Finding Me is the deeply personal, brutally honest account of Viola's inspiring life, from her coming of age in Rhode Island to her present-day career.

In my book, you will meet a little girl named Viola who ran from her past until she made a life-changing decision to stop running forever.

This is my story, from a crumbling apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island, to the stage in New York City, and beyond. This is the path I took to finding my purpose and my strength, but also to finding my voice in a world that didn't always see me.

As I wrote Finding Me, my eyes were open to the truth of how our stories are often not given close examination. They are bogarted, reinvented to fit into a crazy, competitive, judgmental world. So I wrote this for anyone who is searching for a way to understand and overcome a complicated past, let go of shame and find acceptance. For anyone who needs reminding that a life worth living can only be born from radical honesty and the courage to shed facades and be...you.

Finding Me is a deep reflection on my past and a promise for my future. My hope is that my story will inspire you to light up your own life with creative expression and rediscover who you were before the world put a label on you.

Finding Me

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FINDING ME written and read by Viola Davis - audiobook extract

When Siama Matazungidi first heard soukous music on the radio in Kinshasa, Congo, it was as if the keys to a technicolor world of sound had landed in his lap. Though Siama’s father wanted him to pursue the pious (and stable) life of priesthood, it was the guitar that became his place of prayer, and the dream of soukous stardom his calling. Of course, the pathway to manifesting a dream is never without detours and diversions. This is the story of Siama reaching beyond himself to create African music in America that connects audiences across time, traditions and generations. Produced and narrated by Abë Levine.

Making Waves: A Congolese Guitarist Tests His Range

Washington Post reporter Gerrit De Vynck explains the potential problem signs that corporations are noticing with the economy.

Corporations on the front lines of the economy say cracks are forming

The latest music craze to hit South African dance floors is a dark, pulsating and energetic sound called gqom. For the past seven years, a young and technologically skilled generation in Durban, KwaZulu Natal, has created and finessed a sound that has the world hooked and wanting more. It is an entire cultural movement complete with distinctive dance moves and styles. We talk to some of the deejays and young producers of this genre, like DJ Lag, Citizen Boy and Distruction Boyz, as well as Gqom Oh! record label owner Francesco Nan Kolè to understand where gqom originated, how it’s made and where it’s going. We also look at how this rough and raw party music has evolved to accommodate a more commercial market.

Produced by Akornefa Akyea in 2018
APWW #784

The Gqom Generation of Durban, South Africa

In today's episode, Andy answers your questions on how to properly assess your status on the success ladder mentioned in a previous episode with Ed Mylett, why it's crucial to be able to operate through chaos when it comes to chasing your dreams, and if being a convicted felon has any weight on starting or operating a business.

372. Q&AF: Success Ladder Assessment, Pushing Through Chaos & Going From A Felon To A Business Owner

Russia has lost in a week what cost it months to gain in eastern Ukraine. We ask what the <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2022/09/11/is-russia-on-the-run?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lightning counter-offensive</a> means for the war. What is more surprising than Mississippi’s capital <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2022/09/06/a-water-crisis-in-mississippis-capital-is-a-harbinger-of-worse?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lacking access</a> to clean drinking water is that millions of other Americans face the same struggle. And the <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2022/09/01/why-investors-are-reaching-for-the-astrology-of-finance?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">quasi-astrological methods</a> some investors use to predict market movements.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here <a href="http://www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer</a> <hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

Russian rush-out: Ukraine’s stunning gains

Our election model <a href="https://www.economist.com/mid-terms-2022?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">suggests</a> that at least one legislative chamber will revert to Republican control; we ask what sort of government would result. The breach of the Nord Stream pipelines is a reminder of how much infrastructure is at risk of <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2022/09/29/how-does-underwater-sabotage-work?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">subsea sabotage</a>. And what the trendy term “ikigai” <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2022/10/27/what-japan-makes-of-ikigai?utm_campaign=a.io&amp;utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&amp;utm_source=theintelligence&amp;utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&amp;utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">actually means</a> in Japan, its ostensible country of origin.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here <a href="http://www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer</a> <hr> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.

The elephant in the chamber? America’s midterms

Journalist and author Sathnam Sanghera traces the legacies of the British empire around the world, drawing on his book Empireland: How Modern Britain is Shaped by its Imperial Past, in conversation with Colin Grant.

This conversation was recorded live in our Queen Elizabeth Hall on Sunday 14 July 2024, as part of You Belong Here, our summer programme of events inspired by the unsung stories and forgotten trailblazers celebrated in our Hayward Gallery exhibition Tavares Strachan: There Is Light Somewhere.

Sathnam Sanghera is the Sunday Times bestselling author of Empireland: How Modern Britain is Shaped by its Imperial Past, memoir The Boy With The Topknot, and novel Marriage Material.

Colin Grant’s books include Bageye at the Wheel, shortlisted for the Pen Ackerley Prize, and Homecoming: Voices of the Windrush Generation, a BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week. His latest book is I’m Black So You Don’t Have to Be. Grant is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and director of WritersMosaic, an online magazine and division of the Royal Literary Fund.

Sathnam Sanghera: Empireworld

Some of the biggest and most influential names in modern literature, art, music and performance share their stories, thoughts and ideas.

Listen to the people shaping arts and culture today in podcasts which reflect our richly diverse events, exhibitions and festivals programme from the Southbank Centre and Hayward Gallery.

Sathnam Sanghera: Empireworld

Southbank Centre

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