I SEE U

United States Press Secretary and presidential advisor, Karine Jean-Pierre has held her current post at the White House for over a year. Despite the highs and lows of being at the press podium, the official spokesperson for the leader of our country has remained focused in her role – a role where she’s become a pioneering voice in American politics. The daughter of Haitian parents, Jean-Pierre is the first Black woman, the first gay woman and the first immigrant woman to hold the position of White House Press Secretary. How has she been able to navigate through the pressures of her tasks, while maintaining a sense of confidence and inner peace as the Agency’s primary messaging strategist and mother of a 9-year-old? Join I SEE U as host Eddie Robinson speaks unguarded with one of President Joe Biden’s top senior advisors, Karine Jean-Pierre. In honor of Pride month, Jean-Pierre offers up her candid remarks about the source of her resiliency and why she’s been determined to control her own narrative in living her life openly as a queer woman of color. She sits down exclusively with Eddie just moments before her commencement speech to Rice University graduates in Houston.

A fresh documentary has been released on PBS that explores a rich, but complicated history of the Buffalo Soldiers. Film director Dru Holley says these 19th century troops fought military conflicts abroad all while being confronted with civil rights struggles at home.  Join us for a special edition of I SEE U that honors the national holiday, JUNETEENTH. Host Eddie Robinson chats with documentarian Dru Holley, as he shares his inspiration behind the film, Buffalo Soldiers: Fighting on Two Fronts. Plus, I SEE U travels to the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston to learn more about the many troops, who had been former slaves in the South, that were now suddenly wearing a uniform of the United States Army. The museum’s exhibitions director and historian, Cale Carter II, provides insight into the challenges researchers are facing today as it relates to bias at certain phases of study and data collection. We find out how this dynamic could impact the next generation of learning and knowledge of Black military history.

Award-winning singer-songwriter Ruthie Foster has a voice unlike any other. Her unique style of blending blues, gospel, soul and American roots has inspired many music lovers across the globe. A native of Central Texas, Foster grew up around gospel singers and knew instantly of her passion for music – from singing in rural Texas churches to performing in the military with the Navy Band. But she was also aware of her surroundings, as she navigated around a discriminatory Deep South. Join us as host Eddie Robinson chats unguarded with Texas Music Hall of Famer, Ruthie Foster. She shares intimate stories about her devotion to family and how the coronavirus pandemic almost pushed her away from recording music permanently. Plus, the multiple Grammy-nominated artist reveals a very traumatic incident that happened to her as a child on her way to take piano lessons – a moment that would change her life forever.

Grammy-award winning mega-producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis admit to I SEE U that they have nothing to prove and yet, so much to say. Although the duo had been working together for over 35 years — writing and producing hits for other artists, they’ve finally released a studio album with their own marquee. ‘Jam and Lewis: Vol 1,’ showcases top-charting vocalists like Toni Braxton, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Usher, Boyz II Men and The Sounds of Blackness. The iconic producers reveal to host Eddie Robinson how White club owners in the ’70s shunned them from performing at venues in Minneapolis; how cultures clashed during recording sessions with English synth-pop group, The Human League; why a Janet Jackson reunion will be delayed; and what happened that made Terry Lewis almost walk away from the music industry entirely.

With the anniversary of George Floyd’s death, two preachers — one Black, one White — both of large congregations in Houston, share unguarded perspectives on why some evangelical Christians have largely remained silent on race-related issues in America where social justice concerns are taking center stage. Dr. Marcus D. Cosby, Senior Pastor of Wheeler Avenue Baptist and Dr. Steve Wells, Senior Pastor of South Main Baptist join ‘I SEE U’ Host Eddie Robinson in a surprising conversation where all participants reveal a sense of openness, vulnerability and authenticity.

Whether he’s acting in a film, on-stage or involved in a television series, Russell Hornsby ends up delivering a powerful performance full of emotion with a genuine passion for the craft. In a career spanning over two decades, his extensive portfolio includes the infamous boxing promoter, Don King, in Hulu’s “Mike,” the Oscar-nominated Paramount film, FENCES, opposite Denzel Washington and Viola Davis; the Netflix drama series, “Seven Seconds,” with Regina King; and the devoted patriarch in the mega-hit STARZ series, “BMF (Black Mafia Family).” But in many of his roles, he plays the ‘angry Black father’ – a moniker he says is “misplaced.” Join us as host Eddie Robinson speaks unguarded with award-winning actor, Russell Hornsby, in one of I SEE U’s most provocative episodes ever produced. The NAACP Image Award nominee offers up fresh insight into how he’s managed to channel certain energies within himself to bring such an astounding presence and strength to his style of acting. Hornsby candidly admits that it’s these portrayals of fatherhood that speak to a larger sense of dignity, cultural worth and personal responsibility, especially in fatherless homes of today. Plus, the star describes what he believes to be the real reason behind the success of shows like BMF and the popular POWER franchise.

Legendary actor Glynn Turman remembers a time when hardly any Black men or women were prominently featured in television. Over six decades later, he’s played hundreds of characters in film, TV and on-stage, including work as an acclaimed writer, producer and director – both in theater and television. Notable roles include the 2020 Netflix film, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom; the FX drama series, FARGO; more recently, the Paramount sports comedy, 80 for Brady, and an upcoming biographical film, Rustin, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground. His acting career started as a 12-year-old, when friend of the family—esteemed playwright, Lorraine Hansberry—asked permission from his mother to star alongside Sydney Poitier, Louis Gosset Jr. and Ruby Dee in the original Broadway production of A Raisin in the Sun. But it was his movie role in 1975’s Cooley High, that he admits to I SEE U of his defining moment as an actor. Join us as host Eddie Robinson chats candidly with celebrated actor, Glynn Turman. The Emmy Award winner will share riveting stories and narratives of how he’s managed longevity in the industry. Turman will also offer up a preview of his new documentary, his love and passion for horses as well as his fondest memory of being married to the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin.

Multi-platinum singer-songwriter, Crystal Waters — whose chart-topping ’90s hits include “Gypsy Woman (She’s Homeless)” and “100% Pure Love,” — has been in the industry for over three decades. Music journalists say Waters paved the way for many Black and female artists in dance music at a time when critics quickly shunned the genre as a passing fad. Unfortunately, her new singles fail to get the attention of today’s commercial radio or digital music programmers. The acclaimed singer tells I SEE U that payola still exists and she has to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars for her songs to gain airplay and notoriety. Join us as host Eddie Robinson explores the life and career of house music goddess, Crystal Waters. She chats unguarded about surviving a music industry that rewards certain white electronic dance artists but neglects DJ’s and producers of color who represent the genre’s original creators. The Howard University scholar also acknowledges the profound impact of how a Black, cultural phenomenon in American television played a significant role in undermining her pursuit for more stardom.

The biographical film, Chevalier, is based on the life of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges – a Black, French composer and violinist of the 1700s. As the movie unfolds, there’s an intriguing line spoken by Chevalier, in which the lead character, played by actor Kelvin Harrison Jr., states, “I realized… the more I excelled, the less I was alone.” With those resounding words, combined with a riveting film score, an interesting takeaway begins to emerge: Excellence is the best deterrent to racism. Join us as host Eddie Robinson chats unguarded with the film’s composer, Kris Bowers. The Emmy Award-winning musician – whose work includes the score to the Oscar-winning film, Green Book; the biographical sports movie, King Richard; and Netflix hit dramas, When They See Us, and Bridgerton – offers up a candid conversation centered around the reasons why Chevalier and the lives of so many other persons of color, along with their contributions to art and culture, are left out of the larger historical narrative. Bowers also reveals to I SEE U how he felt his career was being ‘categorized’ and limited by the kinds of projects presented to him. An accomplished photographer and filmmaker himself, he also shares deep introspection surrounding his Oscar-nominated short film, A Concerto Is a Conversation, which received critical acclaim for its portrayal of race in America, as the story of the relationship with his grandfather is pieced together through music.