AT&T Presents: Listen 2 Learn! Tyler Perry

The king of, well, just about everything related to African American cinema these days dishes about hiring practices at his Tyler Perry Studios, whose flicks have grossed more than $500 million worldwide. “I have a lot of black people working for me. I don’t discriminate either way. I want to know who’s the best for the job. But I will ask, when we’re in the hiring process, Is there a black person who’s just as good? Because it’s very important that I see it. And the kids—I got a lot of 19-, 20-year-old PA’s running around—it’s very important that they see it. I want to make sure there’s a fair representation all around,” Tyler Perry tells Keeping It Reel host Tim Gordon. “My makeup department is a black woman, by hair department is a black woman, my producers are black; I got black grips and black electricians—these people are almost non-existent in the business. So trying to find them has been difficult. But I’m hoping more people will go into these professions and bring their best. And I’m not gonna hire you just because you’re black. You gotta be good at the job.”