The year was 2014 and a young up-and-coming school television channel known as DubTV was headed into its second-ever season on the air. Little did the public know that DubTV was about to strike gold with a new series. The highly acclaimed Hallways Of Our Lives, written by Rachel Brown, would turn out to be the series that would skyrocket DubTV into the hearts and minds of the student community and beyond. Hallways Of Our Lives marked a golden age for DubTV, and although the stars of that age have graduated and retired from production, I was lucky enough to get a chance to interview one of the stars of the fondly remembered high school soap opera. 

Braylan Saunders-Effort is a graduate of the Whitney Young Class of 2015 and  Northwestern University. When he isn’t working as an Operations Associate at a startup known as Nomad Credit, he is a pro-wrestling referee and trainee. Without a doubt, Saunders-Effort is a man of many trades and accomplishments, but Whitney Young students and faculty will remember him as  Mr. Gray, the beloved teacher from Hallways Of Our Lives.

During our interview with Mr. Saunders-Effort, he gave us some insight into how successful “Hallways Of Our Lives” was in its initial seasons: 

Beacon: Tell us about some of your favorite memories while being a Hallways of Our Lives cast member. 

BSE: “In addition to the main story, we did a Christmas episode, April Fools episode, bloopers, cast and crew interviews, and even got featured on a news spot on WGN. We took it as far as it can go”

Beacon: Have you ever been recognized outside of school for your work on Hallways of Our Lives?

BSE: “I went to a Whitney Young soccer game after I graduated, and I met some friends of a friend, and they’re like ‘Oh, you’re Mr. Gray’. My favorite was, I went to one of the Whitney Young shows after I graduated, and some girl was in line, whispering to her friend and pointing at me, and then finally, they come up to me and ask if I’m Mr. Gray and I’m just like ‘Yep, that’s me’. Obviously, I’m not a real celebrity, but it gave me a small taste of fame.”

Beacon: Celebrity or not, you’ll always be my favorite teacher Mr. Gray. 

Hallways Of Our Lives is a segment that will be remembered for as long as Dub TV remains an integral part of student life at Whitney Young, and it was amazing to be able to talk with one of the actors that made the show so special. While Dub TV is still on the air and producing new, original, entertaining content, it is always a great opportunity to be able to talk with a true star from what many consider one of Dub TV’s greatest runs.