Last week, Boston University President Melissa Gilliam shared a post on her LinkedIn page about her experience as a “guest host” on WTBU show Melanin Matters, despite never appearing on the show and rescheduling the appearance multiple times, according to the hosts of the radio show.  

Gilliam was scheduled to sit down for an interview on the show this past Wednesday, Feb. 18 — one day before the LinkedIn post was made — but an assistant to Gilliam wrote to one of the show’s hosts earlier in February asking to postpone Gilliam’s appearance to April 29, 2026.  

In the post, which was taken down Monday, Gilliam thanked the team at Melanin Matters for inviting her to “listen, learn, and engage in this meaningful discussion.” 

“I had a wonderful time joining the Boston University students behind Melanin Matters as a guest host,” the post read. “The team led sharp, thoughtful conversations that centered the Black experience at BU and beyond.”

Kamrhan Farwell, senior vice president for External Affairs, wrote in a statement to The Daily Free Press that Gilliam “is personally engaged in her LinkedIn page, contributing to and reviewing each post.”

“She was looking forward to her appearance and our team worked with her to prepare a post as part of her weekly content calendar,” Farwell wrote. “When her schedule changed and the podcast opportunity needed to be rescheduled, there was a communication gap among staff members, and the post went up erroneously before it was taken down.”

BU senior and Melanin Matters showrunner Paris Hugley said one of the hosts sent the post in their shared group chat and said she was surprised by it.

“Everyone [in the group chat] was already talking about it by the time I saw it,” Hugley said. “At first I was confused. I thought it was fake. I’m not going to lie. Then I looked it up myself, and I saw it.”

Ayana Pierre-Maxwell, BU junior and Melanin Matters DJ, said she was confused when she saw the post.

“I want to give the benefit of the doubt that it was a mistake,” Pierre-Maxwell said. “I’d definitely be interested when she eventually comes on the show to talk about it.”

Melanin Matters is a variety show focused on the Black experience at Boston University and beyond. The show alternates between talk and music with a weekly guest to share their insights and experiences. 

Following Gilliam’s induction as president of Boston University in Sept. 2024, BU students on the WTBU show reached out via email to invite her on as a guest host. Since the initial email, Melanin Matters DJ Oluwatofe Akinyanmi and Gilliam’s executive assistant have been emailing back and forth for almost two years trying to schedule the appearance.

“The rescheduling was just very frustrating,” Akinyanmi said.

Hugley said the task of scheduling the interview has now been passed down from the previous showrunner to her. 

“This is something that the previous show runner wanted to do, and it’s something that I’ve been continuing as a show runner, and it feels like it’s something that I’m going to have to also let the next show runner handle,” she said.

Hugley said the show prioritizes guest speakers who are a part of an organization, have an interesting job or have something going on that is exciting. 

Pierre-Maxwell said having Gilliam on the show would be a great way for the Black community and the entire BU community to connect with her.

“It’d be great as a student to connect with the president and also [to] connect with her as a Black woman,” Pierre-Maxwell said.

Hugley said she wished Melanin Matters was more of a priority for Gilliam.  

“I understand she’s busy,” Hugley said. “I truly understand that, but it just seems like we’ve been a victim of being low priority for over a year now.”

Multiple hosts said the post did not mention the hosts’ names or display the correct image and time slot associated with the show this semester. Hugley said beyond the confusion she felt upon seeing the post, she was “really disappointed” by the vague and out of date information.

“That LinkedIn post really speaks for itself,” Akinyanmi said.

Paris Hugley is a current Daily Free Press writer for the features section. She was not involved in the reporting, writing or editing of this article.

This story was updated Tuesday afternoon after The Daily Free Press received a statement from Kamrhan Farwell, BU’s senior vice president for External Affairs.