The Chonilla Network: Diverse content from diverse voices

BY CHRISTINA GWIRA

I wanted to change the direction of the whole COVID-19 conversation. I personally was feeling very tired with the constant notifications, updates and statistics popping up all over the place. I do not do well working form home and that was greatly diminishing my creativity and productivity (sorry Simone, Grant and Alanna!).

Nevertheless, life still goes on, Coronavirus or not. So, I decided that I’d like to focus on an aspect of the lockdown/quarantine that we’re all going through together, for the most part: working from home. While I find working from home horrible, having a good witty and stimulating podcast playing in the background definitely helps me find some relief. In the next couple of articles, I’ll be highlighting various local, Canadian podcasters of color who are doing their part to make the new workday a much better time. Last edition, I shed light on the politically based podcast The Drip. In today’s issue, I’ll be sharing an interview that I did with close friend and supporter Sherley Joseph of the Chonilla Network.

Back in 2010, we’re rounding up the end of the subprime mortgage crisis, the earthquake of Haiti has taken place, and the first episode of Chonilla has been produced. The name Chonilla is a portmanteau of chocolate and vanilla, paying homage to the heritages of co-hosts and couple Sherley Joseph and Clove Roy.

In 2010, podcasts surrounding the dialogue of interracial couples were not “a thing”. At the time, the only other podcast – to Sherley’s knowledge – that was discussing the dynamics of interracial relationships, and all that comes with it, was the podcast and show, “The Black and the Jew”.

The foundational podcast of the Chonilla Network, Chonilla is a comedic, personal journal of an interracial couple. Covering topics from raising children to racism, pop culture to hard-hitting topics, the podcast aims to be a thought-provoking and entertaining podcast where conversations are had and there is acknowledgement and respect for each other’s differencing cultures. After a moderate hiatus, the podcast re-launched in January of this year, and the network has grown immensely since that first episode in 2010.

From the headline podcast, The Chonilla Network was spawned. The network is a podcast-first, digital content creation company. The network currently has four (4) podcasts in the Canadian roster, with an American series in the kitty as well. The Interracial Jawn is a podcast from the viewpoints of, “An interracial couple discusses pop culture, TV, movies and current events from their unique perspectives as a very white guy and a mostly black woman.” The Uncolonized podcast is, “A funny and blunt podcast about race, politics, and culture from a Canadian perspective.” The podcast is hosted by Montreal comedians Gavin Stephens – a cheerful knitter and Raptors fan – and B Black, whose “Comedic style is the product of his life as a black French Canadian and as a repressed socially awkward, son of a preacher man from Haiti.”

Black Canadian Content Creators is not only a podcast in the Chonilla Network, but also a bustling community on social media. The podcast showcases, “Digital or analog creators who identify as: Black, African, Caribbean or Mixed in Canada or black Canadians living and creating abroad.” The Kakle is a podcast that shares opinions, viewpoints and issues surrounding family, parenting and all that comes with it. Hosted by Sherley and her co-host Tanisha, if you’re looking for a podcast for parents, by parents (who like a little bit of wine after a long day of home-schooling), this is the show for you.

As a whole, Clove and Sherley have been true to the podcast art form and have been a support for new and established podcasters, using their experience to amplifying the voices of BIPOC (BLACK Indigenous People of Color) creators for close to a decade.

So, if you’re like me, cooped up in the house, looking for something new and original to listen to, check out the podcasts on The Chonilla Network. You can also connect and become a part of the Black Canadian Content Creators community on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can read the blog, and stay up to date of current episodes of the Chonilla shows at: http://chonillanetwork.com.