Chat Shit, Get Banged

About Chat Shit, Get Banged

Culture, Politics and Everything in Between samanthaasumadu.substack.com (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast)

Publisher

Samantha Asumadu

Category

society & culture · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

18 Nov 2018

Latest episode

24 Oct 2025

Latest episodes

20 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   24 Oct 2025

   Make Britain Great Again

   On The Rack this week I have thought leader, educator, and consultant, Lee Jasper. He was an advisor in government to five consecutive Home Secretaries up until 2010, the Senior Political Advisor to former Mayor of London Ken Livingstone for eight years (2000-2008) and is the co-founder of Operation Black Vote. He is a veteran racial justice campaigner and strategist who I first met fourteen years ago. You can also listen to this episode on Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2wX8l5b00qqedoEl3aPQJM?si=2Q6itIZqQKKMyvyqXaGegA), YouTube (https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYuAeKAtnkbPv22EqfMEJk5zjhDn9nabf&si=MOup9hneq68pHnkv) and Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-rack/id1766993766) In our conversation we discussed his role as the current chair of the Alliance of Police Accountability (APA), the rise of far-right movements in the UK, the role of religion in social movements, and the decline of traditional neoliberal politics. We got a bit heated about the current state of trade unions, which Lee believes have retreated from their social mandate and are beholden to the Labour Party who themselves are corporately captured. We went on to talk about the "Unite the Kingdom" rally that attracted 150,000-200,000 people last month. During the rally, Lee, as part of his work at APA was coordinating community groups from a high vantage point in central London, monitoring and surveilling the march to both prevent any outbreak of violence and warn if the march seemed to be veering towards other areas such as Tower Hamlets. Does the rise of the far right demand a need for increased counter-protest participation, especially from white people? We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings. — Ursula K. Le Guin We discussed the historical context of the Union Jack being corrupted by the extreme right and the visceral reaction it evokes among certain communities. Lee told me about the three reports into the Met Police that the Mayor and the commissioner have tried to bury. Both before and since the BBC Panorama documentary, Undercover in the Police (https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002k7k6/panorama-undercover-in-the-police) exposed evidence of racism, misogyny and officers revelling in the use of force in Charing Cross Police station. The reports all address the fundamental weaknesses in the architecture of police accountability in London. And a breakdown of moral authority from top to bottom. We started with Jamaica, Lee's motherland, their economic ties with the U.S., it’s wealth distribution, and the impact of climate change on rural farmers. And we ended as always with a round of Mad Geniuses! Lee has dedicated his life to advancing social justice, equity, and community empowerment and the mad geniuses he chose tells you why. You can find the Alliance for Police Accountability on Instagram here (https://www.instagram.com/accountableapa?igsh=bXpvdHFqcTlmZGJ6). Follow and read Lee’s articles on Substack here (https://leejaspersnr.substack.com/) And find out more about his consultancy work here (https://www.lee-jasper.com/). Have a good weekend! I'll hopefully be back with another On the Rack episode soon. In the meantime if you haven’t read them already, check out some of my favourite articles from last year (I won’t be writing (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/taking-a-break)anymore anytime soon): I Want to be the Villain (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/the-art-of-writing) The Guilty Men (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/the-guilty-men) (and Women) Why I’ll Never Write Off The White Working Class (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/why-ill-never-write-off-the-white), Even Those Who Are Racist On Violence and The Wretched of the Earth (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/on-violence) Zack Polanski Sees All (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/zack-polanski-sees-all) Sally Rooney Has Paid Her Rent (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/sally-rooney-has-paid-her-rent) The Journalism Paradox: Class origins and proximity to power (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/the-journalism-paradox) 🎧 Jazz’s Favourite Son | Plurality and Dissonance with Alex Hitchcock (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/jazzs-favourite-son) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2)

2. 

   12 Jul 2025

   Jazz's Favourite Son

   You can subscribe to On the Rack via Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2wX8l5b00qqedoEl3aPQJM?si=pVd7otAwQFeIc_ucsLMNmg), Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-rack/id1766993766) and YouTube (https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYuAeKAtnkbPv22EqfMEJk5zjhDn9nabf&si=B5bGcIP3wwIX22g6). Alex Hitchcock is a New York based, London born, leading voice on the saxophone and distinctive improviser on the international stage. He has been described by The Guardian as a ‘virtuoso’ saxophonist, and his innovative collaborations have confirmed his growing reputation as an instigator and catalyst for captivating musical encounters that continually push the envelope a little further. According to — BBC Jazz World he has, “Ridiculous technique and harmonic proficiency combined with progressive creativity that sees him leading the charge in terms of new jazz music being created in the UK.” I got all that from the Ronnie Scott’s website where he'll be playing on the 2nd October (https://www.ronniescotts.co.uk/find-a-show/alex-hitchcock). In the episode we chatted about, Nickel Boys (2024) directed by RaMell Ross (https://www.ricethresher.org/article/2025/02/review-nickel-boys-is-an-intimate-and-potent-masterpiece) Set primarily in the early 1960s, “Nickel Boys” chronicles Elwood (Ethan Herisse), a wide-eyed Black teenager whose dreams of college and civic progress collide headfirst with the brutal reality of Jim Crow Florida. Pattern recognition, you kind of don't realise what an important skill that is until you get a bit older, and you maybe don't realise the way you've always been doing it, but haven't quite realised how you've been doing it. And I think you want to, in both, literal and abstract ways, be able to draw those connections across, whether you're a musician and you're doing it across different art forms or you're doing that thing of hearing the music in boxing or whatever. – Alex Hitchcock It was a pleasure having Alex featured on the new era of my newly named podcast, On The Rack. Here’s all the tracks you heard in the episode: (unless otherwise indicated they are all either composed and/or performed by Alex) Rio - London Live (https://open.spotify.com/track/6GFhJdDPbavsKGoKiAFZh8?si=CEes2p6_QFywsRdQt6FLfQ) Cakeism (Alternative) London Live (https://open.spotify.com/track/3RbIQ2Z8HpKrVuzswdfSUC?si=ZBaZ1ldWQQ6tDDIYsYPkSA) Be Less, Reflex (https://open.spotify.com/track/2s2TdWEWQOdAGJ3VlLhmU5?si=5O6a0soTT2GTwkwhMddTTQ) - JSPHYNX Gowns of Dark, Stay Now (https://open.spotify.com/track/2ki1Eb2QQOvfJnfrRx1zXg?si=OeKD8iphQD61tloDmaVxHQ), Joe Lyssarides Don't Wait too Long, In the Same Moon, Same World (https://open.spotify.com/track/7xuIfMuBtwmmBkHDvrzXAH?si=vkCEDIdCSnO-sMksQGA7Pg), Ant Law, Alex Hitchcock Ray's Ideas - Kirk Lightsey Caprice 24, Niccolò Paganini (https://on.soundcloud.com/nrWG1ql1uEfL5Kdzqr), ” It was a pleasure having Alex featured on the new era of my newly named podcast, On The Rack. Here’s all the tracks you heard in the episode: (unless otherwise indicated they are all either composed and/or performed by Alex) Rio - London Live (https://open.spotify.com/track/6GFhJdDPbavsKGoKiAFZh8?si=CEes2p6_QFywsRdQt6FLfQ) Cakeism (Alternative) London Live (https://open.spotify.com/track/3RbIQ2Z8HpKrVuzswdfSUC?si=ZBaZ1ldWQQ6tDDIYsYPkSA) Be Less, Reflex (https://open.spotify.com/track/2s2TdWEWQOdAGJ3VlLhmU5?si=5O6a0soTT2GTwkwhMddTTQ) - JSPHYNX Gowns of Dark, Stay Now (https://open.spotify.com/track/2ki1Eb2QQOvfJnfrRx1zXg?si=OeKD8iphQD61tloDmaVxHQ), Joe Lyssarides Don't Wait too Long, In the Same Moon, Same World (https://open.spotify.com/track/7xuIfMuBtwmmBkHDvrzXAH?si=vkCEDIdCSnO-sMksQGA7Pg), Ant Law, Alex Hitchcock Ray's Ideas - Kirk Lightsey Caprice 24, Niccolò Paganini (https://on.soundcloud.com/nrWG1ql1uEfL5Kdzqr), Hilary Hahn Brocken (Intro) London Live (https://open.spotify.com/track/3FGSRChte7Lopqgcgl8ewz?si=SyNb5aX2RCagNiBKbK8GeQ) Gertrude 'Ma' Rainey - Prove It On Me Blues TJG 30th Anniversary Series (https://youtube.com/shorts/7fvzoibB3rQ?si=Iz5CWGZiwNXuJd1N), Tyshawn Sorey Folk Devils, AuB (https://open.spotify.com/track/7m7NZaPnJI54LzZh0Ed3uZ?si=_2BHqqvjR1CapzPmwsGGbA), Tom Barford, Alex Hitchcock Upcoming gigs 13th July, Colchester Arts Centre (https://www.bandsintown.com/e/107067684?app_id=ggl_feed&came_from=289&utm_medium=web&utm_source=ggl_feed&utm_campaign=event&source=ea) 14th July, Pizza Express Jazz Club Soho (https://www.bandsintown.com/e/107067692?app_id=ggl_feed&came_from=289&utm_medium=web&utm_source=ggl_feed&utm_campaign=event&source=ea) 17th July, Ant Law & Alex Hitchcock, 606 Club (https://www.bandsintown.com/e/106415437?app_id=ggl_feed&came_from=289&utm_medium=web&utm_source=ggl_feed&utm_campaign=event&source=ea) 18th July, Ant Law & Alex Hitchcock, Jamboree Jazz, Barcelona, Spain (https://www.bandsintown.com/e/106931582?app_id=ggl_feed&came_from=289&utm_medium=web&utm_source=ggl_feed&utm_campaign=event&source=ea) Keep informed of his gigs via his website here (https://www.alexhitchcock.co.uk/) Catch Up with the last episode with Gareth Dennis: Have a read of last week's newsletter, FREE THE GRANDEM! about the proscriptionof Palestine Action and erosions of our civil liberties and freedom of expression here (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/free-the-grandem) and On Violence and the Wretched of the Earth (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/on-violence). I think it’s the best and most urgent thing I wrote last year. Consider booking me for a campaigning journalism talk or workshop, details and photos here (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/p/workshops-and-training). I can only justify writing this newsletter and publishing this podcast because of my paying subscribers 🙏🏿 If you haven’t already please consider subscribing (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=web&utm_source=subscribe-widget&utm_content=152221330&next=https%3A%2F%2Fsamanthaasumadu.substack.com) or even better drop some cash in my paypal (https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/samantha2179?country.x=GB&locale.x=en_GB). Have a great weekend! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2)

3. 

   7 Feb 2025

   Ethics, Engineering and Star Wars with Gareth Dennis

   It's the first Chat S**t Get Banged (https://open.spotify.com/episode/5aeMkiJEQzu2onnKHyqD9c?si=4vqcSRLcROCVnLJzMT5czA) of 2025 and I was delighted to invite Gareth Dennis on the show! Gareth is the author of How Railways Will Fix the Future (https://repeaterbooks.com/product/how-the-railways-will-fix-the-future-rediscovering-the-essential-brilliance-of-the-iron-road/), published by Repeater Books. In a review of the book, Steve Dawe writing for West England Bylines (https://westenglandbylines.co.uk/society/bookreviews/book-review-gareth-denis-how-railways-will-fix-the-future/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=book-review-gareth-denis-how-railways-will-fix-the-future) said, Gareth Dennis uses current, historical, and global contexts to chart how the railways can assist in the climate emergency and social justice. Despite 29 global conferences on the climate, and thousands of illustrative academic papers, climate policy failures remain. As Gareth Dennis observes in this book, a third of global end-use emissions are from transport. As a step away from the climate emergency, he offers a railway renaissance focussed on this country particularly, with emphasis on public ownership. Many observations also reference what he calls “private individualised transport” as part of the wider pattern of inequalities and pollution in our society. He attempts to quote “describe how railways fit into the future, but also how they can act as a lens through which to filter and understand what future we want to see, allowing us to think clearly about our relationship with organised labour, with technology and with democratic principles.” Gareth is an engineer and writer (https://garethdennis.co.uk/), specialising in transport systems and policy. As well as his day job as a railway design engineer, he is a writer for the railway and national press and regularly appears on television and radio explaining engineering and transport ideas to a broad audience. He is a lecturer in rail infrastructure, safety and sustainability and presents a weekly video podcast called #Railnatter on YouTube (https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlPJmKp10F4pGqXgT3yg0sBEYSmvMnAWt&si=FmPeXvVePmLfjcbs) that I highly recommend. He points out that only half of the 20% of households with the lowest income in the UK have access to a car. He argues dealing with car dependence is part of reducing poverty, pollution, and inequality. This was a satisfyingly *wide-ranging talk, that not only covered engineering but politics, music, film, the big ideas and the small too. There's some bombshells and some fighting talk 💪🏿 Gareth is convinced and cited evdence that engineering has contributed more to the world than medicine. I feel that needs an octagon, a referee and a bell to sort out. During the interview, my longest so far at 90 minutes, there is a reference to the hashtag #RailwaysExplained (https://x.com/hashtag/RailwaysExplained?t=dW7YWAfdT-StlD7ZndzCCw&s=09) and slavery. Further reading by Gareth here: Slavery and the Railways, Part 1: Acknowledging the Past (https://www.londonreconnections.com/2020/slavery-and-the-railways-part-1-acknowledging-the-past/) and here's the full quote from the 2020 thread I read out, Last night's #RailNatter, we talked about #BlackLivesMatter and how it is crucial to keep up the pressure and for all of us to learn about our colonial past. Here's a really important #RailwaysExplained about how Britain's railways only really exist as a legacy of slavery…Back in 1833, the UK government abolished slavery and decided to compensate former slave owners - not the people who had been held as slaves - to the tune of £20m… That's more than £19bn in today's money, and represented 40% of the government's budget at the time. Around half the money stayed in the UK despite only 3000 of the 47000 compensated slave owners living here, meaning that very wealthy individuals received huge payouts. People like George Hibbert and John Gladstone received the 1833 equivalent of tens of millions of pounds each. Former slave owners needed somewhere to invest this money, and the embryonic but exciting new technology of railways seemed like a solid bet… Lines like the Liverpool and Manchester and the Great Western Railway were substantially funded using their compensation. *A Cargo Cult: Its use as a metaphor (in the sense of engaging in ritual action to obtain material goods) based on stereotypes of cargo cultists as "primitive and confused people who use irrational means to pursue rational ends. Typically (but not universally) cargo cults included: charismatic prophet figures foretelling an imminent cataclysm and/or a coming utopia for followers—a worldview known as millenarianism; predictions by these prophets of the return of dead ancestors bringing an abundance of food and goods (the "cargo"),  typically including a bounty of Western goods or money, rooted in pre-existing aspects of Melanesian society, as a reaction to colonial oppression and inequality disrupting traditional village life, or both. Chat S**t Get Banged is available on Spotify (https://open.spotify.com/show/2wX8l5b00qqedoEl3aPQJM?si=izSt8_EnTfeDxc9tW46ynA), Apple Podcasts (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/chat-s**t-get-banged/id1766993766), YouTube (https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYuAeKAtnkbPv22EqfMEJk5zjhDn9nabf&si=TBhkS37udNiVv4u0) and probably other places I am unaware of. Become a paying subscriber (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=web&utm_source=subscribe-widget&utm_content=152221330&next=https%3A%2F%2Fsamanthaasumadu.substack.com) to get access to exclusive episodes coming up this year. Or even better drop some cash in my PayPal (https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/samantha2179?country.x=GB&locale.x=en_GB) and I'll hook you up! Have a great weekend. Til next time. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe (https://samanthaasumadu.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_2)

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