and discuss blended families. We look at our experiences growing up in blended families and the vast contrast between these negative experiences and Chantelle's much healthier experience of her chosen blended family.

We talk about shame and the ways shame drives women to make unhealthy and potentially damaging choices in relation to family, as well as the need to work towards making different choices for ourselves and supporting young women in our lives to do the same.

Chantelle touches on the role that class plays in the choices people make regarding family and the fact that capitalism means it is more difficult for working class people to exist in healthy blended family set ups.

Ultimately, our hope is that people will make choices which serve them and lead to healthy, loving, familial environments.

You can find Chantelle on Twitter via @ChantelleJLewis/@survivesocpod or instagram @survivingsocietypod and follow Surviving Society on all popular podcasting platforms.

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In this episode we have a good old rant about LOCKDOWN 2.0. We talk about the difference in mood and circumstance compared to the first lockdown. We discuss the government under Boris Johnson, the mismanagement of the lockdown and how people centred the governments priorities may have been under a Jeremy Corbyn administration, which may have garnered a better attitude towards this second lockdown. We also touch on feeling controlled and Ez tells us how Babylon truly SHOCKED her when she arrived back from Nigeria.

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In this weeks episode we discuss anger and our individual relationships with it.
We also interview Patrick Hutchinson and discuss his new book - 'Everyone Versus Racism: A Letter to my Children', as well as his approach to anger.

Purchase Patricks book everywhere NOW!

Follow Patrick on social media on Instagram @iampatrickhutchinson and Twitter @iampatrickhutch

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Following the viral video of a school girl in south London who was abused by a man on her way to school, we have a conversation about grooming and the different ways grooming manifests in our communities. We speak about the importance of safeguarding young people and creating space for all young people to be supported even when they don't fit our idea of the typical 'victim'. Touching on our experiences personally and professionally we explore the ways race and class intersect to create additional barriers for young people who experience abuse.

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In this weeks episode we discuss the protest and resistance against SARS that culminated in the Lekki Tollgate Massacre on 20.10.20.
We briefly discuss Nigeria's political history and the general running of the federal state. We berate the colonial hangover of which has led us to this tragic point, give our critiques on modes of protest/resistance, and finally discuss our individual hopes for Nigeria.
Many we acknowledge the Feminist Coalition who have organised, raised awareness, accounted for donations, and provided logistical support on the ground to the protesters.

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In this episode we chat with Tissot Regis about life, love and masculinity. He imparts some wisdom and reassurance from his perspective as a 42 year old black man.

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In this episode we discuss an uncomfortable period within our friendship. We talk openly about the discomfort we faced navigating our commitment as co-hosts and friends. We delve into some of the stories we told ourselves in relation to the difficult period we were facing and the way effective and open communication supported us to overcome this. As women who strive to live freely and authentically, we hope this conversation models the value of dialogue to overcome conflict in valued relationships.

In this episode we discuss grief following the transition of someone very dear to Ez. We talk about the fact that grief is not only experienced in relation to people dying but can be the loss of relationships, jobs or even ideas.

We talk about the ways we have questioned our right to grieve and how this has impacted our ability to process death as well as touching on communal grieving and the importance of this across the African diaspora. We are determined to develop healthier relationships with death and grief and explore the importance of giving space to the grieving process, whilst simultaneously honouring the fact that life must continue. This was a difficult but necessary conversation, we hope you enjoy listening!

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In this episode we sit down (virtually) with Dr Yusef Bakali to discuss his trajectory in academia as a teacher, researcher and scholar whose research focuses on road life. Hailing from a working class background, Yusef talks with us about the difficulties of being an academic and shouldering the labels he does, as well as his real social and economic realities despite the assumption that he is now 'very well off' because he is a Doctor.

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In this episode we talk about Self-care and our individual relationships with it, as well as how distant the narratives perpetuated by the 'self-care' industry about what it is (spa-days, luxurious pampering sessions, etc) feel from what the reality of self-care is for us.
We consider how things that actually feel like chores (i.e. doing our nails every 2-3 weeks) are considered 'self-care', and how changing ones relationship to the task can make it feel more like self-care.

Thank you for listening.

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In this episode we chat about breakups, specifically, breaking up entanglements. We discuss about what hurts so much when we make the decision to go our separate ways even if it wasn't a traditionally serious, committed relationship.

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In this episode we discuss life after lockdown. Following episode 18 'Being black, broke and quarantined', we thought it was pertinent to discuss some of the struggles arising in the post-lockdown climate. As Britain attempts to 'get back to normal', we discuss how some of the schemes and initiatives stand to exclude, or, in some cases, flat out harm marginalised and working class communities.

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