#BackChannel: The Stardom Of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, The Fate Of R. Kelly, And Meeting “Mr. SOUL!”

California Sen. Kamala Harris joined the growing list of Democratic contenders for the 2020 presidential race. How will her legacy as a prosecutor and her biracial identity impact her campaign and candidacy? It is one of many topics Mark Anthony Neal and Natalie Bullock Brown take on with host State of Things host Frank Stasio in the latest installment of #BackChannel, including the social media stardom of freshman Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY);  the new Barry Jenkins film If Beale Street Could Talk; the documentary Mr. SOUL! which pays tribute to Ellis Haizlip , the black, openly-gay television host behind a seminal, star-studded PBS variety program; and the new six-part Lifetime documentary series Surviving R. Kelly, which traces decades of sexual abuse allegations against the artist and has given new life to the efforts to #MuteRKelly.