Sasha-Ann Simons
Host, Reset
She began her career as a journalist in television news 15 years ago and made the leap to public radio in 2015 at WXXI News, the NPR member station in Rochester, N.Y. While there, Sasha-Ann earned numerous awards. She was also a contributing reporter for PBS NewsHour.
Sasha-Ann joins us from Washington’s WAMU where she was a program host, regularly behind the mic on 1A, WAMU’s Morning Edition and All Things Considered, and the station’s local midday talk show, The Kojo Nnamdi Show. She was also a national reporter, focused on issues of race, identity and economic mobility. Sasha-Ann often brought that lens to the conversation when she served as an emcee or moderator at various events and panel discussions in the nation’s capital. In 2019, she earned a regional Edward R. Murrow award for her work, and in 2020, she won both a Dateline award from the Society of Professional Journalists and a Radio Feature award from the National Association of Black Journalists.
Sasha-Ann is a native of Kingston, Jamaica. She grew up in Toronto, where she studied journalism at Ryerson University. She obtained a master’s degree in television and film production from American University. When Sasha-Ann’s not on the air, she enjoys spending time with her family and exploring the many amazing restaurants across the city.
Stories by Sasha-Ann Simons
![]()
Chicago photographer Sandro Miller puts Black women’s hair on a pedestal in his new book
Sandro’s book of portraits comes as activists push for Congress to pass the CROWN Act, which would ban discrimination against natural hair.
![]()
Take a listen to Vocalo Radio’s new playlist for May
Vocalo Radio is out with its new “In Rotation” playlist for May, featuring 10 Chicago artists.
![]()
New book takes a closer look at social media, tech and racial justice
The authors of “Seen and Unseen” will stop by the American Writers Festival at the Chicago Cultural Center on May 15.
![]()
Film peels back layers to portray life on Chicago’s West Side
“Raised Up West Side” pushes aside labels and negative perceptions of the West Side of Chicago.
![]()
Sasheer Zamata brings the funny to Chicago in new cross-country tour
The former SNL star shares about her new TV shows and stand-up comedy special.
![]()
New studies examine Afro-Latinos and Latino discrimination in the U.S
The two reports found foreign-born, darker-skinned Latinos face just as much discrimination from other Latinos as they do from non-Latinos.
![]()
In a Chicago author’s first book, a determined little girl tries to win the bedtime battle
Clothilde Ewing wanted to write a children’s book where the main character was Black, but where the story does not center around race.
![]()
New book explores a year in the life of a Chicago ER doctor during COVID-19 pandemic
In “The Emergency,” Dr. Thomas Fisher captures insurmountable challenges as an attending physician of UChicago Medicine’s ER department.
![]()
Grammy award-winning jazz legend Dianne Reeves to perform at Chicago Symphony Center
Reeves returns to the stage for one night only on Friday.
![]()
The struggles and triumphs of 100 years of Black filmmaking
Wil Haygood’s book Colorization gives us both an unprecedented history of Black cinema and a perspective on racism in modern America.
