Shonté Johnson

Background:

Shonté Johnson, MSW is a graduate of the 200-hour Unplug Meditation Teacher Training.

Her background is in social welfare and public policy. She served alongside elected officials such as Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Los Angeles City Mayor Eric Garcetti. Shonté is a graduate of the University of California Berkeley where she disseminated and published scholarly research on homelessness in America. She earned her Master of Social Welfare with a concentration in Social and Economic Justice from the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

After relocating to Los Angeles, Shonté experienced difficulties with transitioning, adjusting to culture shock, and family separation. In search of solace, she sought out coping mechanisms using yoga, meditation, breathwork, and sound and crystal therapy. Shonté eventually found herself immersed in studying various alternative-healing modalities earning several certifications including Reiki Master/Teacher and 200-hour Mindful Hatha Yoga Teacher. She studied with a diverse group of teachers including renowned and globally recognized medicine men and women (shamans), spiritual leaders, and spiritual mentors. Extensive personal study and life experiences led Shonté to exit her career in social services and enter into the wellness industry.

In 2019 she founded Beauty Divine Artistry, a 5-star reviewed Alternative and Holistic health practice based in Los Angeles. Shonté serves under the pseudonym Beauty Divine as an Energy Medicine Practitioner offering Reiki, Sound and Crystal therapy, and Emotional Freedom Technique known as EFT or meridian tapping. The focus of her offerings is rooted in ancient and indigenous wisdom and come from revelations of her own experiences. She is passionate about holistic health and personal growth that is rooted in spirituality. Shonté draws on her passion to guide meditation journeys that take participants on a self-journey to holistic health, enlightenment, growth, and self-inquiry. She has served a diverse clientele of film producers and

writers, artists, clinical therapists, entertainers, and teachers.

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Justin Michael Williams

Background:

Justin Michael Williams is an author, transformational speaker, and top-20 recording artist who has become a pioneering voice for diversity and inclusion in wellness.

From growing up with gunshot holes outside of his bedroom window to sharing the stage with Marianne Williamson and Deepak Chopra, Justin knows well the pain of adversity and the power of healing to overcome. He has since been featured by The Wall Street Journal, Grammy.com, Billboard.com, The Root, The Advocate, Yoga Journal, and SXSW®. With his groundbreaking book Stay Woke, and over a decade of teaching experience, Justin's message of hope and empowerment has spread to more than 40 countries around the globe, particularly through his national "Stay Woke, Give Back" tour bringing mindfulness to youth in underserved communities.

Justin is dedicated to using his voice to serve; to being a beacon of hope for those who are lost, and to making sure all people, of all backgrounds, have access to the information they need to change their lives.

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Hala Khouri

Background:

Hala Khouri, M.A., SEP, E-RYT, is a sought-after speaker trainer on the subject of trauma, yoga and social justice. She has been teaching yoga and movement for over 25 years and has been doing clinical work and trainings for 15 years. Originally from Beirut, Lebanon, she has dedicated her life to the study of trauma, justice and building resilience. She earned her B.A. in Psychology from Columbia University and an M.A. in Counseling Psychology and an M.A. in Community Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. 

Hala is trained in Somatic Experiencing, a body-based psychotherapy that helps resolve trauma and its symptoms. Hala is a co-founder of Off the Mat, Into the World, a training organization that bridges yoga and activism within a social justice framework. She leads Collective Resilience trauma informed yoga trainings nationally.

Hala also trains direct service providers and educators to be trauma informed and culturally responsive.

She leads a monthly, online membership program called Radical Wellbeing. She is the author of Peace from Anxiety: Get Grounded, Build Resilience and Stay Connected Amidst the Chaos (Shambhala). She lives in Venice, CA with her husband and two sons where she also teaches public yoga classes weekly.

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Erik Haug

Background:

Erik Haug is a 3rd generation strategist and competitive athlete from California who has been practicing visualization since age 12. He has facilitated visioning sessions with hundreds of leaders and entrepreneurs from around the world. In addition to offering regular classes at the Unplug Meditation studio in Los Angeles, Erik also works with students locally at UCLA and USC. Tune in with Erik for special guided visualization and visioning meditations that will cultivate deep insights, clarity and inspiration.

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Bianca Harris

Background:

Bianca Harris is a creative entrepreneur offering 10+ years of experience as a public speaker and founder/ director of WIPPWellness, a brand that makes wellness more accessible to young movers and shakers.

Bianca oversees all branding, marketing, communications, and elevation of operational productivity at WIPP Wellness. You may also find Bianca speaking on various platforms and facilitating meditation for private and corporate clients. Bianca's teachings are unique and focused on igniting your intuition and connecting to your inner being. Her training at SATTVA Yoga Academy captured an integrated focus through yoga and meditation.

Bianca facilitates breathwork, meditation and knowledge talks integrating multiple modalities. Her work is rooted in tantric and Kundalini traditions of the Himalayas. A deeply transformational & holistic practice from the ancient traditions of the Himalayan masters, flowing & shifting energy in the body, mind & soul. Her experience as a host, speaker and wellness advocate helps to create not only a deeply healing meditative practice but also a wisdom based experience for any student.

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Caroline Batoff

Background:

Caroline Batoff is a Sound Healer, Meditation & Yoga Teacher, Reiki Master, Health Coach, Astrologer, and Hiking Guide based in Malibu, California. 

Growing up on the East Coast and graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, always overachieving, Caroline struggled for years with insomnia, perfectionism, and anxiety, feeling a constant need to do more, to be more productive. After moving to the West Coast Caroline was introduced to healing modalities such as Reiki, sound healing, and meditation that helped her profoundly to slow down, to release mental chatter, stress, and self-judgment, to find inner peace and stillness, and connect deeply with purpose and passion. It has become Caroline‘s greatest joy to help others do the same. 

Caroline shares healing experiences with individuals, groups, corporate teams, and nationally & globally recognized brands & organizations in-person in Malibu & Southern California and virtually around the globe. 

Caroline believes in the healing power of nature and enjoys spending her time discovering new trails in the Santa Monica Mountains in Malibu and playing her crystal alchemy singing bowls by the ocean. 

Why I meditate:

I meditate to release mental chatter, let go of overthinking and cultivate a resting state of peace and calm. I also meditate to improve my focus, presence, & intuition, and to achieve greater balance and harmony.


Why I teach:

Meditation and especially sound healing have changed my life. Healing frequencies have the potential to facilitate deep states of meditation and I love creating safe space for others to relax, receive and restore, physically, mentally and emotionally. Coming from a family of doctors, lawyers and accountants, I’m especially passionate about demystifying meditation and sharing the many benefits of the practice with others. While meditation can be a very spiritual practice it is also based in significant science and research shows the benefits are far reaching. It is my goal to help empower others to cultivate a consistent practice in order to transform how we perceive and experience our lives.

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Maha Bodhi, M.A

Background:

Maha Bodhi, M.A. is the founder of Women in Leadership Space, a leadership development program for corporations. She leads inspirational speaking engagements, international retreats, women leadership development training, and executive coaching for Fortune 500 corporations, and is featured in the upcoming HBO documentary “Scars Unseen”.

After surviving a brutal upbringing of being enslaved as a female in Yemen, forced into arranged marriage twice, surviving multiple death threatening situations, and two civil wars before arriving in the U.S., Maha found her freedom and true self through the practice of yoga, meditation and modern neuroplasticity techniques. She is a living example of the hero's journey and is dedicating her entire life to spread the transformational techniques that saved her life.

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Charise Studesville

Background:

Charise is a truth warrior and healing artist, who believes in radical self-care—that the act of tending to our well-being sends a message to our own minds and spirits, as well as to the world, that we value ourselves, and others. She uses meditation, Reiki, and TRUTH Journaling to help clients unlock blockages, release old patterns and habits, and to live their lives with joy...and has utilized each modality in managing anxiety, grief, chronic pain, and PTSD in her own life. Charise sees these tools as vital components of her own personal wellness, in coordination with
good nutrition, Gyrotonic, breath work, sound baths, and daily laughter.

Charise is an Unplug certified meditation teacher, trained by davidji and Suze Yalof Schwartz; a Playing Big Facilitator, trained by Playing Big author and coaching specialist Tara Mohr; a Reiki practitioner; and a business person, artist, filmmaker, writer, and mother of four. She is also the founder of Hollywood Chick Mafia. And even though she is full-on LA convert, you might catch an occasional Madison, Wisconsin accent, or an NYC twinkle in her eye.

Why I Teach Meditation:

I believe that finding my way to a daily meditation practice saved my life. I was at a crossroads, on every front. Discovering that I had this power within me to quiet the storms, excavate what needed to be cleared away, and set my sights upon a new path that could feed all the parts of my soul, was a quiet revolution. And if this Type-A polymath has been able to find peace...I know that anyone can. I find great joy in helping other humans (and our family dogs!) find their own patch of sunny calm amidst all of the noise in this life.

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Unplug Meditation

12401 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 101
Los Angeles, CA 90025

(310) 826-8899

info@unplug.com