Transcribed by AI with Human Review
Jeff Williams:
Welcome to Community Voices, a production of NPR Illinois. I'm your co-host Jeff Williams.
In the studio with me today, A’Santianna Austin. A’Santianna, how's it going?
A'Santianna Austin:
It's going well.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. I said that okay then.
A'Santianna Austin:
Yeah.
Jeff Williams:
That's pretty good, pretty good. Okay, that's good to know, good to know. And looks like you're an author, poet, producer, epilepsy advocate. So yeah, tell me more. Tell me more.
A'Santianna Austin:
Well, I'll start with the author stuff. Yep, so when I was about, I'd say 18, I started writing poems while I was in college. And I just wanted something to do at the time. So, I turned all those poems into a collective and I published it for the very first time.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. So where did you go to college at?
A'Santianna Austin:
So, I spent my first year of college at Blackburn College in Carlinville.
Jeff Williams:
Carlinville, yep.
A'Santianna Austin:
And then I transferred back and I'm loving it here at Lincoln Land (Community College).
Jeff Williams:
Are you from the area?
A'Santianna Austin:
I am.
Jeff Williams:
As you were coming up, where did you go to school?
A'Santianna Austin:
So I went to Lee School, then I went to Washington Middle School, and then I went to Southeast High School.
Jeff Williams:
I went to Washington also; in 6th and 7th grade. I just did a mural over there on one of the buildings. In Jaycee Park next to the playground. It's basically… I think it's just a bathroom over there (laughter) but it was cool! It was cool to do the mural on it! I did that last summer in conjunction with the Springfield Art Association with Betsy Dollar and also with Shatriya Smith helped get that all together. So, it's kind of cool to go back by there.
A'Santianna Austin:
Anyhow, I saw the mural. It's really nice.
Jeff Williams:
Oh, thank you. Thanks A lot. It was basically like a mentorship sort of a program. Anyway, enough about that. When did you first realize you were interested in writing?
A'Santianna Austin:
I have to say when I realized that sports wasn't for me anymore.
Jeff Williams:
Okay.
A'Santianna Austin:
I actually signed to go to Blackburn (College) for cross country and realized…
Jeff Williams:
You did? Okay.
A'Santianna Austin:
Yeah, and I realized, oh, well, this is not for me, but maybe something else is. I've always loved writing. I've always been decent at school. So, I'm like, oh, maybe I can give this a try.
Jeff Williams:
Yeah, well, when I went to Illinois State on a track and field scholarship, and after my freshman year, I was like, it was just not, it wasn't.
A'Santianna Austin:
Not your cup of tea?
Jeff Williams:
It was just not! It was a little different. Like, it didn't vibe as much as I was hoping it would with. OH! The other people on the team? That was cool, but it just wasn’t working. So I took a year off and worked… thought about things, and then ended up going back up to Illinois State University, but then my focus was on graphics and fine art. you got to find out, you got to go through these things, and then you realize what your your true passion is, Right.
A'Santianna Austin:
And I'm glad I did do that year of cross country. I never (would have) found any of this (without it). So I'll always be grateful for it.
Jeff Williams:
(Experiences) always help along the way. (They) help you discover more about yourself, you know.
A'Santianna Austin:
Exactly.
Jeff Williams:
So, then you started to get into the writing, in high school, you weren't necessarily thinking about writing that much at that point?
A'Santianna Austin:
Not that much in high school. In high school, I was just, ready to graduate. I was focused on sports. I just was one of the try kids, kept my head down, didn't really, talk that much. Then when I got to college, I kind of branched out and I started talking and started doing all these things. I got involved in all these clubs and just all these programs and I realized what a workload it actually is. And so I'm like, this really is not for me. And I'm like, okay, so I moved back home and I finished, I'm finishing up here at Lincoln Land and I'm just continuing to do what I love here.
Jeff Williams:
Yeah, I love it. So, you have a couple of pieces that you've done then, right?
A'Santianna Austin:
Yeah.
Jeff Williams:
You want to talk about either one of those to begin with.
A'Santianna Austin:
The very first piece that I did was “Melanated, Not Black”. Those were 63 poems I wrote.
Jeff Williams:
Oh, 63. Wow, that's a lot! Nice. Yeah.
A'Santianna Austin:
Thank you. It got some attention and I didn't think it was going to get as much attention as it did. So, it just kind of blew me away. (I thought) … this could, be something. Then I started working on my second book, which comes out this summer. And it's going to be part of a series that I'm working on. And I'm really excited for that.
Jeff Williams:
Do you have like an opening or anything like that or something where people could come and get your book?
A'Santianna Austin:
I had a shoot at Southeast High School. They kind of just came and congratulated me on my accomplishments. The superintendent at the time. It was a lot of my former teachers and a lot of students who I had went to school with. So, it was gone of an event, but the book is mainly available on Amazon.
Jeff Williams:
Okay, yeah, nice, Christopher Sims, who's from the Rockford area, I had him on maybe about two-month and a half, two months ago. He does a lot of writing, spoken word. He performed when we had like a little like an event that we kind of organized along with Shatriya Smith and James (Compton) Bockmier. I might try to put you in touch with them if you want. For times when they have events. They had their books available at some of the events that we kind of help organize and stuff, just so, more people can kind of know or you can kind of How did you go about when you got your book onto this onto Amazon?
A'Santianna Austin:
Honestly, at first it was just some type of project that I was interested in doing. I didn't expect to get any real recognition or, you know, to get monetized for it. So I went the self- publishing rally and published it on KDP Amazon. And when I did, you know, It just got all this recognition and I'm grateful for it. But I'm like, oh, wow. And I'm like, oh, this could really be, something. Like I could make a career out of this.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. That's fantastic. And that's the thing is, so you start off, it's like a, you all of a sudden discover it's like a passion for yourself. I just love to do it. It's not like I'm thinking right off the bat. I think I'm going to make $1,000,000 on this. You just, you're doing it because you love it, but that's the best way to do it is because you love it and then let everything that follows after that happen, not try to. sometimes people get discouraged or they think, they think something needs to happen right away. And sometimes it does. But that's great that you're already getting that recognition.
A'Santianna Austin:
Thank you.
Jeff Williams:
Who are some of your favorites? Hopefully I am not putting you on the spot too much. Some people that have inspired you, in writing?
A'Santianna Austin:
Some people I'd say who've inspired me in writing are Definitely my, I'd say my writing teacher in high school. She always kept pushing me to keep going in my journey, even though I may not get the results that I want sometimes. And my mom definitely, she read a lot when I was growing up, and she still reads like A lot. And she has all these books, like all these abundance of books. as far as career wise though, I'd say like Nick Stone.
Jeff Williams:
Okay.
A'Santianna Austin:
I'd say Kiki Swenson. Jason Reynolds.
Jeff Williams:
Okay.
A'Santianna Austin:
I had to read all of their books growing up in school. And now to be able to actually meet them one day is pretty cool.
Jeff Williams:
So then as far as like the epilepsy advocate, can you speak on that some?
A'Santianna Austin:
Sure, yeah. Growing up, 8 through now, I experienced seizures, about 20 A day. I was diagnosed with epilepsy when I was 8 and I was kind of in and out of the hospital. So my childhood was like the furthest thing from normal. And I feel like I'm grateful for it because it kind of pushed me to grow up and I kind of wouldn't have it any other way. I get to go speak at places and inspire kids to keep pushing no matter what they're going through, whether it be a health challenge, some type of home struggle. And I'm just really grateful for all the struggles that I went through because now I get to speak to the younger generation about what they're going through.
Jeff Williams:
Really helps you grow in a way, sometimes empathize with other people. It's sort of a strange thing. Like struggle makes you then kind of realize first the things you can be grateful for, but then also what sometimes you can see what other people, kind of their struggles, you can kind of empathize. So then You said you've that you've talked some you've talked to students.
A'Santianna Austin:
Yeah.
Jeff Williams:
Where was the like where did those things happen at?
A'Santianna Austin:
So it started with like teachers reaching out to me and saying, hey, you should come visit our school. And I'm like, okay, yeah, I will. So I've done some elementary schools. I've done some juvenile detention centers. I've done a couple of high schools and I've done a couple of alternative programs.
Jeff Williams:
Okay. So when you do those like going in it first like let's say before the first one you did, after you're like, yes, I want to do this. Was it still some trepidation or it's like, okay, what did I get myself into? You know what I mean? When you're going into something new, it's like, man, what am I going to do? That can kind of be, or feel nerve-wracking in a way. Then after you're done with it, it's like, oh man, okay. All right. I'm cool with that.
A'Santianna Austin:
Yeah. The nerves were, they still are definitely there anytime I go to speak. But I kind of always remember that I'm doing this for a reason and there's always like a good cause behind it. And I'm always going to leave a message behind no matter who I'm talking to. And, the kids I usually speak to are anywhere from 8 to 18 years old. So, I know that they're listening, even though, they may not want to hear what I have to say. But I know they're going to want to hear me rather than hear their teachers because of the age range difference.
Jeff Williams:
Right, A lot of times things stick, even if it seems like the person at the time is like not, they might not even act like teachers like in high school. And even if I didn't show them, I didn't show them appreciation as much at the time, later on when I thought about it, I was like, man, they did make an impression on me. You're right, they loved the impact. Exactly, And that's also a lot of times good to do when you're talking to somebody else, even if they're around your same age or a little bit younger, it makes an impact and it helps people, like you said, because they're hearing it from somebody who's more or less a peer, even though you can still be a teacher. You know what I mean? But now producer, I see producer. What does that speak to?
A'Santianna Austin:
I am a producer. Just recently though, I am working on a few projects and No, gotcha, gotcha. But yeah, I'm working on a few projects. So just to let you know, there's some stuff coming.
Jeff Williams:
Are you planning on staying in Springfield area or maybe branching out someplace else?
A'Santianna Austin:
I think what I'm gonna do is, and this is not set in stone, but maybe like finish my years at Lincoln Land (Community College) and then when I graduate, maybe, move and get my bachelor's degree.
Jeff Williams:
Right on, right on. So still kind of batting around different things that could happen. Yeah, no, I totally, totally understand that. You got to keep your options open, and then the right thing will unfold. Once again, we're in the studio with A’Santianna Austin. She's an author, poet, producer, Epilepsy Advocate, just stop by. The book you have out then.
A'Santianna Austin:
“Melanated Not Black” out on all platforms.
Jeff Williams:
Is there a place on social media like anything?
A'Santianna Austin:
At Instagram. I have Instagram and Facebook.
Jeff Williams:
Do you want to let people know if they wanted to kind of follow you or anything of your journey?
A'Santianna Austin:
It's at Asantiana Nygene on Facebook and Instagram.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. Very cool. And So you said you have one coming up.
A'Santianna Austin:
It's “The Kind of Love I Hate” series.
Jeff Williams:
So it’s “The Kind of Love I Hate” series. Would you mind speaking about that a little bit?
A'Santianna Austin:
It's gonna be about this girl who loses everything overnight. And yeah, that's what the first book is about. It comes out this summer. And there's two more books after that.
Jeff Williams:
Right on. So you have the title kind of set in stone, right? Yeah, pretty much. So how is that? You see, I write songs a lot and it's kind of strange because sometimes I'll have the idea, the concept of what's going to be happening in the song. A lot of times when I do it, I'm telling some sort of a silly story going along. And sometimes I'll have the story first, but sometimes I'll have the title first. And I'm like, man, I like this title. I'm locked in with the title, even though I don't know how it's going to unfold.
A'Santianna Austin:
Right.
Jeff Williams:
Is that kind of what you got going on here with “The Kind of Love I Hate”?
A'Santianna Austin:
I feel like… once I have a good title, I know that the book's going to be spot on.
Jeff Williams:
Very cool. And so, you said then you've got maybe some other ones in the works for after that.
A'Santianna Austin:
Absolutely.
Jeff Williams:
Well, wow, thanks a lot for coming by the studio. Is there anything else you wanted to add before we get out of here?
A'Santianna Austin:
Jennifer Hudson, if you're listening. Okay.
Jeff Williams:
All right. Very cool. Any shout outs to anybody you want to give?
A'Santianna Austin:
Definitely my mom, my day one. You know, she believes and supportive in my dreams.
Jeff Williams:
It sounds like she's been supportive from what you were just saying, you know?
A'Santianna Austin:
Absolutely.
Jeff Williams:
We're in the studio with A’Santianna Austin. Thank you very, very much for coming by. We'll talk to you the next time. You'll have to come back in. You'll have to let us know your next part of the journey for sure.
A'Santianna Austin:
I had a great time today.
Jeff Williams:
All right, thank you. Yeah. Very cery cool.
A'Santianna Austin:
Oh man, I had a great time.
Jeff Williams:
Nice. Community Voices is events that you might have missed. and conversations with neighbors, artists, and area businesspeople. Suggest a guest or comment at communityvoices@nprillinois.org. Get to know your neighbors with community voices at noon and 10 p.m. and on demand at nprillinois.org. NPR Illinois 91.9 and thank you for your support. Community Voices is a production of NPR Illinois.
