The Sista Collective

The Sista Collective speak with women who've focused on ways to turn their ideas and dreams into successful business realities during the pandemic months. From Sharmaine Lovegrove, the publisher of Dialogue Books, which focuses and discovers new writers of colour…To six year old Faith and her mother Serlina who’ve launched Cocoa Girl - the UK’s first ever magazine for Black Girls. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 8 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Executive Producer Jessie Aru-Phillips. Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

The Sista Collective speak with Paulette and Xanthe who both researched their family ancestry and ended up with surprising results. Paulette went to Jamaica for the first time and discovered aspects of her family background she had no idea about and Xanthe, who was raised as mixed-race Caribbean finds out that that wasn't the whole story. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 7 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

Dr. Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason is mum to seven classically trained musicians, that include the winner of the BBC’s young musician of the year award in 2016 - Sheku Kanneh-Mason, he also performed at Prince Harry and Meghan's wedding. She explains how they became one of the most talented musical families. The Sistas also speak with Jazmin Craddock-Jones, a biomedical scientist with a passion for writing and film. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 6 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

The Sista Collective meets women for whom sickle cell disease has changed their lives. Whether it’s living with the illness or finding out you are a carrier and having to give up the love of your life or the hope of children, the Sistas talk about the inherited condition that needs to be addressed openly. From painful and sometimes life threatening symptoms to finding out you might pass it on to your babies, meet the women who have had to learn to live with the illness written into their own genetic code. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 4 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

The Sista Collective talks mixed feelings about mixed relationships. South Asian Bias is a generational problem for many younger people in this country. The Sistas meet the women working to change family and cultural attitudes. From the daughter checking to see if her mum would still love her if she “married out” to the young British Black woman and her Indian husband and mother in law! How one generation is fighting the cultural bias of another. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 4 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

Hollywood, stunts and life as a single mum. Award winning Amanda Foster on how she became Britain’s first black stunt woman, and some words of wisdom for the #siscollective on never letting anyone tell you who you are. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 3 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

Talking politics and power with Labour MP Dawn Butler. Britain’s first female Black MP to become a minister in government, Dawn shares her experiences of navigating the” white space” of Westminster. Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 2 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for Episode 1 of Season 3 of the #SisCollective. Talking Black Lives Matter with Jen Reid and 7 year-old school girl, Nylah Abitimo-Jones reads her poem “Black”. The #SisCollective also hears from songwriter Janee ‘Jin Jin’ Bennett. Jin Jin has written songs for Jess Glynne, Little Mix and Tinie Tempah. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

Meet the new collective... Letitia George, Aminata Kamara and Simone Riley join Jessie Aru-Phillips for season 3 of the #siscollective. Produced by Carly Appleby (BBC Radio Gloucestershire) and Karen Gabay (BBC Radio Manchester). Originally broadcast on BBC Radio Merseyside.

Joined by singer Jamelia, the #siscollective talk fertility. Jamelia reveals that her open conversations led to her teenage daughter becoming her birth partner. Jessie, Scarlette and Eunice find out about the search for black sperm from fertility warrior Tamara Bugembe, plus the ins and outs of IVF with fertility blogger Vanessa Haye. Kelechi Okafor from 'Say Your Mind' podcast is also back with her sketch Sally In HR in the season ending episode of The Sista Collective.