Peter A. Berry Interview

Peter A. Berry is a writer-editor with bylines in Okayplayer, Stereogum, and many more. Previously, he was on staff at XXL, but he’s currently freelance.

How did you get to where you are today, professionally?

Growing up, I was obsessed with music, historical figures, superheroes and basketball, so I'd go to the library and get biographies on Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Anne Frank, Michael Jordan, and then comic books and graphic novel compilation magazines like Shonen Jump. I would write anime-esque stories in fifth grade. After a three or four year period of being into pop music and wanting to be in NSYNC, I saw 8 Mile* and decided I wanted to be a rapper. That fueled my interest in rap, and by then, I was already into writing. In college, I was an editor for my school newspaper and briefly, a president of my school's public relations club. Even then, I wasn't sure how sustainable a writing career would be, so I studied PR pretty heavily as well to keep my options open.

For my first job, I wrote articles, mostly news articles and lists, for $10 an hour at a now-defunct website that was owned by the folks who own Newsweek. Looking back, the rate was low, but I honestly felt super certified; I was a real journalist with tangible proof of my work. Within a year I'd be promoted to staff writer for the site, covering Dragon Ball Super and bits of rap whenever I got the chance. Unfortunately, I got laid off. But fortunately, the person that hired me for my first job had moved on to be the Managing Editor at XXL. I emailed her the day after I was laid off, and while XXL didn't have any positions open, there was a news writer who was going on vacation, so she set me up to be a backup news writer. For about eight months, I would fill in for XXL's Weekend News Editor or other news writers taking time off. As I proved myself a good news writer, I was given transcription assignments, occasional interviews for the site — stuff like that. About eight months in, a news writer left and I took the position. Within a year, I'd be promoted to XXL's Assistant Editor position. From there, within that year, News Editor. I worked on staff at XXL until early 2021. After that, I worked with Netflix's TUDUM for about a year while continuing my freelance music-culture journalism career. And I've never stopped!