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Home • Entertainment

ESSENCE To Honor Jemele Hill And Cari Champion Ahead Of New Show On CNN+, "Speak.Easy""

The hosts and commentators will be honored at the inaugural ESSENCE Black Women in Sports Honors, taking place on Super Bowl Sunday in Los Angeles.
ESSENCE To Honor Jemele Hill And Cari Champion Ahead Of New Show On CNN+, "Speak.Easy"
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 26: Cari Champion, recipient of the 2021 Culture Creators Media Award and Jemel Hill pose backstage at the Culture Creators Innovators & Leaders Awards at The Beverly Hilton on June 26, 2021 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images for Culture Creators)
By Rivea Ruff · Updated February 10, 2022

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.

ESSENCE To Honor Jemele Hill And Cari Champion Ahead Of New Show On CNN+, “Speak.Easy”
ATLANTA, GEORGIA – NOVEMBER 12: Cari Champion attends at the 2021 REVOLT Summit at 787 Windsor on November 12, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images)

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.

ESSENCE To Honor Jemele Hill And Cari Champion Ahead Of New Show On CNN+, “Speak.Easy”
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 23: Jemele Hill attends the 2021 Ebony Power 100 Presented By Verizon at The Beverly Hilton on October 23, 2021 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Robin L Marshall/WireImage)

“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.”

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“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.”

TOPICS:  cari champion CNN Jemele Hill