After being in Hollywood for nearly twenty years, as well as publishing two successful books, DeVon Franklin has now stepped into the role of movie producer with his animated film “The Star,” which is now playing.
One of New York’s top hip hop radio stations Power 105.1 returned to Barclays Center for the fourth consecutive year to host PowerHouse, an annual concert which features the top hip hop and R&B artists of the year.
After moving to Los Angeles in 2012 to pursue professional dancing, Woody McClain began to branch out and test his comedic skills ultimately creating social media videos that went viral with with videos such as “Permission to Cuss,” and in late 2015 McClain caught the attention of Kevin Hart who asked the young rising star to join his production company, HartBeat Digital. Two years later, McClain’s star status gained a boost following his breakout critically acclaimed performance as Bobby Brown in this year’s New Edition biopic mini series which aired on BET. Kevin Hart and Woody have collaborated on a project for Kevin’s Laugh Out Loud Network called Stories With Kev, in which Woody will be playing Kevin. Stories With Kev premiered exclusively on LaughOutLoud.com and it’s app on September 29th. Woody chatted with us about meeting Kevin, working on the project and more.
What made you create “Permission to Cuss”?
Woody McClain: I remember just sitting there watching Martin at first. It started with me watching Martin and he was doing one of his stand-ups and I was like ‘Yo I think this would be super funny if I could make this real’. But I was like at the time Instagram only let you post 15 second videos and my thing was I was trying to bring a bigger audience. So I was like that’s too much that’s too long, maybe if I take somebody that’s online that does storytelling, maybe I could bring one of their 15 second videos to life. So I did that with Plies. It started doing really good, the rapper Plies I started doing his videos and it just kept going viral. Now I was like I have to do something bigger and better and when I played Kevin Hart ‘Permission to Cuss’ I seen the whole story in my head and I was like this is the story I want to tell I have to do it. And that’s how that all came about.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yEvNDetA-eg&w=560&h=315]How did your meeting with Kevin Hart come about? What was your initial reaction when meeting Kevin Hart?
Woody McClain: Man his guy Wayne reached out to me and said they wanted to meet and we met. This meeting with Kev was like one of the best feelings you can have as a young up and coming person that wants to be in comedy. But just to see Kevin be about the business and so like smart and knows what he wants just motivated me to want to go even harder.
In working with Kevin [Hart] what was one thing you learned about him that you didn’t know before?
Woody McClain: Man Kevin’s about the business. I mean looking online it’s all fun silly Kevin Hart haha, but in person he really knows his stuff.
What was one of the funniest moments on set while filming Stories with Kev?
Woody McClain: One of the funniest moments for me.. well I don’t even know if this is considered funny but I remember the day Kevin was coming in to film the intro of the show and I could just remember everybody panicking running around making sure everything was just right and I’m like ‘Yo you guys have to relax it’s great trust me.’ And just everybody was just panicking and Kevin came in he killed it and like I said it was great no need to panic. And that was just the funniest day ever because I never seen people panic before. That was the first time me seeing the crew and cast out of their element in panic.
If you could give us your favorite Kevin Hart quote what would that be?
Woody McClain: I think it has to be “Live, Love, Laugh” that’s like one of his best quotes for me.
Besides being an leading actor on Stories with Kev, you were also executive producer. What was it like being both executive producer and an actor and having to balance both responsibilities/roles at the same time?
Woody McClain: That’s my first time executive producing something. I have so much more respect for producers and what they have to do because not only was I executive producer but I was also casting. I had to worry about locations, I had to do everything you could think of and come in and act at the same time. It just helped me prepare for the future.
With the project being exclusive to Kevin’s Laugh Out Loud, what do you feel Laugh Out Loud represents for black comedy culture?
Woody McClain: I think it’s just right now with social media it’s so much craziness, seeing some of the stupid stuff people post and I feel like younger kids are looking at that and saying this is what is funny. But Kevin is actually giving us a platform where we show kids the positive ways of life and how you can be funny and respectful. You don’t have to break stuff to be funny, you don’t have to be loud in public to be funny, you can do it a different way if that makes sense.
What’s next for you?
Woody McClain: We have Canal Street that’s a feature film I did coming out in theaters next year. I am now on Unsolved director Anthony Hemingway. That’s all I can think of right now.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gbTTSNfez9E&w=560&h=315]
As VH1’s Save the Music Foundation celebrated their 20th anniversary last night at New York City’s Sir 37, they honored Queen Latifah, DJ Khaled and Steve Aoki at a star studded gala sponsored by Toyota along with Toys R US, IOMAXIS, Notable Wines, Lyft, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, ALEX AND ANI, Raymond Weil, Heineken, Moxy Times Square and JetBlue. Celebrity guests in attendance included LaLa Anthony, Naturi Naughton, Slick Rick, The Fat Jewish, Joe Alexander, Rocsi Diaz and Wyclef Jean, as well as radio personality Sway Calloway who gave the welcoming speech. DJ D-Nice provided the music for the evening. Also present was VH1 Save the Music Foundation Executive Director Henry Donahue.
“Not all children in America are afforded the same chances to succeed, but we believe in the power of music to help students fulfill their potential. That’s why we are more committed than ever to bringing music education to students who need it most,” said Henry Donahue, executive director of the VH1 Save The Music Foundation in a press release. “Not only is music education proven to help students be more successful, but we believe it’s every child’s right to access music and art within their school and community. With the continued support of our partners in communities across the U.S., we can help make music an essential piece of every child’s education in the next 20 years.”
The Knockturnal caught up with guests of honor Latifah and Aoki (who received the Music Innovator Award) on the black carpet before they made their way inside. Latifah told us about what more can be done to increase music education in schools saying, “We just have to save the programs. We have to take music and arts as seriously as we take math and science. If we take that attitude towards them then people will really see how relevant they are.” Queen had also announced prior that in partnership with the Save the Music Foundation they are committed to a 5 year plan which will donate $5 million to rebuild music in 38 schools in Newark, New Jersey. Actress and author LaLa Anthony who came out to show support expressed how Queen has inspired her saying,”She inspires me tremendously. I mean to just be able to do so many different things and be great at it, which is something I’m always continuing trying to do in my career trying to do more than one thing and be great at it. And her company brought my book The Love Playbook and we’re partnering on a movie together so I’m super excited about that.” About what being honored by the program means to him, Steve Aoki said, “It means a lot because music changed my life. So when I go back to when I was a teenager when I was in high school, if I didn’t find the guitar, if I didn’t find the microphone, if I didn’t find that music recording device and start making music I definitely wouldn’t be standing here right now. And I definitely wouldn’t creatively been finding my voice because it essentially is a tool for me to get my expressions out of my head and putting it into a creative outlet and that was the outlet that I chose.”
Wyclef Jean who paid tribute to Queen Latifah through performance joined by The Wavie Gang told The Knockturnal about expanding music programs, “Funding, and the funding has to come more than the government but more the private sector. You see the private sector has a responsibility, social entrepreneurship. So you should take it upon yourself and say you know what I’m gonna fund these amount of kids, these amount of public schools and it changes your life.”
VH1 Save The Music also unveiled a new grant program that will create more opportunities for students across the country and advance the Foundation’s mission to make music available in every public school in America. Introduced by Steve Aoki, the Music Tech Grant is planned as an investment in American public high schools to fund: the hardware, software, and musical instruments needed for audio engineering, recording, and production. DJ Khaled (who received the #ToyotaGiving Award from sponsor Toyota for his role as a champion for music programs in schools) and is also a national spokesman for VH1’s sister organization GET SCHOOLED, announced the program will launch the Win More Music Campaign for the 2017-18 school year, in partnership Save the Music. The campaign expands upon the 2016-17 award winning “Khaled Keys campaign” and is expected to reach more than one million young people and will expose them to key components of the music industry, including composition, collaboration, production, copyrighting basics marketing, and social media. The high schools with the most engaged students will earn DJ Khaled – We The Best DJ Studio Labs in their school.
NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 16: DJ Khaled and Steve Curtis attend VH1 Save The Music 20th Anniversary Gala at SIR Stage37 on October 16, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for VH1 Save The Music )
Before leaving DJ Khaled chatted with The Knockturnal about who he wants to collaborate with in the future saying,“I haven’t collaborated with Eminem, Andre 3000 which I want to work with both of them. I worked with a lot so many, and there’s more out there. I would love to work with Adele, Seal, I like Seal too, you know what I’m saying Ed Shereen. Those are my friends, we just have to figure out how one day we can get in that studio. I’m ready.”
Academy Award-winning screenwriter and director Bill Condon is celebrating his 2006 film “Dreamgirls” (which ultimately garnered Jennifer Hudson an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and won a Golden Globe for Best Musical or Comedy Motion Picture) with an upcoming release of a Director’s Cut Extended Edition of the film.
On Wednesday (September 6th), Imani Entertainment Group premiered their feature film, an adaptation of Terri Woods’ urban novel “True to the Game” at New York City’s AMC 34th Street movie theater.
Tasha Smith best known for her roles on Tyler Perry’s For Better or Worse, Why Did I Get Married, Daddy’s Little Girls and Empire is stepping into the director’s chair as part of her latest project TV One’s When Love Kills: the Falicia Blakely Story.
Halle Berry takes what a mother will do to save her child to the next level in the Aviron Pictures’ film Kidnap, which is being released in movie theaters on Friday (August 4th).
With her raspy voice that is infused with R&B, soul and jazz, Claire Renee is making a name for herself with her brand of soul with such songs as “License to Drive” and “Telepathy.”
Rap star Remy Ma hosted a special private screening of Universal Picture’s upcoming film “Girls Trip” on Wednesday (July 19th) at The Whitby Hotel in New York City.