Celebrating Milestones and Hidden Histories for the New Year!

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As we kick off a new year and celebrate five incredible years of Strictly Facts, we're taking a fresh angle by focusing on those narratives that lie just beneath the surface, often ignored by mainstream stories. This year, we're shining a light on hidden treasures. These overlooked stories not only enrich our understanding of our past but also forge stronger connections among Caribbean voices worldwide.

I'm Alexandria Miller, your guide on this journey, and I'm excited to invite you to become a part of our Strictly Facts family. We're celebrating milestones like our 100th episode and encouraging you to share your own between-the-lines stories. With each episode, we aim to connect historical themes to contemporary music, popular culture, and current events, painting a vibrant picture of our Caribbean nations' evolution. Subscribe, follow us on social media, and share this journey as we explore the depths of our shared history and culture for 2025!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to Strictly Facts, a guide to Caribbean
history and culture, hosted byme, alexandria Miller.
Strictly Facts teaches thehistory, politics and activism
of the Caribbean and connectsthese themes to contemporary
music and popular culture.
Waquan Strictly Facts family,we are back for another year of

(00:28):
the show.
I am so excited to not only becelebrating a new year, but also
five years of my Baby.
Strictly Facts, a guide toCaribbean history and culture,
next week.
As well as the many things wehave in store for this year, we
have some long awaited episodesto share and so much more in
store for this year.
We have some long-awaitedepisodes to share and so much
more in store.
My word for the year isdiscipline, which means over

(00:51):
here on the production side ofStrictly Facts, we had a ton up
to take, so that's something todefinitely be on the lookout for
.
Best of all, as I hope youcould tell, in our last few
episodes of 2024, we'll betaking a deeper dive into the
arts and addition.
We are amplifying the storiesand histories that exist between

(01:12):
the lines.
You may know the saying historyis written by the victors and,
simply put, that phrase has alot about power, positionality
and who has typically had theability to tell our stories.
Historically, that has oftenmeant people who don't look like
us or don't consider the myriadof factors one must really take

(01:34):
into account when writinghistory.
Well, this next year ofStrictly Facts is all about
sharing the histories betweenthe lines.
You may be wondering what do Imean between the lines?
You may be wondering what do Imean.
Of course, we're continuing toshare and discuss Caribbean
history and current events,especially as they relate to our
evolution and growth anddevelopment.

(01:55):
Additionally, though, there arealways stories within stories.
For instance, a story many ofus are familiar with through our
national pride and even, maybeeven, in your schools, is of our
, you know, individual Caribbeannations' independence movements
, but you might not have known,prior to even maybe listening to

(02:17):
Strictly Facts, that beforemany of the particularly
Anglophone Caribbean nationsbecame independent, there
existed the West IndianFederation, the Anglophone
Caribbean's short-lived attemptat creating a political union
that existed from the late 50sto the early 60s.
So these are precisely thestories within the stories that

(02:38):
we're focusing on this year.
So, with this focus, this nextyear of Strictly Facts isn't
just about telling the storiesthat exist between the lines,
but also sharing the things thathave largely been overlooked or
omitted from broaderpublications.
Sharing these histories offersus new treasures that are not
only crucial to ourunderstanding of where we come

(03:00):
from individually, but alsohelps us forge greater alliances
amongst ourselves, who arequite literally all over the
globe.
There's just so much we don'tknow, and that little space in
between the lines can kick openthe door.
So, as I said, this year is allabout reading between the lines

(03:20):
, and I welcome any of ourlisteners who may have their own
between the lines stories tosend us an email or DM and share
your story with the StrictlyFacts family.
We also have a bunch ofmilestones coming up this year,
including our 100th episode andso much more.
So, as always, stay tuned,subscribe to the show, follow us

(03:44):
on social media, share with afriend and a friend and another
friend, leave a comment andcontinue to be a part of this
growing thing we've got going.
I am so grateful to have you bea part of the family and
looking forward to sharing withyou in 2025.
Till next time, little more,and happy new year.