Authored by Abi Mcintosh
Podcast hosts Rose Frimpong and Nana Duncan inform us how their show became one of many go-to types of activity for several Black British lesbians and exactly how this has played a significant part in unique everyday lives, too.
You could battle to think about many Black British lesbians in the general public attention, if any at all. It’s something both Rose Frimpong, 29, and Nana Duncan, 28, from London felt once they were hoping to find representation when you look at the main-stream news. This not enough presence encouraged them to start out their extremely very own platform, Two Twos Podcast.
The duo are most readily useful buddies came across through exactly what they describe as “classic lesbian introduction” – through an ex-girlfriend five years back.
The podcast, which initially began as being a YouTube channel, is nearing its birthday that is first and of them expected the reaction to be therefore good and even expected their conversations to spark in-depth conversations on the Twitter schedule weekly. While amassing huge number of listens across all streaming web sites, spotlighted on Spotify and in addition collaborating with RCA label – they have been on a great roll.
During each episode, the hosts have actually truthful and hilarious yet thought-provoking conversations with one another about everything from intercourse and relationships to sluggish stereotypes, which of course is created effortless for their close friendship. “A great deal among these conversations are conversations we’ve without having a microphone anyhow,” Frimpong says, “So it simply flows.”
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She wasn’t certain the cis straight men who follow her on Twitter would “even go through the connect to listen” but to her surprise, they’re also among Two’s Two’s devoted listeners and have now expressed towards the hosts that they’re are thankful to possess an area to concentrate to LGBTQ+ dilemmas and tales. “They feel it’s helped them to get rid of their pre-judgement,” Frimpong says like they learnt a lot and.
Through the years, I’ve seen a large shift with people accommodating those who find themselves through the LGBTQ+ community and becoming greater allies nonetheless there is certainly nevertheless lots of work to be achieved especially using the older generation. “We come from households where our parents needed to unlearn things that are certain” Duncan says. “I guess we simply wished for exactly the same from individuals who we don’t know”.
Over 41 episodes, Two Twos were accompanied by visitors to go over subjects such as for example bisexuality, starting a family group in a couple that is same-sex being gay and Muslim and interracial lesbian couples. The show has grown to become this kind of crucial hub for those who work into the LGBTQ+ community, to such an extent for certainly one of their buddies whom arrived as non-binary on an episode. “They’ve for ages been a huge supporter of our content from our YouTube times and also have really mentioned it really is a space that is safe them,” claims Duncan.
While their platform has offered as fundamental for all, it has additionally been destination where both hosts have learned and discovered a great deal within the last 12 months. Certainly one of their many special episode on Christianity and homosexuality with visitor Reverend Jide Macaulay, that is gay is a specific stick out.
Macaulay could be the founder of home of Rainbow, an organization that is designed to create a space that is safe QTIPOC. The episode focused on making peace with sex and faith, that is one thing a complete great deal of LGBTQ+ individuals from the Black community in specific have a problem with. It absolutely was also essential to Frimpong as it ended up being reassuring to own an adult Ebony guy whom affirmed her sexuality. “He had been validating us, whereas in the home, anyone who looks like him in our households was telling us, вЂNo, you can’t repeat this, you can’t be in this way’” she claims. “Maybe we wouldn’t have if we had a voice like that in our household, maybe some of the traumas that we’ve experienced. I believe in my situation, We went back once again to more youthful Rose, while recording to the episode and more youthful Rose ended up being pleased at the time,” she continues.
Portrayals of this experience that is queer therefore bad that numerous of us watch for Pride to see ourselves in the forefront of conventional media though the hosts share the belief that the representation for Black lesbians during Pride month is restricted. Duncan argues that “there is not one experience that is queer but judging with what is being offered during June and July, you would certainly be mistaken. When Pride thirty days rolls around, social networking is filled up with anything from rainbow profile photos to T-shirts, to sandwiches, however the kind that is same of are submit for these campaigns – also it’s maybe not diverse.
Handling those brands and organisations that are performative, Ducan claims people that are“Queer just occur in June and July. We’ve been here, we’ve for ages been right right here”. And she’s bang on – representation has to get further compared to those 61 times. Echoing this, Frimpong claims representation is not only a buzzword, for Black lesbians, that is certainly essential since it really helps to have the ability to view a form of your self reflected right back at you which means you don’t feel therefore alone.
Duncan claims Black masc-presenting women can be missing through the main-stream media since they are perhaps perhaps not viewed as palatable. “I think they brands have actually inside their head a sense of what lesbian is, and I just don’t think we fit that scope.” Frimpong interjects, incorporating: “We don’t really see dark-skinned Black, queer females, and plenty of the full time them, they are American” if you do see.
Duncan happens to be a tomboy since she ended up being a young adult, but she claims it was a gradual process on the next decade of her becoming comfortable being masc-presenting. “I positively encountered backlash from my loved ones, my mum, in specific, was upset whenever she discovered I became boxers that are wearing. At that true point i wasn’t troubled by anyone’s opinion on the road we provided, we just ignored it”.
Frimpong states, I had been constantly so embarrassing doing this.“ We tried become what is socially called feminine but” She identifies as masc-presenting just two to three years back. “I dropped labels like stud and stem that we identified formerly. We felt masc-presenting gave space in my situation to state myself the way I desired and I also felt less restricted using this identity,” she shares.