Kendrick Sampson

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Actor & Activist

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Kendrick Sampson: Biography at a Glance

  • Kendrick Sampson is an actor and activist best known for starring as "Nathan" in HBO’s Insecure and in the Sundance and SXSW award-winning film Miss Juneteenth.
  • His other credits include How To Get Away with MurderSomething from Tiffany’s, I Am a VirgoGreekCSIThe Vampire Diaries, The Flash, Supernatural, and the FOX miniseries Gracepoint.
  • Sampson has gained acclaim for his public activism, highlighting the issues of mental health, social justice, and Black representation in storytelling. 
  • He launched BLD PWR, an advocacy initiative that has helped to mobilize thousands of protesters and voters and organized action toward the abolition of state violence, uplifting sexual liberation, and building programs that advocate a new culturally competent community-led mental health care system and culture. 
  • BLD PWR's production arm has produced and collaborated on many unforgettable live event experiences, long and short-form scripted and nonscripted content, and social impact campaigns to highlight underrepresented storytellers.
  • Kendrick is a sought-after speaker known for his unapologetic approach to discussing race, intersectionality, and criminal justice reform as well as storytelling and social entrepreneurship.

Videos

Biography

Growing up in Houston and Missouri aka “Mo City”, Texas, Kendrick Sampson was dropped into a unique and deeply rooted culture of music and art. His unapologetic authenticity and candid, often awkward, sense of humor charm an audition room, maybe a journalist or two, but it is his unique perspective and his intense, value-driven work ethic that has sustained his career. 

His most acclaimed and notable characters from "Nathan" on HBO's Emmy-nominated comedy series, Insecure, to "Ethan" in Prime’s popular romantic comedy Something from Tiffany’s and his personal favorite, the surrealist satire I am a Virgo from Boots Riley - Kendrick has been achieving his lifelong goal of shifting culture through storytelling and uplifting nuanced, diverse, and authentic portrayals of Black men. 

Kendrick received a flood of attention for his first recurring guest starring role as "Jesse" on the hit CW series, The Vampire Diaries which helped him secure his first series regular role shortly after on the Fox event series, Gracepoint, alongside heavyweights Nick Nolte, Anna Gunn, Jacki Weaver, and Michael Pena. 

In 2015, Kendrick joined the cast of the ABC hit series, How To Get Away with Murder as serial killer "Caleb Hapstall."  2017, Sampson enjoyed attention from several characters including his portrayal of British “Robbie” on the Showtime comedy White Famous as well as "Max Banes" in CW hit Supernatural and "Brainstorm" in The Flash.

Kendrick's feature credits include Freeform's feel-good holiday film Ghosting: The Spirit of Christmas, Peoples' Gotham award winner and 4 time Independent Spirit Award nominee for Miss Juneteenth, Hallmark’s Fashionably Yours and Hello Sunshine’s commercial and critically acclaimed hit Something from Tiffany’s

Kendrick has become known inside and outside of Hollywood and around the world for boldly and strategically empowering marginalized communities, fighting for sexual and gender liberation, and exposing state violence and corporate corruption. Whether it’s his unique brand of thirst traptivism, odd sense of humor, or just plain ol’ ten toes down on the frontlines, his presence and thought leadership have earned respect in the grassroots and political arenas, especially in racial justice, art, and storytelling. 

Kendrick co-founded BLD PWR which includes a production company and social impact (501c3) arm whose mission is to “Reimagine and Realize the liberated future we know our people deserve” by organizing Hollywood and shifting the culture toward nourishing and protecting nuanced Black, Indigenous, and marginalized leaders and everyday people, especially our storytellers and their stories. 

BLD PWR has produced and collaborated on many unforgettable live event experiences, long and short-form scripted and non-scripted content, social impact campaigns, and most importantly helped to mobilize thousands of protesters, artists, and voters, and to organize action toward the abolition of state violence, uplifting sexual liberation and building programs that advocate a new culturally competent community-led mental health care system and culture. 

Topics

There Is No Revolution Without Imaginationarrow-down

A world free from systemic inequalities, discrimination, and social injustices exists only in our imagination. That’s precisely why our imagination is the most powerful tool for creating a better world.

In this conversation, actor and activist Kendrick Sampson shares his unapologetic approach to tackling the most pressing and difficult topics of our time: from politics to sex to religion. In his refreshingly candid style, Kendrick reveals how we can all use art and storytelling to spark societal change and break free from the status quo. He leaves audiences inspired to tap into their own creativity to imagine the world they want to see - then go out and build it. 

A Community-Based Approach to Mental Healtharrow-down

Actor and activist Kendrick Sampson broke a pop-culture barrier around mental health through his portrayal of  “Nathan,” a character with bipolar disorder on the hit HBO show Insecure.

Sampson, who has been a public activist and mental health advocate on and off-screen for nearly a decade, stresses the importance of a community-based approach to mental health. In this conversation, he details how we can come together to create safe spaces, break stigmas, dismantle systemic barriers, and transform the mental health conversation. Sampson goes beyond the surface to highlight the intersectionality of mental health issues and advocate for an approach that addresses the unique challenges faced by different communities.

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He had great energy and dropped some gems that the students really resonated with.

Loyola Marymount University (LMU)
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