Identified with Nabil Ayers
The Identified podcast launched in 2024 and is now in its second season. Nabil Ayers is the host, and previous guests include John Legend, Laura Lee, Tom Morello, Neko Case, David Cross, Youngmi Mayer, Tunde Adebimpe, Nabihah Iqbal, Nate Mendel, and more.
Ayers’ memoir My Life in the Sunshine (Viking, 2022) explored his distant relationship with his father, musician Roy Ayers, as well as identity, belonging, and connection. Identified extends that exploration, turning the spotlight toward guests as they share their own definitions of family.
“Some were wildly non-traditional, others heartbreaking,” says Ayers of the many family stories people shared on his book tour. “I began to realize there’s an infinite number of ways people define family. Identified is a place for people to share these stories.”
Drawing from Ayers’ decades in the music community—from playing in bands to co-founding Seattle’s Sonic Boom Records to his current role as president of Beggars Group US in New York—many Identified guests are musicians.