On the season two finale, producer, composer, and director, Teddy Walton, takes us behind the scenes of his unique audio-visual experience, Free Machine, which debuted in Ep4S2 of Your Attention Please. Conceived over months of ideation and creative meditation, yet filmed over only a few days, Free Machine is a collaborative vision that centers around themes of ownership, destiny and family. Teddy shares the personal meaning of these themes with Kimberly, and breaks down how they inform his...

What do historical Black figures and comics have in common? Everything, according to comic creator and advertising CCO Jimmy Smith. Kimberly and Jimmy sit down to talk about art, social justice, and opening doors others have shut. Jimmy opened his own door by writing The Truth, a comic book that tells the story of a reimagined superhero fighting against the most colossal and controversial of American enemies: bigotry. Originally published in the 1990s, Jimmy’s comic contains events that...

If y’all assumed Kimberly Drew didn’t know her way around a board, then you’re wrong. This week Kimberly swag surfs her way into a dynamic conversation with CEO and founder of Black Girls Surf, Rhonda Harper. Rhonda has been surfing for decades, and after riding waves in Hawaii, California, and Senegal, she’s now planting roots in South Africa. Rhonda shares her important experiences as a Black woman in the surf space, and how that informed her fight for surf therapy and creating safe surf...

Director and photographer Annie Bercy has been creating in film since the days before selfies, and in this past year has produced work for artists such as Cardi B, SZA, and Ciara. For this episode, Annie sat down with Kimberly Drew to talk about motivation, faith, and her new short Riley, produced in collaboration with Hulu for Your Attention Please. Riley tells a story of Black girlhood, hair, beauty, and becoming, all inspired by Annie’s personal experiences. For more information about...

This week Kimberly sits down with Pride Fund CEO Densil Porteus, who takes us home. He honors the memory of his mother, her influence on the values he and his partner teach his daughter, and how his work to financially uplift LGBTQ+ business is rooted in compassion. He invites us to be vulnerable, to dream, and to do the work.  For more information about Lambda Legal, visit https://www.lambdalegal.org/. For more information about Lambda Literary, visit https://www.lambdaliterary.org/. For...

This week Kimberly chats with the founder of the first and only Black-owned anime studio in Tokyo, Arthell Isom. Arthell shares his beginnings as a kid from New Jersey who liked to doodle, and how his passion for background art lead him to his dream apprenticeship in Japan. Now, as the CEO and art director of his anime studio D’ART Shtajio, Arthell is living like the protagonist of his own anime. For transcriptions, please visit pineapple.fm/your-attention-please. Learn more about your ad...

What happens when fashion meets faith and spirit meets style? Twin designers Soull and Dynasty Ogun of L’Enchanteur speak with Kimberly about the importance of heritage and design. For these artists, discovering their individual style and the LE standard meant first reconnecting to family history, their West African and Caribbean roots, and centering the spirit to make their own everything.  For transcriptions, please visit pineapple.fm/your-attention-please. Learn more about your ad...

Where does memory lie and how can we bring it to the surface? This week Kimberly chats with archaeologist Justin Dunnavant, who’s made it his life mission to preserve Black heritage. He shares moments from his early beginnings in the field, his most incredible finds, and his hopes for the future of archaeology and the academy. Justin invites us on a journey through not only land and sea but time and space.  For more information about the Society of Black Archaeologists, visit...

This week, Kimberly sits down with Mississippi-raised, Houston-based urban farmer Jeremy Peaches, who built the largest aquaponics greenhouse in the city. He explains why farming is historically relevant, and why the life of a farmer has its own unique tune. When you think of a farm, you probably picture big fields, overalls, very old McDonald, and rural. But Jeremy is breaking all of those stereotypes and bringing his agricultural expertise into his community to show that, in his words,...

Digital technology has brought society far, but can it bring us further? Engineer and entrepreneur Asmau Ahmed says yes. She joins Kimberly Drew this week to share how her failures have led her to redefine success, and why she’s so passionate about revolutionizing big tech and access. Asmau also gives us a sneak peek at the blueprints for the equitable future she imagines for her children.   For more information on autism, visit www.autismspeaks.org. For transcriptions, please visit...

Jennifer King has been passionate about sports since her schoolyard days, when she knew she had an edge over all the guys around her. And she’s turned that passion into a career as the first Black woman to be a full-time coach in the National Football League. As a running backs coach for the Washington Football Team, Jennifer works long hours to keep her players prepared and focused on whatever comes next. But in order to get to the NFL, she had to make some tough choices and sacrifices along...

Kicking off our second season of Your Attention Please: The Podcast, Screen Actors Guild Award-winning stunt actor Jazzy Ellis joins host Kimberly Drew to talk about the value of learning to fall. Jazzy got started stunting nearly ten years ago in Louisiana, and has since starred in major Hollywood blockbusters and advocated for stunt actors of color. Throughout her time in the industry, she’s learned the importance of representation, safety, and having a crew. On our season debut, we dive...

You asked for more Black Excellence. Say less. Join us for season two as host Kimberly Drew takes a seat at the table with 12 abundant Black innovators who are creating worlds where expanded Black narratives can flourish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Before Coco and Breezy started designing eyewear, they didn't know much about the industry they were diving into headfirst. But they did have a love for sunglasses and a lifelong ambition to become entrepreneurs. Now, the twins are DJs, producers, and co-founders of a community called The Lorca in addition to being owners of a trailblazing eyewear company. Kimberly, Coco, and Breezy close out the series with a candid conversation on the importance of building community, the power in creating...

In 2019, Tomi Adeyemi followed up her best-selling debut novel, Children of Blood and Bone, with another installment in the Legacy of Orïsha series, Children of Virtue and Vengeance. Readers have fallen in love with Adeyemi's stories, which are magical and transporting but also so resonant in today's world. In this episode, Kimberly chats with Tomi about believing your dreams are possible, having the right people on your team, and bad spinoffs. And, naturally, Tomi has all the best metaphors...

Plant stylist and artist Hilton Carter is all about making homes feel cozy and vibrant – including his own home, where he has hundreds of plants. But he also stresses that plants are living things that must be tended to with care, not treated as props. Kimberly – a self-professed “proud plant mom” – talks with Hilton about bonding with plants, stereotypes about plant people, and how plants can teach us to be more nurturing in our relationships.

Ibtihaj Muhammad made headlines in 2016 when she became the first woman to represent the U.S. at the Olympics wearing a hijab. Even though she’s no longer a competitive fencer, she’s still collecting wins left and right. She’s an athlete, author, and activist with her own Barbie. And, as Kimberly puts it, Ibtihaj is “an example for so many of us who see an imperfect world and want to do something about it.” The two of them sit down to have a conversation about putting faith before fear,...

When Nicole LaPointe Jameson became the CEO of the esports organization Evil Geniuses in 2019, she took the helm of a brand that had a well-established presence in the gaming world. But it was also floundering. Nicole quickly brought in new talent and made other changes to energize the company at a time when the entire industry was dealing with growing pains.  Kimberly and Nicole sit down to talk about the wellness of players, misconceptions around gamers, and whether Nicole makes time for...

Phillip Youmans was thrown into the spotlight when his film “Burning Cane” won big at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and was picked up by Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY. Even when he’s not behind the camera or on set, he has a vision that’s so singular and clear that it’s impossible not to be inspired by him. Kimberly sits down with Phillip to talk about the confidence it takes to sell your art, the pain and promise of constructive criticism, and trusting your instinct.

Iddris Sandu is an architectural technologist, which means that he’s a real-life wizard with code, constantly building something out of nothing. And his particular brand of magic is his ability to create meaningful connections between the worlds of technology, hip-hop, and design. He's literally constructing our future.   In this episode, Iddris and Kimberly chop it up about always being prepared, being particular with your time, and building brand new platforms rather than amending broken...

Dr. Moogega Cooper is a planetary protection engineer, which means she has her hands full with making sure Earth and other planets aren’t contaminated as humans explore space. But even though she’s busy saving the universe, she still took the time to sit down with Kimberly to talk about the good kind of fear, feelings getting in the way of science, and being a germophile.

To movement artists Jon Boogz and Lil Buck – aka MAI – dance can be a form of entertainment, but it’s also a vehicle for connection, education, and action. Kimberly sits down with MAI to talk about changing perceptions of dance and the power of channeling your experiences through art. Plus, Buck answers the question many of us have probably had after watching him perform: Do his toes hurt when he dances?

What does excellence look like? Join us as host Kimberly Drew gets to know nine Black visionaries who are defining the future and inspiring the world.