Naturi Naughton
One of my biggest inspirations growing up was Whitney Houston, so I was devastated to hear about her passing. I'm from East Orange, New Jersey, and started singing at New Hope Baptist Church, so she was like my fellow Jersey girl.
I work out and go to the gym, but I still enjoy my soul food and snacks. But I'm a pretty petite young woman, and I just do everything in moderation and make sure that I just keep everything together.
Singing is my passion and something that I still love to do and I'm always going to want to do it.
I don't just want to be a cute girl in a comedy or the actress who just does the same thing over and over again. I want to play roles that are distinct. I want to have a more varied career like actresses Viola Davis or Angela Bassett - those are the people that I grew up watching and admiring.
As a black actress you've got to work doubly hard. But it doesn't ever get me to the point where I give up on myself. It just motivates me to be more prepared, focus and disciplined. That's why I care so much about doing black films and making sure that we represent and are represented correctly.
I want to do stories that inspire people.
I was pretty young when I decided I wanted to, well, more so be a singer. I started singing in church in my hometown, East Orange, New Jersey. I knew when I was about five or six that I wanted to be a performer.
Starting in music, where I get a chance to connect with the lyrics of a song, I learned so much about performing on stage and connecting to your audience and to what you're singing about. Singing is very emotional. Every song has its own purpose.
I want to be back on Broadway one day. That's a dream of mine. There's nothing like live theater, and I think it's so important for me to be able to be on stage with an audience that responds.
I was excited to play Lil' Kim and I wanted to do the role justice. I worked really hard on that role, whether it was performing the rhymes, studying the dialect, her swagger and her stage performances. I wanted people to see my range and stretch my wings as an actress.
I'm a true singer who grew up singing in church, so I love singing my heart out.
Oh, you know, I think it was definitely a little pressure, to remake something like 'Fame'.
I think a lot of young people don't realize the price of fame is a lot higher than they imagine.
Starz is a network that's going for the content that's extremely honest and pushing the envelope and is provocative.
I used to be obsessed with 'Boss.'
I definitely want my career to continue to branch out. I've had the pleasure of working in different areas of entertainment, from being in the music business as a teenager in a girl group to doing Broadway for three years in 'Hairspray,' and also doing TV and film.
One thing I'm passionate about is directing. I've always wanted to direct.
I love to write music and poetry.
For my first role, I had to audition five times. I've gotten a lot of no's and rejections. But I just had to keep working hard. I took classes; I worked on my craft and continued to work with an acting coach and just didn't give up on myself.
When I booked 'Hairspray,' I really didn't have a support system other than my family and friends.
I love Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle, and The Supremes, because I'm kind of old-school at heart.
If I think something is wrong, I'm going to say it.
To me, singing and acting have always gone hand and hand.
Singers have a lot in common with actors because you have to dig deep into a song and show the audience what you are feeling as you sing.
Growing up, all my friends used to say 'Naturi, you are so dramatic!' and I would think to myself, 'Thank you!'
Professionally, I want to be remembered for how hard I worked and how I put my heart and soul into my work. Personally, I want people to remember my heart.
I want to give my daughter that Caribbean influence. But also, just being a black girl in this country, I want her to grow up with culture and confidence, and with love.
Family is hugely important to me, because like I said, it takes a village to raise a child. That's my theme. That's how I really feel about life.
When I was coming up, we didn't have the movement of Black Girl Magic or Black Girls Rock, but my parents made it their business to make sure I saw positive images of myself and celebrated images of black women.
I feel like being pregnant and entering this new stage has made me stronger and more excited about life in general. Everything seems so much more purposeful.
My whole life has been about working and being in the girl group and being on stage and being an actress, but now I get to really enjoy a bigger purpose, which is motherhood, so I'm really excited.
I truly admire President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
I feel truly blessed to be one of the many black women who are leading ladies on television.
I love to push myself! Stepping outside of my comfort zone is what will make me a better artist.
I hike quite a bit when I'm in L.A., so that helps me clear my head. But usually I recharge by going to church, having family dinners, girls' night out, or just simply relaxing at home watching one of my favorite movies.
A lot of people don't know, but I love soul food. I love fried chicken and pork chops, all of that.
I was a cheerleader in high school, but I love to play basketball.
I think sometimes if you let it all hang out, it makes you a target.
God is real. God is in me and in my life. I've been blessed, and he continues to bless me, and that is one thing that I will always know for sure.Collection: Real
Remember to be yourself.Collection: Being Yourself
Hold your dreams, don't ever let it goCollection: Dream
Never compromise and sell yourself short.Collection: Compromise
I'm really starting to learn the value of silence and meditation. I keep my sanity in the middle of a hectic day by taking some me time or sometimes watching a guilty pleasure on TV, doing absolutely nothing, or just hanging out with friends and family. They keep me grounded and centered.Collection: Silence
I definitely feel like, as a singer, I've been able to transition into acting because I always saw them in the same vein. It's all about connecting and telling a story.Collection: Acting
Singing is my passion and something that I still love to do and Im always going to want to do it.Collection: Passion
I deal with emotional pain through therapy, writing, therapy in music. I think emotional pain is best dealt with when you use art to express it.Collection: Art
I work out and go to the gym, but I still enjoy my soul food and snacks. But I’m a pretty petite young woman, and I just do everything in moderation and make sure that I just keep everything together.Collection: Snacks
You have to think like a businessman or a businesswoman, and I can't wait to continue to grow, as an actress, but to also continue to grow as a brand and show people that I have so much more to offer.Collection: Thinking
Never compromise and sell yourself short. I've been in the music business, a girl group . . . I've been through so many different things in my career, and when you compromise and try to let go of who you are, you wind up being unhappy, and what is success without happiness. You have to have both, and that is important to me.Collection: Girl
From film to film, I realize my strengths and my weakness, and I realize how much better I get. I learn the lingo, I ask questions and I'm on set trying to figure out which shots they're going to use. For me, it's exploring the art. It's not just making a movie.Collection: Art