"Nice Talk" is re-releasing one of our favorite episodes from the archive this week. This conversation with Issa Rae originally aired in September 2025. At the time, Rae was fresh off the success of One of Them Days, the first feature from her production company, Hoorae, which grossed more than $51 million on a $14 million budget. She's only gotten busier since, with a three-year first-look film and television deal with Paramount, a One of Them Days sequel in development, and the comedic thriller Good People, Bad Things on the way. Revisit the conversation here.
The state of the world does not exactly fill one with hope right now, but according to Issa Rae, that makes it the most important time to be creative—both because of the optimism the work creates, and the optimism that doing the work brings to the creator.
