Destigmatizing Sex and Sexuality with AQ Studios
We spoke with the Anthem-honored studio to learn about their work in amplifying unheard stories of African women and gender-nonconforming folks.
Stories hold power. Who we represent in the story carries impact. AQ Studios understands this deeply and has dedicated a platform to making sure the narratives of African women and gender-nonconforming people are heard. Their podcast “Adventures From The Bedrooms Of African Women” created a much-needed space to destigmatize talking about sex and sexuality in African communities. With the help of their guests, they also shared crucial resources and lessons on how to practice safe sex.
Their transformative project earned a Silver Anthem for Research Projects or Publications in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. We spoke with them to get a closer look at the project and discover how they made their Anthem recognition happen by using audio to ignite change.
To shine a global spotlight on your work alongside leaders like AQ Studios, enter the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards by the Extended Deadline this Friday, October 13th!
For those who are unfamiliar, please tell us a bit about AQ Studios and the work that you do.
AQ Studios is an African podcast company that was founded with a clear mission: tell the stories of African and Black people from around the world. A two-time Anthem Award recipient (Gold for AfroQueer Podcast and Silver for Adventures from the Bedrooms Of African Women Podcast), AQ Studios strives for high-quality audio content across a range of genres.
What motivates and moves your work within this space?
Telling stories that represent a diversity of ideas, communities, cultures and interests that depict the full spectrum of African and Black experiences.
What inspired Adventures From The Bedrooms Of African Women? What was the goal driving the podcast?
“Adventures From The Bedrooms Of African Women” was inspired by the popular blog of the same name. Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah and Malaka Grant were motivated to start Adventures due to the lack of usable information about sex and sexuality that they received as teenagers and young women. Most of the advice and information they were presented with could best be described as scaremongering.
We felt it imperative to demystify a lot of the taboos about sex and to make the topic itself something that African women and non-binary folks felt comfortable talking about. The goal of the podcast was to bring these conversations to a wider audience, to make us more accessible to our audience and to create an even greater sense of familiarity and family with our fan base.
This year, The Anthem Awards is putting a spotlight on how change is a chain reaction. What intersecting areas does the podcast speak to and address?
Sex is a political topic, and like all politics, it affects and intersects with every area of our human experience. We have discussed the intersectionality of sex/sexuality and science, health, parenting, religion, economics/finances, and social acceptance, just to name a few. Presumptions about the types of sex people are having, folks’ sexual orientation and philosophy are tools for both inclusion and vilification. Unfortunately, in our broader African context, where sexuality is not expressed in a heteronormative way, it is broadly demonized. The effect of which is a negative experience in all the previously mentioned areas of one’s lived experience. We discuss not only how these outcomes affect daily life, but try to offer tools and resources to address and solve them where we can.
AQ Studios on what winning an Anthem Award means to them:
"That our voices as African women matter, that our pleasure is worth fighting for and that our fight for sexual liberation is indeed righteous."
As impact work is to continue building off the overall community’s efforts, in what way did your network contribute to and support Adventures?
Our networks provided platforms for the podcast to be shared to reach a wider audience, promoting its content and facilitating discussions around sex, sexuality and pleasure.
What obstacles did you face while developing Adventures, and how did you overcome them?
We began our podcast planning and production a few weeks before the global pandemic. With the co-hosts living in different countries on the continent, the intention was to convene and record the entire season in Kenya over the course of 2-3 weeks. We could not have anticipated how much chaos the pandemic would wreak on our timelines! What was supposed to take a few months ended up taking over a year to complete and deliver, but at the end of the difficult process we were able to deliver an incredible first season. AQ Studios CEO Selly Thiam was innovative and steered our outcomes with creative solutions and unwavering dedication.
What insights have you gained while destigmatizing sex, sexuality, and pleasure in African communities that other actors in this space should make note of?
Our hosts have been doing this work for over 14 years, and there is still so much to learn. The biggest takeaway is: that no matter how well-versed you are on the subject of sex there is always a larger context, a historical precedent, some knowledge waiting to be rediscovered… Never assume you know everything about African women!
How has your larger work evolved through this podcast?
The podcast has had undeniable positive effects on our reach and influence. Beyond the regular studio production, our first live show was a featured session at The Podcast Show—an international festival that marks Europe’s biggest gathering of the global podcasting community—in May 2023. This gave us the opportunity to share space with fellow women of African descent who are also celebrated for leading important and relatable conversations about sex and sexuality.
Are there any upcoming initiatives or projects that we should keep an eye out for?
The launch of AQ Studios Podcast Training Video Series, a multifaceted initiative aimed at enriching the podcasting landscape in Africa. Serving as a dynamic platform to showcase AQ Studios’ dedication to podcasting excellence and as a hub of innovation and education in the podcasting realm.
And Season 2 of “Adventures from the Bedrooms of African Women” in Fall 2023, featuring Nigerian-American Actress Yvonne Orji, Kelechi Okafor, Oloni Egyptian-American Journalist and activist Mona Etalhawy—to name a few. And Season 5 of the AfroQueer podcast in 2024.
What does receiving an Anthem Award mean to you?
It is an incredible honor to win the Anthem Award, particularly as we were awarded after our first season! To be recognized so early for our work and effort is humbling and extremely gratifying. But more importantly, it confirms to us what we always knew and believed to be true: That our voices as African women matter, that our pleasure is worth fighting for and that our fight for sexual liberation is indeed righteous.
Don’t miss your last chance to showcase your impactful projects and initiatives on a global scale. It’s also your last chance to put your work in front of our expert panel of impact leaders and gain exposure from the best across the industry.
Enter the 3rd Annual Anthem Awards by the Extended Deadline this Friday, October 13th!
