Audible takes 'eye-opening' exploration of race and relationships

Audible is releasing an “eye-opening” exploration of race and relationships from couple Tineka Smith and Alex Court.

Commissioned by Victoria Haslam, the firm picked up world English language rights to Mixed Up: Confessions of an Interracial Couple from Irene Baldoni at Georgina Capel Associates. A release date has not been confirmed yet.

It said: “In Mixed Up, Tineka Smith and Alex Court explore what it means to be an interracial couple in a world in which the Black Lives Matter movement and racial tensions are at the forefront of the international agenda. The couple discuss overt racism and prejudice in public, racial micro aggressions at work, their hesitance of having a mixed-race child in the 21st century, and being the first interracial couple in their families. And what does all of this mean for Tineka and Alex’s relationship?”

Smith, who works in communications for the United Nations, commented: “We were initially nervous to share such intimate details about our relationship and struggles to understand each other when it comes to race, as well as some of the horrific racist experiences we’ve encountered as an interracial couple. But we felt our story was important to share to highlight the fact that being in any type of interracial relationship doesn’t erase racial problems and misunderstandings.”

Court, a journalist who co-founded greetings card company Huetribe with Smith, added: “Honestly, writing this book was a steep learning curve for me in recognizing structural racism and my own white privilege. My hope is that everyone who listens to this Audible Original can learn about the role they can play in supporting people with different skin colours and background so we all can come together to create societies where everyone is treated equally and diversity is truly celebrated.”

Haslam, commissioning editor at Audible said: “The team at Audible were blown away by Tineka and Alex’s initial proposal, particularly their combined ability to fully and frankly explore the impact of systemic racism on their relationship, and their openness in sharing such deeply personal experiences with us and our listeners. We are incredibly excited to publish Mixed Up, which adds fascinating and unheard insight to this long overdue, global conversation about our relationship with race.”