Our Team
DERMOT GIVENS
Lead Consultant
Is an Attorney and Political Consultant. Attorney Givens provides political insight to multiple media organizations including, The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, KNBC, KCBS and the Los Angeles Sentinel.
Attorney Givens has managed and been a Senior Consultant on more campaigns in California than any other African-American political consultant.
Attorney Givens is the creator of the new web crime series: imurdertv.com
REV. JEWETT WALKER
Faith Based Outreach Consultant
His keen and insightful analysis of voter data has won some of the most difficult campaigns Southern California. He started his firm, Walker Communication Group, Inc., in 1994 and is considered the god father of African-American political consultants in California.
EDWARD ROEBUCK
Celebrity Coordinator Consultant
Edward “Ed” R. Roebuck has enjoyed a versatile career in the entertainment and fashion industries. Ed has more than 20 years of domestic and international experience in various aspects of advertising, corporate production, film, stage, and television.
Ed’s career began as a fashion consultant with his New York based design business, Simply Styled. Under that banner, he and his staff serviced a wide range of clients including Gucci, Donna Karan, Bill Blass, and Patrick Kelly. His company coordinated and accessorized their runway shows. Other clients included AT&T, Revlon, and Greyhound Van Lines for whom they coordinated wardrobe selections for a series of national print ads.
As an established celebrity talent booking agent with Artistic Friends Group, LLC, Ed produced numerous events including Life Luxe Jazz in Los Cabos, Mexico, An Afternoon with Ramsey Lewis, and Sheryl Lee Ralph’s DIVAS Simply Singing in Los Angeles, CA and Philadelphia, PA. He was humbled to assume the role as the talent coordinator/director of special events for A Monumental Life: A Celebration Honoring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Washington, DC. Among other prominent events, Ed was acting talent coordinator of Los Angeles UNCF’s An Evening of Stars and Mayor’s Masked Ball.
Multi-Grammy-Award winning singer Nancy Wilson engaged his services as a personal assistant for over 15 years until her retirement. In this position Ed enjoyed a long and fruitful business relationship with one of the music industry’s most treasured performers. During his tenure with Ms. Wilson, he oversaw her travel plans, public appearances, and wardrobe selections. Ed organized global logistics for band members across four continents, including Europe, Asia, and South America. Previously, he was the personal assistant to numerous high-profile artists and served as a fashion consultant to several notable designers. Other satisfied personal assistant clients have included Motown icon Diana Ross, Ananda Lewis, Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Dionne Warwick, Dianne Schurr, Avery Brooks, and Regina Belle for whom he served as a fashion consultant on various video music and album cover projects.
Ed’s passion for bringing the crème de la crème together to do incredible and memorable work has made him a stellar and vital player on the stages of corporate and entertainment productions. With his exceptional ability to provide multi-dimensional creative influence that provides extraordinary results for his clients, Ed has become the go-to producer by companies and organizations in search of creative, cost effective, and efficient production services.
Ed earned a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from New York University. He also attended Wayne State University as a pre-med student.
JAMES "SMITTY" SMITH (LA POSTMASTER RET.)
Digital & Direct Mail Consultant
Is the former (retired) postmaster general for Los Angeles. He is the founder and CEO of Executive Communication Services, Inc. that has provided one stop direct mail and e-mail services to campaigns and business’s throughout California.
SAMUEL "JOEY" HILL
Elected Official Outreach Consultant
Is a political veteran of numerous political campaigns in California. His experience includes serving as a chief of staff in both houses of the California Legislature.
Publicist: DARLENE DONLOE
Video Editor: KAITLYN ALI
THANK YOU
Nathan-Josias Boum, Damian Givens, Jeff Boodie, Dyke Redmond and the staff at Heart and Soul Studios.
Lynn Whitfield
Lynn Whitfield is an award-winning stage and screen actress. She most recently portrayed Lady Mae Greenleaf on OWN’s hit drama series “Greenleaf,” for which she won the NAACP Image Award as Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series in both 2019 and 2020 in addition to the 2017 Gracie Awards Best Actress in a Supporting Role, and starred in Netflix's 2018 film "Nappily Ever After." She earned the 1991 Emmy Award as Best Actress in a Miniseries or Special for her starring role in “The Josephine Baker Story,” winning the NAACP Image Award that year as well. She has won additional NAACP Image Awards for “Touched By An Angel,” “The Planet of Junior Brown,” “Dangerous Evidence: The Lori Jackson Story,” and “Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story.”
A third-generation graduate of Washington, DC’s Howard University, Whitfield began her career guest-starring in episodes of popular television drama series “Hill Street Blues,” “Cagney & Lacey,” “Mike Hammer” and “St. Elsewhere,” then went on to star in made-for-television movies and miniseries, including “The Women of Brewster Place,” “A Triumph of the Heart: The Ricky Bell Story” and “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” among many others. Whitfield made her film debut starring with Dan Ackroyd in “Doctor Detroit,” and counts “The Slugger’s Wife,” “Silverado,””A Thin Line Between Love and Hate,” “Eve’s Bayou,” “Madea’s Family Reunion,” “The Women” and “Mama I Want to Sing” among her more than 40 feature films.
Whitfield starred in the Aaron Spelling drama series “Heartbeats” as well as in “The Cosby Mysteries,” and remains in demand as a guest actress, with recent roles in “The Resident,” “Mistresses,” “How To Get Away with Murder” and “Without a Trace,” among many more.
Our Artist
Malcolm-Jamal Warner
Malcolm-Jamal Warner has become known in the entertainment business for his seasoned acting talents and his accomplishments in music, directing, and producing. As an Emmy-nominated actor and Grammy award winning poet, Warner has positioned himself as one of the most accomplished talents in the industry today. As a staple in television and film for nearly 30 years, Warner first rose to national prominence by starring on the celebrated and long-running classic television series “The Cosby Show.” His work on the show garnered him a Primetime Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series and set the stage for him to have a long career in the public eye.
In 2018 Warner can be seen starring on FOX’s hit medical drama “The Resident.” He quickly became a fan favorite throughout season one as cardio-thoracic surgeon AJ Austin aka ‘The Raptor,’ whose uncontrollable personality makes him a liability within the hospital walls. “The Resident” which also stars Matt Czuchry and Emily VanCamp, follows the lives and duties of staff members at Chastain Park Memorial Hospital, while delving into the bureaucratic practices of the hospital industry. Season two is slated for premiere on September 24, 2018.
In addition to “The Resident” Warner was most recently seen as a series regular on ABC’s drama series “Ten Days in the Valley” opposite Kyra Sedgwick. He also made headlines in 2016 starring as A.C. Cowlings opposite Cuba Gooding Jr. on the critically acclaimed, award-winning FX series “American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson.” Additional recent credits include: Amazon’s “Sneaky Pete,” TNT’s “Major Crimes,” “Suits” on USA, “American Horror Story: Freak Show” for FX, “Sons of Anarchy” for FX, “Community,” “The Michael J. Fox Show,” “Hawthorne,” “The Cleaner,” and “Dexter.” In 2011 Warner produced, directed, and starred in the BET original series “Reed Between the Lines” opposite Golden Globe Award winner Tracee Ellis Ross. On the film front his short film “Muted” [starring opposite Chandra Wilson] won the HBO Short Film Competition at the American Black Film Festival [2014].
As a seasoned director Warner has worked on a host of television series, including being a regular director [and producer] on the comedy series “Malcolm & Eddie,” and also having directed several episodes of “The Cosby Show,” “All That,” “Keenan & Kel,” “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Sesame Street,” and the AIDS awareness video “Timeout: The Truth about HIV, AIDS, and YOU,” which starred Magic Johnson and Arsenio Hall and earned Warner the NAACP Key of Life Image Award. His short film, “This Old Man,” received critical acclaim on the theater festival circuit.
On the film front Warner released a powerful, spoken word short film entitled “You Can’t Hear Me” in May 2017. The five minute short displays Warner, spoken word artist-producer David Bianchi, and spoken word artist Chris Wood citing poetry that highlights some of America’s civil and social ills including systematic oppression, deportation and mass incarceration. Warner made his feature film debut in Paramount Pictures’ “Drop Zone,” and was also seen in Warner Bros’ Pictures “Fools Gold” opposite Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, and Donald Sutherland. He also co-starred in the independent films “Restaurant” with Adrien Brody, “A Fare to Remember,” and “The List” with Wayne Brady. He recently starred in the short film “Wannabe,” which was a runaway hit at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival.
On stage Warner has starred in the off-Broadway plays “Three Ways Home,” “Cryin’ Shame,” for which he received the NAACP Theater Award for Best Supporting Actor, “Freefall” at the Victory Garden Theatre in Chicago, and in “A Midsummer Nights’ Dream,” at the La Jolla Playhouse in California. Warner received critical acclaim for his West Coast debut of his one-man theatrical production of “Love and Other Social Issues.” He returned to the stage in September 2014, reprising Sidney Poitier’s role as Dr. John Prentice in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner” in Boston at The Huntington Theatre. Warner has held this role before, previously performing in the play at Washington D.C.’s esteemed Arena Theater.
When not acting and directing, Warner is a poet and a bass player. In 2015 Warner nabbed his first Grammy Award for “Best Traditional R&B Performance as a Featured Performer” on Robert Glasper's version of the Stevie Wonder classic "Jesus Children of America." Lalah Hathaway was also featured on the track. Warner’s jazz-funk band Miles Long has performed in several major jazz festivals, including the Playboy Jazz Festival, and has opened for high profile artists including Earl Klugh and the late Luther Vandross, and he recently performed at the historic Apollo Theater. In September 2015 Warner released his latest album, “Selfless,” which brought an evolution of music to the table, melding spoken word and soul music into once cohesive album. All of Warner’s independently distributed CD’s, “The Miles Long Mix Tape,” “Love and Other Social Issues,” and “Selfless” have become popular on the underground music scene, can now be purchased on iTunes and
Jenifer Lewis
Check out Jenifer Lewis’ special video message for Black men! (And if you love her t-shirt, get it at jeniferlewis.com, with all proceeds going to social justice organizations.)
Jenifer is an actress, singer, author and activist. With more than 500 appearances in film and television, Jenifer currently stars as the outspoken grandmother, “Ruby,” on the Emmy-nominated hit show “Black-ish.” A third spin-off from “Black-ish,” entitled “Old-ish,” is currently in development at ABC, and stars Jenifer alongside Laurence Fishburne. Jenifer’s bestselling memoir, “The Mother of Black Hollywood,” was hailed for its honesty and humor and she is currently writing her second book. Jenifer has successfully combined her art with her passion for social justice through numerous viral political songs including “Get Your Ass Out and Vote,” “All Hands on Deck, Take Your Knee Off Our Necks,” and “In These Streets” with Brandy and Roz Ryan. In June, it was announced that Jenifer will receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.