Knowa De Baraso was hard to miss this time last year during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
He was the preternaturally precocious, pre-teen pundit in a polo shirt and khaki shorts who made the rounds of the global media outlets that were camped out in the the United Center sports arena as Vice President Kamala Harris was anointed as the Democratic presidential candidate.
Twelve months later, De Baraso, 13, has widened his lens to embrace pop culture and influencers and celebrities who want to connect with Gen Alpha listeners. The Atlanta-based youth has teamed with the podcast network Reasoned Choice Media and iHeart for the weekly interview podcast series “Now You Know with Knowa De Baraso.”
The series bowed July 30 with former “Real Housewives of the Potomac” star Mia Thornton and Incognito as inaugural guests. Hip hop star Macy Gray and comedian Roy Wood Jr. have also taken part in conversations that blend discussion of public issues, entrepreneurship, Black empowerment and personal anecdotes.
De Baraso is wise beyond his years, but he’s also got the blunt edge of a youth that can cut through the politesse.
“In those 30 minutes, we get a lot out of them,” De Baraso tells Variety of his guests. “Because this is no boring punditry. I’m not a pundit. I don’t want it to be politician stuff. I think I bring a great sense of how to mix politics and entertainment at the same time.”
Last year, De Baraso went viral during the DNC in August 2024 when he had an exchange on the floor of the United Center with conversative rabble-rouser Mike Lindell, CEO of MyPillow. As Lindell babbled on about baseless conspiracy theories involving voting in De Baraso’s home state of Georgia, the 12-year-old shut him down. De Baraso’s incredulous retort to Lindell — “So your source is, ‘Trust me, bro?’ — became a tagline that was converted to Knowa-related merch.
Knowa De Baraso
Video of the incident made it onto NBC’s “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” and it landed De Baraso a guest shot on popular “The Breakfast Club” radio show and podcast during the DNC. De Baraso has been a full-throated supporter of Harris and other prominent Democrats. Over the past year, he’s turned his focus to developing a podcast that goes beyond politics. De Baraso’s focus at present is less on advocacy and more about encouraging young Americans to be engaged in issues and to get out the vote in the mid-term elections of 2026 and beyond.
Among the contacts he made at the DNC was Angela Rye, the activist and commentator who is a leader of the Reasoned Choice Media network founded by Charlamagne Tha God. “Knowa is young but wise beyond his years,” Rye tells Variety. “I am so encouraged by his interest in the political process and what our collective obligation is to change it for our good.”
De Baraso, who will turn 14 on Oct. 18, became engaged in politics a few years ago after he attended a rally in Atlanta led by Stacey Abrams. The home-schooled youth made a splash at the DNC, which led him to discussions with prospective media partners. De Baraso emphasized that he’s spent months developing “Now You Knowa” and working on his interviewing skills.
“It will not be a 100% politics-focused podcast,” De Baraso says. “There will be a lot of politics with a pop culture background as well. And we’re going to talk to guests with all different sorts of backgrounds. This is not about advocacy. It’s going to be a very great way to merge entertainment and politics at the same time.”
In his downtime, De Baraso assured that he does engage in some typically teenage pursuits. As a budding media professional, he’s also a regular reader of Variety to stay on top of news and trends. And he’s a movie lover.
“I play Roblox. I like to play games and I like to stay safe while doing it,” he says. “I check Variety and I see what new movies are out.”
Rye believes the voices of De Baraso’s generation will be key to engaging younger viewers to participate in the elections that have profound impact on their everyday lives, whether they realize it or not.
“I hope he will inspire young poeple to engage in the process. Because whether you do politics or not, it always does you,” Rye says.
De Baraso believes the first step is to speak to Gen Z and Gen Alpha in ways that they understand, without making it feel like homework. De Baraso’s own career is an example that smart discourse can come from unpredictable places.
“We must not alienate young people when they choose to listen to their favorite TikToker or their favorite singer about who they choose to vote for,” De Baraso says. “I think by that is alienating young people by itself. Podcasts like mine will get people out to vote. I think that’s going to be great and very crucial in the next election — listening to these entertainment voices and getting their young audiences out to vote.”
CORRECTION: This post has been updated to correct the spelling of De Baraso.