How Did Akil Augustine Go From Undocumented to an Iconic Broadcaster?

This week, we sit down with Akil Augustine, a father, storyteller, and one of the most respected names in Canada’s media space. Known for his work as a producer, host, and broadcaster, Akil shows up in this episode in a way most people have never seen.

He opens up about growing up undocumented, surviving childhood trauma, and navigating the long, unlikely road to becoming a recognizable voice in Canadian media. Akil shares the parts of his life that rarely surface, the mental health battles, the reinvention, the re-parenting of his younger self, and the responsibility he now carries as both a father and a storyteller.

In this episode, we dialogue around men’s mental health, personal growth, fatherhood, or what it really takes to build a life beyond your circumstances.

0:35 — Introducing Akil Augustine
5:01 — Akil on becoming a storyteller & finding purpose
11:07 — “I still don’t care about the analytics — I care about your story.”
12:00 — Why certain NBA players resonate with his life journey
13:46 — Media literacy, entrepreneurship & redefining men’s mental health
20:46 — The impact of social media on comparison, identity & mental health
29:35 — Truth, misinformation & the broken media landscape
35:10 — What men don’t talk about: work, identity & the pressure to perform
39:15 — Fatherhood & the death of your former self
42:40 — “I am a petty, jealous, driven, hurt child… that I’m re-parenting.”
51:27 — The story behind Undocumented — Akil’s student-made documentary
54:35 — “So much of my life was my friends stashing me in garbage cans.”
1:02:54 — Reinventing yourself through experimentation & identity
1:05:02 — Akil’s mission: teaching media literacy to the next generation