Tobi Rachel Akingbade

When I first slid into Tobi Rachel Akingbade’s DMs in August 2015, she told me two things, right off the bat, that have never left me: don’t be afraid to approach new people and remove the word ‘aspiring’ from my everyday vocabulary. So it was only right to have my mentor as the very first guest on Black Prose. I speak to Tobi about navigating the newsroom as a Black journalist, her new role at Buzzfeed UK, going viral for the wrong reasons, the consequences of the Mel Made Me Do It (#MMMDI) joke she made on Twitter, and how she managed to interview Jennifer Hudson with no voice. She’s pursued Black excellence for all of her career as a journalist and has practically done it all, including interviewing some of our favourite celebrities on the red carpet and writing a story about Chrissy Teigen’s butthole, but now Tobi is ready to give herself the opportunity to be mediocre and get celebrated for it. Follow Tobi on Twitter and Instagram. Listen to her podcast Yellow Cup on Spotify, Apple and Soundcloud. Follow Black Prose on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.  Follow Yolanthe on Twitter and Instagram. Produced by New Strange. Artwork by Matt Munday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices