We’re continuing our red carpet interviews here at the Museum of the Bible for the 25th anniversary celebration of  U.S. Dream Academy Power of a Dream Gala. And we have one of the alums of the Academy. Mr. Withney Simon!

How’re you doing tonight?

Blessed and highly favored. I’m grateful to be here. I’m just truly honored.

Tell us your story of your involvement with the Dream Academy

The Dream Academy came into my life when I needed them the most. I was just a child coming from Haiti, searching for guidance. And they empowered me by making me know that “hey, it’s okay to dream beyond what’s in front of you, and what’s just presented to you”. And from there, I have thrived. So, I can say, by the grace of God, I have thrived, and I continue to grow up by dreaming. I’m still dreaming. They have installed dreaming in front of me, and I’m still dreaming ‘til this age, I’m still dreaming. That’s all I can say.

From what I read of your bio, you are an entrepreneur, and now you’re one of the mentors. What piece of advice would you give to the young men and women out there who want to achieve their dreams, but they need someone like you to give them that guidance to give them that little seed to plant into their minds, to keep on dreaming and pursue that dream?

Keep going! You’re going to have a lot of people that’s going to tell you “No, you can’t do a lot of stuff” but understand it’s your dream. You had dreams that did not come to them, or their vision did not come to them. So, it’s your dream, keep dreaming and have faith in believing that it will happen because one day it will happen.

Absolutely, tell us about your company?

So, I am a image consultant and stylist, transformed from former athlete and I was already in the field. In college, I started dressing all my teammates. And all my teammates that went to the NFL, they hired me as their stylist. While I was in college, due to injuries, I walked away from football and walked right into my destiny, destination and plans that was made for me by the grace of God. I always say is “by the grace of God” because he had installed everything that saved me right now.

And by the grace of my family to God has blessed me with tremendous parents. I can only say thank you God, thank you God, thank you my Lord and Savior Jesus and thank you for Whitley for his dream because of his dream I am a product of his dream. I am a living testimony that if you dream beyond what’s just in front of you or what’s in front of your eyes. Yes, they can be wild but it’s a must that you must dream.

And I take it that you were the one who dressed the CEO and founder here tonight?

Yes, yes sir.

So, tell us about it.

He came to me and said “Withney, make me sharp but at the same time did not make it too tight”. So, I had to know what I was dealing with, and he picked something that he really loved, and I just happened to put my little dip and dap in there and then now he looks marvelous.

Well, if anyone wants to find you and dress better dressed to the nines, where can he find you?

You can find me on Instagram @phamefashionink or Twitter @PhameFashionINC

About The Author

Dean Rogers

Editor-in-Chief/Entertainment Reporter

I knew early on that I wanted to take my place among the stars. One day, my mother saw me reading The Washington Post at a very young age. Who would have known that it would be the building blocks of my journey? Since that day, I dedicated my life to learn all that is learnable. I read everything from encyclopedias, to books, to dictionaries, to magazines. I’m also an avid consumer of television, with my favorite genre being game shows. If you’ve seen me on Who Wants to be a Millionaire or Wheel of Fortune, then you know that this interest has served me well!

My unique style of reporting began back in junior high school, when I started to chronicle the events that shaped my life. Whether it was the annual family vacation or the local science fiction convention, I shot numerous pictures and recorded my thoughts so I could truly appreciate the history. During my senior year at Friendly High, I wrote what was to be my first masterpiece, “Advanced Space Academy – A One Week Journey.” I sent the eleven-page article back to the U.S. Space Camp staff. The article was highly praised for being “one of the best written articles in the history of U.S. Space Camp.” From then on, I knew what I wanted to do for rest of my life — to be a reporter.

Since then, I have trained in Broadcast Journalism at Bowie State University (2008) in Bowie, MD earning a B.S. in Communications. I gained experience in news production and editing through field experiences with Bowie Community Media Corporation, Prince George’s Community Television, and Bowie State University Television. I also wrote scripts for a variety of quiz shows for over five years.

As a lifelong movie buff, I now see close to 100 films every year. I took this love of movies to the next step when I became a co-host for Eclipse Magazine TV in the fall of 2005. While at EMTV, I interviewed celebrities, worked red carpets, and attended a wide variety of movie screenings. In January 2009, I took a leap of faith and started my own entertainment news magazine, The Rogers Revue. Shortly afterward, my life-long journey of studying the silver screen and writing about what I learned finally earned me a place in the Washington Area Film Critics Association.

All of this has led me here, giving you the latest entertainment news for the DMV and the entire nation, and I am truly excited for whatever will come next.

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