Grits and Eggs Podcast – Episode 85: “The Amanda Show” ft. Amanda Seales
Host: Deante’ Kyle
Guest: Amanda Seales
Release Date: September 16, 2025
Episode Overview
In this landmark episode, Deante’ Kyle welcomes acclaimed actress, comedian, and outspoken activist Amanda Seales as his first-ever virtual guest. The conversation is a raw, thoughtful, and sharp-witted dive into topics spanning Black radical politics, therapy, the pitfalls of liberalism, media manipulation, ideological grifts, historical cycles, personal growth, and forms of resistance. Listeners are treated to Amanda’s insights on recent events, her approach to public debate, critique of the mainstream political spectrum, and practical advice on self-care for activists. True to form, Amanda and Deante’ bring humor and vulnerability while weaving deep analysis with lived experience.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Breaking the Mold & Personal Introduction
- Deante’ highlights Amanda’s many public roles but Amanda prefers “Actress, Comedian, Radical” as her descriptors.
“I hate all of those titles.” – Amanda (01:33)
“Just go there. Actress, Comedian.” – Amanda (01:38) - The episode opens with banter about therapy, astrology, and the importance of self-work for Black men (especially Cancer men).
“Seriously, every cancer man should be in therapy once a week, minimum.” – Amanda (02:30)
2. Mental Health, Therapy & Self-Employment
- Both discuss the impact of therapy, changing needs over time, and Amanda’s dedication to mental health:
“I have a therapy session right after this.” – Amanda (05:23)
- The challenges of self-employment without safety nets and the use of alcohol as a (not ideal) coping strategy.
- Amanda extols the value of sleep and routines for sharpness and emotional balance.
“Sleep is. Like going to sleep at a, like, regular time is ... it'll just be healthier for your body.” – Amanda (07:23)
3. Body Positivity vs. Health
- Amanda distinguishes between body acceptance and unhealthy lifestyles, especially in the context of older age, sedentary jobs, and family life.
“Body positivity is one thing, but if it's attributed to an unhealthy lifestyle, that's a different story.” – Amanda (08:18)
4. Political Violence, Media, and the “Liberal” Blind Spot
- The hosts analyze reactions to recent political violence (e.g. the shooting of Charlie Kirk), contrasting media narratives and the emotional responses of white liberals.
- Timestamps: 09:21–11:21
- Amanda critiques the liberal tendency to mask racism as mere “political opinion”:
“They're calling like white supremacy and fascism an opinion.” – Amanda (11:21)
- The conversation turns to the performance of being “on the right side of history,” and the desire of liberals to author the historical narrative.
“Their right side of history is still, like, maintaining white supremacy.” – Deante’ (12:11)
5. Virtue Signaling, Hypocrisy, and Black Solidarity
- Amanda and Deante’ take aim at virtue signaling among liberals and the superficiality of “thoughts and prayers” after the death of avowed racists and fascists.
“It's really just that. That's a virtue signal.” – Amanda (23:20)
- A comical but pointed exchange about “Stevens” (the Stephen from Django Unchained archetype), and Amanda shares her poem-in-progress, “Flowers for Massa”.
“‘Massa died today and we were ordered to kneel in his field and pray that his soul be redeemed.’” – Amanda (21:46)
- They discuss intergenerational radicalization—like Deante’s conservative-leaning aunt shifting to a more radical stance through exposure and family experience.
“If I got my auntie on their radical, I know I'm doing something...” – Deante’ (20:39)
6. Amanda’s Jubilee Experience & Black Conservatives
- Amanda details her Jubilee debate with Black conservatives, the emotional and intellectual labor involved, and the tactics of the opposition.
“That was three hours taping... my mental capacity and stamina was tested that day.” – Amanda (26:27–27:00)
- Black conservatives, ideological assimilation, and the career path of “Cooning” (discussed in both survival and grift terms).
“At this point, Koonin is a career path... they have made that as an option.” – Amanda (30:12)
- The nuances between Black conservatives motivated by grift (e.g., Candace Owens) versus those with genuine but problematic ideology.
7. Media Manipulation, Manufactured Consent, and Conspiracy
- Amanda lays out the ways public narrative is shaped, referencing the reporting of Kirk’s death by Trump rather than news outlets and how media literacy is crucial.
“Using media literacy, understand that that headline is controlled manufactured consent.” – Amanda (14:23)
- Both call out “conspiracy” as a word with actual meaning, often misapplied or trivialized in discussions about systemic racism and American history.
8. Historical Cycles, Capitalism & Structural Racism
- The episode connects U.S. history to current events, highlighting:
- The recurring cycles of oppression and resistance (“We are in a repeat of the cycle of the civil rights movement, except it’s a flipped mirror.” – Amanda, 70:41)
- The use of drugs (heroin, crack, fentanyl) as tools of destabilization following civil rights victories.
- The role of education, capitalism, and the long game of white supremacy (“they live decade to decade with their planning.” – Deante’, 59:58)
9. Contrarianism, Rage Bait, and the Decline of True Debate
- Amanda points out the shift in debate culture from intellectual exchange to performative contrarianism and rage-baiting for engagement.
“We've gone away from a pure intellectual exchange of information to contrarianism via rage bait.” – Deante’ (84:13)
- She emphasizes that the purpose of public debate isn’t always to persuade the opponent but to educate the audience.
10. Resistance, Organizing, and the Limits of Respectability Politics
- Amanda stresses the need to direct energy toward the movable middle rather than entrenched contrarians or self-hating Black people:
“I don't think that's who we should be talking to...” – Amanda (79:13)
- Both discuss the dangers of platforms giving legitimacy to “grift”-based conservative figures, and the importance of focusing on principles over party.
11. Practical Advice: Self-Care, Boundaries, and Recommended Readings
- Amanda shares routines for self-care:
“I rest. I get a good night's sleep. I go to bed between 10:30 and 11:00... I remove people from my space that simply aren’t vibrationally aligned with me.” – Amanda (108:30)
- She’s candid about medication (Lexapro) to manage demoralization and stress:
“I finally decided that I needed to get on medication to regulate... I was so deeply afflicted by the amount of demoralizing news...” – Amanda (111:12)
- Five Books for Black Radical Thought (112:36–114:58):
- Blood in My Eye by George Jackson
- Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur
- Black Power by Kwame Ture and Charles V. Hamilton
- Black Marxism by Cedric Robinson
- Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination by Robin D.G. Kelley
- Bonus: Imagine Freedom by Tochi Rahel Test for Mariam & Imagination by Ruha Benjamin
- Plus, for personal growth: Adult Children of Emotionally Immature Parents
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
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On the liberal obsession with order:
“Liberals are more concerned with order than progress.” – Amanda Seales, referencing MLK (11:52)
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On survival and ‘cooning’:
“Koonin’ used to be a source of survival... At this point, Koonin is a career path.” – Amanda Seales (30:12)
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On cycles of history:
“There is no version of a cycle that does not create some level of disturbance. When we look at the cycles that the United States has gone through repeatedly, it is all cycles of fighting for rights that should already be apparent.” – Amanda Seales (70:54)
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On debate and education:
“When I did the Jubilee thing... It was really, oh, I need to educate... like, I have to be in this space in love. And these people may not be, but that's how I have to be.” – Amanda Seales (82:00)
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On resisting grift-based politics:
“We are entering a space where we're kind of past... the grift because... there’s real consequences... You have picked a side type shit.” – Deante’ (98:10)
Timestamps for Important Segments
- Amanda on Therapy & Black Men: 02:19–05:23
- Alcohol, Self-Employment & Coping: 05:35–07:34
- Body Acceptance vs. Health: 08:11–09:02
- Political Violence, Media, and Liberalism: 09:21–14:23
- Virtue Signaling, Black Solidarity & “Stevens”: 19:40–23:27
- Jubilee Debate, Black Conservatives & ‘Cooning’: 26:07–35:07
- Historical Cycle Analysis: 43:33–50:57 & 70:41–77:24
- Activist Self-Care & Medication: 108:30–111:46
- Recommended Radical Books: 112:36–114:58
Tone & Flow
The conversation is lively, deeply informed, often biting, and laced with Amanda’s characteristic humor and Deante’s direct, insightful questioning. Both speakers move fluidly between historical analysis, current events, personal anecdotes, and practical suggestions, creating a space that is equal parts community-building and intellectual exploration.
For Further Reflection
This episode is ideal for listeners interested in:
- Black radical political thought
- Debunking liberal platitudes and the performance of allyship
- The lived experience and tactics of Black organizers and public intellectuals
- Self-care for activists and creatives
- Understanding the cycles of oppression and liberation in American history
Closing Thoughts
Deante’ and Amanda close with mutual respect and the promise of future collaboration, a fitting end to a conversation centered on community building, self-knowledge, and activist scholarship.
“Be the person for (your children) that you needed at 11. And reading that book will help you refine.”
– Amanda Seales (125:38)