Changes Revisited: Jhemar Jonas and Zadie Smith

This week we revisit highlights from two impactful episodes, the incredible author Zadie Smith and Jhemar Jonas who’s brother Michael was fatally stabbed to death.

Since the night of his brother’s death, when Jhemar was 16, Jhemar has been trying to change the world advocating for youth-led solutions to violence and knife crime. He has mentored students and provided consultancy for City Hall, the Metropolitan police and Google about youth culture and violence prevention. He’s also a rapper who goes by the name of Rippa. The episode is one of Annie's favourites to date, an essential listen for an insight into the problem of knife crime in London. Here, we revisit that fateful night he lost his brother, as well as how Jhemar’s own mentor has changed his life. 

Highly celebrated, bestselling and award winning author Zadie Smith spoke to us about New York and coming home. In her early days she wrote about her experiences as a young black woman growing up in London and changed the landscape in the publishing world. She spoke to Annie during lockdown when she had just written six personal, powerful and reflective essays called Intimations exploring ideas and questions around the new reality during the pandemic and the things it made her reflect on including socialism and the dangers of individualism. Zadie had just moved back from New York to her home city of London, when Trump was still President, and spoke about that change, the events of 2020 and the differences between the two cities.

Listen to the full episodes here:

Jhemar Jonas

https://podfollow.com/changeswithanniemacmanus/episode/374003823e75775dd520a560e71f7e88c7b1b8fc/view

Zadie Smith 

https://podfollow.com/changeswithanniemacmanus/episode/04620326c73bb820b8cc28750958f7811ee42d59/view

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