Drake

Rapper/Singer Hailing from Toronto, Canada, Drake has become a leading international rap artist.  He first found fame as a child actor on the Canadian teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation, but once Drake signed with Lil Wayne's Young Money team, he brought new energy to hip hop.  Combining a gift for singing catchy hooks with razor sharp rap skills, Drake dominated urban radio throughout 2010, both on his debut album Thank Me Laterand on features with A-listers like Rihanna, Jay-Z and Rick Ross.  Likewise "Headlines," the first single from Drake's 2011 follow-up album Take Care, hit No. 1 on Billboard's "Rap Songs" chart. 

Chris Brown

Singer/Actor

Exploding onto the pop charts at age 16 with the 2005 chart-topper "Run It," Virginia-born Chris Brown seemed destined for superstardom from day one. His dazzling dance moves (reminiscent of Michael Jackson and Usher) and supple voice helped Brown’s self-titled debut album sellmore than 2 million copies, and earned him lucrative endorsement deals. Although he took a beating in the press after pleading guilty to assaulting Rihanna in 2008, he has since bounced back. No where was this more evident than his heartfelt performance of "Man in the Mirror" during the Michael Jackson tribute at the 2010 BET Awards, where Brown fell to his knees crying. He appeared in the box-office hit Takers alongside Michael Ealy, Idris Elba, Hayden Christenson and T.I. and his sixth album, X, is slated for a 2013 release. 

Beyoncé

Singer/Actress/Entrepreneur

Singing and dancing in stilettos since the age of nine, Beyoncé Knowles has been well prepared for superstardom. The Texan triple-threat began as lead singer of the Grammy-winning Destiny’s Child, one of the biggest female groups of all time (40 million albums sold worldwide). Her 2003 solo debut, Dangerously In Love, featured her then-boyfriend Jay-Z on her first single, “Crazy In Love.” Beyoncé has since released three more solo albums, the most recent being 2011's 4,  with hits like “Irreplaceable” and “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)”; collaborated with superstars like Shakira and Lady Gaga; starred in films like Dreamgirls and Cadillac Records; and sung the Etta James classic “At Last” while President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama danced following his 2008 inauguration. In addition to running the fashion label House of Deréon with her mother Tina, Beyoncé (a.k.a. Sasha Fierce) married rap mogul Jay-Z and turned the gossip world upside down when on January 7, 2012, they gave birth to their first child, Blue Ivy Carter. 

Tyler Perry

Actor/Filmmaker

The New Orleans native (born Emmitt Perry, Jr.) began his career in the Atlanta chitlin circuit writing, directing, and starring in plays centered around the fictional gun-wielding, good-hearted matriarch Mabel “Madea” Simmons. In 2005, Perry went on to write, produce and star in his first film, Diary of a Mad Black Woman (also featuring Madea) and won BET Comedy Awards for outstanding writing and acting. He has since written, directed, starred in and/or produced dozens of projects, ranging from the TV series Tyler Perry’s House of Payne to a 2010 film adaptation of Ntozake Shange’s classic play For Colored Girls. In 2008 he opened Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta, the first major television and movie studio owned by an African-American producer.

Will Smith

Actor/Rapper/Entrepreneur

Will Smith has come a long way from his beginnings as Philadelphia rapper The Fresh Prince. Making radio-friendly songs like “Parents Just Don’t Understand” with childhood friend DJ Jazzy Jeff, Smith became the first rapper to win a Grammy in 1989 for the duo’s second album, “He’s The DJ, I’m The Rapper.” He soon crossed over into acting, starring in the long-running sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” before making his first foray into film with Six Degrees of Separation. Blockbuster action flicks like Bad Boys, Independence Day, and Men In Blackfollowed, earning Smith the nickname “Mr. July” for his ability to pull big audiences at the box office (most of his films have worldwide gross earnings of over $100 million, some over $500 million). Serious dramatic roles like Aliand The Pursuit of Happyness have earned him Academy Award nominations for Best Actor. Besides running his production company Overbrook Entertainment, Smith has three children, two with his wife, actress Jada Pinkett Smith.

Michelle Obama

First Lady/Lawyer Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama is a South Side of Chicago–born, Princeton and Harvard-educated lawyer, associate dean and public servant. But the first thing she'll tell you is that she’s the mom to two girls, Malia and Sasha. As President Barack Obama’s First Lady, Michelle Obama has been praised for her poise, intellect, and style. Her first official initiative is Let's Move! which seeks to tackle the epidemic of childhood obesity.  Mrs. Obama popularity has turned her into a cultural icon and she’s been featured in various publications and talk shows. At the 2013 Academy Awards, she became the first First Lady to present an Oscar when she announced the winner for Best Picture. 

NNAMDI ASOMUGHA & KERRY WASHINGTON

Obama & Man of Freedom;

"May Nelson Mandela’s life of service to others and his unwavering commitment to equality, reconciliation and human dignity continue to be a beacon for each future generation seeking a more just and prosperous world." —President Obama, recognizing ‪#‎MandelaDay‬

President Obama View;

"Each successive generation seems to be making progress in changing attitudes when it comes to race. It doesn’t mean we’re in a post-racial society. It doesn’t mean that racism is eliminated. But when I talk to Malia and Sasha, and I listen to their friends and I see them interact, they’re better than we are on these issues. And that’s true in every community that I’ve visited all across the country." —President Obama

A Medical Student shared his views:

A Medical Student shared his views:

"Trayvon Martin could have been me 35 years ago. And when you think about why, in the African American community at least, there’s a lot of pain around what happened here, I think it’s important to recognize that the African American community is looking at this issue through a set of experiences and a history that doesn’t go away."