Issue 00: I've changed the name. Here's why.

This week on In Context: Names matter. Evolution is real. Why I’m changing the name of this newsletter.

Hello hello!

It’s been a minute, riiiight?!

If you've been here a while, you may have heard me speak about the significance of a name. I'm African. We do names. BIG TIME. I have two first names: Ama and Christabel. There are at least three more names before you get to my surname, which you will notice is hyphenated. There’s a story behind that too. And while none of my names will appear on those magnets you'll find at the airport (or in that image above, trust me, I searched), they do reflect the worlds that shaped me, and how I show up in the world. So you know, names matter to me, innit?

Some of you have been with me since this was called AudioDiaspora — a love letter to the voices across Africa and the world that challenge old narratives of what it meant to be Black and what Black life looked like in all its fullness — which now lives on as a series of conversations with the Royal Society of Arts (US). When I started building my independent practice, Your Podcast Pipeline became my focus, and I wanted to honour that in my newsletter. But my love of story, of analysis, of talking to the people behind those stories never really went anywhere.

Your Podcast Pipeline was the right name for what I was building at the time. It was rooted in audio, in the mechanics of getting your voice out into the world, and my passion for helping creators get the tools they need to thrive.

But the truth is, my work wasn't — and isn't — only about podcasting. It has always been about the story. Not just the mechanics of creating it, or the pipeline. It was about what flows through it: the story, getting to the heart of it, and how we use it to connect, whether it’s connecting the dots in conversations, or connecting people to each other.

My work is about helping people learn the craft of storytelling on the mic, the page and the stage, using tried and tested foundations that have worked for me - and giving the tools to own their unique voice - especially if they’ve been told to shut up over the years.

And in this way, Your Podcast Pipeline only told part of the story. So I found a new title that told my story.

Same voice and the same mission. Just a clearer name and a more confident vision.

The funny thing is, this title, which feels much closer to me, and what I do was hiding in plain sight! It's inspired by Walter Mosley's 'Life Out of Context,' a book I read as a baby journalist. It really changed my life, because Mr. Mosley really put words to what I had been thinking and feeling, and I’ve been chasing that ever since — and wanting to give others that same feeling. What I understood in reading his words was that belonging isn't just about being in the room. It's about knowing you have something to say when you get there.

And that’s what I’m building toward here.

What 'In Context' Is

This is a space for heart-led, curious, out-of-the-box thinking creators — people who are building something meaningful and want a space that keeps pace with how they actually think.

So alongside essays from my Vantage Point — and occasionally someone else's — you'll also get shorter reads about people, classes, events and things that are On My Radar. And I'll be sharing more of the things that are Living Rent Free In My Head — the ideas, voices, questions and yes, sometimes memes, that I can't stop thinking about.

In Context will land in your inbox every Thursday.

Catch the first issue this week.

I've been watching the World Cup, and I cannot stop thinking about how players choose which flag to represent and what that says about our relationship to identity.

Photographer Misan Harriman posted something recently that bubbled up a few thoughts about cultural identity that I used to struggle with. It became the door into everything.

Thursday. Don't forget now!