Daniel Kaluuya and Heir Holiness: What In Goddess's Name Is Going On Here
The actor's new spiritual adviser seems interesting
“What’s up with Daniel Kaluuya?” former Hollywood Reporter editor Matthew Belloni asked in his newsletter, “What I’m Hearing,” in January. The thing that was up, apparently, was that the actor, who won an Oscar last year for Judas and the Black Messiah, had hired a new personal manager named “Heir Holiness.”
On a now-dead LinkedIn page, Holiness described herself as a “life strategist” and the “Head Mistress” of something called “The International Alma Mater, Blessed University,” abbreviated elsewhere as “The I.A.M.” Belloni had heard Holiness was a “major presence during the recent production of Nope, the new Jordan Peele movie for Universal” starring Kaluuya. At least one source said people on the shoot were “concerned by her behavior.”
This seems fine, if weird. But a month later, Belloni followed up: “Kaluuya abruptly fired [his agency] CAA. Management360 still reps him, though.” Again, that’s not crazy — people leave their agents all the time. Still, you can’t help but wonder: Did Kaluuya fire his reps, but not his manager, to crawl in bed, metaphorically speaking, with a life strategist-slash-head mistress at The I.A.M. Blessed University?
The New York Post seems to think so. Over the weekend, they ran a story on Holiness titled “Insiders worried about actor Daniel Kaluuya’s ties to ‘life strategist.’” According to the Post, Kaluuya met Heir through a makeup artist on the set of Black Panther; at the time, she went by the name “Heir Princess.” In addition to firing his agents, Kaluuya also recently ditched his publicist of four years, his stylist, and multiple assistants. “To be honest, we can’t quite figure out who she is,” a source told the paper. “We really have no clue as his team has shifted camps.”
The Post also confirmed Holiness, who calls herself a “spiritual gangster” on Instagram, had made an appearance on the Nope set, where a source said the crew were “afraid of her'' and “very concerned that Heir had ‘taken over’ DK’s life and all decisions had to go through her.” There had been “multiple blow-ups.” Another added: “Was everyone a fan of Heir on set? No.”
According to the Post, Holiness — whom they identified as a 50-year-old from California named Vanylla Salimah Mahmoud — denied working for Kaluuya. Several of Mahmoud’s social media accounts have since been disabled, including her LinkedIn and at least one Twitter account. But an inactive Pinterest account, Facebook profile, and YouTube page, apparently linked to Holiness, are still up. The YouTube page includes this bio:
Peace Be With YOU!
My name is Heir Holiness and I AM founder of The International Alma Mater (The I.A.M.) a Self LOVE, Self GROWTH, Self REALIZATION~Creation Station. Here is where I speak about Spiritual Principle, Processes, Practices and Perspectives that GUARANTEE you the Peace, Power & Prosperity you ARE! This is what gets YOU through the Boyfriends, the Break ups, The Break Downs all the way to the Breakthroughs with grace and ease...I also share the most efficacious, the most POWERFUL aspects of spirit to uplift, inspire and educate YOU as you Move Forward Fearlessly! This is a Divine Appointment and I AM sooo glad YOU made it!! Yayyyy!!!
Leave Some....
LOVE,
Me
Yay!!
It also links to a website called “YourSpiritualFriend.com” — an online store that exclusively sells crystal pyramids that attach to cars. They run $10.10 a pop and can involve four different kinds of rocks: Amethyst, Chakra, Lapis Lazuli, and Mini Black Tourmaline. (They are technically “orgone” pyramids, meaning they contain a supposed “primordial cosmic energy" first popularized by the Freudian psychoanalyst Wilhelm Reich, who claimed it played a role in everything from imploding political revolts to sex stuff). Their slogan is: “Bring the vibes to your car.”
What’s going on then, with all this? Unclear. We contacted Kaluuya’s reps (his manager, not his agency), Holiness, and the woman who runs YourSpiritualFriend.com. So far, we haven’t heard back. But if you have some intel, feel free to bring the vibes (information about this) to our car (tips@gawker.com).
