Hanif Abdurraqib on Basketball, Ohio, and the Art of the Playlist

About this episode

Deesha and Kiese welcome acclaimed writer, poet, and cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib, author of There's Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension. They talk about music—the significance of music to their youth and their lives now, their listening practices, and Abdurraqib’s process of creating playlists. They also discuss basketball and what is so special, so singular, about Columbus in terms of high school basketball. Deesha admits how she’s had to challenge her own notions of Ohio in regards to sports and to politics, and Abdurraqib talks about the joys and the frustrations of place, of community, and of notions of home. Reading List: Authors, Stories, and Books Mentioned Hanif Abdurraqib Yona Harvey Brian Broome Hanif Abdurraqib Blog (Medium) There's Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension (Hanif Abdurraqib) “Nicki Minaj’s ‘Pink Friday’ Sequel is Pure Spectacle” (Hanif Abdurraqib, The New Yorker 2023) Diane Seuss Greg Tate Wanda Coleman Terrance Hayes Listening List: “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (Nirvana) “Funkytown” (Lipps Inc.) “Nothing from Nothing” (Billy Preston) “Kung Fu Fighting” (Carl Douglas) Parliament Funkadelic Hot Buttered Soul (Is