noseyAF: Conversations about Art, Activism, and Social Change

Ep 151: I Make Films for Black People and Everybody Can Watch with Barbara Allen Two little girls saw a movie camera in a mail order catalog and spent a whole week on the phone building a case to bring to their parents. They both got a yes. Fifty some years later, one of them is a filmmaker and the other one is her writer. This week I'm talking with documentary filmmaker Barbara Allen, the person behind Paper Trail: 100 Years of the Chicago Defender, DuSable to Obama: Chicago's Black Metropolis, Colorblind: Rethinking Race, and House Music: A Cultural Revolution. Recorded live at Lumpen Radio, no edits, no retakes. What We Talk About How an 8 year old talks her mother into a movie camera, and how that kid and her best friend ended up in an editing room together twenty years later Why the Vivian Harsh Collection at Woodson Library is the place to go for Black Chicago history, and what's in there that the big museums don't have The Black pilots of 1930s Chicago: Cornelius Coffey, Willa Brown, and the man they called the one man Ethiopian Air Force Why she deliberately cast white male experts in a documentary about racism, and why it worked Time travel, virtual reality, and putting a viewer on a rooftop during Hurricane Katrina Where she lands on AI, and the dark comedy about AI she's making right now The one thing she wishes more interviewers would do If you love Chicago history, oral archives, or anybody who has been following their curiosity since childhood, this episode is for you. All about Barbara Allen You're gonna love Barbara. She's a straight up walking archive with a great sense of humor about it. She's a producer, director, editor, engineer, and journalist who has spent decades telling stories about Black history, culture, and Chicago. Her documentaries include Paper Trail: 100 Years of the Chicago Defender, DuSable to Obama: Chicago's Black Metropolis, Colorblind: Rethinking Race, and House Music: A Cultural Revolution. She was a Knight Fellow at Stanford in 2013, where she built one of the first immersive VR journalism pieces, a Hurricane Katrina rooftop story narrated by Harry Lennix. She's currently raising funds for Realignment, a dark comedy about AI that is a pilot for a series. Chapters: 00:22 - Settle In — Live, Unedited Conversation on Nosy AF 02:15 - Origins: Making Films at Eight 06:14 - Wearing Many Hats: Learning Every Side of Filmmaking 14:27 - Film timeline — Paper Trail and other works 20:50 - Social Media as Archive: Self‑Documenting and the Future of Storytelling 31:51 - Show Return — Barbara Allen: A Walking Archive 34:43 - AI, Authenticity, and Immersive Storytelling 42:01 - AI and Storytelling: When Technology Becomes the Story 49:16 - Lessons Learned Behind the Camera 52:45 - Advice for the Next Generation — Passion vs. Fame 59:43 - Episode Closing — Thanks & Credits Things We Mentioned Paper Trail: 100 Years of the Chicago Defender DuSable to Obama: Chicago's Black Metropolis Colorblind: Rethinking Race House Music: A Cultural Revolution Realignment, her AI dark comedy in development, fiscally sponsored and currently fundraising The Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection at the Carter G. Woodson Regional Library Michael Flug, archivist Timuel Black, Chicago historian Dr. Daniel Hale Williams and Provident Hospital Cornelius Coffey, John Robinson, Willa Brown, and Bessie Coleman Susan Cayton Woodson and her grandfather Hiram Revels, the first Black U.S. senator The Chicago Defender's WWII Victory Edition and the Double V campaign Gail Baker, her writer since they were 8 Tim Wise and the Brandeis researcher who coined "the Black tax" Jeremy Bailenson and Nonny de la Peña Harry Lennix Donald Crossley of the House Music documentary Felicia Kreger, who made the introduction Recent screening of DuSable to Obama at the Chicago Cultural Center with DCASE Connect with Barbara Allen Barbara’s Production Company “Middle Passage Productions” House Music: A Cultural Revolution is on the WTTW YouTube channel Sponsor Shoutout 💖 This episode features Artist Admin Hour. Every Wednesday, 7 to 9pm Central, artists get on Zoom and knock out the applications, grants, budgets, and invoices we've all been avoiding. Two hours of body doubling with structure, no shame, and real community. artistadminhour.com Stay Connected Sign up for the noseyAF Dispatch and grab the Good Neighbor Playbook. Behind the Mic noseyAF is a project of Stephanie Graham's art practice. More ways to connect [email protected] | @stephaniegraham | noseyaf.com Support & Feedback Rate and review the show, and share this episode with a friend who loves Chicago history. Episode Credits Produced, Hosted, and Edited by Stephanie Graham Lyrics: Queen Lex | Instrumental: Freddie Bam Fam | Cover Art: Emma McGoldrick

Recorded live on Lumpen Radio 105.5 FM, Saturday, September 12, 2026 A teacher looked at her painting in front of the whole class and called it a knowledgeable failure. She took it as a compliment. Chicago painter Megan Williamson has been painting for decades and is nowhere near finished figuring out what painting can do. From a hundred Zoom portraits to a room full of circus figures, her work is about looking, searching, and following an idea wherever it goes. What We Talk About What a teacher meant when he called her painting a knowledgeable failure, and why she now tells that story to her own students Why the circus, and what an E.E. Cummings quote and a nun have to do with her new exhibition How a hundred Zoom portraits during the pandemic changed what she knew about painting people The unexpected turn: what she does when she has no idea what's going to happen in the studio, which is more often than you'd think If you love hearing an artist talk honestly about not knowing, this episode is for you. Chapters: • 00:12 - Live, Unedited Conversation Begins • 01:12 - Interview Begins — Megan Williamson, Chicago Painter • 12:54 - Studio Companion: My Dog Tao Teo • 20:19 - From Classroom to Studio: How Teaching Shapes Her Art • 30:43 - Ad Break — The Inner Guide: Finding Answers Within • 42:11 - Learning to Be Brave — Childhood, Horses, and Early Lessons • 48:44 - From Coloring Pages to a Calling: Teacher Memories • 59:30 - Closing Remarks — Exhibition Details & How to Follow Megan All about Megan Williamson You're gonna love Megan! She's a painter who is genuinely still curious after decades of doing this. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, and this October she has a solo exhibition at the Swope Art Museum in Terre Haute, Indiana, titled Damn Everything But the Circus, after an E.E. Cummings line. She studied at Knox College and the New York Studio School, teaches landscape painting, and keeps a studio here in Chicago. Things We Mentioned Damn Everything But the Circus, Swope Art Museum, opening October Her hundred Zoom portraits project Knox College and the New York Studio School Gabriel Laderman, the teacher behind the knowledgeable failure Risha Brown Inner Guide Podcast Connect with Megan Williamson IG: @meganwilliamson_art Megan’s Website Stay Connected 📬 Get the noseyAF Dispatch — all the month's episodes, straight to your inbox once a month. → Subscribe here 🏡 Grab the Good Neighbor Playbook → Download it free Behind the Mic noseyAF is a project of Stephanie Graham's art practice — photography, film, and documentary work rooted in community and curiosity. → See the work More ways to connect Email: [email protected] Follow on IG: @stephaniegraham Listen to more episodes: noseyaf.com Support & Feedback noseyAF is listener-supported — thank you for being here. 💛 ⭐ Rate & Review the Show 📣 Share noseyAF with a friend who needs to hear this Episode Credits Produced, Hosted, and Edited by Stephanie Graham Lyrics: Queen Lex | Instrumental: Freddie Bam Fam | Cover Art: Emma McGoldrick

Ep 149: All That and a Bag of Chips: 31 Days of Black Business Reflections No guest. No theme song. Just me, a cup of coffee, and whatever came out of my mouth. 🖤 We made it. Thirty-one days, thirty-one Black business owners, every single day of August. And then two days into September, because that's how it goes. This one is unscripted. I sat down and talked off the top of my head about what this series actually took, what it reminded me of, and the thing I realized halfway through that I'm still sitting with. What I get into How this started, and why Denzel Turner of Black Fridays is the reason the whole series exists What it actually took: the intake forms, the rescheduling, the Chicago storms that knocked our power out, and editing every single episode myself The thing I realized halfway through — that I've been making oral archives my whole practice, from So This One Guy to The Black Kid Table, and this is just the first time in podcast form Do it scared. Every single story in this series had a moment where the thing almost didn't happen. Have friends who see you. Several of these businesses exist because a friend kept asking when they were going to start. Word of mouth as a whole thread of the month, and why relationship marketing kept coming up And the last thing: I really am all that and a bag of chips. I did that. Chapters: 00:01 - Introduction to Nosey AF Conversations 02:21 - The Journey of Black Business Month 05:15 - Transitioning to New Perspectives 08:46 - Overcoming Fear and Embracing Support 11:55 - The Power of Relationships in Marketing 13:55 - Gratitude and Reflection Thank you To Off the Grid for partnering on this series and believing in it before it existed. To every guest who gave me their time, their story, and their trust. To Queen Lex and Freddie Bam Fam, whose theme song I played every single day this month and still love I got my money's worth. To Emma McGoldrick for the cover art. And to you, for listening, sharing, buying, booking, and being nosey with me. Where to start if you're catching up There's a therapist in this series. A credit expert. A handyman. An economist. A woman who will take you to Ghana. A woman who will make you a swimsuit that fits. A bookstore for the dark fantasy girlies. Thats just a start, there is someone there for everyone! Go be somebody's first customer. Or their second. Or their five thousandth. All 31 episodes → noseyaf.com This series was supported by Off the Grid, a podcast for small business owners who want to leave social media without losing their clients. Find them at offthegrid.fun 🖤 Stay Connected 📬 Get the noseyAF Dispatch → Subscribe here 🏡 Grab the Good Neighbor Playbook → Download it free More ways to connect Email: [email protected] Follow on IG: @stephaniegraham Listen to more episodes: noseyaf.com Support & Feedback noseyAF is listener-supported; thank you for being here. 💛🫶🏾 ⭐ Rate & Review the Show 📣 Share noseyAF with a friend who needs to hear this Episode Credits Produced, Hosted, and Edited by Stephanie Graham Lyrics: Queen Lex Instrumental: Freddie Bam Fam Cover Art: Emma McGoldrick

Ep 148: Serious Training for Everyday People with Sean Armstead of Phenomenal Fitness Part of noseyAF's 31 Days of Black Business series 🖤 He trained 33 people last Saturday. Starting at 4 in the morning. Sean Armstead is a former Marine Corps infantry officer who served in the Persian Gulf, and he's been running Phenomenal Fitness since 1997. The slogan hasn't changed in almost thirty years: serious training for everyday people. His whole book of business comes from referrals. He calls it old money. What We Talk About Successful aging, what it actually means, and why he's training you for the body you'll have at 70 rather than the one you had at 25 The five pillars: structural integrity, movement skill, work capacity, body composition, and power What it's really like your first day, and why he says if you get sick twenty minutes in, that's the trainer's fault The unexpected turn: he started with no certification, no business background, and no idea what he was doing. A mentor kept telling him to burn the ship. If you love a conversation with somebody who's been doing it long enough to know, this episode is for you. Chapters: 00:13 - Reflecting on the Black Business Series 04:49 - Building a Team: Lessons from 30 Years in Business 12:35 - Transitioning to Entrepreneurship 17:52 - Understanding Fitness and Aging 38:01 - Engaging Clients: The Importance of Retention and Revenue 44:47 - Building a Sustainable Business Model All about Sean Armstead You're gonna love Sean. He's a former Marine Corps infantry officer turned strength and conditioning coach who describes himself as a triple threat leader: know the way, go the way, show the way. He founded Phenomenal Fitness in 1997 and has been a brick and mortar gym owner since 1999, operating out of the South Loop. His model is semi-private training, which keeps sessions around $50 rather than the $120 to $130 that private training typically runs. He writes his first name in lowercase to remind himself of humility and gratitude. Things We Mentioned Phenomenal Fitness, South Loop Chicago → new website coming, with free exercise and programming content Serious training for everyday people, the slogan since 1997 The five pillars: structural integrity, movement skill, work capacity, body composition, power The four principles: mindset, muscle, metcon, modification of lifestyle Semi-private training, averaging $50 a session This series is supported by Off the Grid, a podcast for small business owners who want to leave social media without losing their clients. Find them at offthegrid.fun 🖤 Connect with Phenomenal Fitness Website IG: @phenomenalfit1 Stay Connected 📬 Get the noseyAF Dispatch → Subscribe here 🏡 Grab the Good Neighbor Playbook → Download it free More ways to connect Email: [email protected] Follow on IG: @stephaniegraham Listen to more episodes: noseyaf.com Support & Feedback noseyAF is listener-supported; thank you for being here. 💛🫶🏾 ⭐ Rate & Review the Show 📣 Share noseyAF with a friend who needs to hear this Episode Credits Produced, Hosted, and Edited by Stephanie Graham Lyrics: Queen Lex Instrumental: Freddie Bam Fam Cover Art: Emma McGoldrick

Ep 147: Vintage Is a Form of Luxury with Jennifer Kelly-Nichols of Vintage Frills Part of noseyAF's 31 Days of Black Business series 🖤 She was too scared to sign a lease, so she bought a short school bus and painted it pink instead. She'll tell you she cheated a little. Jennifer Kelly spent years as the logistical backbone at Chanel, Tiffany's, and Neiman Marcus before burning out during COVID. Now she runs Vintage Frills, a Chicago boutique organized entirely by color: a red room, a blue room, a neutrals room she called the dungeon in her business plan. People fly in from around the world to shop it. The pink bus is still running pop-ups. What We Talk About The difference between business and luxury business, and what luxury retail taught her about making people feel taken care of Where she actually sources: estate sales, not thrift stores, and why Hyde Park has the best ones in the city Her honest advice for anyone about to open an online boutique, including the friend who researched herself out of ever starting The unexpected turn: she says people move too fast and lose everything. She wanted Hyde Park first and didn't get it, and going slow is the reason she's still here five years later. If you love a conversation with somebody who tells you the truth about the hard parts, this episode is for you. Chapters: 00:06 - Introduction to the 31 Days of Black Business Series 07:52 - Starting Vintage Frills: A Journey into Luxury Resale 11:47 - The Transition to Entrepreneurship 26:42 - The Art of Sourcing Vintage Luxury 29:21 - Navigating the Challenges of Starting an Online Boutique 37:44 - The Slow and Steady Journey of Business All about Jennifer Kelly You're gonna love Jennifer. She grew up around resale and retail and turned that into a career at some of the biggest luxury brands in the world before building her own. Vintage Frills hit five years this past July and has been recognized by American Express and Business Insider. She started with Vintage Fleet, a short school bus she painted pink and had graffiti'd, which still does pop-ups and, in her words, saves them from financial peril. She's a curvy cutie herself, so yes, there are plus sizes, and yes, she'll pull things from the back for you. Things We Mentioned Vintage Frills → https://www.vintagefrillschicago.com/ Vintage Fleet, the pink school bus, still doing pop-ups including Logan Square Farmers Market estatesales.net, where she sources American Express and Business Insider features This series is supported by Off the Grid, a podcast for small business owners who want to leave social media without losing their clients. Find them at offthegrid.fun 🖤 Connect with Jennifer Kelly Website:https://www.vintagefrillschicago.com/ IG: @vintagefrills Visit Vintage Frills at 2846 N Milwaukee Ave, Chicago, IL 60618 Stay Connected 📬 Get the noseyAF Dispatch → Subscribe here 🏡 Grab the Good Neighbor Playbook → Download it free More ways to connect Email: [email protected] Follow on IG: @stephaniegraham Listen to more episodes: noseyaf.com Support & Feedback noseyAF is listener-supported; thank you for being here. 💛🫶🏾 ⭐ Rate & Review the Show 📣 Share noseyAF with a friend who needs to hear this Episode Credits Produced, Hosted, and Edited by Stephanie Graham Lyrics: Queen Lex Instrumental: Freddie Bam Fam Cover Art: Emma McGoldrick