Uploaded January 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Suleika Jaouad reflects on how surviving cancer and finding love with Jon Batiste shaped her life, career, and perspective: from healing through art and transforming pain into purpose, to inspiring a global audience with her writing.
00:00:00 Introduction to Suleika Jaouad
00:00:38 Meeting Jon Batiste and cancer diagnosis at 22
00:05:21 Coping with chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant
00:07:19 Suleika Jaouad’s childhood & upbringing
00:09:25 Dreams of journalism before cancer
00:11:00 Writing Life Interrupted for The New York Times
00:15:40 Writing memoir Between Two Kingdoms
00:18:11 Rediscovering art during cancer relapse
00:21:16 Balancing love, cancer, and Jon Batiste’s Grammy wins
00:24:49 Living with indefinite treatment
00:26:45 A new beginning: life as if it’s your first day
The Thread is our flagship documentary interview series featuring exceptional individuals who share the paths they have taken to lead a meaningful life. Now in Season 2, watch the whole series here: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ51kDxtnNperiJ2biybgVzlFatXo3r1v
The Thread Episode 15 is launching on 12th January @ 10 am ET
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🔍 About Suleika Jaouad
Suleika Jaouad is an award-winning writer, speaker, and cancer survivor. Diagnosed with leukemia at 22, she began her acclaimed New York Times column, Life, Interrupted, from her hospital room. Her TED Talk ranks among the top 10 of 2019, with nearly five million views. She is the founder of the Isolation Journals, a global creative community, and has served on Barack Obama’s Presidential Cancer Panel. Her work appears in Vogue, The Paris Review, and more. A sought-after speaker, Jaouad has received the Red Door Advocacy Award and held prestigious residencies at Ucross, ArtYard, and the Kerouac Project.
Interviewee: Suleika Jaouad
Interviewed by: Nancy Steiner
Interview Date: 19th January 2023
Original Episode Title: Surviving and Thriving
About Life Stories:
As a division of the Kunhardt Film Foundation, Life Stories is a non-profit media organization that creates and distributes documentaries and interviews about people whose lives inspire meaningful change. Our films, interviews and educational content address issues of social justice, history, politics, arts and culture by shining the spotlight on relatable human stories. The aim of our YouTube Channel is to provide open access to all of our content for communities and classrooms.
© Kunhardt Film Foundation. All Rights Reserved.
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Teaching resources: lifestories.org/learning/resources-items/teaching-the-thread-documentary-interview-series
Subscribe for more free documentaries: youtube.com/@lifestoriesdotorg?sub_confirmation=1
#SuleikaJaouad #Interview #TheThread
Suleika Jaouad reflects on how surviving cancer and finding love with Jon Batiste shaped her life, career, and perspective: from healing through art and transforming pain into purpose, to inspiring a global audience with her writing.
00:00:00 Introduction to Suleika Jaouad
00:00:38 Meeting Jon Batiste and cancer diagnosis at 22
00:05:21 Coping with chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant
00:07:19 Suleika Jaouad’s childhood & upbringing
00:09:25 Dreams of journalism before cancer
00:11:00 Writing Life Interrupted for The New York Times
00:15:40 Writing memoir Between Two Kingdoms
00:18:11 Rediscovering art during cancer relapse
00:21:16 Balancing love, cancer, and Jon Batiste’s Grammy wins
00:24:49 Living with indefinite treatment
00:26:45 A new beginning: life as if it’s your first day
The Thread is our flagship documentary interview series featuring exceptional individuals who share the paths they have taken to lead a meaningful life. Now in Season 2, watch the whole series here: youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZ51kDxtnNperiJ2biybgVzlFatXo3r1v
The Thread Episode 15 is launching on 12th January @ 10 am ET
---
🔍 About Suleika Jaouad
Suleika Jaouad is an award-winning writer, speaker, and cancer survivor. Diagnosed with leukemia at 22, she began her acclaimed New York Times column, Life, Interrupted, from her hospital room. Her TED Talk ranks among the top 10 of 2019, with nearly five million views. She is the founder of the Isolation Journals, a global creative community, and has served on Barack Obama’s Presidential Cancer Panel. Her work appears in Vogue, The Paris Review, and more. A sought-after speaker, Jaouad has received the Red Door Advocacy Award and held prestigious residencies at Ucross, ArtYard, and the Kerouac Project.
Interviewee: Suleika Jaouad
Interviewed by: Nancy Steiner
Interview Date: 19th January 2023
Original Episode Title: Surviving and Thriving
About Life Stories:
As a division of the Kunhardt Film Foundation, Life Stories is a non-profit media organization that creates and distributes documentaries and interviews about people whose lives inspire meaningful change. Our films, interviews and educational content address issues of social justice, history, politics, arts and culture by shining the spotlight on relatable human stories. The aim of our YouTube Channel is to provide open access to all of our content for communities and classrooms.
© Kunhardt Film Foundation. All Rights Reserved.
---
Teaching resources: lifestories.org/learning/resources-items/teaching-the-thread-documentary-interview-series
Subscribe for more free documentaries: youtube.com/@lifestoriesdotorg?sub_confirmation=1
#SuleikaJaouad #Interview #TheThread
