Beyond The Scenes From The Daily Show treats us to the stories that take place between tapings

Plus, a podcast that reminds us that P.T. Barnum is no one worth celebrating.

By Marnie Shure, Craig D. Lindsey, Anthony D Herrera, morgan mcnaught  |  July 26, 2021 | 5:00pm
Aux Features The Daily Show
Beyond The Scenes From The Daily Show treats us to the stories that take place between tapings
Screenshot: Apple Podcasts

Beyond The Scenes From The Daily Show With Trevor Noah
Therapy In The Black Community

With this new podcast, The Daily Show With Trevor Noah continues its rep as the best late-night show that drops fascinating behind-the-scenes content online. Comedian and scene-stealing correspondent Roy Wood Jr. serves as the host of the new series as he conversates with his fellow Daily coworkers about topics they have tackled for the show. For the premiere ep, he brings in producer Ashton Womack and writer X Mayo to discuss a 2019 segment they did on Black people and mental health, a piece that ends with Wood playing a preaching psychologist. Womack, who has battled depression, initially pitched the idea, in part because seeking help for mental health issues is still considered taboo in the African American community. Not to mention there is only a small supply of Black therapists—about 4% of the field—who can help those seeking their services. Womack also discusses attending BLM protests last year and getting assaulted by cops, a traumatic experience he feels he may need to talk to someone about down the line. Hopefully, this episode will incite other African Americans who want or are in need of therapy to make the same move. [Craig D. Lindsey]

F*** Your Racist History
P.T. Barnum’s “Greatest Exploitation on Earth”

Despite what Hugh Jackman would have you believe, Phineas Taylor Barnum was a real scumbag. This is made abundantly clear in the latest episode of F*** Your Racist History, in which host Christian Picciolini explores the racist origins of our country and how these events are forgotten or whitewashed over time. Though Barnum has been canonized as “The Greatest Showman” by movies and folklore, Picciolini emphasizes that this show business empire was built on a foundation of bigotry and exploitation. Barnum’s first major success came from the purchase of an elderly enslaved woman named Joice Heth, whom he exhibited to paying audiences as the 161-year-old former nanny of George Washington. Not content with the money Heth made him in life, Barnum would later sell tickets to her public autopsy. His exploitation of Heth and the members of his future menagerie of human oddities were, according to Picciolini, a way to make racism fun for a white audience. But more fascinating than Barnum’s story is Picciolini’s questioning of why we as Americans choose to ignore or even rewrite our dark history. With the recent actions of several state legislatures, it’s a topic that is as timely as ever. [Anthony D Herrera]

Written Off
Silent Love. Candice Price x Keke Palmer

Written Off, from Lemonata, is a fucking essential 13-part limited series featuring writing penned by young, formerly incarcerated folks who find the power of the pen in the U.S. prison system. Each installment focuses on a different author’s piece, performed by a celebrity and followed by tender, insightful conversations between the writer and host Walter Thompson-Hernández. This episode features a poem by Candice Price, brought to life by one of her favorite actors, Keke Palmer. The writing and performance illuminate the longing for love and the barriers against it, and the scoring underneath it perfectly crafts a whole-ass mood. Thompson-Hernández facilitates a shining/fierce/gutting conversation with Price on what it means to be a revolutionary, the process of emerging into herself, and how writing provides a life-saving outlet. Written Off finds a way to balance heaviness and hope with apparent ease, reminding us of the power of a hug. (There is a content warning for this one, so be sure to check it out before you listen.) [Morgan McNaught]

 
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