Interview with Bernard David Jones & Marcel Spears on ABC TV’s The Mayor

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As part of our #ThorRagnarokEvent press trip (at the invite of Disney), we headed over to the ABC Studios building to spend some time with Bernard David Jones & Marcel Spears from the all-new ABC TV Show, The MayorI think we all were immediately struck by how AWESOME these guys are! Bernard and Marcel were funny and nice…and seemed so genuinely excited to talk with us! They actually greeted each of us as we entered…and with a hug no less! They stayed in the room to screen an episode with us. Then we had the chance to talk with them about the show! There was such great, positive energy! So, I’m really rooting for the show, because not only is the show funny and family-friendly, but the actors on it are great in “real-life”! 

Now…let’s talk about the show! If you’re not familiar, ABC’s new show  “The Mayor” follows Courtney Rose (Brandon Micheal Hall) who runs for mayor as a publicity stunt to get more eyes on his rap music, with the help of his two friends Jermaine Leforge (Bernard David Jones) and T.K Clifton (Marcel Spears). Unfortunately for Courtney, his master plan goes wildly awry, ending in the most terrifying of outcomes: An election victory. With the help of his mother (Yvette Nicole Brown, “Community”) and friends, including Valentina (“Glee’s” Lea Michele), Courtney will have to overcome his hubris if he wants to transform the struggling city he loves.

Tune in on Tuesdays at 9:30/8:30c on ABC! 

The show is obviously a comedy – and a really funny one at that. But what really struck me is how family-friendly the show is! I LOVE that! It’s something a lot of people noticed in the room and when we brought it up, the guys agreed.

“I definitely a family show…I think that’s what’s important about our show is that you can gather the family together, sit down and watch a show, and then maybe discuss some of the issues that are happening. It has been very family oriented, but we do talk about real stuff and we don’t shy away from the real stuff. But we do it in a way that’s, I think copacetic to a family environment.

The vibe the two give off in real-life is definitely a tight family & friends one as well! Based on our interactions I think they all must have a great time together on set!

Photo Credit: Allison Waken / AllForTheBoys.com

Another thing I noticed (and liked) about the show, especially as a mom of boys, is that even though these characters are funny, it still shows them in real jobs. It shows some things about politics and real life. Bernard commented on that, “I love that Jeremy created these characters that kids can look up to.  They can aspire to be the Mayor or, you know, Director of Communications.  Some may not even know what that is.  They may go home and Google, ‘what is Director of Communications? I can do something like that?  That’s cool’.  So I think to Jeremy’s testament, that is an amazing thing that he did was create these characters that grown ups can laugh at. You can catch the grown-up jokes and then the kids can look and aspire to be those guys.”

Photo Credit: Allison Waken / AllForTheBoys.com

In addition to all of that, I REALLY appreciated HOW the show handles politics (from what I’ve seen so far). It’s NO big secret that things have been really divisive in politics lately. It’s something that a lot of people want to escape from really. But the show does things in a light-hearted way (yet still talking about issues) that I think is really well done. I really liked their answers to the question: “How do you feel about taking on a politically flavored show at this time in our country’s climate?

Bernard: As artists, it’s kind of our duty, our job to be able to hold a mirror up to our country, our world and say, this is what’s going on.  How do we fix it?  What can we do to fix it? And I think our show is an awesome representation of what happens when somebody that has a heart for people, that understands community and unity, leads with love.  How that can affect a community and you know, this guy, he has no political experience.  He didn’t mean to win.  He was doing what millennials do: trying to get some of that ‘ka-ching.’ But he didn’t stray away from the responsibility.  He took it head on and I think that’s a good lesson for all of us.  You know, all of America.  If there’s something going in your neighborhood that you want to change, take leadership.  Take ownership of your community, so I think it’s a great opportunity to be able to be some type of maybe a catalyst for mobility or, in your communities for some type of change.

Marcel: Yeah, I agree. It’s an opportunity for us as artists to provoke change and to inspire people and the thing is, when I was kid, people wanted to be the President – even if you didn’t want to be the President, that was the go-to answer if a teacher or somebody asked you and you want to give the answer that’s going to make your mom go, “Awww!”  It was like, “I want to be the President of the United States of America.”  You say that and people are like, ‘aw, yeah, it can happen for you, kid’.

And politics was a thing that you didn’t shy away from.  Like, it’s always been a topic that you don’t talk about at dinner, but it’s something that people weren’t afraid of and now, I feel like people are so exhausted with it because you have to pick a side, pick a side, pick a side and it’s become so divided that we forgot that it’s a part of what makes this country great and I feel like us doing the show gives us a chance, in a fun way, in an approachable way, to really talk about politics in a way that I feel like can reach people so that people aren’t afraid of politics anymore. So that people aren’t exhausted with it so much and they can really get down to what it’s about and what it’s about is taking care of the people around you.  Like, really taking care of your community and making sure that you’re looking out for the next person.  Whether you disagree on how to go about doing that, the end goal is always the betterment of the community

Bernard: And I think what’s also special about our show is that we come from a non-partisan standpoint, so there’s no, “you have to be a Democrat” or “you have to be a Republican.”  We don’t choose sides. We present what’s going on these communities and we offer solutions on how to fix it. 

 Photo Credit: Allison Waken / AllForTheBoys.com

I LOVE that! Loved loved loved their answers to this! And again, from what I’ve seen of the show so far, I really feel like they are doing a great job with this! Aa mom of all boys, I’m ALL for a family-friendly, funny show that talks deals with some tough topics in a positive way! So, be sure to tune in to “The Mayor” on Tuesdays at 9:30/8:30c on ABC! 

Photo credit:(ABC/Tony Rivetti)
(L-R) BRANDON MICHEAL HALL, LEA MICHELE, MARCEL SPEARS, BERNARD DAVID JONES, YVETTE NICOLE BROWN

For more show fun, follow “The Mayor” on FacebookInstagram and Twitter!

Disclosure: Disney hosted me in LA in order to attend screenings and to participate in group interviews & media events. As always, all opinions, experiences, and love of Disney are entirely my own!

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I’m Sara, a mom to three adorable boys living in the Arizona desert. As a former teacher, I love sharing my passions with others. So, have a look around for creative inspiration about cooking, creating, celebrating, traveling with kids, and more everyday mom endeavors!

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