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Audrey Smith

Producer, "Embodied"

Audrey Smith is a writer, educator, and temporary producer of "Embodied" based in Greensboro, NC. She holds a Master's degree in Secondary English Language Arts Education from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (2018) and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Nonfiction Writing from Oregon State University (2021).

Audrey's nonfiction writing has previously appeared in DASH Literary Journal, Hippocampus Magazine, and Nat. Brut. As the queer daughter of a gynecologist and a Methodist minister, she's no stranger to taking on the taboo.

  • An illustration showing a new parent with long hair clipped back holding a baby in a doctor's office. The person is looking down and to the side. On the wall is a poster saying "postpartum depression" showing a woman with her head in her hands leaning over a crib where a baby is sleeping. "Delivered Part Two" is written in the upper-right corner of the image.
    Delivered (Part Two): No More Postpartum Silence (Revisited)
    Audrey Smith
    Anita treasures sleep and moments of silence. So when she hears typical narratives of early parenthood that include unending cries and restless nights, she has concerns for the mental toll on new parents. But culturally there is a lot of silence around how challenging it can be and recognizing deteriorating mental health while caring for another person can be isolating. In part two of the postpartum series "Delivered," she meets a prolific artist whose experience with postpartum depression catalyzed a mental health journey and a diagnosis of Bipolar II Disorder. She also talks to a couple about what folks should know about sex and relationships postpartum and why the mental health of non-birthing partners should be part of the postpartum conversation.
  • An illustration looking over the shoulder of two people looking at themselves in the mirror, putting on drag makeup. The person on the left has light skin, a larger body, short blond hair and is applying red lipstick. The person on the right is in a smaller body, brown skin, and purple lipstick and eyeshadow.
    Drag Beyond the Binary
    Audrey Smith
    Go to a drag show, and you’ll likely encounter big hair, incredible lip syncs and tons of glitter. But those who engage in this gender-bending art form know that it’s just as much about activism as it is about entertainment.
  • Slayed: Gender Performance Beyond The Binary
    Audrey Smith
    After not seeing a drag show for the first 30 years of her life, Anita now dives in. She explores the history and evolution of the artform with a drag scholar-turned-performer; meets a non-binary drag 'thing' pushing boundaries through performance; and talks with a Durham-based drag artist who speaks out against anti-drag violence.
  • An illustration featuring two people sitting on a couch with a blanket and pillows. The person on the left has brown skin, short dark hair and is wearing a hearing aid. That person's fingers are in the hair of the person on the right, who is sitting with their knees up and laughing. They have long brown hair and light skin. There is a hearing aid matching the one worn by the other person tangled in their hair.
    How Hearing Loss Informs our Intimate Relationships
    Audrey Smith
    Hearing aids are sometimes presented as a silver bullet for communication issues arising from hearing loss. But hard of hearing folks already on their hearing aids journey know that the reality of adjusting to these devices is much more complex.
  • An illustration featuring two people sitting on a couch with a blanket and pillows. The person on the left has brown skin, short dark hair and is wearing a hearing aid. That person's fingers are in the hair of the person on the right, who is sitting with their knees up and laughing. They have long brown hair and light skin. There is a hearing aid matching the one worn by the other person tangled in their hair. The word "Amplified" is in the upper right corner.
    Amplified: Building Intimacy With Hearing Loss
    Audrey Smith
    Anita and her partner John have started talking more openly about how his hearing loss informs their relationship and how they'll continue to navigate that as they age. She meets another interabled couple (Anna and Vika) who share the sometimes humorous, sometimes challenging moments that accompany sex and dating with hearing loss. Plus, former guest Yat Li returns to talk about deafness, disclosure and disabled identity.
  • Beyond Beautiful: The Politics Behind Your Makeup
    Audrey Smith
    Makeup has a fascinating history with ties to social justice movements. Products like lipstick and eyeshadow are used in many contexts for a variety of reasons, all of which connect in some way to power.
  • An illustration of a stage with a single mic stand waiting. In front of the mic stand is a purple stool with a rose on it. There are rose petals all over the stage. The word "Purified" is on the image along with "A live event turned podcast (part two)."
    Purified: A Live Event Turned Podcast (Part Two)
    Audrey Smith
    Anita is a sucker for live storytelling, so when she and the Embodied team planned their first in-person event, they knew the vibe they were going for. They invited five people to stand on stage in front of a live audience and explore how purity culture has shaped their faith, relationships and sexuality. In part two, you'll meet a poet and a producer who're questioning what purity culture taught them about sexual identity and masculinity.
  • Four people sitting on a stage with a graphic behind them that reads "Purified: Live Stories of Living Through Purity Culture." A South Asian woman sits on a yellow love seat speaking into a mic and looking at the folks next to her: a Black woman, a Black man and an Asian woman. Those three are sitting on a blue couch.
    Purified Live: Stories of Living Through Purity Culture
    Audrey Smith
    In October of 2022, hundreds of listeners gathered in the pews of the Hayti Heritage Center for Embodied’s first in-person event: an evening of storytelling about life beyond evangelical purity culture. Produced in partnership with The Monti, Purified Live featured five storytellers, each with a distinct perspective on the lasting impact of the abstinence pledge and the experience of reclaiming their bodies and sexuality. This episode of Embodied features the five stories from that evening, now adapted for radio.
  • An illustration of a stage with a single mic stand waiting. In front of the mic stand is a purple stool with a rose on it. There are rose petals all over the stage. The word "Purified" is on the image along with "A live event turned podcast (part one)."
    Purified: A Live Event Turned Podcast (Part One)
    Audrey Smith
    Anita met Embodied listeners IRL for the first time earlier this year at the show's first in-person event "Purified." The evening was part late night talk show and part live storytelling. With music DJ-ed by Quilla to set the tone, five people shared their unique experiences with purity culture on stage in front of a live audience. In part one, you'll meet a social worker, preacher and faith leader who take you from church camp to the pews.
  • Plucked: The Calm And Chaos Of A Hair-Pulling Disorder
    Audrey Smith
    Anita agrees to a suggestion posed by a listener: Explore why the hair-pulling disorder trichotillomania is so taboo. She talks with an artist who started pulling their hair more than two decades ago but only recently told her parents…after publishing part of their story in a national news outlet. A psychologist on the front-lines of studying trich treatment talks about the importance of acceptance; and a hairstylist with trich takes us into why her salon is a safe haven for other folks with hair loss.
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