'Ali in Me': Muhammad Ali's wife and friend John Ramsey to release audio series honouring the boxer

The audio series featuring popular personalities intends to pay tribute to Muhammad Ali's legacy as a boxer.

Lonnie Ali, the late Muhammad Ali‘s wife, and his close friend John Ramsey are going to release an audio series honouring the boxer's legacy. Mercury Studios and Treefort Media announced on Friday that the eight-part series will be released on January 23 on Audible.

The series will analyse Ali's impact and his dedication to combatting injustice. Lonnie Ali and Ramsey intend to highlight the boxer's humanity through personal accounts and his own words in previously unreleased audio. To that end, the series will feature prominent figures including Will Smith, Mike Tyson, Billy Crystal, Common, Rosie Perez, Killer Mike, Bob Costas, and Ali’s daughter Laila Ali.

“It brings him back into the forefront of America’s collective consciousness at a time when our country is really experiencing increased polarization, divisiveness, and toxic discourse,” Lonnie Ali stated concerning her husband, who passed away at age 74 in 2016. She added that unity is crucial in the U.S., recalling the iconic moment when Muhammad Ali, surprised the crowd when he lit the cauldron at the 1996 Atlanta Games..

“He reigned in the consciousness of what America stood for: Hope, compassion, kindness and aspirational goals that all Americans have to be great and achieve their best,” she added.

Meanwhile, Ramsey was awestruck by anecdotes of Ali's interactions with the guests on the series believing that the stories will keep Ali’s legacy alive.

“I found our guests’ thoughts and interactions with Muhammad were very personal to them, but the impact was contagious,” Ramsey stated.

Throughout his career, Muhammad Ali fought and defended the heavyweight championship in fights with Sonny Liston, George Foreman, and Joe Frazier. He advocated for the Black community and refused to be drafted into the Army during the Vietnam War because of his Muslim beliefs.

According to Lonnie Ali, audiences will be able to extract meaning from Ali's life and capture the depth of the experiences that shaped him and all those he touched through the series.

“He’s a man of our time, and I’m hoping that, as people listen to this podcast, they are inspired to follow in Muhammad’s footsteps and understand the impact he continues to have — not just when he was alive, but that he still has today".