As the wife of actor/comedian Chris Rock, Malaak Compton-Rock has made a name for herself as a philanthropist and, most recently, as a judge on the upcoming ABC reality show Oprah's Big Give. Holly and Rodney talk to Malaak about her involvement in the show.
Malaak says she has always held philanthropic work very close to her heart. In Oprah's Big Give, Malaak judges contestants as they run around the country doing good for other people and trying to out-give one another. She says traveling to each city and judging the contestants was the best part because the opportunity to be involved in charity, as opposed to just giving money, is so important. "I am the type of humanitarian who likes to be deep in the trenches," she says.
Instead of judging her contestants harshly during the competition, she prefers to remain positive. "I try to offer encouragement," she says. "If I have a criticism, I try to also give them encouraging words as to how they can do better the next time around." She says in the case of Oprah's Big Give, there is no point for the judges to be cruel. "You can't be mean on a show like Oprah's Big Give," she says. "They are doing nothing but running around the country giving back to others."
Malaak continues her philanthropic work as founder and director of her latest undertaking, The Angelrock Project, which aims to inform people about various charity organizations and how they can become involved. She says people who are interested in any type of community service can go through the project to find out information about how they can volunteer in their area, give money, support sustainable living projects and much more.
