Sample

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Black Magic

By: Chad Sanders
Narrated by: Chad Sanders, Janina Edwards, Sydney Morton, Leon Nixon, Landon Woodson
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $14.99

Buy for $14.99

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
activate_WEBCRO358_DT_T2

Publisher's summary

A “daring, urgent, and transformative” (Brené Brown, New York Times best-selling author of Dare to Lead) exploration of Black achievement in a white world based on honest, provocative, and moving interviews with Black leaders, scientists, artists, activists, and champions.

“I remember the day I realized I couldn’t play a white guy as well as a white guy. It felt like a death sentence for my career.”

When Chad Sanders landed his first job in lily-white Silicon Valley, he quickly concluded that to be successful at work meant playing a certain social game. Each meeting was drenched in white slang and the privileged talk of international travel or folk concerts in San Francisco, which led Chad to believe he needed to emulate whiteness to be successful. So Chad changed. He changed his wardrobe, his behavior, his speech - everything that connected him with his Black identity.

And while he finally felt included, he felt awful. So he decided to give up the charade. He reverted to the methods he learned at the dinner table, or at the Black Baptist church where he’d been raised, or at the concrete basketball courts, barbershops, and summertime cookouts. And it paid off. Chad began to land more exciting projects. He earned the respect of his colleagues. Accounting for this turnaround, Chad believes, was something he calls Black Magic, namely resilience, creativity, and confidence forged in his experience navigating America as a Black man. Black Magic has emboldened his every step since, leading him to wonder: Was he alone in this discovery? Were there others who felt the same?

In “pulverizing, educational, and inspirational” (Shea Serrano, number-one New York Times best-selling author of Basketball [And Other Things]) essays, Chad dives into his formative experiences to see if they might offer the possibility of discovering or honing this skill. He tests his theory by interviewing Black leaders across industries to get their take on Black Magic. The result is a revelatory and essential book. Black Magic explores Black experiences in predominantly white environments and demonstrates the risks of self-betrayal and the value of being yourself.

©2021 Chad Sanders. All rights reserved. (P)2021 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Featured Article: The Best Podcasts by Black Creators to Listen to in 2023


Whether focused on literature, family, mental health, history, or the arts, these listens represent just a few of the best podcasts created and hosted by Black writers, thinkers, journalists, comedians, and trailblazers. Led by some of the most powerful voices in media, these can’t-miss listens demonstrate just how outstanding Black voices capture the particular challenges and extraordinary accomplishments of African Americans.

What listeners say about Black Magic

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    224
  • 4 Stars
    20
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    194
  • 4 Stars
    20
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    1
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    205
  • 4 Stars
    13
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars