It’s time.
I know, I know. It’s been four agonizing months since we last heard from New York Times mainstays Jenna Wortham and Wesley Morris, but happier days are ahead. Why? Because the rumors are true: They’ll be combining their Wonder Twin powers to resume their duties as the co-hosts of the award-winning podcast, Still Processing, very soon.
How soon? Does Thursday work for you?
In the past, they’ve blessed us with explorations of the controversies and cancel culture surrounding one Kanye Omari West, discussed what it means to be biracial or to engage in interracial relationships, and what it means to be white in America. But in their new season—again, premiering on the 18th; so would you please calm down?—they’ll be focusing on the aftermath of a year we’d all love nothing more than to forget ever happened: 2020.
Within the context of arts and culture, they’ll dig into challenging conversations about race, identity, and injustice. And in the season premiere, they’ll be going there with a word that can either be a loving term of endearment, a looming threat, or grounds for a good old-fashioned, passionate ass-whooping: the n-word.
Or as Jenna so eloquently puts it in this episode: “The word is a monument, and we should be able to choose who gets to deface it.”
Truer words—no pun intended—have never been spoken. And considering its status as both forbidden fruit and ubiquitous, it’s a deeply personal and intellectually expansive conversation that will definitely have Twitter talking after its release. But ultimately, the dynamic duo believes it’s a word that is not only an expression of beauty, but a love letter of sorts to Blackness itself.
If your impatient ass can’t wait until Thursday to indulge in the season premiere, you can listen to the trailer for the new season here. And as always, Still Processing is available on your podcast platform of choice.