When you’re a Black woman in Hollywood– it’s easy to be forced into a box. However, Pearson star, Chantel Riley was never going to allow that to happen to her. The Broadway star is a chameleon in the industry who has stunned in so many different roles that can’t be pegged down.
Though she’s currently starring as Angela Cook–Jessica Pearson’s (Gina Torres) no-nonsense cousin on the long-awaited Suits spinoff– Pearson, there isn’t much Riley can’t do. SyFy fans know her as the vampire Kate on the paranormal series Wynonna Earp. She was also recently seen on the Canadian crime-drama series, Frankie Drake Mysteries. In addition to her work on the stage and small screen– Riley is also a vocalist– having just released her first single and video for “Not Anymore” in late June.
Amid the freshman season of Pearson, Riley sat down to chat with STYLECASTER about the series, what’s she’s learned about herself from Angela and why she’s so passionate about uplifting underrepresented communities and Black artists.
“So I have to be honest,” Riley revealed. “I’d only watched a couple of episodes of Suits, before getting my role on Pearson. It’s only because I don’t watch that much television– but I did catch some episodes. When I heard about Pearson–I did go back and do some studying. When I did finally dive in, it made me all the more excited to come aboard the show.”
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Image: Instagram.