During these trying times of hate towards immigrants in our country, it is always a pleasure to hear or read of stories of how immigrants fled their countries to come to America and pursue the "American Dream." Like many others, it was the same for former war refugee Claudia Greene and her family, who fled Sierra Leone in Africa to come to America and seek refuge.

During the 1990s, when a civil war broke out in her country, Claudia and her family came to New York with nothing but hope of feeling safe and starting over. Before she was seven, her family moved from New York and made Minnesota their home. Despite English being her second language, she pursued Journalism at the University Of Miami during her first year in college. She graduated at the top of her class with a double degree in Film and Communications. She then moved to Los Angeles to pursue her Master’s Degree in Writing and Producing for Television at Loyola Marymount University.

During her first year in Los Angeles, she lost her father to Sickle Cell Disease. It was quite a setback and Claudia fell into depression. Feeling pressured to leave college and move back home, her mother convinced her to persevere through the trials and tribulations. Education has always been instilled in her through her family. Africans believe that intelligence is the key to better yourself and your life.

Following graduation, she created her own Entertainment News show, interned at Entertainment Tonight and worked at Popsugar and TMZ. It was at TMZ, she learned about the world of PR. With little to no knowledge, she started out as a junior publicist. With a background in writing, it helped elevate her to become a great publicist.

After working with a previous PR firm for several years, she decided to risk it all and founded her own firm. Despite her family and friends telling her that she would fail and to give up, she created Mayhem Entertainment Public Relations.

The first few years were a struggle. She worked for free, struggled to pay bills, struggled to pay rent, all while she was going to glamour parties and red carpets with her clients. Even though she was struggling hard in her personal life, she kept her head up and worked hard for two clients she had when she started Mayhem. Living in Los Angeles on her own, there was not any assistance, and many nights she cried herself to sleep, praying for a breakthrough.

Through two of her clients, word of mouth spread and she received more interest. Her client list grew and she started to represent talent such as Dawn Richards, Tara Reid, Masiela Lusha, Jennifer Williams, Ian Verdun, Saniyaa Sidney and more.

In 2018, her husband, music producer and business consultant, Justin Conaway, joined the business. He worked with her to form a music department and develop a better business format.

Within four years of business, Mayhem now represents over 60 clients and two companies. With minimal help, she nurtured the business from an idea into a competitor and is being called the “go-to female publicist.” For the company, she writes press releases, shoot editorial photos for clients, plans events, manages her clients social media and so much more. She works around the clock and at many times is seen at 3 a.m. in the morning, working tirelessly for her clients. Long term, she plans to open offices in New York City, Chicago, Atlanta and Miami.

Right now, Claudia plans to eventually return to TV writing and producing. She also has plans on reviving her Entertainment News show. The future is endless for this rising go-getter. She is proof of why having immigrants in our great country is important. We are a nation of immigrants and we should all believe in helping one another achieve what we want in this land of freedom.

John Calloway

Writing since November 2018 · 1 story contributed