Meet Hillary Hawkins | Voice Over Talent / Singer / Actress / Writer / Producer
We had the good fortune of connecting with Hillary Hawkins and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Hillary, what do you think makes you most happy? Why?
LOVE! I love love! I especially love hugging my loved ones! Nice long hugs FILLED with LOVE make me sooooooooooooooo happy!!! I sing & rap about em in a song I wrote called “My Happy World” available on my album “Let’s Imagine A World of Love” which children & families & everyone can enjoy listening to on Pandora, Apple Music, Amazon Music & more! I also made a series of PSA’s on hugs because it’s actually a very important issue. You can HEAL people with a HUG!!! OH YES YOU CAN!! There are studies that have shown that when you hug you secrete happy hormones such as serotonin and oxytocin which in turn can combat depression. But in order to enjoy the mental and emotional benefits of hugs, they MUST BE LONG ENOUGH!! At least 20 seconds, but I recommend even longer… I could hug you for a whole minute! Or 2! Or 3! Honestly, I could hug for waaaaaaay longer. I just wish there were more people that can understand that I’m not just in la la land when I hug for so long but that it is scientifically backed and HILLARY approved! LOL Hugs when done right are HEAVENLY!!! SQUEEEEEEEEEZE!!! Hey! That’s the name of an episode of “Actors Anonymous Hotline!”
“Actors Anonymous Hotline”makes me VERY happy! It’s cathartic & fun! We have such a lovely cast, genuinely kind hearted people, talented too! I feel like “Actors Anonymous Hotline” in addition to being a series is almost like a support group!!! LOL Because in addition to filming episodes that get into a wide variety of social issues unique to actors, we also have community groups outside of filming so we get to meet over zoom and laugh together, cry if we need to and PRAY.
PRAYER makes me HAPPY. Prayer is so POWERFUL! The other day, one of my dear friends (shout out to Gordon Timothy!) called me just to see how I was doing and to PRAY! My whole day got better after his call, glory to God. My friends Naza Usher and Christin Jezak are other friends that I am blessed to be able to pray with. We’ve been praying together on the reg since 2021. They were the first 3 to join me for a prayer group we call “Actors Breakthrough Prayer Line.” While we all have our own direct relationship with God, I do feel there is something really special about having prayer partners that you know have your back and you have theirs… Please see Matthew 18:19-20 to understand… Thankful for all the brothers and sisters in Christ that join us on the “Actors Breakthrough Prayer Line” each week… You are valued and you are loved.
Performing makes me happy, especially when I’m on stage performing in front of a live audience! I don’t do it for the applause, I do it for the love of acting and singing, but I must admit the energy I get from live audiences makes me SO HAPPY! It’s like we are giving and receiving LOVE! I’m up on stage doing what I love, they feel the love, and are cheering which makes me feel so loved! Love makes me HAPPY! Shout Out to theater companies such as the Growing Stage Children’s Theatre of New Jersey, TheaterworksUSA and Crossroads Theatre. So many happy memories working with them throughout my career.
Right now, I am focusing on my voice over career. Well I guess I could say my voice over career is focusing on me because by the GRACE of GOD I am making a living off of DIRECT OFFERS as a voice actor / singer! Glory to God! That makes me SOOOOO SOOOO HAPPY! I always say my Manager is God because it’s like somehow these people just find me, like the Holy Spirit leads them to me (at least that’s what I believe) and they just offer me the part. Or they’ll send a script to my agents and be like “Is HILLARY HAWKINS available? Here’s the script! Let us know if HILLARY HAWKINS is interested and available because we’d like to BOOK HER!” I am so thankful for all the bookings! They make me soooooo happy! Really enjoy all the cartoons I get to work on too because doing all these different character voices is SOOOO MUCH FUN!! Voice Acting is ACTING and ACTING is a fun escape from this world…
But while we’re all still in this world, I must say, seeing my loved ones happy makes me happy and witnessing acts of love and kindness warms my heart. So I guess we’ve come full circle, back to Love. Giving, receiving and witnessing LOVE is such a sweet feeling, and yes that feeling is HAPPY!!!! HURRAY for LOVE!!!! And YAAAAY for HAPPINESS from ABOVE…!!! LOL
Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My brand is LOVE! I am on a global mission to spread Love and I believe it is my creativity, ability to speak a wide variety of accents and languages that sets me a part and enables me to reach more souls!
I perform Voice Overs in African, American, British, Native American, Latin American, African American, Jamaican, Caribbean Accents and more! I sing in English, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, Italian, Japanese and Swahili!
I have done voice overs for UNICEF, World Bank, World Health Organization, World Vision, DCFS, America Red Cross, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Free Wheelchair Mission, Metro Los Angeles, Transparency International and so much more! I love using my voice to help make the world a better place.
I’m also a songwriter and I love writing songs to help the world feel better. Check out my albums “Let’s Imagine A World of Love”, “Sweet Dreams”, “Love Lessons 101” & “Love Lessons 102” on Apple Music, Amazon Music, and you can listen to some of my music on Pandora & iHeartRadio.
One of the main lessons I’ve learned is that there’s no need to wait, when you can CREATE! Hey! That rhymes!! LOL I love creating and wish I had learned that lesson sooner…
After a very long struggle in this industry (check out my VoyageLA interview for more on that…) I finally landed my dream come true job: Host of Nick Jr. YAY!!! I was on TV literally like every day! DREAM COME TRUE! But it never occurred to me that one day that would come to an end. And then what? And then who wants you? Thank God God does! LOL Cause if it weren’t for God who knows where I’d be right now… I don’t know if you can imagine what it feels like to be living the life of your dreams (at least as far as your career is concerned…) and then to go YEARS with NO TV Bookings at all. An actor without a set to go to is like a fish without water. Episode 21 of “Actors Anonymous Hotline” “ Help, Help, Help Me ” sheds some light on the issue…
After what felt like a lifetime of rejection, thank God I finally got the bright idea of starting my own production company. Hillary Hawkins Production, LLC. In comes Larry Rosen, that super talented award winning director I told you about, he joined my team. In comes Tyrell Jason, award winning cinematographer and editor who blessed me with his talents. We made a series of short films on social issues and they did very well. One ended up on TV. “Stuck For A Reason” aired on ABC, CBS, NBC & FOX as a part of “African American Short Films.” Shout out to my loving late Uncle for his encouragement and shout out to everyone over at BadamiTV! “A Pill For Two” was nominated for 7 awards, and I won best actress award in a Drama! Shout out to Brightside Tavern Film Festival!! Thank you!! Such an honor!!
Now, I’m focusing my energy onACTORS ANONYMOUS HOTLINE. We are more than just a series. We are a Community. And my line is always open to my actors because just like the character I play, Sunny Love, I want to make sure everyone’s day is sunny and filled with love. 
You want to know something that has helped me along the way? SPIRITUAL SELF-HELP BOOKS! I have narrated over 100 audiobooks, the vast majority of which are spiritual self-help books including “Oprah”, “The Game of Life and How to Play It”, “Feeling Is The Secret”, “As a Woman Thinketh”, “Creative Mind”, “Creative Mind and Success” and several Books of the Bible… You can find them by searching for “Hillary Hawkins” at www.audible.com
The mind is very powerful and so is every word that comes from our mouths… So let’s speak words of encouragement and LOVE to everyone… I love you!!!
Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
OMG shout out to one of my best friends Anthony J. Dixon! I am so thankful for him. We have made sooooooo much music together. And I am blessed to be playing the role of Sista Love in his movie “Rhapsody In Justice”! Honestly, when he comes to town, we’re going to CREATE! But we also love to eat so lol we’ll go to some good restaurants. Maybe Craigs because I’m a vegan at heart and last time I was there they had GREAT vegan Chicken Parm. When my mom comes to town, she likes to go to the Ivy. Last time we were there, we bumped into LL Cool J and chatted about how I had the contract to work with him on “In The House” but then… See VoyageLA article for more on that!
Anyhoo, getting back to what to do in LA… Maybe we’ll go to City Walk. When I was a kid my mom would take me to City Walk and we’d get these great big mugs of hot chocolate and croissants!! I have memories of shopping on Rodeo Drive. Mama and I love shopping!!! Anyway, God willing the sun is shining because I love sunshine and rainbows and LOVE! Thanks and in the words of Sunny Love, HAVE A SUNNY DAAAAAAAAY!!!!
The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First and foremost I would like to say GLORY TO GOD!! Thank you Father for all my God given talents and all the opportunities you send my way. I love You! Can I shout out a Bible Verse? James 1:17! And here’s another one for ya, Matthew 6:33!
Next, I gotta thank my parents. My mom especially. I begged her to let me be inside the television and she did everything humanly possible to help make my dreams come true! From a very young age she started me in tons of classes, modeling classes at Barbizon School of Modeling, acting classes at The Lee Strasburg Theater & Film Institute and Diane Hardin’s Young Actors Space, dance classes at NJ School of Ballet and Broadway Dance Center, karate classes with Baker’s Iron Dragons, classes in Cali at Billy Blanks, gymnastics, piano classes, voice lessons with Seth Riggs in California (Seth Riggs was also a vocal coach for Michael Jackson; as a child my mom would always see to it that I had the best of the best!), and the list goes on and on. My mom also would take me to California every pilot season when I was a kid and take me all over the place so I could pursue my dreams of being on stage and TV. Shout out to my dad for paying for it all! LOL Thanks Dad!!!
And thanks to my Nana for listening to me. I love my nana. As a little girl I would call her on the phone impersonating Miss Piggy LOL and she would listen to me. And now she listens to me talk about ACTORS ANONYMOUS HOTLINE like all the time. LOL I think I talk to her about the show like literally everyday cause I just love it!
Thanks to my big brother for sitting through countless performances and for tolerating my vocalizing every morning as a kid!!! Brrrrrreeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaahhh!!
Thanks to Professor Harry Baker for teaching me Martial Arts. I started training with him when I was like 4. I made it into a Star Wars Target commercial because of martial arts moves he taught me!! They were looking for a female martial artist with a Black Belt for a girls empowerment type commercial and it was such an honor being in it! Shout out to my brother Shihan Eldridge Hawkins Jr. who is now teaching me NUNCHUCKS!!! OH YEAH!!!
Thank you to my childhood managers Shirley Grant Management and Elissa Leeds (Reel Talent Management) who worked so hard to launch my career. So very much appreciated. I used to love watching “Are You Afraid of the Dark?” on Nickelodeon and thanks to my childhood manager I got an audition and I got the part of Kate! I believe the audition was in Cali and I recall my mom and I got flown out to Canada for the shoot! There were some other really cool projects I got to work on as a result of their efforts and I very much appreciate them.
Special thanks to my agent Barbara Coleman at Innovative Artists. Did you know that BARBARA COLEMAN helped make my DREAM COME TRUE??!?!?! I ALWAYS wanted to be on TV everyday and that happened when I landed the role of Robyn, Host of Nick Jr. Shout out to Melissa Chusid, Jonathan Judge, Adrienne Torrisi and everyone over at Nickelodeon. Very much love working with Nickelodeon.
Shout out to the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences! Super thankful to have been nominated for 3 Voice Arts Awards!!! The first one was for “Desert Rice” (Category: Audiobook Narration – Teens). The second one was for “Your Word Is Your Wand” (Category: Audiobook Narration, Metaphysical, Best Voice Over. And the third nomination was for something I not only narrated but also wrote entitled “Molestation Monologues”, available on Audible. Category: Author Performance, Best Voice Over.
Speaking of voice over, I would like to thank Mark Sussman and Patty Connolly over at the Loop Squad. When I moved to LA I got to work with them as an ADR Voice Actor and be a member of their ADR Loop Group and it was such a cool experience. I got to work with them on Film & TV Shows. Some credits include “Black Lightning”, “Marvel’s Luke Cage” & “The Chi”. I’ve also been blessed to work as an ADR Celebrity Voice Match for Tyler Perry’s “Acrimony” and much much more thanks to Vox! Shout out to my agents Tom Lawless and Micaela Hicks over at Vox! You are appreciated!!!
Shout out to Radio Disney! I LOVED hosting live events for Radio Disney! So much fun!
Shout out to Andrea Hairston. I took so many of her classes at Smith College. Thankful for her and all the notes she would give me to help me become a better writer. I feel I am a better writer because of what she taught me.
Shout out to award winning director Larry Rosen, DP and editor Tyrell Jason, composers Paul Hartwig & Raphael Film, choreographer Nubia Quele Santos, my very first PA’s Shernetta Harris and Alexander Leiss and the whole Hillary Hawkins Production Team! I love you! And I am so thankful for you!
And shout out to EVERYONE working on ACTORS ANONYMOUS HOTLINE!!! Y’all are SOOOOO TALENTED and LOVED!!! I BELIEVE IN YOU!!!!!!!!!!
Website: https://www.
Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.
Other: YouTube: https://www.
Nominate Someone: ShoutoutLA is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
