African American Speakers

Dr. Hakeem Olyuseyi, author of a highly-anticipated upcoming memoir, The Stars in My Soul: My Unlikely Journey through Space and Time, is an internationally-recognized astrophysicist, science TV personality, and global education advocate who has had a long, distinguished career in academia and scientific research. Currently, he is stationed at NASA Headquarters, where he serves as an Astrophysicist and Space Science Education Lead for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. A former TED fellow, Dr. Oluseyi holds three degrees, eight U.S. patents, four E.U. patents, and co-hosts several shows on Science Channel and Discovery International, including Outrageous Acts of Science, How the Universe Works, Space's Deepest Secrets, Strange Evidence, You Have Been Warned, and Strip the Cosmos. Dr. Oluseyi’s success is even more impressive given his incredible personal background and story. Motivating audiences globally with his message of persevering past naysayers, self-doubt, and seemingly immovable obstacles, he is exclusively represented by Leading Authorities.

Jonathan Capehart is a journalist and television personality who has worked as a policy advisor to Michael Bloomberg’s campaign, a national affairs columnist, and was a member of the Daily News editorial board which won the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing. He currently writes for The Washington Post’s PostPartisan blog and is a contributor for MSNBC.

A school teacher turned actor, musician, two-time national poetry slam champion, entrepreneur, and award-winning poetic voice, any given day may now find Sekou keynoting at a leadership conference, helping a Fortune 500 company with brand messaging, or even performing pieces for Barack Obama in Oprah’s backyard. Sekou is the creator of Poetic Voice, a new, cutting-edge speaking category that seamlessly fuses inspirational speaking with spoken word poetry to make messages more moving and memorable. For over 15 years, Sekou Andrews has been helping the world’s largest organizations deliver relevant information with riveting inspiration through an innovative, unconventional category of speaking called “Poetic Voice.”

Laila Ali is a world-class athlete, fitness & nutrition expert, TV host, cooking enthusiast, founder of the Laila Ali Lifestyle Brand and mother of two. The daughter of late beloved global icon and humanitarian, Muhammad Ali, she is a four-time undefeated boxing world champion, whose stellar record includes 24 wins (21 of which were "knockouts") and zero losses. Laila is heralded as the most successful female in the history of women’s boxing.

Political strategist Donna Brazile is the former interim chair of the DNC, as well as the former vice chair for civic engagement and voter participation at the DNC, an adjunct professor, best-selling author, syndicated columnist, and television commentator. She was also the first African-American woman to manage a presidential campaign. Her southern charm, big personality, and hilarious anecdotes make her an instant audience favorite. Oprah’s O magazine chose her as one of its “20 remarkable visionaries” and Washingtonian named her one of its “100 most powerful women.” Brazile is known for her ability to analyze the political climate and attract supporters, and she addresses this and the political mood of the country.

Earvin "Magic" Johnson is a retired American professional basketball player. He was rated the greatest NBA point guard of all time by ESPN in 2007 and since his retirement, Johnson has been an advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention.