MegaFest, the nation’s largest inspirational family festival, will bring some of entertainment’s most well-known names to Dallas for Girl Talk, one of its signature sessions during Woman Thou Art Loosed. Girl Talk will be hosted by Serita A. Jakes and Sarah Jakes Roberts, wife and daughter of Bishop T.D. Jakes respectively, along with a panel of nine women who will tackle issues such as love, marriage, divorce, faith, finance, business and careers. The session is open to all MegaFest ticket holders and is set for Friday, Aug. 21, 2015 at 2:30 p.m. at the American Airlines Center.
“Girl Talk is one of the sessions that I am looking forward to shepherding at this year’s MegaFest,” Serita Jakes said. “There’s nothing like girlfriends coming together ‘behind closed doors’ for a real world conversation on hard hitting issues that unite women of all ages and from all walks of life.”
The nine women featured on the Girl Talk panel include:
Lisa Bevere empowers women by combining the practical and profound truth of God’s Word in award-winning curriculums and best-selling books, including “Lioness Arising,” “Fight Like a Girl” and “Nurture.” Bevere co-founded Messenger International, an organization that seeks to teach, reach and rescue, with her husband, John Bevere;
Tamar Braxton started her music career with the sibling group the Braxtons, featuring sisters Traci, Trina, Towanda and Toni. Since then, she has released several solo albums and tracks, and reunited with her sisters for the WEtv “Braxton Family Values.” She is also a co-host of “The Real” a nationally syndicated talk variety show;
Caitlin Crosby, a singer/songwriter, actress, and founder and CEO of The Giving Keys, started her music career with Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds in high school. Started on one of Crosby’s tours, The Giving Keys employs those transitioning out of homelessness to make jewelry from repurposed keys. The jewelry line is carried at national retailers, including Nordstrom and Anthropologie, and has been featured on “The Today Show” and “ABC World News with Diane Sawyer,” among others;
Angela Davis, a five time All-American, ran track professionally for Nike and was an Olympic Trials semi-finalist. A member of the world championship team, Davis has been coaching and training private clients for the past 15 years, teaching them drive and determination. Davis also travels with her husband, Jerome Davis, giving speed clinics and leading motivational forums. Davis has also been part of Oprah Winfrey’sacclaimed “Oprah’s The Life You Want Weekend Tour;”
Marjorie Harvey, the wife of comedian, talk show/radio host and authorSteve Harvey, is a mother of seven and soon-to-be grandmother of three. She and her husband started the Steve and Marjorie Harvey Foundation (SMHF) with the goal of establishing national and international programs committed to fostering excellence in the lives of children and their families. Harvey began a women’s empowerment initiative under SMHF called “Girls Who Rule The World,” which encourages positive self-image, responsible personal conduct and respect for self and others;
Tina Knowles Lawson, mother to Beyoncé and Solange Knowles, has spent her life in the music and fashion industries, starting as a salon owner in Houston. She has produced fashion lines House of Deréon andMiss Tina by Tina Knowles. In 2010, she collaborated with Beyoncé to open the Beyoncé Cosmetology Center at the Phoenix House in Brooklyn;
Angela Simmons, a star of “Run’s House,” an MTV reality show, and daughter of former Run-DMC rapper Rev Run (Joseph Simmons) and niece to Russell Simmons, recently launched a faux-fur clothing line, Foofi, available fall/winter 2015. In addition to her fashion career, Simmons is known for her roles on other MTV hit show “Daddy’s Girls” and BET’s “106 & Park.” Simmons is an advocate for women and teenage girls’ issues, and the Queens native is actively concerned about local issues affecting her community;
Tasha Smith is best known for her roles in Tyler Perry TV series “For Better Or Worse” and “Meet the Browns,” and films such as “Couples Retreat,” “Jumping the Broom,” “Why Did I Get Married?,” and “Why Did I Get Married, Too?” She most recently appeared in Lionsgate’s “Addicted” and FOX’s hit TV show “Empire.”
Tika Sumpter is an actress, model and singer recognized for performances in the T.D. Jakes-produced film, “Sparkle” and for TV’s red-hot “The Haves and Have Nots,” “Gossip Girl” and “One Life to Live,” for which she was nominated for a NAACP Image Award. Sumpter is also an advocate for the AIDS awareness campaign.
All registered MegaFest attendees are permitted entry into Girl Talk as well as Woman Thou Art Loosed. Registration is available online. For a complete list of scheduled events for Woman Thou Art Loosed, please visit http://mega-fest.org/events/category/wtal.
