Welcome to Freedom Radio! 💬🎵✨
Hi friends,
Next River’s team is made up of a bunch of yappers. We build time into our meetings to discuss–in what some might find excruciating detail–every movie we see, book we liked, skincare product we try, recipe we loved, and TV show we are considering watching but haven’t committed to yet. We want to yap with you too.
Yes, we want all the intel on media you’re consuming and glowing skin, but we also know liberation depends on us leaning into the most connective instincts of our humanity. Growing in community, forging liberatory pathways, and learning in collaboration are all foundational for our mission. We can’t be monologuing. We need your wisdom to do any of that well.
Starting today, we are bringing conversation into our work in two very concrete ways:
- We just migrated our newsletter to Ghost.
- The call-in line is open on Freedom Radio: (447) 2BE-FREE.
With Ghost as our new-and-improved newsletter platform, we can stop shouting into the void. We have comments! Discussion threads! Opportunities to hear all of your brilliant thoughts, questions, challenges, and whatever other (respectful) stuff you want to throw out there for the group. We’re just getting started here, and we’re envisioning a lot more fun stuff to come. So, sign in to join the chatter and help us build the forum we need to get free together.
And it’s only fitting that we launch this new space for connection with Freedom Radio–our new participatory audio art project.
Welcome to Freedom Radio
Imagine yourself in the backseat of a car. Windows down. Nothing but road and horizon for miles. Dusty air whips a soft tornado through the seats, carrying the stereo’s crackling music to your ears.
You could also be at home, curled on an armchair in your living room with the radio turned down low. It’s dark, the rest of your house is asleep, and the overnight host speaks softly into your lamps’ orange glow.
Or maybe you're stepping out of the house in the morning, pulling your headphones out of your pocket to let a familiar voice accompany you on your commute.
Radio can weave itself into the fabric of daily life–connecting us with music we love, reflections we need, stories we never knew to ask for, and people we probably won’t ever meet. The vibrations of sound are absorbed by our bodies, atoms passing messages across time and space. Freedom Radio is born of this connective spirit.
Freedom Radio is a few things at once, and hopefully many more things to come. All of them are made better with your participation. Right now, Freedom Radio is:
A Show
Using the format of a call-in radio show, Freedom Radio gathers real stories from real people to illustrate the kind of freedom we know we need–the kind found on dance floors, in the joyful spaces that defy oppression, and in the experiences of being known and seen that help us feel our worth. Mia hosts the program, going deep with our callers, sharing thoughtful reflections, and stitching the sound of this older, truer freedom beat by beat.
A Hotline | (447) 2BE-FREE
We want to know what freedom means to you, when you’ve felt it, and who you felt it with. We are gathering as many freedom stories as we can–because we know the freedom we seek is already nurtured by the best parts of your days, the most meaningful relationships in your life, and the moments of transformative growth you’re most proud to claim. As the stories roll in, we’ll keep sharing them with all of you. So make sure you follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn to keep up with the project as it evolves.
An Installation
Freedom Radio is on the move. From a mysterious phone adding a bit of magic to your event, or a street-team on the ground gathering stories from everyone willing to share. The live Freedom Radio experience is meant to travel, adapt, and, in all its forms, spark reflections on freedom that bring us all closer to liberation. Email freedom@nextriver.org to bring the Freedom Radio experience to your conference, dinner, neighborhood block party, wherever!
Freedom Radio set up at the Southern Poverty Law Center conference in July 2026.
This project is emergent, and we’re planning to follow where the sound carries it. We hope you’ll join us, so be sure to stay tuned.
Big thanks to Tracee Worley (Radical Futures) and Zena Barakat (Public Access) for their incredible partnership bringing this idea to life.
Current inspiration
All the joy Dolly gifted us throughout her life.
These examples of good design.
This interview with a real one.
Yap of the month
What’s a song that sounds like freedom to you? Get over on Ghost and share your favorite freedom songs. We’ll make a playlist so we can all jam out on liberation together.
See you in the comments 🙂🎵
Member discussion