FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. We have a limited budget, how can we bring you to our event?
A. We have many creative options for those who have a limited budget. My agent Bettye Blaize will be happy to work out all the details with you. Here are a few ideas in the meantime. You can join with other schools or organizations to split the fee, or try booking me when I’m already in your area. If you have a budget for educational supplies, simply buy enough copies of my inspirational book 10 Steps Out of Puberty, and I will speak at your event for free. In addition, many schools have covered the fee with grant money.
Q. What kind of travel expenses are we talking about?
A. The basics: Roundtrip coach airfare from Maryland, ground transportation, airport parking, meals, and hotel. If you prefer to do an inclusive price, talk to my agent Bettye Blaize about that, she’ll hook ya up.
Q. How did you get started speaking?
A. I started when I was 17 years old through a student leadership organization called Junior Achievement (JA). I joined JA because I heard there were a lot of cute girls in the program. Boy, were they wrong. Barking sound. But I got a chance to be an on air radio personality. Who cares if there were not cute girls a part of the program, because cute girls frequently called the station? Plus it was an easy class, and the rest was history. If you asked the teachers who constantly kicked me out of class, they will tell you that I always liked to talk. Just at the wrong time. I then learned public speaking from some of the best DJs in Chicago. And eventually, I took a public speaking class in college. But little did I know that it would shift my path, teaching a class clown how to use the gift of laughter, to lead students to see their full potential. So I fell in love with it, and eventually become really good at it. This gave me the opportunity to begin to Emcee pep rallies, lead workshops at local conferences, and do what I loved to do…make people laugh, while encouraging them at the same time. Eventually, people started calling and asking if I would come to their schools. The rest, as they say, is history.
Q. Any advice for someone wanting to become a speaker?
A. Practice makes improvement. If you want to be a great speaker, start speaking! Whenever, wherever, to whomever you can. Volunteer to lead workshops at conferences in your area. Ask to do the morning announcements. Take a public speaking or drama class. Read… a lot. Figure out what you want to say to people, once you get the chance to say it. We all have a story to tell, what’s yours? There are many more things that you can do, but this is just a start. You will find what works for you. Seize the time!
Q. What type of events do you normally speak at?
A. I speak at a range of different events: middle school assemblies, high school assemblies, college events, student leadership conferences, churches, and youth service provider conferences.
Q. What motivated you get on the right track?
A. Seeing my mother cry, and finding out that my best friend had been murdered.
Q. What books have inspired you?
A. Never Eat Alone, The Four Agreements, Good to Great, The Places You’ll Go, The Pact, The Tipping Point, Blink, The Bible, The Koran..
Q. What do you do for fun?
A. Hang out with family and friends, read, write poetry, travel, watch movies, and running.
Q. What are your favorite movies?
A. Dead Poets' Society, The Color Purple, Patch Adams, Pretty Woman, Cooley High, Love Jones, Sarafina, The Boys of Baraka, Antoine Fisher, Joe the King, The Outsiders, and The Mighty Wind.
Q. What is on your play list?
A., The Roots, Jay Z, Fred Hammond, India.Arie, Eryka Badu, Common, Bob Marley, Miles Davis, Mary J. Blige, U2, Dave Matthews, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Marvin Gaye, Raheim DeVaughn, KRS One, John Coltrane, The Beatles, John Mayer, and Outkast.
Q. Who has inspired you?
A. My mother, and watching children suffer.
Q. Where are your favorite places to visit?
A. Africa, Colorado, Puerto Rico, San Francisco, & Philadelphia
Q. How did you overcome the obstacles you faced?
A. Time, encouraging mentors, counseling, prayer, a shift in perspective, realizing that I could turn my problems into opportunities and use them to help other who have their own obstacles. We were all created for a purpose, and I finally realized mine.
Q. Do you have a pet?
A. Yes, a Cocker Spaniel named Miles.
Q. What is your favorite food?
A. I am vegetarian, so it depends on the restaurant.
