‘It’s UATL’ podcast: Honoring the lineage of Madam C.J. Walker

“People were drawn to her like bees to flowers.”

That’s just one of many descriptions of Madam C.J. Walker’s daughter A’Lelia Walker — the subject of “Joy Goddess,” a book written by her great-granddaughter, A’Lelia Bundles.

For this week’s episode of “It’s UATL,” hosts Nedra Rhone, Najja Parker and Brooke Howard talked to Bundles, a journalist and producer, about her rich ancestry and A’Lelia Walker’s multidimensional life.

The elder A’Lelia was the only child of Madam C.J. Walker. She helped run her mother’s hair care company and was an avid supporter of the arts, becoming known for her dinner parties during the Harlem Renaissance.

For Bundles’ book, which released in June, she used 40,000 digitized documents to learn more about her namesake, whom she describes as the “first Black celebrity heiress.”

From her research, Bundles learned that Madam C.J. and A’Lelia Walker’s relationship was like “fire and ice.”

“They loved each other dearly and they sometimes fought fiercely,” Bundles shared in the episode. “But they were each other’s biggest champions.”

Later in the episode, Bundles and the hosts stress the importance of Black cultural salons. In the 1920s, A’Lelia Walker transformed her home into the Dark Tower, a legendary meeting space for Black artists.

“Women, particularly, are able to create a space where people just want to be comfortable,” Bundles said.

What’s a piece of history you know that everyone gets wrong?