KD Hall Takes Center Stage with 'Conversations with KD Hall' on The Day With Trae
Photos by Jordan Somers
Recently, KD Hall, an entrepreneur, filmmaker, founder of The KD Hall Foundation, and now host of her new talk show, Conversations with KD Hall, joined Trae Holiday on The Day With Trae. In this segment, Hall discussed her path to creating this empowering talk show, shed light on the mission of her foundation, and shared her aspirations for the legacy she hopes to leave behind.
"I'm so excited about Conversations with KD Hall. It's 19 years in the making," Hall said. "I graduated from undergrad back in 2005, and it took me 19 years to get to one of my biggest dreams."
For Hall, the debut of her new show marks the completion of a journey that spans years of dedication and perseverance. After graduating in 2005 with a degree in Broadcasting, Hall encountered personal hurdles that veered her away from her aspirations in television. Initially working in education and leadership, Hall later established KD Hall Communications, a strategic communications firm.
"The public relations was fun. But it was not my complete dream. It was time for me to step center stage," Hall said. "That's the reason why I was like, you know what, 2024, I gotta do it. There's nothing else to wait on."
In parallel with her endeavors, Hall, in partnership with her husband David, established the KD Hall Foundation, a platform committed to advancing educational and economic opportunities for women. Evolving into an international initiative, the foundation extends its reach with programs tailored for young girls in Nigeria. Despite these achievements, Hall remained steadfast in her desire to launch her talk show. Her persistence paid off when the inaugural Conversations with KD Hall pilot aired on March 16th.
"No matter how old or how young you are, if you have a dream and if it keeps buzzing in your mind, go after it," Hall said. "If a front door closes for you, you go through the back door or climb through the windows or go through the roof, and I feel like that's exactly what we did."
In the first episode, Hall, accompanied by her junior cohost Portia Polo, welcomed a lineup of guests across various segments. Broadly sports-themed, the duo welcomed Rodney Stuckey, a former NBA player, and Polo's basketball coach. Hall also hosted a panel featuring Beth Knox, the CEO and president of the Seattle Sports Commission, Maya Mendoza-Exstrom, the COO of the Seattle Sounders, and Mari Horita, the Senior Vice President of Social Impact and Government Relations for the Seattle Kraken.
"As far as our panel, you're going to see them throughout the entire season. They're going to have little parts throughout the entire season because they gave me a lot of their time," Hall said. "When people come and sit down with you, you want to make sure that you're able to amplify their voices. So you're going to see them in all ten episodes for season one."
Additionally, the episode provided exclusive highlights of the Sports Star of the Year Awards Show, with viewers treated to interviews with sports luminaries, including Sue Bird, Megan Rapinoe, and K.J. Wright. Furthermore, the episode featured Kimi Lee King, COO of Doug Baldwin's Vault89, delving into health and wellness discussions. At the same time, Senator T'wina Nobles shed light on the pressing issues of the pay and equity gap in Washington state.
Reflecting on the significance of witnessing the pilot on screen alongside her family, Hall shared the emotional journey and sense of fulfillment she experienced.
"Both of my daughters were able to be in the room with us as we were celebrating the pilot of Conversations with KD Hall, and to others, it might just be another talk show. But to me, it's everything. It's everything that I was told that I wasn't," Hall said. "It's me getting my redemption pass for my federal background. It's me being able to show people who are older than me or younger than me that when you have dreams, you have to go out there, and you have to chase them."
Holiday and Hall also discussed her work with her Girls on the Rise program, where Hall initially met Polo. This three-month leadership initiative offers young girls in Washington professional development and leadership classes. Hall plans on bringing the organization along on her television show's journey, leveraging its mission to inspire and uplift. She has been focusing on these values since creating the basis of her organization in college with the Sisters of Success program.
"It was a nonprofit, and I always have to create things from the ground up. It wasn't a traditional club at a college. We started a nonprofit because we wanted to make sure that nonprofits continued beyond us. And that's the same thing with KD Hall Foundation," Hall said. "I got a lot of people questioning me the first five years, "Why would you name something after yourself?" Well, I'm important. I'm somebody; why can't my legacy live on as well?"
Alongside her show and current foundation work, Hall is outlining a plan for an initiative similar to Girls on The Rise for boys, with hopeful projections for 2025.
"I think it's important that boys also have pathways to careers, especially Black boys. I don't have any sons, but I'm going to take your sons as my son and all of my many nephews as well," Hall said. "It's important that we don't forget about our boys because we're raising these girls up to be strong and independent, having all this leadership, making all this money, and making moves. They have to have men as well to be able to stand beside them."
Conversations with KD Hall will be airing two monthly episodes. Learn more about Hall's show and foundation by clicking here.
"I'm a legacy woman, and when you find out who you are and what you are, you got to lean into it. I tried not leaning into me being a legacy woman for years. But it's just not who I am," Hall said. "I'm a woman that's creating legacy. I'm always thinking about the future. I'm always thinking about the next thing and I'm okay now with living in that space."
To hear more stories of inspirational women making a difference in Seattle and beyond, tune in to Trae every weekday at 11 am on all Converge Media platforms and The Day With Trae YouTube Channel.
