Leila Day, journalist, co-creator/co-host of The Stoop, and freelance podcast show-runner, is our guest this week. She and Drew sat down for an in-depth conversation about story, belonging, and the Hoffman Process.

Always a lover of story and storytelling, Leila shares that she fell in love with podcasting as a creative way to format personal storytelling. She says podcasting keeps her curious; when she’s not curious, she knows something is off. Leila realized a lack of curiosity was a lack of interest in others and life. With this realization, she knew the light within her was dimming. This is what brought her to the Hoffman Process.

At the beginning of her Process, Leila kept to herself and her teachers noticed. Being there felt like she often felt in her childhood – the only Black kid surrounded by white kids. She found herself observing rather than engaging. Her teacher encouraged her to take control of this pattern and actively deconstruct her pattern of disengaging under these circumstances. Leila did and what happened in response was powerful. She realized she was stunting her growth in a place built for her to grow. Her curiosity and light were reignited in her remaining days at the Process because she chose to do it differently. She reclaimed the wholeness and fullness of who she truly is.

We hope you enjoy this intimate, honest, loving conversation with Leila and Drew.

Leila Day is a journalist and co-creator and co-host of The Stoop. An award-winning podcast, The Stoop focuses on Black stories. She won the Gracie Award for an episode on The Stoop titled, Inside These Walls. Leila received her Gracie at The Alliance For Women In Media Foundation’s 48th Annual Gracie Awards Gala.

She’s also a freelance podcast show-runner who has hosted and edited podcasts for Marvel, CBS Universal, NPR, Netflix, and many others. As a former NPR station reporter, she’s often speaking on unique ways to combine journalism and storytelling.

The Stoop:

A podcast about stories from the Black Diaspora.

Higher Ground Media:

Podcasts for the Obama’s production network.

Winning the Gracie Award:

Image of Leila receiving her Gracie award wearing her fabulous dress. Taken at The Alliance For Women In Media Foundation’s 48th Annual Gracie Awards Gala.