Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – what can we do to make Black Queer stories more visible? In this season opener, we highlight the cultural moments that have made us feel most seen, we interrogate the internal and external factors limiting further visibility for our community, and we discuss our hopes for further advancement of the Black Gay agenda. We welcome Emil Wilbekin to our Surface Level Family. Emil, the multi-hyphenated Founder of Native Son, whose mission is to harness the collect...
Dec 07, 2022•48 min•Season 6Ep. 1
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – are you ready to go beyond the surface level with us? The finale to our fifth season further highlights our expanded commitment to community. We kick off by welcoming Steve Cruz, Strategic Giving Manager for the Ali Forney Center and Maddox Guerilla, an Ali Forney Center alum, to our Surface Level family. We were proud to raise money for AFC this season, an organization committed to protecting LGBTQIA+ youths from homelessness and empowering them to live in...
Sep 07, 2022•1 hr 26 min•Season 5Ep. 12
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – what did we learn when traversing the toughest moments in our friendship? This week’s episode is quite introspective and discusses the evolution of our views on friendship in recent years. We play a game that gives our response to messy friendship scenarios, then discuss the experience of growing apart from friends, the rocky road we have traversed as friends in recent years, and how we are actively working to be better friends to those around us. This epis...
Aug 31, 2022•52 min•Season 5Ep. 11
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how can healthcare information best be communicated to Black Queer folx? This week’s episode takes a relevant look at healthcare discussions that started during COVID are now being renewed with onset of Monkeypox. We start as always with a bit of silliness in an animal themed game of ridiculous choices, then dissect our long term or evolving trust of the medical system, debate if the response to Monkeypox by Queer people is reflective of a lesson learned or...
Aug 24, 2022•37 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how is the Black German experience different from that of Black Americans? This week’s episode is a special glimpse into our lives as friends sharing highlights from our experience at Berlin Pride. During the episode we play a game of Bop or Flop with various experiences we had on the trip, dissect the key differences we see between pride in New York vs our experience in Berlin, and discuss our tips for staying camera ready even if we partied all night. Ber...
Aug 17, 2022•19 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how can we foster non-sexual male intimacy? This week, we explore the idea of intimacy between men both Straight and Queer. We play a game rating potential partners based on fun dating scenarios, then discuss how the stigma around sexuality has impacted our relationships with Straight men, if sex and intimacy can healthily exist with non-partners, and how we are presently expressing non-sexual intimacy in our relationships with other men. We welcome Teron B...
Aug 03, 2022•1 hr 3 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how have our experiences with grief shaped how we want to be remembered? This episode starts with a fun game titled “giving up the ghost,” then delves into a conversation that is equal parts serious and fun. We dissect our individual experiences with grief, any anxiety we have surrounding it, our hopes for who will take care of us in our golden years, and close by sharing nontraditional ways we would like to have our lives celebrated. We are continuing to f...
Jul 27, 2022•38 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how is consent defined and exercised in our sex lives? This week, the idea of consent is reflected upon both personally and for its larger implications on society specific, to Black Queer men. We delve into the idea of blurred consent and the need for an explicit “yes” at all stages of sexual intercourse. We then turn the lens on the broader community to discuss cases of sexual trauma and abuse towards Black Queer men and the lackluster response from law en...
Jul 20, 2022•49 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how can Black parents better support their Queer children? This week we reflect on our experiences growing up in Black households - the good, the bad, and the downright ugly. We kick off with a game deciding if we need to “get the belt” to deal with rebellious children. Then launch into a discussion that focuses on past experiences but also forward-looking advice regarding tools that we wished our parents had when raising us. We welcome Dr. Lulu to our Surf...
Jul 13, 2022•1 hr 1 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – do storylines in porn perpetuate harmful stereotypes of Black Queer men? This episode starts with a fun game where each host discovers the type of “deviant” they are through a series of questions regarding our kinks or lack thereof. We then delve into a conversation regarding our introduction to and relationship with pornography, and debate both the harmful and healing aspects of the inclusion of Black Queer men in porn. Like most work environments systemic...
Jul 06, 2022•38 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how does media visibility affect how we see ourselves? This week’s episode is an absolute treat. We dissect the value of visibility within media and how it affects the way we view ourselves in real life. This week we are all living in Nicco’s world and the host of Surface Level are along for the ride. We welcome actor, Nicco Annan to our Surface Level Family. Nicco plays the beloved non-binary character, Uncle Clifford, on the hit show P-Valley. We play a g...
Jun 29, 2022•1 hr 13 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – is a preference for masculinity inherently femmephobic? We kick off with a game imagining a world if we were girls, then launch into a discussion that centers around various facets of femininity as it relates to Queer cis men. We discuss our relationship with femininity, our opinions on “femme tops”, and what we are doing to make the world more accepting towards femininity in men. This is a fun take on a serious conversation that we are happy to bring you t...
Jun 22, 2022•28 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – what can the current political system do to better protect Black Queer people? We are excited to welcome you back with a brief update on our time off between seasons. We then launch into a fun gay reimagining of the government for and by Black people. Our discussion is then centered around how the current political landscape is causing physical, mental, and emotional harm towards Black Queer people. This week we welcome Executive Director and Co-Founder of ...
Jun 15, 2022•58 min•Season 5Ep. 1
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – are you ready to go beyond the surface level with us? The finale to our fourth season features the theme of community. We kick off by welcoming LaQuann Dawson, Creative Director of MOBI, to our Surface Level family. We discuss his experience with the organization and the parallel missions of creative space and a platform for Black Queer folx. We then move into a game themed on the standout moments from this season. We wrap up with one of our most fun segmen...
Feb 23, 2022•58 min•Season 4Ep. 15
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – is the art of shade helpful or harmful in our communities? We play a game deciding which common statements are shade vs “no shade”, discuss the history of “the dozens” and shade in Black communities, litigate if throwing shade for sport is based in insecurities, and discuss ways in which positive defense mechanisms we’ve developed help combat a world that views us as less than. Black communities often live by the phrase “laugh at our pain”. This statement i...
Feb 16, 2022•23 min•Season 4Ep. 14
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – what do Black Queer stories look like when we write them ourselves? We play a literature-themed game, discuss our favorite Black Queer reads, discuss stories that we would write ourselves, then delve into a conversation around how Black Queer culture has informed the writing of our guest. This week we welcome New York Times bestselling author Michael Arceneaux to our Surface Level Family. Michael’s fun writing style takes a unique look at millennial problem...
Feb 09, 2022•46 min•Season 4Ep. 13
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how have HBCUs evolved to fit the needs of Queer students? We play a game that reminds us of our time at Howard, discuss the history and evolution of Queer communities at HBCUs with two educators, then end with speaking to current students and recent graduates about the hope they wish to see for future generations and the work that is still to come. This week we welcome educators Dr. Steven Mobley (Howard) & Dr. Kirstin Byrd (Hampton & Spelman), Tra...
Feb 02, 2022•40 min•Season 4Ep. 12
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how have you worked to heal from failed romantic relationships? We play a game titled, “Are You That Somebody”, detailing our own red flags when romantically involved. We then enter a convo with many highs and lows around how we have dealt with the ending of relationships. We further discuss the lingering feelings and how we worked through those, then laugh a lot about on how social media comes into play and awkward run ins with former partners. A relations...
Jan 26, 2022•41 min•Season 4Ep. 11
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how can we strengthen the alliance between Black and Asian communities? We play a game of trivia highlighting Blasian artists, then launch into a discussion centered on the Asian American experience, and highlight ways in which we can create empathy between our communities. This week we welcome content creator and storyteller Johnathan Gibbs, artist and community organizer Will Lex Ham, and founder and creative director Steven Wakabayashi to our Surface Lev...
Jan 19, 2022•52 min•Season 4Ep. 10
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – why is same gender affection viewed differently between men and women? We play a game of would you rather in relation to some Queer notable figures, discuss the societal acceptance of affection between women compared to men, and sound off on the divisive trend of heterosexual men playing into Queerness for engagement on social media. Over time the line between gender identity and sexuality will become increasingly blurred. That journey, like our show, requi...
Jan 12, 2022•34 min•Season 4Ep. 9
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – have you explored self-care through plant care? We play a game centered around what changes we will and will not be making in the new year, we the delve into a discussion around better ways we can care for ourselves this year, and the success or lack thereof we’ve had at being “plant dads”. This week we welcome gardener, educator, LGBTQ+ activist Christopher Griffin affectionately known as @Plantkween to our Surface Level Family. They give us some helpful i...
Jan 05, 2022•46 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – what bad dating habits do you hope to leave in 2021? We play a game centered on common Jack’d scenarios, tell stories about our first time kissing another man, how our selectivity regarding partners has evolved over time, and bad dating habits we would like to leave in 2021. This week we welcome gay dating coach and couple’s counselor Lamont White to our Surface Level Family. We have a blast discussing the value of dating with intention and clearly communic...
Dec 29, 2021•40 min•Season 4Ep. 7
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – how do socio-economic factors effect the relationships we have with other Black Queer folx? We play a game of high/low discussing the “luxuries” we can’t live without, give our take on the W.E.B. Dubois vs Booker T. Washington debate, rant about unwanted expectations individuals have when you begin to make more money, and litigate how economic status impacts our dating habits. Money and status are two things that can cloud the judgment of the best of us. Be...
Dec 21, 2021•31 min•Season 4Ep. 6
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – did anyone really learn to be an anti-racist? We play a ridiculously titled “You Ain’t Black”, discuss our thoughts on last years social “reckoning” one year later, and look internally at confidence we gained in speaking truth about injustice in any situation. This week we welcome author and political commentator Keith Boykin to our Surface Level Family. He discusses his favorite quote by Audre Lorde, his experience with activism in the 90’s, and gives impo...
Dec 15, 2021•52 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious – is freedom of speech a right or responsibility? We play a game that exposes our own unpopular opinions, discuss how our thoughts of being cancelled have informed what we say on the podcast, talk about the polarizing nature of the court of public opinion, and how we manage relationships with people whose beliefs differ from our own. With the continuous outrage regarding public statements, this topic feels quite timely. Where is the line between accountabilit...
Dec 08, 2021•35 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious - how can fashion tell Black, Queer stories? This week Tony & Jordan fail miserably at a game of Black fashion trivia, we discuss our opinions on fashion vs style, our acceptance or lack of towards overtly fem clothing, and the personal and professional benefits of embracing fashion. This week we welcome Kinglsey Gbadedesin, CEO & Founder of K.ngsley to our Surface Level family. Kinglsey shares his experience launching a brand that grew out of his des...
Dec 01, 2021•42 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Jordan, Damon & Tony are curious - how do anti gay laws affect your travel? We poke fun at the joy and pain of being podcasters, discuss our experiences traveling the world as Queer people, and have an in depth conversation with our guest regarding the Queer experience in Nigeria. This week we welcome OKTimileyin, activist, cast member of HBO Max’ Legend of the Underground and Host of Nigeria’s Queercity Podcast. Timi shares his experience navigating family and broader society while being Qu...
Nov 24, 2021•36 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Damon, Jordan & Tony are curious, do the best relationships start from platonic friendships? We play a game of never have I ever, assess the environments where Queer people meet, discuss the benefits of or lack there of in prioritizing platonic friendship over romantic attraction, and share our thoughts on casual sex between friends. We are excited to welcome you back with a fun topic on which we hardly agree. This one is a hot button within a community in which the dating and friendship poo...
Nov 17, 2021•27 min•Season 4Ep. 1
Damon, Jordan & Tony are Black, Queer, and Curious. What a ride season 3 of Surface Level has been! We’ve covered everything from sexual health, to hip hop, to gender roles in Queer relationships. We laughed, we debated, and now we are taking a look back. This week we answer questions asked directly from our Surface Level Insiders and discuss current events related to some of the topics. And like always, we find time to play a few games. This season we took the approach of amplifying as many...
Jul 14, 2021•1 hr 38 min•Season 3Ep. 15
Damon, Jordan & Tony are curious about the impact the “DL” narrative has had on both Queer and heterosexual communities. The idea of DL culture is one born out of a false narrative about Black Queer men during the AIDS crisis. Is there a difference between being “DL” and simply not being out? We discuss the problematic history of the term DL, if men are responsible for disclosing that they are involved with other men to a female partner, why the idea of DL men is fetishized in some Queer cir...
Jul 07, 2021•44 min•Season 3Ep. 14
