Collected Podcast

Collected is a project of the African American History Curatorial Collective at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Centering stories curated by the Collective’s members, this podcast offers compelling and accessible journeys through topics in African American history that are particularly relevant today.

Season Two: The Musical Genius of Black Women

Black women have dominated the mainstream stages of American Popular music for almost a century. How can we understand the labor, spirit, and genius that got them there? Building on the exploration of contemporary Black feminist history in Season One, Season Two of the Collected podcast looks again at the brilliant work of African American women, this time through the lens of Black Female musical artists. Over this season’s six episodes, audiences will learn about several core figures spanning genres such as jazz, rock, spirituals, and disco to look at how Black female artists fought their way to the big stages and survived once they arrived there. Curator of Music Dr. Krystal Klingenberg resumes her role as host and producer, taking listeners on a rich musical journey through the lives of women you know, but stories you may not.

Host

Dr. Krystal Klingenberg is a curator of music in the division of Culture and the Arts at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Previously she held professorial positions at Swarthmore College and the University of Hartford. She received her PhD in May 2019 from the Music Department of Harvard University, with a secondary field in African and African American Studies. Her dissertation-turned-book project is on the creation and distribution of Ugandan popular music. It tackles questions of national identity in music, the status of copyright in Uganda today, and the growth of the Ugandan music industry. Klingenberg’s interests include global Black popular musics, African American music, digital media, and social justice. She is part of the curatorial team for Entertainment Nation and is the host of the museum’s Collected podcast on African American History. 

Season One: Rerooting Black Feminism

The topic for the first season of Collected is Black Feminism. Over this six-episode podcast season, listeners will encounter terms and ideas circulating in mainstream society that have their roots in the work of Black feminist writers and activists. By exploring the history around terms like “intersectionality,” “self-care,” and “identity politics,” with the help of notable Black women scholars and writers in the field, Collected highlights the importance of Black women thinkers and shows how their work, past and present, can be used to interpret our present moment. Hosted by Dr. Crystal Moten and Dr. Krystal Klingenberg, the show highlights why Black feminist critique remains crucial to understanding the times we are living in and how we might look to the past for an understanding of our future.

Additional Resources

• Our Shared Future: Glossary
• Season Two Press Release
• Season One Press Release

Collected is funded by the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum and the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.