Kevin "Chill" Heard

Kevin “Chill” Heard is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization “My Cool Solutions Inc.” My Cool Solutions’ mission is to provide effective, nurturing and accessible services that educates, informs and inspires creativity for members of the Greater Cleveland community. Kevin is a lifelong journalist, a community advocate and consultant. He is currently serving his second term as President of the Greater Cleveland Association of Black Journalists (GCLEABJ), the award-winning Cleveland chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ). As President, Kevin was pivotal in securing the upcoming 2025 NABJ National Convention for his home city of Cleveland. Kevin is proud to have served for over 25 years at the legendary Call and Post newspaper (over 100 years old). Beginning as an award-winning entertainment editor, he later became the paper’s Managing Editor and then General Manager. Kevin is a co-founder of the Los Angeles-based African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) and has interviewed many top actors in Hollywood, including Beyoncé, Burt Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, James Earl Jones, Dolly Parton, Dr. Maya Angelou, Jamie Fox, Morgan Freeman, and Drew Barrymore, and several Oscar Winners, including Denzel Washington, Matt Damon, Halle Berry, and Tom Hanks. In addition to his work in print journalism, Kevin has returned to his radio roots as executive producer and host of "Chill Talk," on Radio One’s Newstalk station WERE and LIVESTREAMING on various social media platforms. He has appeared on news stations WKYC, WEWS, FOX 8, WVIZ, WOIO and PBS radio station WNPR to share his political and social viewpoint on local and national topics. Kevin may be best recognized from the 1980s as Cleveland’s pioneering rap artist M.C. Chill. As Cleveland’s first national rap recording artist, he is one of the first non-east coast rap artists to chart on Billboard Magazine's Top 100. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has twice commissioned his paraphernalia for its archives. Kevin has served on several civic and social boards and has worked on projects with the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Cleveland Urban League, Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival (GCUFF) and the Cleveland NAACP. Kevin attended Cleveland’s John F. Kennedy High School and Kent State University. He is the father two college students (Daniel & Jordan), two furry kids (Kibbles & Nova), and is married to Dr. Janice Taylor Heard.