December 11, 2024 • 30 mins
Two-time Emmy and Three-time NAACP Image Award-winning, television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviewed Dawnn Lewis.
For decades, my guest has used her celebrity platform for mentoring, lecturing, giving concerts, and donating her time and talents to causes across America and abroad on behalf of Organizations such as UNICEF, UNCF, Congressional Black Caucus Against HIV AIDS, and American Heart Assoc. She is amazing. In addition to acting, she does voice work on Star Trek Lower Decks, and she currently lends her voice to recurring characters on The Simpsons and Futurama.
Dr. Dawnn Lewis is the proud daughter of Guyanese parents and is a force of talent and compassion who seamlessly navigates the realms of entertainment and philanthropy with grace. As President and CEO of Morning Jewel Inc., a prominent multi-platform production company spanning film, television, animation, music, and experiential events, she has solidified her position as a leader in the industry.
Brooklyn-born and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant and Flatbush, Dr. Lewis is the visionary founder and CEO of A New Day Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting underprivileged youth and grassroots nonprofits. Her charitable efforts span the globe, providing educational resources and participating in community projects in Guyana, India, and other locales. She earned an Honorary Doctorate in the Humanities for over four decades of community and philanthropic service.
Dr. Lewis’s contributions to the entertainment industry are equally impressive. As a Trumpet Award and Grammy Award-winning singer, she has left an indelible mark on the music world, earning multiple NAACP Image Awards, BMI Awards, and ASCAP Awards for her songwriting prowess. Her music has been used in several other Film and TV soundtracks for Disney, ABC, NBC, HBO, and WIGS Films. Her talents extend beyond music, with a diverse portfolio of work as a film, television, and stage actor, series TV creator/producer, and esteemed inductee into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame. She returned to Broadway in the original cast (2019-2022) of the exhilarating TINA: THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL (12 TONY Nominations), co-starring as ZELMA BULLOCK, Ms. Turner’s mother.
Dr. Lewis can be seen in a variety of projects, including “Young Rock” alongside Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and the NETFLIX animated series “Karma’s World,” created by Chris “Ludacris” Bridges. Her versatility continued to shine in her role of “Captain Carol Freeman” in “Star Trek: Lower Decks” even as she prepared for the release of her holiday film “Black Jack Christmas” on BET+, half of which was filmed in Jamaica. She has lent her voice to iconic characters in beloved franchises like “The Simpsons,” “Curious George,” and Disney/Pixar’s Academy Award-winning films “Inside Out” and “Monsters University.”
Dr. Lewis is dedicated to advocacy and leadership in the entertainment industry, holding positions on various boards, including the National Center for Civil and Human Rights and the SAG-AFTRA National Board of Directors, and serving as a Trustee for the SAG Pension Plan and chairing the SAG-AFTRA Singers Committee.
Dr. Dawnn Lewis’s remarkable journey is marked by a relentless pursuit of excellence in both her craft and her commitment to uplifting others. Her impact resonates not only on stage and screen but also in the countless lives she has touched through her philanthropic endeavors.
Company Description *
The A New Day Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization, founded by Award Winning Actress, Musician, Producer & Activist Dawnn Lewis in 2017. For decades Ms. Lewis has used her celebrity platform for mentoring, lecturing, giving concerts and donating her time and talents to causes across America and abroad on behalf of Organizations such as UNICEF, UNCF, Congressional Black Caucus Against HIV AIDS, American Heart Assoc., KIS Foundation For Sickle Cell Disease, Th
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
I'm Rashaan McDonald, the host of Money Making Conversations Masterclass,
where we encourage people to stop reading other people's success
stories and.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
Start planning their own.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Listen up as I interview entrepreneurs from around the country,
talk to celebrities and ask them how they are running
their companies, and speak with dog profits who are making
a difference in their local communities. Now, sit back and
listen as we unlock the secrets to their success on
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Hi, I'm Rashaan McDonald. I host
(00:36):
this Money Making Conversation Master Class show. The interviews and
information that this show provides off for everyone. It's time
to stop reading other people's success stories and start living
your own. For decades, my guest has used her a
celebrity platform for mentoring, lecturing, giving concerts, and donating her
time and talents to causes across America and abroad on
behalf of organizations such as UNISEF, UNCF Congressional Like Harkers
(01:00):
Against HIV AIDS and American Heart Association.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
She is amazing, she really is.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
In addition to her acting, she lends her voice work
on such shows as Star Trek Lord Dex, and she
currently lends her voice to reoccurring characters on the Simpsons
and Futurama. Please welcome the Money Making Conversations Masterclass, the
iconic and very very funny Don.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Lewis how you doing?
Speaker 3 (01:23):
Don?
Speaker 1 (01:25):
What should I say? Tina Turner Mama's last.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
Time we talk, you know, Broadway, Tina Turner Mama doing
your thing and you say you're having a great time,
but you know your your your whole career.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Thank you for coming on the show.
Speaker 4 (01:39):
First of all, my pleasure. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Now you know you do I go back with you.
We're not talking about television. We first kind of met.
I was manager Steve Harvey. You came into the radio
studio and he was doing music. You was singing. So
you had all these different lay layers in your life,
you know, actress, singer, voice over work, acting, philanthropists. Let's
(02:02):
start talking about dicing up these different levels. Okay, what
came first, acting or singing?
Speaker 3 (02:09):
Between the two of those, singing came first, but between
singing and acting was dancing. I started singing it for
dancing at seven, acting at eleven, and I've been doing
all three professionally since I was about ten years old.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
So okay, so we got so you gave me the
trivector right there, you go, CA, I didn't even say dancing.
They're dancing, acting, singing, okay, So what jumped ot first?
Speaker 1 (02:33):
You know, I say, you know, there's always a talent
that leads the way.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
And then everybody started recognizing these other skill sets.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
It would be singing, okay.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
So I really thought I was going to be a
recording artist. I was lead singer in a band by
the time I was fourteen. I was a songwriter, so
my music was getting recorded by other artists.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
I was a session singer, singing background.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
Vocals for different artists people everyone from Patrice Russian to
Vanessams not not at fourteen, and that was after I
graduated from college.
Speaker 4 (03:03):
But before then, I was recording.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I had my own single out, I was charting on Billboards.
Speaker 4 (03:09):
I was doing shows off and on Broadway.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
I had done a couple of TV pilots, but none
of them had gotten picked up. One of them had
a release as a special holiday special. It was called
Crummy Movie Show.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
While I was in college.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
And the movie was so bad you would turn channels
to see the commercials and we were the quote unquote
commercials sketches. So when I graduated college, I went back
to doing theater off and on Broadway.
Speaker 4 (03:33):
Then the last Broadway tour I did.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
And I want to give a shout out because today
was the star's birthday who recently passed, Hinton Battle, three
time Tony Award winner, Amazing performer, and that was the
Tap Dance Kid with Harold Nicholas of the Nicholas Brothers.
There you go, hint In Battle, Ben Harney, the original
Curtis from Dreamgirls, Monica Page and Hint and Doulat Hill,
who was our ten year.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
Old boy at the time.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
It was now into an amazing This is so at
the time I was doing that. And then Hinton invited
me to sing with him on his first solo album
that was produced by Quincy Jones.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Okay, so I'm doing that. We finished that.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
All these great names just dancing around.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
That has been my journey, blessing. I am so blessed
to have been in the company of these amazingly talented
people that always encouraged me to do better and be better.
Speaker 4 (04:21):
And I was always the youngster in the group because
I was sixteen when I started college. So all of
this is happening before, I mean six, when I started college.
I left New York.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
I went to the High School of Music and Art
of Fame Fame, graduated and they danced and sing.
Speaker 4 (04:35):
And doing all of it.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
And went down to the U and actually started my
own degree program. I was singing opera, playing cello, acting
and dancing. Okay, so the musical theater degree program that
now flourishes at the U. I'm the founder and first graduate.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
You know, when I hear a person like you, I
remember a couple of times in Hollywood somebody slowed out.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
You're doing too much, you know.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
I remember my first agent, he said, you know, we
got to keep you on the train tracks because you
keep getting off the train tracks. You keep going to
do this and that. Did you feel that people were
boxing you in or people told you you were doing
too many things because you were talented at so many
different things.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
You know, when I was coming up, I was always
taught you had to be a triple threat in order
to work in the industry and to survive in the industry,
multiple incoming, multiple strings, whether and even if it was
just one doing musical theater.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
When you look back at old movies.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
Almost every major actor you can name sang, dance and act,
everyone from Judy Garland to Frank Sinatra to Bing Crosby,
Bob Hole. Everybody was doing everything. So that was what
I was always taught. The journey was supposed to be,
but I actually didn't start getting pigeonholed until I did
a different world. So I moved from live performing into
(05:51):
doing now this what would.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
Become that became most art.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
I was just gonna say, but you talk about when
do people start telling you you're doing too much or
your skill set is too and try to put you
in a box. That was when it started, because I
went from being able and open to be this multifaceted
person to now I'm doing a TV series, which ended
up being one of the most successful television.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
Series then and now.
Speaker 3 (06:17):
But now you're, oh, well, now you're just an actress,
or you're a comedic actress, or you're a sitcom actress.
And then I went from being the youngest to play
in the Oldest Person when I was actually younger than
a lot of people around me. I was just taller
than everybody playing the older person.
Speaker 4 (06:33):
Huh about five seven, but I look long. I look
taller because.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
I have long legs, and well, you know everybody, so
you know. But that's when people started saying and when
I when I got cast to do a different world.
The musical director from The Cosby Show also knew me
as as the singer, songwriter musician that I that I
that I am, and he invited me to write the
theme song for the show. So that's how I ended
(06:59):
up writing the theme song and being cast in the
show because I wasn't in a box yet, so I
was able to bring both those gifts and blessings to
one show and they had no idea they had hired
the same person.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Here's the funny part about it that I shouldn't say funny,
you know, because you know, I met you when I
knew you as an actress, and I remember when you
came into the studio. We're talking about the studio chief Howard,
and I was doing the radio show in LA and
you was promoting your music and I just looked at
you as an actress.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
I go, oh, she's trying to sing that.
Speaker 4 (07:29):
She's trying to sing that. That's one folk and that's
what people do.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
You know.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
I am grateful for the blessing of how people came
to know me. But it was just just.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
One small sorry, but it's okay. You wouldn't be the first.
So there were some people who only know me as
a singer and a musician who are wondering, how come
you don't sing more? You know, But that's how the
journey has gone. So now I still do concerts, I
still compose. I got the honor. I received the honor
of being inducted into the Women's Songwriter Hall of Fame
(08:01):
alongside people like Valerie Simpson, Bunny Hull, Mary Carpenter Chapin.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
I mean, it was just an honor.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
You know.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
You know, it's really interesting because you know you have that.
You know, there's so many blessings that come your way,
and sometimes in the world a lot of your success
you're not seen as a writer, as a voice person
in animation, and then people can go what you been
doing lately?
Speaker 4 (08:32):
I haven't stopped so gratefully, you know what.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
It may not have been in front of the camera,
but it's in so many facets around that allow me
to keep being creative. To your point, animation, that's been
a beautiful blessing.
Speaker 4 (08:46):
I've been doing it for more than thirty years animation.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
Okay, now I can't do voices. Yeah, I'm barely doing
this show. Okay, how you know?
Speaker 1 (08:57):
You know, can you imitate people or how do you
get into that force? Then? How did you start? How
did you I.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Don't necessarily imitate people, although I have been hired to
do what's called looping additional voices for a particular actor
that I can sound similar to that can't come back
in to.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
Do their own pickups.
Speaker 3 (09:16):
So they bring me in to do like little additional
lines to cover certain actors that I can sound like.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
Money Lewis.
Speaker 4 (09:28):
It's all possible and I can't share me check amen.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
But no. It started when Susanda pass of Motown fame
and discovering the Jackson's and all of that. She was
interested in managing me years ago, and that was before
she got big into producing.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
So she got asked me because she was in my
life on sister's sister. That's why she came into my life.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
She's a brilliant, brilliant and resourceful woman.
Speaker 4 (09:53):
So she asked me.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
She got the opportunity to executive produce this new animated
series around.
Speaker 4 (09:59):
Kid and Play.
Speaker 3 (10:00):
Okay, so she asked me if big Kid and play
the the Kidden play Chris and Chris so and asked
if I would come and do a voice So I
came and said, all right, well, I've done jingles, I've
done all kinds of success session work, so this will
be my first time doing a TV series.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
So I just came and imitated my niece who was
a child and talk like this all the time.
Speaker 3 (10:19):
I was like, a kid, come on, let's go in
and do this routine and it's gonna be fun.
Speaker 4 (10:23):
All right, come on five, six, seven eight.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
And that was my first gig and there aren't very
many people of color in the animation world, particularly at
that time, so the.
Speaker 4 (10:33):
Director was like, who are you? How come I never
met you before?
Speaker 3 (10:37):
And then my name just started getting passed around from
gig to gig, director to director, shows like you know,
Spider Man, Hulk, she Hulk, all of It, Batman and Robin.
Speaker 4 (10:50):
I've been doing voiceovers ever since.
Speaker 2 (10:52):
So, okay, this is so funny because that's just one voice,
so you just can't come in there and do the
same voice for everything. So how does the castine sessions
work when you're doing are your or your audition I'm
sure your audition for this every now and then, yeh okay, excuse.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
Me, excuse your sister.
Speaker 2 (11:12):
Money, I said money, Okay, done, money Lewis Okay, Now.
Speaker 1 (11:17):
Will you do audition?
Speaker 2 (11:19):
Well, how does that prep work when you're just dealing
with a voice?
Speaker 3 (11:22):
With it, when it's just a voice, You get an outline,
You get what they call a breakdown of what the
character is supposed to be. Is it a seventy year
old Is it a seventy year old one woman? Is
it a seven year old boy? Are you East African?
Are you British?
Speaker 1 (11:37):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Are you a Caribbean? Are you a monster? Are you
an alien? Are you a witch or a warlock?
Speaker 4 (11:44):
No?
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Seriously, So they give you the written outline, and every
now and then they have a visual idea of what
the character is going to look like, so you may
see an illustration. So when you combine all of that,
you sit in your spirit and come up with something
that you think would sound come out of this person's mouth.
And then you collaborate with the director and you say, well,
what about this voice to go?
Speaker 4 (12:05):
No, try a little higher pitch.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
Make them sound younger, make make them sound older, make
them sound broken down, and that's how you put the
elements together.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
Right, Okay?
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Figuring of Don Lewis, you know of Different World fame.
You know, I've told her myself that when she came
and I met her the first time Steve Harve and
I was on radio, I said, why is this actress
trying to be a singer? And I've discovered she was
a triple threat. Pride to being discovered on different world
and different World kind of boxed you in, like people
will say, that's all you can do, right and then
(12:35):
but you launched an animated career. You're a songwriter in
the Hall of fame. Now where's the book or do
you have you done a book on Don Money Lewis?
Speaker 4 (12:45):
You know what, I have been tempted to write a book,
and I start, what.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
Would the inspiration be behind the.
Speaker 4 (12:51):
Tempt the attempt?
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Yeah, if you said writing a book.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
But it would be the unlikely nie of somebody who
was committed to having a journey, right, you know, because
where I'm from, in Bedsty, you are not encouraged to
think big and to have big dreams and to dare
to think beyond your neighborhood.
Speaker 4 (13:13):
And I came up in the pub public school system,
so there.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
Weren't any special charters or scholarships or you know, inordinate
amounts of money being funded into me, like when I
wrote the theme song for a Different World. Like I said,
I was sixteen when I left home, so all I
was armed with was what I was taught in my house,
was what my mom instilled in me.
Speaker 4 (13:34):
And you know, truth be told.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
As a teenager coming up, all it did was irritate me,
and that was one of the reasons why I needed
to get out of the house. But now you're out
of the house and you find yourself doing the exact
things that your mom taught you to do and responding
the way your mom taught you to respond, which is
and all of a sudden, you go, Okay, I guess
she wasn't as.
Speaker 4 (13:55):
Foolish after all, and gets it kind of made sense.
Speaker 3 (13:58):
But that was the big of me recognizing the power
of positive input into me and into my life.
Speaker 4 (14:08):
Please don't go anywhere.
Speaker 5 (14:10):
We'll be right back with more Money Making Conversations Masterclass.
Welcome back to the Money Making Conversations Masterclass hosted by
Rashaan McDonald. Money Making Conversations Masterclass continues online at Moneymakingconversations
dot com and follow Money Making Conversations Masterclass on Facebook,
(14:34):
Twitter and Instagram.
Speaker 1 (14:36):
Your character, yes, you know why did people gravitate to it?
Speaker 2 (14:41):
Because I gravitated to your character on Different World.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
Why do you think people really were enamored?
Speaker 2 (14:51):
I want want to use the word you enamored because
with your character, because it was a Let me not
give it away any hints and then I'll respond after.
Speaker 3 (15:00):
Okay, Well, I think people embrace the show that they
weighed that they did because of the different facets of
life and humanity that each of us represented. There was
the bugy person, the geeky person, the seasoned citizen, and
mister Gaines who didn't have a degree but was there
to speak positivity and wisdom into each of the students.
(15:20):
My character was someone who had decided she wasn't done yet.
And where some people may chip it in, you know,
cash in their chips and say, well, look, I'm such
an age, this is all there is for me and
keep it moving as best as they can. But Jalisa decided,
you know what, No, there's more I want to do
and I'm going to get the tools I need in
(15:41):
order to do it. And if it means going back
to school. That's what I'm going to do because I,
which is one of the things we say in our foundation,
the New Day Foundation, is I am my best investment.
And that's what Lisa Jalisa chose. So I think a
lot of people see that in themselves or want to
see that in themselves. And besides that, it wasn't common
(16:04):
to see a brown skin sis sister very comfortable in
her own skin on television on a weekly basis. And
then we got blessed by adding Charnelle Brown to the
cast that was even.
Speaker 4 (16:16):
Darker skin than I was.
Speaker 3 (16:17):
So all of those people who weren't accustomed because I
know I wasn't everyone I used to see, whether it
was commercials or television, was you know, fair skin, really thin,
you know, all those things which are beautiful in itself.
But I was there to reflect a group of women
in particular, and for men who like brown sisters, you know,
(16:39):
to say, okay, we got some of this too, So
we had some.
Speaker 4 (16:42):
Of everything on our show.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
So I am so grateful that, you know, people, as
you said, were enever with me and my character as no.
Speaker 4 (16:52):
As they are today.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
And people are still black, don't crack. We been just
a teen ny.
Speaker 1 (17:03):
You're not breaking. You may not even even bended.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Okay, you know because okay, your skin tone, that that
that attracted me to you.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
Your maturity, come on.
Speaker 4 (17:16):
Come on, and maturity.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
It was something different, you know on the show. And
also your presence because when you came in the room,
it was you know, you had all these other characters
seemed like out of control because it was teenager mentality
and you had a maturity about you that really resonated
I felt, and uh, it was needed in the show,
(17:42):
and they did a good job of.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
Producing that your character.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
So I feel that's why I resonated for Rashawn McDonald,
and I think it resonated to a lot of people.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
Plus it was a hot mama, okay, and we as
young people, needed a hot mama looking at the TV.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
If I could just date her, if I can just
fight her, nobody care about your need.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
Friends tell you, boy, hit you in the back of
the head, boy, shut up. She didn't even recognize you.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
And so, but that's one of the things, the qualities
that you brought to the table, and.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
It lives today.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
But the blessing of the conversation is that you know,
animation has started thirty years ago, but now you're still
in the heart of the Futurama, The Simpsons, you know. Uh,
and now Star Trek, lawd Decks tell.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
Us about that.
Speaker 3 (18:28):
Well, that journey continued, like you said, and gratefully. Now,
in addition to the ones you mentioned, I'm on to
over a dozen TV series now, House Housebroken.
Speaker 4 (18:38):
Craig of the of the Creek.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
Fairly Odd Parents, Apple and Onion, Fairly Odd Parents, Karma's World,
Ludacris this series, Karma's World, and I play you know, yeah, Heartstone, Trolls,
I mean, all of it, Mortal Kombat, you know, and
then some Yeah, I know, I know. It's it's fantastic
(19:03):
because I get to voice and bring to life characters
that you wouldn't hire me visually to play. You wouldn't
hire me to play a seven year old boy or
a ninety year old grandmother.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Let me hear that seven year old boy boy?
Speaker 4 (19:15):
Oh no you no, you no, oh my, this is
second cool man.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
It is so fly.
Speaker 4 (19:22):
Yeah. So anyway, so doing doing things like that.
Speaker 3 (19:26):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (19:26):
And when I got Star Trek, I.
Speaker 1 (19:28):
Would never be bored with you. No, I would never
never show leave me alone.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
Of different languages and all kinds of different accents.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
You know, I would never tell you shut up and
leave me alone, say what you're wearing today? Kind of sexty.
My god, we get bored.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
You're talking, you know, And so the the Lord Deck,
you know, you pling Carol Freeman, right, was Carol just
very important to put the captain in front of that.
Speaker 4 (20:00):
It shows leadership.
Speaker 3 (20:01):
And in the world of Star Trek in the franchise,
it's me and Avery Brooks, yes as black captains, him
as male, him as me as the female black captain
in this legacy of excellence and diversity. And I've been
a fan of the show since the very first series
(20:21):
came on with Captain Kirk and Spock and Sulu and
all of those people. And to see Michelle Nichols on
camera as a child was made me hopeful that there
was hope for me because she was brown skinned and
she was excellent.
Speaker 4 (20:36):
And she was she was fiery, she could hold her
own with anybody.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
So she was my hero, especially in the sixties where
when you were watching the news, all you saw was
people of color being beaten, holes, chased by dogs, marching, picketing.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
It was the the.
Speaker 3 (20:56):
Just position of where diversity stood in Gene Roddenberry's world
as opposed to the real world really made me hopeful
that we can do this. We can respect everyone's excellence,
we can deal with each other with integrity and with
inclusion and get it done and it'll be all right.
Speaker 4 (21:18):
It really will.
Speaker 3 (21:19):
So now, all these years later, for Michelle to become
one of my dearest friends and mentors and get to
meet some of these people that I grew up idolizing,
and I did not know that what I was auditioning
for was Star.
Speaker 4 (21:32):
Trek because they changed the name.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
We had to sign NDA's And when they finally hired
all of us and we get to the table read
and turn our scripts.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Over, we all were like, whoa stop, what really Star
Trek for real?
Speaker 3 (21:45):
And myself, Tawny Newsome the star of the show, Jack Quaid,
Eugene Cordero, Noel, Well, thank you, Fred Tatters. It's the
last season on Paramount Plus. That's what we like to say,
because our see there you go, but our hope and
our desires that we will get picked up somewhere else
(22:05):
because the people who watch our show absolutely love it,
and some people never watch Star Trek before.
Speaker 4 (22:14):
I do.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
I do, and I get to meet and engage with
so many of the people that watch our show. It's
insane the love that we get for our show and
the people that say, if you've ever I'm not gonna
give away too much. But on our show, myself and
the star Tawny Newsome. Her character's name is Beckett, Beckett Mariner,
and she and I do not get along. It's like
(22:36):
any of the teenage mother and daughter kind of relationship.
But as the seasons go on, you watch changes and growth,
not in just our relationship but throughout the entire crew.
Speaker 4 (22:47):
So no, I'm a different kind of captain.
Speaker 2 (22:49):
You know, it's so fun. I was watching The Boys. Yes, okay,
so I'm sitting up there watching the Boys.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
And there I am.
Speaker 2 (22:57):
I like, first of all, you know, first of all,
you know, I'm going like you know that, you know,
you know, And then then you go through your credits,
you read it, you go to the cat it's it's
(23:17):
you know, it's fascinating to be a fan of someone
and then you see them in the show that you
don't expect to see them the show.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
Not saying you can't do.
Speaker 2 (23:26):
That show, but when you was in it in that
role that was playing and it was like that that.
I'm just telling you, that's what you do to people.
You have a fan base that gets excited and roots
for you, loves to see you. And the fact that
being on my show allows people to understand a tremendous career.
(23:48):
It's what a force you are and so many different levels.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
As you started when you was a kid. You still
are a.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Quadruple threat now, you know, and to be able to
I always talk about people with careers, you know, because
you always can jump out in different world, different world?
Speaker 1 (24:06):
Was your launching pad to right to the world right
fast forward? Twenty years, thirty years?
Speaker 2 (24:12):
What have you done? What has what's sustainable? And that's
what I call a career. And you have a career,
and you know what I'm talking about because you can
you can jump out there and it just stops.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
Right and you've been able to keep moving forward. Tell
us about that journey.
Speaker 3 (24:27):
You know what, again, You've got to basically quiet than
they sayers by just showing up and doing the work
and being able to work with people and to bring
excellence to it.
Speaker 4 (24:41):
And I do my best to always do my best.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
So whether it's nine to one one, Gray's Anatomy, Veronica
Mars any day Now you know any of those shows,
recording with any of those people that I started to
mention before, whether it's you know, Patrice Russian, Everett Harp,
you know, the list just goes on and on.
Speaker 4 (25:01):
Grover Washington Junior.
Speaker 3 (25:02):
I wrote and recorded for him and Nancy Wilson, as
well as doing my own and independent CD.
Speaker 4 (25:09):
All of it is just grace to God that he.
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Keeps opening doors and giving me what I need to
walk through them successfully. And then having people like you
who will jump up with a high pitched voice and say,
oh my God, that's right, that's her, and make room
for everything that I do because only more is coming.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
Now we're gonna talk about a New Day Foundation. I
made a donation, Yes you will, many years ago. Okay,
I'm pretty sure that money spent well, long time, long time, So.
Speaker 1 (25:36):
That means that she's back.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
If she's back, that means donation time out of Rushan
say Donald, which is no problem.
Speaker 1 (25:43):
Tell everybody about a New Day Foundation.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
A New Day Foundation is basically the ongoing work that
I've been doing for almost fifteen for almost fifty years
since I graduated from elementary school. It has been important
to me to go back and give back cause, like
I said, my teachers poured into me when I was
young to help me find a brighter path for myself
and my talent. So that's always been important to me.
(26:07):
About eight nine years ago, I wanted to do national programs,
and up until then I had been doing all of
this on my own. So in order to get corporate support,
public support, I had to form a nonprofit. So that
is a New Day Foundation, which is a play on
my name Dawn, a New Day where we want to
be a new day of opportunity, so that where you
(26:28):
were yesterday is not where you have to end up today.
Speaker 4 (26:31):
Nor be tomorrow.
Speaker 3 (26:32):
So we do programmatic services for teens, teen boys, mentors,
teen girls, sisters.
Speaker 4 (26:38):
Hangout, and we do an annual conference called.
Speaker 3 (26:40):
Focused and fit FT which stands for Financially and technolo Knowlogy.
Speaker 4 (26:44):
Informed for a different World.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
And at that conference we give out scholarships anywhere from
six to twelve of two thousand dollars each in a
new laptop. That is for high school juniors and seniors
and their parents and college freshmen and sophomores. That four
year demographic now we sponsor two year round school programs,
one called HBCU Hero, so for your HBCU audience that
(27:09):
is listening. We have monthly workshops where any HBCU student
can join in virtually with tools for entrepreneurship, career planning,
economic wisdom, and marketing skills. And then we have programs
in two middle schools and two high schools in Long
Beach and we partner with an organization called Inspiration fifty
(27:29):
two to do that year round program. So in everything
we do, which is why your support is really so crucial,
all jokes side, it's because everything we do we do
free of charge. So all of our fundraising is to
buy the workshop materials, to hire buses if we need
to transport kids anywhere to any of these events, meals,
(27:50):
workshop materials, admission costs, all of it.
Speaker 4 (27:55):
That's what it is.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
It is for what's the website so people interested in.
Speaker 3 (27:58):
Donating, The website is www dot a New Day Foundation
dot net. Www dot a New Day Foundation dot net
and if you have any questions, just email us info.
Speaker 4 (28:18):
At a New Day Foundation.
Speaker 3 (28:20):
Dot net and all of that information comes directly to us.
So we all of our programs we can take it,
as you mentioned before, anywhere across the country, and we've
supported programs and done programs as far away as Raunchi,
India and Guyana, South America, which is where my family
is from, and New York, Chicago, Florida, Dallas, l A.
(28:42):
You name it. We have been there and are happy
to come back and create programs anywhere we are able.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Wow, I want to thank you for coming on Machell
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. We'll be making a contribution again
and I'm gona tell you them when you say this
will come back. She tracked me down get my check
that get my check which I did give my gift
to check to it and it was kind of got
lost to the mail or something like that. But again
I I it's a blessing to actually sit down and
(29:11):
talk to you in person. And you're special, but you
know that you don't survive in this industry and then
have the relationship where people will call you for work
instead of auditioning for work as a reputation. And that's
something that people need to understand. This business and anything
in life is built on relationships and also relationships that
(29:32):
allow you to grow as a person and you've grown
tremendously before our eyes and.
Speaker 1 (29:37):
She's a stop iconic. I did like iconic and she's
team to turn to Mama. Thank you, my.
Speaker 4 (29:45):
Pleasure, my pleasure, Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
This has been another edition of Money Making Conversation Masterclass
posted by me Rashawn McDonald. Thank you to our guests
on the show today and thank you. I'll listening to
audience now. If you want to listen to any episode
I want to be a guest on the show, visit
Moneymakingconversations dot com. Our social media handle is Moneymaking Conversation.
Join us next week and remember to always leave with
(30:09):
your gifts.
Speaker 1 (30:10):
Keep winning.
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
I'm Rashaan McDonald, the host of Money Making Conversations Masterclass,
where we encourage people to stop reading other people's success
stories and.
Speaker 1 (00:14):
Start planning their own.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Listen up as I interview entrepreneurs from around the country,
talk to celebrities and ask them how they are running
their companies, and speak with dog profits who are making
a difference in their local communities. Now, sit back and
listen as we unlock the secrets to their success on
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Hi, I'm Rashaan McDonald. I host
(00:36):
this Money Making Conversation Master Class show. The interviews and
information that this show provides off for everyone. It's time
to stop reading other people's success stories and start living
your own. For decades, my guest has used her a
celebrity platform for mentoring, lecturing, giving concerts, and donating her
time and talents to causes across America and abroad on
behalf of organizations such as UNISEF, UNCF Congressional Like Harkers
(01:00):
Against HIV AIDS and American Heart Association.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
She is amazing, she really is.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
In addition to her acting, she lends her voice work
on such shows as Star Trek Lord Dex, and she
currently lends her voice to reoccurring characters on the Simpsons
and Futurama. Please welcome the Money Making Conversations Masterclass, the
iconic and very very funny Don.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Lewis how you doing?
Speaker 3 (01:23):
Don?
Speaker 1 (01:25):
What should I say? Tina Turner Mama's last.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
Time we talk, you know, Broadway, Tina Turner Mama doing
your thing and you say you're having a great time,
but you know your your your whole career.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Thank you for coming on the show.
Speaker 4 (01:39):
First of all, my pleasure. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
Now you know you do I go back with you.
We're not talking about television. We first kind of met.
I was manager Steve Harvey. You came into the radio
studio and he was doing music. You was singing. So
you had all these different lay layers in your life,
you know, actress, singer, voice over work, acting, philanthropists. Let's
(02:02):
start talking about dicing up these different levels. Okay, what
came first, acting or singing?
Speaker 3 (02:09):
Between the two of those, singing came first, but between
singing and acting was dancing. I started singing it for
dancing at seven, acting at eleven, and I've been doing
all three professionally since I was about ten years old.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
So okay, so we got so you gave me the
trivector right there, you go, CA, I didn't even say dancing.
They're dancing, acting, singing, okay, So what jumped ot first?
Speaker 1 (02:33):
You know, I say, you know, there's always a talent
that leads the way.
Speaker 2 (02:36):
And then everybody started recognizing these other skill sets.
Speaker 4 (02:39):
It would be singing, okay.
Speaker 3 (02:41):
So I really thought I was going to be a
recording artist. I was lead singer in a band by
the time I was fourteen. I was a songwriter, so
my music was getting recorded by other artists.
Speaker 4 (02:50):
I was a session singer, singing background.
Speaker 3 (02:53):
Vocals for different artists people everyone from Patrice Russian to
Vanessams not not at fourteen, and that was after I
graduated from college.
Speaker 4 (03:03):
But before then, I was recording.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
I had my own single out, I was charting on Billboards.
Speaker 4 (03:09):
I was doing shows off and on Broadway.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
I had done a couple of TV pilots, but none
of them had gotten picked up. One of them had
a release as a special holiday special. It was called
Crummy Movie Show.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
While I was in college.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
And the movie was so bad you would turn channels
to see the commercials and we were the quote unquote
commercials sketches. So when I graduated college, I went back
to doing theater off and on Broadway.
Speaker 4 (03:33):
Then the last Broadway tour I did.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
And I want to give a shout out because today
was the star's birthday who recently passed, Hinton Battle, three
time Tony Award winner, Amazing performer, and that was the
Tap Dance Kid with Harold Nicholas of the Nicholas Brothers.
There you go, hint In Battle, Ben Harney, the original
Curtis from Dreamgirls, Monica Page and Hint and Doulat Hill,
who was our ten year.
Speaker 4 (03:56):
Old boy at the time.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
It was now into an amazing This is so at
the time I was doing that. And then Hinton invited
me to sing with him on his first solo album
that was produced by Quincy Jones.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
Okay, so I'm doing that. We finished that.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
All these great names just dancing around.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
That has been my journey, blessing. I am so blessed
to have been in the company of these amazingly talented
people that always encouraged me to do better and be better.
Speaker 4 (04:21):
And I was always the youngster in the group because
I was sixteen when I started college. So all of
this is happening before, I mean six, when I started college.
I left New York.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
I went to the High School of Music and Art
of Fame Fame, graduated and they danced and sing.
Speaker 4 (04:35):
And doing all of it.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
And went down to the U and actually started my
own degree program. I was singing opera, playing cello, acting
and dancing. Okay, so the musical theater degree program that
now flourishes at the U. I'm the founder and first graduate.
Speaker 2 (04:50):
You know, when I hear a person like you, I
remember a couple of times in Hollywood somebody slowed out.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
You're doing too much, you know.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
I remember my first agent, he said, you know, we
got to keep you on the train tracks because you
keep getting off the train tracks. You keep going to
do this and that. Did you feel that people were
boxing you in or people told you you were doing
too many things because you were talented at so many
different things.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
You know, when I was coming up, I was always
taught you had to be a triple threat in order
to work in the industry and to survive in the industry,
multiple incoming, multiple strings, whether and even if it was
just one doing musical theater.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
When you look back at old movies.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
Almost every major actor you can name sang, dance and act,
everyone from Judy Garland to Frank Sinatra to Bing Crosby,
Bob Hole. Everybody was doing everything. So that was what
I was always taught. The journey was supposed to be,
but I actually didn't start getting pigeonholed until I did
a different world. So I moved from live performing into
(05:51):
doing now this what would.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
Become that became most art.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
I was just gonna say, but you talk about when
do people start telling you you're doing too much or
your skill set is too and try to put you
in a box. That was when it started, because I
went from being able and open to be this multifaceted
person to now I'm doing a TV series, which ended
up being one of the most successful television.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
Series then and now.
Speaker 3 (06:17):
But now you're, oh, well, now you're just an actress,
or you're a comedic actress, or you're a sitcom actress.
And then I went from being the youngest to play
in the Oldest Person when I was actually younger than
a lot of people around me. I was just taller
than everybody playing the older person.
Speaker 4 (06:33):
Huh about five seven, but I look long. I look
taller because.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
I have long legs, and well, you know everybody, so
you know. But that's when people started saying and when
I when I got cast to do a different world.
The musical director from The Cosby Show also knew me
as as the singer, songwriter musician that I that I
that I am, and he invited me to write the
theme song for the show. So that's how I ended
(06:59):
up writing the theme song and being cast in the
show because I wasn't in a box yet, so I
was able to bring both those gifts and blessings to
one show and they had no idea they had hired
the same person.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
Here's the funny part about it that I shouldn't say funny,
you know, because you know, I met you when I
knew you as an actress, and I remember when you
came into the studio. We're talking about the studio chief Howard,
and I was doing the radio show in LA and
you was promoting your music and I just looked at
you as an actress.
Speaker 1 (07:27):
I go, oh, she's trying to sing that.
Speaker 4 (07:29):
She's trying to sing that. That's one folk and that's
what people do.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
You know.
Speaker 4 (07:33):
I am grateful for the blessing of how people came
to know me. But it was just just.
Speaker 3 (07:38):
One small sorry, but it's okay. You wouldn't be the first.
So there were some people who only know me as
a singer and a musician who are wondering, how come
you don't sing more? You know, But that's how the
journey has gone. So now I still do concerts, I
still compose. I got the honor. I received the honor
of being inducted into the Women's Songwriter Hall of Fame
(08:01):
alongside people like Valerie Simpson, Bunny Hull, Mary Carpenter Chapin.
Speaker 4 (08:06):
I mean, it was just an honor.
Speaker 3 (08:09):
You know.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
You know, it's really interesting because you know you have that.
You know, there's so many blessings that come your way,
and sometimes in the world a lot of your success
you're not seen as a writer, as a voice person
in animation, and then people can go what you been
doing lately?
Speaker 4 (08:32):
I haven't stopped so gratefully, you know what.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
It may not have been in front of the camera,
but it's in so many facets around that allow me
to keep being creative. To your point, animation, that's been
a beautiful blessing.
Speaker 4 (08:46):
I've been doing it for more than thirty years animation.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
Okay, now I can't do voices. Yeah, I'm barely doing
this show. Okay, how you know?
Speaker 1 (08:57):
You know, can you imitate people or how do you
get into that force? Then? How did you start? How
did you I.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Don't necessarily imitate people, although I have been hired to
do what's called looping additional voices for a particular actor
that I can sound similar to that can't come back
in to.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
Do their own pickups.
Speaker 3 (09:16):
So they bring me in to do like little additional
lines to cover certain actors that I can sound like.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
Money Lewis.
Speaker 4 (09:28):
It's all possible and I can't share me check amen.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
But no. It started when Susanda pass of Motown fame
and discovering the Jackson's and all of that. She was
interested in managing me years ago, and that was before
she got big into producing.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
So she got asked me because she was in my
life on sister's sister. That's why she came into my life.
Speaker 3 (09:49):
She's a brilliant, brilliant and resourceful woman.
Speaker 4 (09:53):
So she asked me.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
She got the opportunity to executive produce this new animated
series around.
Speaker 4 (09:59):
Kid and Play.
Speaker 3 (10:00):
Okay, so she asked me if big Kid and play
the the Kidden play Chris and Chris so and asked
if I would come and do a voice So I
came and said, all right, well, I've done jingles, I've
done all kinds of success session work, so this will
be my first time doing a TV series.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
So I just came and imitated my niece who was
a child and talk like this all the time.
Speaker 3 (10:19):
I was like, a kid, come on, let's go in
and do this routine and it's gonna be fun.
Speaker 4 (10:23):
All right, come on five, six, seven eight.
Speaker 3 (10:26):
And that was my first gig and there aren't very
many people of color in the animation world, particularly at
that time, so the.
Speaker 4 (10:33):
Director was like, who are you? How come I never
met you before?
Speaker 3 (10:37):
And then my name just started getting passed around from
gig to gig, director to director, shows like you know,
Spider Man, Hulk, she Hulk, all of It, Batman and Robin.
Speaker 4 (10:50):
I've been doing voiceovers ever since.
Speaker 2 (10:52):
So, okay, this is so funny because that's just one voice,
so you just can't come in there and do the
same voice for everything. So how does the castine sessions
work when you're doing are your or your audition I'm
sure your audition for this every now and then, yeh okay, excuse.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
Me, excuse your sister.
Speaker 2 (11:12):
Money, I said money, Okay, done, money Lewis Okay, Now.
Speaker 1 (11:17):
Will you do audition?
Speaker 2 (11:19):
Well, how does that prep work when you're just dealing
with a voice?
Speaker 3 (11:22):
With it, when it's just a voice, You get an outline,
You get what they call a breakdown of what the
character is supposed to be. Is it a seventy year
old Is it a seventy year old one woman? Is
it a seven year old boy? Are you East African?
Are you British?
Speaker 1 (11:37):
Okay?
Speaker 3 (11:37):
Are you a Caribbean? Are you a monster? Are you
an alien? Are you a witch or a warlock?
Speaker 4 (11:44):
No?
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Seriously, So they give you the written outline, and every
now and then they have a visual idea of what
the character is going to look like, so you may
see an illustration. So when you combine all of that,
you sit in your spirit and come up with something
that you think would sound come out of this person's mouth.
And then you collaborate with the director and you say, well,
what about this voice to go?
Speaker 4 (12:05):
No, try a little higher pitch.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
Make them sound younger, make make them sound older, make
them sound broken down, and that's how you put the
elements together.
Speaker 1 (12:13):
Right, Okay?
Speaker 2 (12:14):
Figuring of Don Lewis, you know of Different World fame.
You know, I've told her myself that when she came
and I met her the first time Steve Harve and
I was on radio, I said, why is this actress
trying to be a singer? And I've discovered she was
a triple threat. Pride to being discovered on different world
and different World kind of boxed you in, like people
will say, that's all you can do, right and then
(12:35):
but you launched an animated career. You're a songwriter in
the Hall of fame. Now where's the book or do
you have you done a book on Don Money Lewis?
Speaker 4 (12:45):
You know what, I have been tempted to write a book,
and I start, what.
Speaker 1 (12:49):
Would the inspiration be behind the.
Speaker 4 (12:51):
Tempt the attempt?
Speaker 1 (12:54):
Yeah, if you said writing a book.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
But it would be the unlikely nie of somebody who
was committed to having a journey, right, you know, because
where I'm from, in Bedsty, you are not encouraged to
think big and to have big dreams and to dare
to think beyond your neighborhood.
Speaker 4 (13:13):
And I came up in the pub public school system,
so there.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
Weren't any special charters or scholarships or you know, inordinate
amounts of money being funded into me, like when I
wrote the theme song for a Different World. Like I said,
I was sixteen when I left home, so all I
was armed with was what I was taught in my house,
was what my mom instilled in me.
Speaker 4 (13:34):
And you know, truth be told.
Speaker 3 (13:36):
As a teenager coming up, all it did was irritate me,
and that was one of the reasons why I needed
to get out of the house. But now you're out
of the house and you find yourself doing the exact
things that your mom taught you to do and responding
the way your mom taught you to respond, which is
and all of a sudden, you go, Okay, I guess
she wasn't as.
Speaker 4 (13:55):
Foolish after all, and gets it kind of made sense.
Speaker 3 (13:58):
But that was the big of me recognizing the power
of positive input into me and into my life.
Speaker 4 (14:08):
Please don't go anywhere.
Speaker 5 (14:10):
We'll be right back with more Money Making Conversations Masterclass.
Welcome back to the Money Making Conversations Masterclass hosted by
Rashaan McDonald. Money Making Conversations Masterclass continues online at Moneymakingconversations
dot com and follow Money Making Conversations Masterclass on Facebook,
(14:34):
Twitter and Instagram.
Speaker 1 (14:36):
Your character, yes, you know why did people gravitate to it?
Speaker 2 (14:41):
Because I gravitated to your character on Different World.
Speaker 1 (14:47):
Why do you think people really were enamored?
Speaker 2 (14:51):
I want want to use the word you enamored because
with your character, because it was a Let me not
give it away any hints and then I'll respond after.
Speaker 3 (15:00):
Okay, Well, I think people embrace the show that they
weighed that they did because of the different facets of
life and humanity that each of us represented. There was
the bugy person, the geeky person, the seasoned citizen, and
mister Gaines who didn't have a degree but was there
to speak positivity and wisdom into each of the students.
(15:20):
My character was someone who had decided she wasn't done yet.
And where some people may chip it in, you know,
cash in their chips and say, well, look, I'm such
an age, this is all there is for me and
keep it moving as best as they can. But Jalisa decided,
you know what, No, there's more I want to do
and I'm going to get the tools I need in
(15:41):
order to do it. And if it means going back
to school. That's what I'm going to do because I,
which is one of the things we say in our foundation,
the New Day Foundation, is I am my best investment.
And that's what Lisa Jalisa chose. So I think a
lot of people see that in themselves or want to
see that in themselves. And besides that, it wasn't common
(16:04):
to see a brown skin sis sister very comfortable in
her own skin on television on a weekly basis. And
then we got blessed by adding Charnelle Brown to the
cast that was even.
Speaker 4 (16:16):
Darker skin than I was.
Speaker 3 (16:17):
So all of those people who weren't accustomed because I
know I wasn't everyone I used to see, whether it
was commercials or television, was you know, fair skin, really thin,
you know, all those things which are beautiful in itself.
But I was there to reflect a group of women
in particular, and for men who like brown sisters, you know,
(16:39):
to say, okay, we got some of this too, So
we had some.
Speaker 4 (16:42):
Of everything on our show.
Speaker 3 (16:43):
So I am so grateful that, you know, people, as
you said, were enever with me and my character as no.
Speaker 4 (16:52):
As they are today.
Speaker 3 (16:53):
And people are still black, don't crack. We been just
a teen ny.
Speaker 1 (17:03):
You're not breaking. You may not even even bended.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Okay, you know because okay, your skin tone, that that
that attracted me to you.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
Your maturity, come on.
Speaker 4 (17:16):
Come on, and maturity.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
It was something different, you know on the show. And
also your presence because when you came in the room,
it was you know, you had all these other characters
seemed like out of control because it was teenager mentality
and you had a maturity about you that really resonated
I felt, and uh, it was needed in the show,
(17:42):
and they did a good job of.
Speaker 1 (17:44):
Producing that your character.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
So I feel that's why I resonated for Rashawn McDonald,
and I think it resonated to a lot of people.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
Plus it was a hot mama, okay, and we as
young people, needed a hot mama looking at the TV.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
If I could just date her, if I can just
fight her, nobody care about your need.
Speaker 1 (18:04):
Friends tell you, boy, hit you in the back of
the head, boy, shut up. She didn't even recognize you.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
And so, but that's one of the things, the qualities
that you brought to the table, and.
Speaker 1 (18:12):
It lives today.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
But the blessing of the conversation is that you know,
animation has started thirty years ago, but now you're still
in the heart of the Futurama, The Simpsons, you know. Uh,
and now Star Trek, lawd Decks tell.
Speaker 1 (18:27):
Us about that.
Speaker 3 (18:28):
Well, that journey continued, like you said, and gratefully. Now,
in addition to the ones you mentioned, I'm on to
over a dozen TV series now, House Housebroken.
Speaker 4 (18:38):
Craig of the of the Creek.
Speaker 3 (18:41):
Fairly Odd Parents, Apple and Onion, Fairly Odd Parents, Karma's World,
Ludacris this series, Karma's World, and I play you know, yeah, Heartstone, Trolls,
I mean, all of it, Mortal Kombat, you know, and
then some Yeah, I know, I know. It's it's fantastic
(19:03):
because I get to voice and bring to life characters
that you wouldn't hire me visually to play. You wouldn't
hire me to play a seven year old boy or
a ninety year old grandmother.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Let me hear that seven year old boy boy?
Speaker 4 (19:15):
Oh no you no, you no, oh my, this is
second cool man.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
It is so fly.
Speaker 4 (19:22):
Yeah. So anyway, so doing doing things like that.
Speaker 3 (19:26):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (19:26):
And when I got Star Trek, I.
Speaker 1 (19:28):
Would never be bored with you. No, I would never
never show leave me alone.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
Of different languages and all kinds of different accents.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
You know, I would never tell you shut up and
leave me alone, say what you're wearing today? Kind of sexty.
My god, we get bored.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
You're talking, you know, And so the the Lord Deck,
you know, you pling Carol Freeman, right, was Carol just
very important to put the captain in front of that.
Speaker 4 (20:00):
It shows leadership.
Speaker 3 (20:01):
And in the world of Star Trek in the franchise,
it's me and Avery Brooks, yes as black captains, him
as male, him as me as the female black captain
in this legacy of excellence and diversity. And I've been
a fan of the show since the very first series
(20:21):
came on with Captain Kirk and Spock and Sulu and
all of those people. And to see Michelle Nichols on
camera as a child was made me hopeful that there
was hope for me because she was brown skinned and
she was excellent.
Speaker 4 (20:36):
And she was she was fiery, she could hold her
own with anybody.
Speaker 3 (20:41):
So she was my hero, especially in the sixties where
when you were watching the news, all you saw was
people of color being beaten, holes, chased by dogs, marching, picketing.
Speaker 1 (20:51):
It was the the.
Speaker 3 (20:56):
Just position of where diversity stood in Gene Roddenberry's world
as opposed to the real world really made me hopeful
that we can do this. We can respect everyone's excellence,
we can deal with each other with integrity and with
inclusion and get it done and it'll be all right.
Speaker 4 (21:18):
It really will.
Speaker 3 (21:19):
So now, all these years later, for Michelle to become
one of my dearest friends and mentors and get to
meet some of these people that I grew up idolizing,
and I did not know that what I was auditioning
for was Star.
Speaker 4 (21:32):
Trek because they changed the name.
Speaker 3 (21:34):
We had to sign NDA's And when they finally hired
all of us and we get to the table read
and turn our scripts.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Over, we all were like, whoa stop, what really Star
Trek for real?
Speaker 3 (21:45):
And myself, Tawny Newsome the star of the show, Jack Quaid,
Eugene Cordero, Noel, Well, thank you, Fred Tatters. It's the
last season on Paramount Plus. That's what we like to say,
because our see there you go, but our hope and
our desires that we will get picked up somewhere else
(22:05):
because the people who watch our show absolutely love it,
and some people never watch Star Trek before.
Speaker 4 (22:14):
I do.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
I do, and I get to meet and engage with
so many of the people that watch our show. It's
insane the love that we get for our show and
the people that say, if you've ever I'm not gonna
give away too much. But on our show, myself and
the star Tawny Newsome. Her character's name is Beckett, Beckett Mariner,
and she and I do not get along. It's like
(22:36):
any of the teenage mother and daughter kind of relationship.
But as the seasons go on, you watch changes and growth,
not in just our relationship but throughout the entire crew.
Speaker 4 (22:47):
So no, I'm a different kind of captain.
Speaker 2 (22:49):
You know, it's so fun. I was watching The Boys. Yes, okay,
so I'm sitting up there watching the Boys.
Speaker 4 (22:54):
And there I am.
Speaker 2 (22:57):
I like, first of all, you know, first of all,
you know, I'm going like you know that, you know,
you know, And then then you go through your credits,
you read it, you go to the cat it's it's
(23:17):
you know, it's fascinating to be a fan of someone
and then you see them in the show that you
don't expect to see them the show.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
Not saying you can't do.
Speaker 2 (23:26):
That show, but when you was in it in that
role that was playing and it was like that that.
I'm just telling you, that's what you do to people.
You have a fan base that gets excited and roots
for you, loves to see you. And the fact that
being on my show allows people to understand a tremendous career.
(23:48):
It's what a force you are and so many different levels.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
As you started when you was a kid. You still
are a.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Quadruple threat now, you know, and to be able to
I always talk about people with careers, you know, because
you always can jump out in different world, different world?
Speaker 1 (24:06):
Was your launching pad to right to the world right
fast forward? Twenty years, thirty years?
Speaker 2 (24:12):
What have you done? What has what's sustainable? And that's
what I call a career. And you have a career,
and you know what I'm talking about because you can
you can jump out there and it just stops.
Speaker 1 (24:23):
Right and you've been able to keep moving forward. Tell
us about that journey.
Speaker 3 (24:27):
You know what, again, You've got to basically quiet than
they sayers by just showing up and doing the work
and being able to work with people and to bring
excellence to it.
Speaker 4 (24:41):
And I do my best to always do my best.
Speaker 3 (24:43):
So whether it's nine to one one, Gray's Anatomy, Veronica
Mars any day Now you know any of those shows,
recording with any of those people that I started to
mention before, whether it's you know, Patrice Russian, Everett Harp,
you know, the list just goes on and on.
Speaker 4 (25:01):
Grover Washington Junior.
Speaker 3 (25:02):
I wrote and recorded for him and Nancy Wilson, as
well as doing my own and independent CD.
Speaker 4 (25:09):
All of it is just grace to God that he.
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Keeps opening doors and giving me what I need to
walk through them successfully. And then having people like you
who will jump up with a high pitched voice and say,
oh my God, that's right, that's her, and make room
for everything that I do because only more is coming.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
Now we're gonna talk about a New Day Foundation. I
made a donation, Yes you will, many years ago. Okay,
I'm pretty sure that money spent well, long time, long time, So.
Speaker 1 (25:36):
That means that she's back.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
If she's back, that means donation time out of Rushan
say Donald, which is no problem.
Speaker 1 (25:43):
Tell everybody about a New Day Foundation.
Speaker 3 (25:44):
A New Day Foundation is basically the ongoing work that
I've been doing for almost fifteen for almost fifty years
since I graduated from elementary school. It has been important
to me to go back and give back cause, like
I said, my teachers poured into me when I was
young to help me find a brighter path for myself
and my talent. So that's always been important to me.
(26:07):
About eight nine years ago, I wanted to do national programs,
and up until then I had been doing all of
this on my own. So in order to get corporate support,
public support, I had to form a nonprofit. So that
is a New Day Foundation, which is a play on
my name Dawn, a New Day where we want to
be a new day of opportunity, so that where you
(26:28):
were yesterday is not where you have to end up today.
Speaker 4 (26:31):
Nor be tomorrow.
Speaker 3 (26:32):
So we do programmatic services for teens, teen boys, mentors,
teen girls, sisters.
Speaker 4 (26:38):
Hangout, and we do an annual conference called.
Speaker 3 (26:40):
Focused and fit FT which stands for Financially and technolo Knowlogy.
Speaker 4 (26:44):
Informed for a different World.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
And at that conference we give out scholarships anywhere from
six to twelve of two thousand dollars each in a
new laptop. That is for high school juniors and seniors
and their parents and college freshmen and sophomores. That four
year demographic now we sponsor two year round school programs,
one called HBCU Hero, so for your HBCU audience that
(27:09):
is listening. We have monthly workshops where any HBCU student
can join in virtually with tools for entrepreneurship, career planning,
economic wisdom, and marketing skills. And then we have programs
in two middle schools and two high schools in Long
Beach and we partner with an organization called Inspiration fifty
(27:29):
two to do that year round program. So in everything
we do, which is why your support is really so crucial,
all jokes side, it's because everything we do we do
free of charge. So all of our fundraising is to
buy the workshop materials, to hire buses if we need
to transport kids anywhere to any of these events, meals,
(27:50):
workshop materials, admission costs, all of it.
Speaker 4 (27:55):
That's what it is.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
It is for what's the website so people interested in.
Speaker 3 (27:58):
Donating, The website is www dot a New Day Foundation
dot net. Www dot a New Day Foundation dot net
and if you have any questions, just email us info.
Speaker 4 (28:18):
At a New Day Foundation.
Speaker 3 (28:20):
Dot net and all of that information comes directly to us.
So we all of our programs we can take it,
as you mentioned before, anywhere across the country, and we've
supported programs and done programs as far away as Raunchi,
India and Guyana, South America, which is where my family
is from, and New York, Chicago, Florida, Dallas, l A.
(28:42):
You name it. We have been there and are happy
to come back and create programs anywhere we are able.
Speaker 2 (28:49):
Wow, I want to thank you for coming on Machell
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. We'll be making a contribution again
and I'm gona tell you them when you say this
will come back. She tracked me down get my check
that get my check which I did give my gift
to check to it and it was kind of got
lost to the mail or something like that. But again
I I it's a blessing to actually sit down and
(29:11):
talk to you in person. And you're special, but you
know that you don't survive in this industry and then
have the relationship where people will call you for work
instead of auditioning for work as a reputation. And that's
something that people need to understand. This business and anything
in life is built on relationships and also relationships that
(29:32):
allow you to grow as a person and you've grown
tremendously before our eyes and.
Speaker 1 (29:37):
She's a stop iconic. I did like iconic and she's
team to turn to Mama. Thank you, my.
Speaker 4 (29:45):
Pleasure, my pleasure, Thank you so much.
Speaker 2 (29:48):
This has been another edition of Money Making Conversation Masterclass
posted by me Rashawn McDonald. Thank you to our guests
on the show today and thank you. I'll listening to
audience now. If you want to listen to any episode
I want to be a guest on the show, visit
Moneymakingconversations dot com. Our social media handle is Moneymaking Conversation.
Join us next week and remember to always leave with
(30:09):
your gifts.
Speaker 1 (30:10):
Keep winning.
Host
Rushion McDonald
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