Abstract
In this 2026 interview, Tyisha Blade discusses her lifelong connection to East Cleveland, career in journalism, and efforts to reshape public narratives about the city through media. A graduate of Shaw High School (Class of 2006) and Cleveland State University, Blade reflects on her experiences growing up in East Cleveland, the strong sense of identity associated with Shaw High School, and the enduring connections shared among East Cleveland residents and alumni. She traces her professional journey through broadcast journalism, freelance writing, and editorial work before founding The East Clevelander Magazine, a publication dedicated to highlighting the achievements, resilience, and contributions of East Cleveland residents. Blade also discusses the importance of representation and civic pride, while reflecting on changes she has witnessed in East Cleveland.
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Interviewee
Blade, Tyisha (interviewee)
Interviewer
Mays, Nicholas S. (interviewer)
Project
East Cleveland
Date
8-1-2026
Document Type
Oral History
Duration
32 minutes
Recommended Citation
"Tyisha Blade Interview, 01 August 2026" (2026). Cleveland Regional Oral History Collection. Interview 757025.
https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/crohc000/1460
Transcript
Nick Mays [00:00:00] My name is Dr. Nicholas S. Mays, and today I'm conducting an oral history interview for the East Cleveland Oral History Project. This project seeks to document, preserve, and share the stories of individuals whose lives, work and experiences have contributed to the history, culture, and ongoing development of the city of East Cleveland. Today I'm joined by Ms. Tyesha Blade, a journalist, writer, editor, and community advocate. She is also the founder of the East Clevelander magazine. Ms. Blade is a proud graduate of Shaw High School and a lifelong member of the East Cleveland community. She has dedicated her professional creative work to documenting the people, stories and achievements of those in East Cleveland. [00:00:50] Ms. Blade, thank you for participating in the East Cleveland oral History Project. Can you begin by telling us about yourself, your educational journey, your professional work, and the path that led you to become a journalist, writer, and founder of the East Clevelander Magazine?
Tyesha Blade [00:01:11] Sure. Let's see. Where do I start? So my background is in journalism. I went to Cleveland State to learn. Well, I graduated from Shaw High School School from East Cleveland. I went to Mayfair, Kirk and Shaw. And then I graduated from Cleveland State with my Bachelor's in 2020, and I started working in journalism. So when I graduated, I did. I went to 19 News. I did idea stream for a little while. I do some freelancing with Cleveland. Well, I was doing freelancing before I started the magazine. I was freelancing with Cleveland Magazine, Cleveland Scene Magazine, Destination Cleveland. And then I started my own magazine. And that was 2020. Well, the initial idea started in 2020, but then I started working as a producer and news. It was just too much to do both. So the actual filings didn't get done until 2023. And then like I was telling you, that year we did three issues. Last year we did two. And then we're working on the second issue this year of this year. I'm also a graduate student at Cleveland State, studying for my MFA in creative writing. I started that also when I started the magazine. And I didn't know that it was gonna be so much work because everything basically with the magazine was my job. You know, I couldn't pay any people I didn't know, you know, what to do. When I worked with Vindicator in college, we were all on scholarship. You know, I had editors and art teams and people to just out. And then once I started this magazine, it was. It was mostly me. So I started that. Then I went back to grad school also in 2023. And yeah, it's been some work, but it's Been rewarding. I'm entering my last year of grad school and well, this month, the end of this month, I'll be starting my last year with graduation in 2026. Next year, May. Yeah, I'm not sure what I want to do after that. I know I have to write 150 pages to graduate, so I hope I'm able to do something with that because that's a lot of pages.
Nick Mays [00:03:36] Yeah.
Tyesha Blade [00:03:37] So, yes, I'm about to get into that. And, yeah, that's pretty much my current and history of work in education.
Nick Mays [00:03:47] Ms. Blade, can you share your personal history and journey in East Cleveland, including your childhood, family, schools, any experiences that shaped your connection to the city?
Tyesha Blade [00:04:01] I was born in Cleveland, actually, so my mom moved us here when I was a little child. And then I started at Mayfair. I had younger siblings who went to Chambers myself, and two of my siblings graduated from Shaw. My youngest siblings, they moved out of East Cleveland to Garfield, and they didn't graduate from Shaw. I live in East Cleveland now. I mean, I've moved in and out of East Cleveland. I moved to Euclid, back to Cleveland Heights. I just moved back recently. It's just easier now to be in the city that I'm doing the magazine with, doing a lot of my work with, and it's a short distance from Cleveland State. I like my apartment, so, you know, it's affordable for a college student right now. So. So I'm here now. I'm not sure if I'll remain forever, but, you know, I'm. I'm okay with being here at this point.
Nick Mays [00:05:08] So you have spoken about East Cleveland as your home. What is it about East Cleveland that keeps you connected and. And invested even during this difficult period in the city's history?
Tyesha Blade [00:05:24] I don't know, something just calls me to come and I'm like, well, that's home. So I know I can go there. Like, I've had two apartments here. So, yeah, you know what? I don't know. It just. I just found that I needed to be closer to home to really do this magazine like I wanted to do it. And, you know, what better way to be in the city when you're working, you know, and it's just easier that way. And I just felt like I said, I just felt like home and everything I need is here. Like, well, not everything, because we don't have a grocery store. You know, we don't have a lot of Resources that we actually need. But I'm a trustee also at the library at the East Leaving public library. And that's just up the street. So I mean it's just here. I'm just here with the people that, you know, support the magazine. And I think a lot of us surrounding like the general idea of the magazine and the people that support it.
Nick Mays [00:06:24] When did you first move to, like when did you and your family move to East Cleveland? I know you said you referenced that you were actually born in Cleveland.
Tyesha Blade [00:06:36] Oh my God, I don't remember. Like a year, Like 90s, 2000, like 2000s. I had. Well, yeah, let me see. No, wait. Should do the math. Cuz if I was actually in the fifth grade, I'm the words girl, okay? Not the numbers girl.
Nick Mays [00:07:03] I'm with you. No, I'm with you. I'm a historian. I'm not a math person.
Tyesha Blade [00:07:08] Make me think for real.
Nick Mays [00:07:10] Don't let this PhD fool you. Like if you ask me a math question, I'm like, oh, you got a pencil? Pencil and a paper.
Tyesha Blade [00:07:17] You think it would be easy? The easiest thing to think, like what year was that? But notice it's really. I mean it would have to been like 2000s.
Nick Mays [00:07:25] Like it was before high school. Or were you in high school.
Tyesha Blade [00:07:30] It was way before high school. I was, I was young, like in fifth grade. So. Yeah, it was probably like 99, maybe 2000 just because my brother was actually being born. So that would have been like 2000.
Nick Mays [00:07:48] I see. And you graduated from Shaw. What year did you graduate from Shaw?
Tyesha Blade [00:07:52] 2006.
Nick Mays [00:07:53] Okay, 2006. So let me, let me ask you something. Are you one of the reunion folks every year or.
Tyesha Blade [00:08:01] I mean, I don't go every year and for a while after I graduated, I wasn't going. It was not a reason why I didn't go. It was just. I don't know, I didn't. But then I started going. So I have been going more recently. I went last year. I had a tent. The magazine had a tent there. We had a banner on passing on cognizant a magazine. I might do it again this year. I mean we said it's a really special event for us. I did a four page article with the alumni association that was real. And I said was the issue that I don't even know if I have any more of. I might have one or two copies. But it was, it was, it's always been a good event, you know, every time I attend. I don't, I don't have any issues. We don't run into anything.
Nick Mays [00:08:43] So why do you think. And you can speak for yourself, but you know, why do you think folks, graduates of Shaw is so passionate and so identif and identify so much with, with Shaw.If you had to explain it.
Tyesha Blade [00:09:01] Camaraderie, I know that, you know, it's. We know that East Cleveland is like one in its own. You know, we, you can't go nowhere else and, and, and copy whatever style this is or had or we had or you know, the connections that we've made over the years. It's just, there's nothing like it's Cleveland. So you can go all over the world or all over the country and you know, you can find somebody else from new sleeping that can relate and start talking about being a cardinal, you know, just reminiscing like that. I mean, I'm pretty sure other schools do have their reunions and things, but we have, you know, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. So it's a three or four days, three or four days, you know, just to come, come together and plan and plan together. So I really think it's the camaraderie, the family ties. It used to be really close knit, especially around a lot of classes of like 80s and 70s, you know, was real, real close. I think the more like younger groups are not as close but you know, the older groups that do come back and try to try to instill that in the younger groups, they were really, really close knit families. Everybody watching, everybody taking care of each other. So we just, we just continue trying to continue that tradition and keep up with each other. I just met one lady, I did her interview; she was here in like the 1950s is when she grew up. And you know, she still has like, you know, ties and wants to come back. She was upset with the condition the city is in, but she was definitely talking about, you know, East Cleveland. It was definitely her home. I think she was here recently for some family stuff, but she was another another state right now. But people just come back and they want to come back.
Nick Mays [00:10:47] What motivated you? I was so impressed by this magazine, and part of it is that you don't see these physical copies shining magazines anymore; even with, you know, professional publishers. Like, you know, everything is pretty much went online and so like I was so impressed by this.
Tyesha Blade [00:11:14] Thank you.
Nick Mays [00:11:15] What, what motivated you? Motivated or inspired you to, you know, to publish a, a magazine?
Tyesha Blade [00:11:27] Well, I mean I was always into writing Even when I was a small child, it was just always something that was. I was just able to do. I never had a problem with English. I had friends that just could not. Did not want to write, but I always just did. And when I got to Cleveland State, I worked with the Vindicator magazine. And that's where I pretty much got the motivation to do that, because I was like, hey, I like to write. I was actually going to do pr. And then some of the PR classes overlapped with some of the introductory journalism classes. So I started writing. And then I found out about Vindicator somehow, because I was just looking for a group to, like, be with. And it was actually a women's group, like a women's support group. And she was friends with the editor then, and I was like, sure, I'll do whatever story they was talking about. So I did the story with them, and I was finally like, well, can I help out? Can I do this? And she was like, yeah, you can be one of our writers if you want. So I started writing then, and I just. I just never stopped. And then I became managing editor, the editor in chief. And I was like, okay, well, I think I like to do this for real. I would even at Cleveland State, like, try to get East Cleveland stories; you know, try to put us on the map, because like you said before, you see all the negative stuff, you see all the negativity and just everything. I'm like, you don't even know these people. That's not what they act like for real. That's not what they look like. And then, you know, so I had to. I decided to do something about it. So after I got down with college and undergrad, I was like, okay, I'm gonna start my own magazine. And like I was saying before, I tried to start it, then I went into broadcast. But that fueled it even more because I was seeing how, you know, the media was creating these stories. They were doing their storytelling. And I'm like, oh, this all bad. You know, this is just not right. So once I got done with that, like, I would travel. Sometimes I'll be able to bring people from East Cleveland on air, but sometimes they just didn't get it. So once I stopped working there, you know, I was like, okay, now it's time to do this, you know, this continue this magazine thing. So I just took from what I learned already at Cleveland State State, you know, as far as, like, what copy to get, how to get in touch with printers. I had a Person who was already in the industry trying to help me out and everything. But basically, it's modeled after the Vindicator at Cleveland State. But the Vindicator at Cleveland State has taken some budget cuts. I don't think it's the same quality of what it was, but. And it's not even the original Vindicator. The original was actually a newspaper. And then it just kind of transitioned over the years. But I liked how, when I was there, how it looked and how it felt and, you know, the gloss of it. And when I would go to different printers, they would be like, well, it's this much without the gloss. And I'm like, well, I don't want it without the gloss. So put the gloss on there. You know, that was just something that I needed to have, you know, for me, because that's what I wanted, how I wanted it to look. So, yeah. Long story short, a lot of motivation came from just seeing how the news was made, watching the news, being able to see ourselves in a positive light in some news, and then the way it was made. The magazine was created when I was in college.
Nick Mays [00:14:49] I'm gonna read a quote and ask you to unpack it for me. It's one of the first things that stood out to me. And I got, like, ink. I'm writing, like, all around it and I'm highlighting it. And I just was. I thought it was so profound, but. But important and so, quote: [00:15:20] "Across generations, we've confronted challenges that might have shattered others. Yet they've only fortified us. From long standing families rooted in East Cleveland to fresh voices shaping our future, we are a community defined not by struggle, but by our unwavering determination, innovation, and mutual support." Can you please unpack that for me?
Tyesha Blade [00:15:50] Is that in the Editor's Letter?
Nick Mays [00:15:51] Yeah, that is you, by the way. That is in number six.
Tyesha Blade [00:15:54] That sounds like something I write, but, you know, I write so much that I forget some things. Maybe that's something I said. Okay, yeah, that sounds about right.
Nick Mays [00:16:02] That's Editor's Letter, issue six.
Tyesha Blade [00:16:08] It is a lot to unpack. But, you know, let me. I gotta look at the quote again, because I think what I was getting at is like, we are rooted in struggles, but we don't have to be defined in them. You know, we don't have to be. If you see us struggling, that don't mean that we're just struggling every day. And people can just make us be like, we just the worst people in the world. Hold on, let Me go back. You said issue number six. So that's the last one.
Nick Mays [00:16:33] Issue number six. Yeah. And that would be bring 20, 25 issue six editors.
Tyesha Blade [00:16:40] And that would be?.
Nick Mays [00:16:42] Spring, 2025, issue six. Editors's letter.
Tyesha Blade It's the first.
Nick Mays Yeah. Dear readers. And then the first paragraph, it's the one again with Mayor Morgan on it.
Tyesha Blade [00:16:54] I think I'm looking at it. Let me see.
Tyesha Blade [00:16:58] Okay. So we are, we are community defined not by struggle, but by our own way. Friend, determination. Yeah, I mean like a mutual support. Like every time you find somebody that know they from these people, it's just like we just, we just get it. You know, we'd be like, oh my fellow cardinal. You know, we know each other's struggle. You know, everybody's life is different. Everybody's going through their own difficulties things. But by mutual support. I just, when you a cardinal, like that's your cardinal family forever, you know, unwavering determination. We always you know, we have to try. We have to try to live, we have to try to succeed. Even when ods is always, always against us. It just like no matter where you go, if somebody say you from Cleveland, you automatically get discounted. You automatically look like, you know, you an idiot. You don't know nothing or you just got out of jail or something. Like it's just always that negative stigma. So you know what I mean? Like when I say we're unwavering in our determination. A lot of us is just not about to sit here and let people just look at us like we are incompetent. I know some great people that come from these Cleveland, I'm doing some great things still in their communities. You know, some people have moved out of the state still doing great things and it's just like, yeah, we, we got this. So you know, long standing families rooted in east living. This family says, been here for generations, like, like years. You know, like I said, the lady, well, the lady that was in the 50s, she's gone. But the family that moved in after her and she, after she moved out, they're still there. So that was probably like in the 70s, so you know like 50 years or something like that. So that's a few generations. Yeah. And you know we have fresh new voices rising up. The one young lady, I just interviewed her, well, she was actually in this issue with Mayor Morgan. She was Ms. Black Ohio. And she out here doing her thing. I think she like 25 or 26. You know, she graduated high school early. Well, she didn't go to Shaw. She went to the School of the Arts. So. But she graduated when she was like 16. Then started taking. She took some, actually some college classes in high school, graduated college, you know, early, early, early. So, yeah, it's old people doing stuff. It's young people doing stuff. It's everywhere. You know, just because we come from a struggle don't mean we have to be defined that way.
Nick Mays [00:19:21] You know, when I read it and I, I read it, I read it several times. For me, you were, you were speaking to and against something that you was, you were speaking to external. Right. People. Right. And you, you brought it up kind of just thinking about the perception and the the political and social discourse about. But also you were speaking to some. Someone and that you were speaking to the people of East Cleveland and the community.
Tyesha Blade [00:19:53] Yeah, most definitely. Most definitely. It's like two different perspectives. Like, I don't have the same perspective as the people I'm speaking against, but I know how they think. I know what they're thinking. But then the people that I'm speaking for, I definitely, you know, get their persp of as well. But I come from where they come from.
Nick Mays [00:20:13] I see. Wow, This a lot of good stuff. And, and are you sell these? Or like, how do you. Do you sell them or is it.
Tyesha Blade [00:20:23] No, I don't sell them. They're just free.
Nick Mays [00:20:26] Okay.
Tyesha Blade [00:20:27] Yeah, I get ads. I get advertisements. It was a slow, slow process at first. Or, you know, I do pay out of my pocket. Like when I'll get paid. I put a little bit into the magazine's account and just hope for the best. It wasn't always much coming from me, but I mean, it was. It's my child and I feel like I gotta feed it. I gotta get us there. So. More and more I've been getting advertisements from different establishments in East Cleveland. I've gotten one from Cleveland State before. Who else? The Western Reserve area? No. The Western Reserve Agency? No, it's. I, I really can't stand saying this one. It's three A's, the Western Reserve Agency on Aging, something like that. But they give me a couple of. I guess I should know my advertisers names. I said it right before. Now it's just not coming to me. It's. It's wraa. So.
Nick Mays [00:21:28] And the reason why I asked is I was like, you know, should I bring some cash? You know. And maybe I still should bring some cash to support what you're doing. But I would love to get my hands on the other issues if you can make that possible. I would really appreciate that.
Nick Mays [00:21:47] One more question on the East Clevelander. In all of the stories, you know, interviews, what engagements, what have you learned about East Cleveland?
Tyesha Blade [00:22:03] Your people, your community definitely are freaking awesome, man. Like, when I'm interviewing people and I'm just hearing all the amazing things that they're doing. Like, I interviewed Wayne Dawson. I think you have that copy. But I just talked to him yesterday or day before yesterday, and he's being inducted to the national association of Black Journalists. And I was just like, you know, wow, we have this convention coming up next year. I mean, next. Next week, actually, and we're both going to be there. So he's doing that. You know, we got Ms. Black Ohio. There's so many different things that I see. Just beautiful people. I'm not saying that only, you know, East Cleveland has the only people that are doing great things, but we're the people who are discounted the most, you know, and, and gotta just keep your head up and try to keep going because, you know, it's crime and poverty everywhere. I know we're one of the poorest cities, but it's a lot of, you know, different cities that's going through some similar things. Not the same quite, but some similar. But, you know, I just. When I think about you sleep. And I think it's more beautiful than people see them. If they just take the time to open up their eyes, they will see that some of these. A lot of people that are from here are doing some amazing stuff. So I don't know. I mean, it's just hard to make people see past the narrative that they already see. See, because people, like negative people just love negative things. Like, it's, It's. It's really sad that they'll. That is more attractive than what something positive is. But that's just the way we've been conditioned. That's the way media has taught us to, like, look at things. You know, ratings and car crashes. Everybody just want to see that stuff. So I keep pushing a positive narrative. I think it's a fantastic idea. I just got one Print Journalist of the Year in February for it.
Nick Mays [00:23:54] So congratulations.
Tyesha Blade [00:23:55] Thank you. I'm not mad. I'm just, you know, I'm trying to get to school and, you know, I'm proud of the folks that have come from here.
Nick Mays [00:24:07] Growing up in East Cleveland, what neighborhood or part of the city did you call home?
Tyesha Blade [00:24:14] So when we first moved here, we lived off. Well, both of our streets were uphaden the first one was on Man M A N N and then the second one was Orinoco. It was like two streets up.
Nick Mays [00:24:28] How would you say growing up in East Cleveland shaped who you are today?
Tyesha Blade [00:24:33] Well, definitely provided a sense of resilience, some discipline. You know, you gotta stay focused. Everybody didn't, you know, weren't able to get that same discipline. But I was in marching band. I was lucky enough to be a shot every week. This thought Shaw was like the bomb marching band and had a, you know, great legacy. So, excuse me, I was, you know, had lucky enough to do that. And yeah, so I would say resilience and discipline are two of the biggest ones. You know, compassion, you know, you gotta feel for people. Everybody's not going to be having the best day. Everybody's not rich with, you know, rich people's problems. You know, some people are just really, really having a hard time and, you know, just to have a big heart because at times I would be the one to give my, you know, the shirt off my back and things like that. So definitely some. The compassion part, the empathy. But I'm saying for the most part, the discipline and having a strong head and having some strong skin too, because, well, some thick skin, because there's so many obstacles out in the world that's going to just get thrown at you left and right and left and right. And if you don't have that sense of discipline, that sense of, I have to keep going, you're going to keep giving up. And I mean, I've had those thoughts where I'm like, oh, my God, this magazine is too hard. This costs too much. I don't need to do this. I could just finish school and work. I have to do this on my own in my free time. You know, it was definitely times where I was like, this ain't. It's not it. But hold on. Oh, that's my brother. He'll call him back. But yeah, it gives you a sense to say, like, I can keep going. I can get through high school no matter what people say about me, the negativity. I can get through college. You know, I can do a magazine and, and, and get through my graduate program. Because that was rough too, because I was like, whoever told me to do both of these at the same time? We need to have a talk because I'm about to go sit down somewhere, but I can do this. So it taught me that, like, you can do it.
Nick Mays [00:26:43] Now, Ms. Blade, You moved to East Cleveland, when you were a child; you are an adult and professional now. How have you seen the city evolve over your lifetime?
Tyesha Blade [00:27:00] You know, I don't see a whole lot of kids playing outside no more. I mean, I saw some other day they live in the next building over, but, you know, I don't see a whole lot of kids. The potholes always been an issue. I don't see a lot of community engagement. And that's why, you know, one thing that I really like about the magazine, a lot of different age groups like it. Like Ms. Black Ohio, she was all on Instagram, crying and stuff. I was like, girl, it's not that serious. And she was like, no, it is. And then a lady from the 50s, I mail her to her, I mail some to her and I forget what state she's in. I mail some to her. But I like that it brings the community together for like one thing. You know, the library does that as well. Like it brings the community together for their events. But I don't see a whole lot of that anymore. Like, I don't see a lot of the parades and you know, we used to have festivals and things like that. I haven't been seeing as much of those since I've been back here.
Nick Mays [00:27:58] What about buildings or black businesses or you know, you know, institutions that maybe you grew up with that no longer. Especially like black businesses or businesses in general.
Tyesha Blade [00:28:14] Yeah, a lot of businesses have moved out. There are still some here. Like I know well, Tuckers as well. I did a story on them and Cleveland Scene magazine, they've been for a while. But. And they're black owned. Bill Capiano, he doesn't add with us every issue. He's been here forever. So there are still some institutions that, that have just been here and they probably won't be leaving, but a lot of folks have like left out. Like Peter Pans was, was here. That was all our go to spot for donuts. They're gone. I mean, and just other places like, like Walgreens. I love to have a Walgreens here. I needed Walgreens. We don't have a grocery store. You know, things like that that make a community run. We just don't have those. And I'm just like, luckily, you know, where I live now, I'm not far from the Walgreens and Cleveland Heights, but we need our own, you know, stuff like that. So outside of the school, the library, there aren't many that's just that are here. You know, when I was living on Hayden, it was it was highly populated with, you know, some stores up, up and down the street. We had B M's over there, but now I rarely see. I think that's a convenience store over there where B M used to be. And There's not a whole lot that's going on over there. I mean, Euclid, we have the shopping center, but yeah, it's. It's a little bit saddening, you know, and I have faith in. Well, I don't want to bring politics into this, but I won't. But I was. No, I'm not going to say that.
Nick Mays [00:29:54] So what about. Is there still. The parks that you played in still exist? Is there things like swimming pools that you, you know, that. Do they still exist.
Tyesha Blade [00:30:06] No, that they don't like. The Forest Hill is still there. The Cleveland High side is better than the East Cleveland side. But, you know, as far as when I used to go play, we went to the East Cleveland park. And I still go through walks up there. I still see people up there. That's where we have our alumni weekend. Well, the Sunday park, the Sunday Gather Family Day pools. We didn't. I mean, we had corb. I know, like in the. Back in the day. Shaw. I mean, East Cleveland had more pools than that, but I didn't play with them because I wasn't. I wasn't here maybe like 50, 60, 70s. They have pools and things like that. But I had corp when I was here. Yeah. I mean, so yeah, obviously, like I was saying, like, I'm pretty sure you've heard before, a lot of that stuff doesn't exist anymore.
Nick Mays [00:31:06] Wow. Well, thank you, Ms. Blade. I appreciate your level of engagement as well as your humanity and honesty that that comes across, especially your work and the contributions you made on the behalf of the East Cleveland people.
Tyesha Blade [00:31:22] Oh, yeah, definitely. I know that this used to be a very prominent city and I don't know if we'll get back to that. Maybe we will, but I'm pretty sure that we'll, you know, continue to try to elevate ourselves and get the city back to some point of greatness.
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