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What's The 411 Episode 50! News About Ava Duvernay; Taraji P. Henson; Denzel Washington; Michael Strahan and More

Milestone Episode: News about: Brandy; Jan Gaye's tell-all book about her life with Marvin Gaye; Cosmetic Trends; On The Carpet and more! 

Yay, we are celebrating a milestone, EPISODE 50!!!!

In this 50th episode of What's The 411, expert fashion stylist, consultant, and soon-to-be author, Courtney Rashon of Courtney Rashon Industries sits in with What's The 411 host, Glenn Gilliam, as guest host for Kizzy Cox.

This episode takes a look at an update on Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown's daughter, Bobbi Kristina; conversations around Toya Graham, the mother who beat her son for throwing rocks at police; cosmetic trends for 2015 with a focus on eyes and lips; and the late great R&B singer Marvin Gaye's ex-wife, Jan Gaye, has a new tell-all book out, After the Dance: My Life with Marvin Gaye. In our ever popular segment, On the Carpet, Glenn Gilliam calls on the carpet mainstream media and the Baltimore Police Union for trying to besmirch the character of state attorney general Marilyn Mosby.

Proud moment for award-winning film director, Ava DuVernay, Mattel is creating a doll of DuVernay's likeness to be part of its Sheroes Collection; and Gregory Pardlo wins a Pulitzer Prize for poetry for his book, DIGEST.

We also send prayers to the people of Nepal, blues legend B.B. King who is in hospice care, and to Kareem Abdul Jabbar, who has hospitalized again with chest pains. In memoriam, we send our condolences to the family, friends, and fans of pioneering professional golfer Calvin Peete, and R&B crooner Ben E. King.

  • Published in Videos

Michael Strahan, NFL Hall of Famer and Media Personality, Tops What's The 411TV's 25 Most Interesting People of 2014

Actress Susan Sarandon, MLB's Wendy Lewis, Fox Sports' Pam Oliver,
USTA's D.A. Abrams, National Book Award winner, Jacqueline Woodson,
and RLJ Enterprises' Traci Otey Blunt are Among the Top 10

BROOKLYN, NY; December 31, 2014 - What's The 411TV, a Brooklyn-based media company, today released its list of 25 Most Interesting People of 2014, and NFL Hall of Famer and media personality, Michael Strahan tops the list.

What's The 411TV's 25 Most Interesting People of 2014 was developed from interviews conducted by What's The 411TV reporters between January 1, 2014 through December 12, 2014. The list consists of celebrated personalities to artists seeking to break through to ordinary people doing extraordinary things to New Yorkers rallying for the return of the more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram. Many people on the list are local to the New York City metro area, while others are national or global figures.

"Once again, What's The 411TV reporters have selected so many amazing and interesting people for What's The 411TV's list of 25 Most Interesting People of 2014," said Ruth J. Morrison, CEO and Founder, What's The 411 Networks. "This is our way to say thank you to those on the list, to congratulate them and to celebrate their accomplishments. Similar to last year, it was not an easy task for our reporters and producers to narrow down the list to 25 and since we couldn't, we also have a list of three honorable mentions."

Below is a list of What's The 411TV's 25 Most Interesting People of 2014 falling into the categories of sports; film; literature; music; television; fashion and style; and business and entrepreneurship.

1. Michael Strahan – Pro Football Hall of Famer (NFL) and media personality; on his way to becoming "King of All Media" – Interviewed by: Andrew Rosario

2. Wendy Lewis - MLB Senior Vice President, Diversity & Strategic Alliances; for being able to play with the boys - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

3. Traci Otey Blunt – Corporate Executive Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Affairs, RLJ Enterprises – leveraged political communications to transition to corporate communications, marketing, public relations and investor relations, as well as the promotion of the Urban Movie Channel. Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam using a Samsung S4

4. Kyle Donovan – Inventor; Founder, NV Magazine; entrepreneur motivating others to make a difference - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

5. D.A. Abrams - Chief Diversity Officer USTA; helping to make diversity a reality within tennis - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

6. Pam Oliver – NFL and NBA sportscaster; for treading where few women have gone in sports and for taking the high road during a public demotion – Interviewed by: Andrew Rosario

7. Jacqueline Woodson – National Book Award-winning author; gracious after a fellow author muddied her introduction as the winner of the National Book Award for Young Adult Literature for her book, BROWN GIRL DREAMING – Interviewed by: Luvon Roberson

8. Bring Back Our Girls Movement (NY) – rallying cry to rescue over 200 girls kidnapped in Nigeria by Boko Haram; lesson learned: sustaining a movement is hard work, particularly when it seems that no one else cares– Interviewed by: Kizzy Cox

9. Susan Sarandon – Academy Award and BAFTA award-winning actress; committed to human rights causes; worked with Amnesty International – Interviewed by: Bianca Peart

10. Melanie Few-Harrison - Founder of Super Bowl Gospel Celebration; creator of the first and only gospel event sanctioned by the NFL for Super Bowl Weekend– Interviewed by: Cristina Twitty

11. Remembering Ruby Dee - Memorial Service; friends and family celebrate the life of award-winning actress, Ruby Dee– Interviews by: Kizzy Cox and Rita Obi

12. Frank Savage - former investment banker and author of THE SAVAGE WAY: Successfully Navigating the Waves of Business and Life; a highly accomplished Global Wall Street Financier with a distinguished career in international banking, corporate finance, and global investment management - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

13. Melba Moore – singer and actress; her faith keeps her going - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

14. Jamal Joseph - artist, poet, director, producer, educator, and founder of Impact Repertory Theatre; developing leaders– Interviewed by: Christopher Graham

15. Lionel Hollins - Head Coach, Brooklyn Nets; a real standup guy, deeply connected to family and community - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

16. Brian Smith - NY Yankees SVP Corporate/Community Relations; merges baseball and community development - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

17. Daisy Llewellyn – Stylist, reality television star of Bravo's Blood, Sweat & Heels; and author of Never Pay Retail Again: Shop Smart, Spend Less, & Look Your Best Ever; She is the Queen of Effortless Chic - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

18. Richard Sherman – cornerback for Seattle Seahawks (NFL); Did we say, FEARLESS! – Interviewed by: Andrew Rosario

19. Teddy Bridgewater - NFL Quarterback, Minnesota Vikings; made it to the big stage; still grounded and fulfills promise to family - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

20. Mark Jaffe - President/CEO Greater NY Chamber of Commerce; a business leader who supports raising the minimum wage - Interviewed by Glenn Gilliam

21. Khary Lazarre White - Founder and Executive Director, Brotherhood Sister Sol; creating the next generation of leaders - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

22. Claudia Rankine – poet and National Book Award Finalist for Poetry for Citizen: An American Lyric ; her images show the violence of American racism's "micro" assaults – Interviewed by: Luvon Roberson

23. Michelle Miller - CBS Correspondent; proud advocate of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam using a Samsung S4

24. Ericka Pittman - VP Brand Strategy, Blue Flame Agency; a leader in business and personal branding - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

25. Christopher Chaney, Publisher of NV Magazine; creator of NV Magazine's Movers and Shakers Awards - Interviewed by Glenn Gilliam

Honorable Mentions

Yamina Collins – first time novelist, author of sci-fi romance novel, THE LAST KING; bringing episodic novels back into vogue - Interviewed by Luvon Roberson

Skoolie Escobar – Alabama rapper and entrepreneur trying to bring consciousness back to hip hop through the use of thought provoking visuals in his music video that accompanies his new single, Check Out My Watch – Interviewed by: Rita Obi

Tren'Ness Woods Black - President and Chief Strategist of Tren'ness Woods-Black, LLC; one of the keepers of the flame of Sylvia Woods' legacy. Sylvia Woods was the founder of Sylvia's restaurant in Harlem - Interviewed by: Glenn Gilliam

Previous personalities on What's The 411TV's list of Most Interesting People include: the late Maya Angelou; Motown Founder, Berry Gordy; Brooklyn Nets principal owner Mikhail Prokhorov; Willis Reed; Jeremy Lin; Mike Tyson and more.

About What's The 411TV

Based in Brooklyn, New York, What's The 411TV is a division of What's The 411 Networks, a media/news, marketing, and events company. What's The 411TV connects sophisticated multi-cultural audiences with its content through its distribution platforms of television, online, mobile, and social media.

What's The 411TV produces two weekly television shows, What's The 411, an award-winning entertainment and lifestyle television show and What's The 411Sports, a sports news and commentary television show.

What's The 411TV's celebrity portfolio consists of interviews with Magic Johnson, Beyonce, Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, Morgan Freeman, Danny Glover, Harrison Ford, Samuel L. Jackson, Angela Bassett, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Hudson, and many, many more.

About Ruth J. Morrison

Ruth J. Morrison is the CEO and Founder of What’s The 411 Networks, an integrated media, marketing, and events company, which produces the award-winning weekly news and information television show, What’s The 411 and What’s The 411Sports. The company covers the Brooklyn Nets, New York Knicks, New York Giants, US OPEN, and other sports events. A video streaming pioneer, she developed and launched from conception the City of New York's multi-channel cable television network and served as a Communications Director and Legislative Advisor to a New York Member of the U.S. Congress. She is the first African-American independent television producer to have a weekly television show on WNYC-TV and for three years, she worked in Brasil as an entertainment and television licensing consultant for an American company. Ms. Morrison earned a master's degree in Interactive Telecommunications from the prestigious Tisch School of the Arts at New York University and she was a Communications Fellow at the Annenberg Washington Program of Northwestern University. She taught courses in telecommunications at Fordham University and she completed her coursework towards a Ph.D. in Political Science at Columbia University.

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Who Will Replace Columbus Short on Scandal; Red Carpet Fashion, and more

This What's The 411 episode finds the panel of Bianca Peart, Glenn Gilliam, Jacinda Motton, and Kizzy Cox talking about the Michael Strahan and Nicole Murphy breakup; and who could replace Columbus Short on THE ABC-TV hit television series, SCANDAL. Crystal Lynn brings us her interview with Vivica A. Fox who attended Justin Tuck's charity event to raise money for literacy.

Who's being Called on the Carpet this week?  

Police Departments harboring rogue police officers; Donald Trump because of his comments about the Ebola Virus; and Lifetime Television because of its casting mis-steps are all being called on the carpet in this episode.

And, stay tuned for Jacinda Motton, aka Ms. Fashioinista J, as she leads us in a red carpet fashion critique of Who Was Hot and Who Was Not.

Among the celebrities on the red carpet are: Chadwick Boseman, Jill Scott, Nick Cannon (looking like a picnic table), Tamala Jones, Tika Sumpter, Tyra Banks, and Vivica A. Fox.

WATCH WHAT'S THE 411 HERE 

What's Poppin': Looks Like Michael Strahan and Nicole Murphy Are Calling It Quits

It's seems like it might be over for football great and television icon Michael Strahan and Hollywood Exes star Nicole Murphy. The news came during Strahan's induction into the pro football hall of fame. Rumors have it that there was cheating on both sides and Nicole was recently spotted with Ex-NBA star Jim Jackson and has been seen with French dancer Larry Bourgeous.

Does the news sadden you? Do you have a, I could care less opinion? Or, are you happy that the relationship might be over?

Watch the Video and Join the Conversation

 

NFL Hall of Fame Induction 2014

WATCH VIDEO: DISCUSSION ABOUT NFL HALL OF FAME 2014

 

 The What's The 411Sports team are talking about the NFL Hall of Fame 2014, and NFL Hall of Famers, Michael Strahan and Andre Reed.

  • Published in Videos

Michael Strahan Talks Live with Kelly and Michael and Football Hall of Fame

Although his day is pretty much get up, go to work, go to bed and start all over again, Michael Strahan is having a great time doing his morning show, Live! with Kelly and Michael.

Strahan told What's The 411Sports reporter, Andrew Rosario, during Super Bowl Week 2014, he doesn't see much difference between being on Fox NFL Sunday and talking football and doing his morning show because sports and entertainment are all intertwined.

The real advantage of being on Fox NFL Sunday was being on camera. It prepared him for Live! with Kelly and Michael because just being on camera helps you to get over the nervousness of knowing millions of people are watching.

Additionally, Strahan credits learning television teamwork from working with Terry Bradshaw and crew on Fox NFL Sunday, which was great preparation for Live! with Kelly and Michael.

However, with all that said, what separates Fox NFL Sunday from Live! with Kelly and Michael is that Live! with Kelly and Michael is a lot more animated and there is more talk time than on Fox NFL Sunday.

On Being Elected into Pro Football Hall of Fame

As for the possibility of getting voted into the Pro Hall of Fame (NFL), "It would be amazing," Strahan said.

"It would be amazing and hopefully it happens. But, it is one of those things you can't worry about because you can't control it. And, you go out and you play as hard as you can for as long as you can, and hopefully it's appreciated, and the votes come in your way. And, if they don't, you go back to the drawing board and continue to live your life because being in the Hall of Fame (Pro Football) or not, doesn't mean you stop living. It means you keep on going and doing what you continue to do," Strahan continued.

Life seems to be good for Strahan, right now, really good.

Update: Michael Strahan was elected to the NFL Football Hall of Fame on February 1, 2014.

The induction ceremony for the seven-member class took place on August 2, 2014, in Canton, Ohio.

Check out Andrew Rosario' interview with NFL Hall of Famer Michael Strahan

  • Published in Football
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