Congratulations are in order for Jemele Hill and Cari Champion! The ladies have landed another talk show, this time taking their talents to the new CNN+ streaming platform to share their perspectives on all things sports, entertainment, politics and culture.
Cari & Jemele: Speak.Easy will be a weekly show where each of the veteran commentators will tell it how she sees it on the buzziest hot topics of the week, alongside the April 2022 launch of CNN+.
The good news comes days ahead of both Hill and Champion being named honorees at this year’s inaugural ESSENCE Black Women in Sports Brunch & Honors event presented by Coca-Cola® and hosted by Gia Peppers, taking place in Los Angeles this Super Bowl Sunday. They are receiving recognition, along with the Off the Field Players Wives Association, for their impactful work as Black women in the sports industry as ESSENCE pays homage to our beloved Black women and girls in professional, collegiate and high school sports, including athletes of E-sports.
On returning to their on-screen roots, Champion says in a statement: “I’m so thrilled to join CNN+. The beauty and authenticity of my friendship with Jemele has always been at the heart of our creative partnership. I couldn’t be more excited to be part of the CNN family and share our brand of ‘speakeasy’ with the world.”
“It’s important to have a voice in the world that often refuses to speak loudly and easily for the marginalized!” Champion continued on Instagram. “You know the vibes. We have fun. We speak truth to power and we sip🍷We’re BAACCKKKKK. With an upgrade💅🏾 @cnnplus Speak.Easy.”
Hill mirrored Champion’s excitement for the announcement, which each of them says they’ve been anxious to share with family, friends and fans for some time now.
“I believe the old adage is that if you work with one of your best friends, then you’ll never work a day in your life,” Hill added in their joint statement. “While I made that up, there’s a certain magic that happens when Cari and I collaborate together. The CNN family is a perfect partner for us because they understand our chemistry and appreciate that our boldness is our strength.”
She continued sharing her excitement on social media, posting to Instagram: “One thing about me…I’mma keep a TV show with a close friend. Proud to announce that @carichampion and I are joining the @cnn family with a new show on @cnnplus called Speak. Easy.”
“Expect the same great chemistry, provocative conversation as well as some new wrinkles that can’t be disclosed quite yet,” she wrote, punctuating the post with “Let’s gooooooooooo.”