When you’ve been working in the industry since you were a kid, you know the interworkings of Hollywood like the back of your hand. This knowledge has enabled Hustlers actress Keke Palmer to cultivate a distinguished and multifaceted career at just 26-years-old. An actress, singer, and morning show host–Palmer can’t be placed in a box.
Though she began her career in films like Akeelah and the Bee and on shows like Nickelodeon’s True Jackson, VP–as an adult, the veteran actress has starred in everything from the musical Joyful Noise to the gritty drama, Pimp. Now, in addition to the critically acclaimed Hustlers, Palmer is lending her voice and her opinion to the morning show, GMA3: Strahan, Sara and Keke while continually working in entertainment.
All of this hasn’t deterred Palmer from continuing to seek out movie roles or becoming the face of the most hilarious viral meme of 2019 –“Sorry to This Man.” At #BlogHer19 Creators Summit, STYLECASTER sat down to chat with Palmer about the most terrifying thing she’s done in her career, how she’s remained so positive amid #cancelculture, and what compels her to say “yes” to a role.
“I think at home, my mom always encouraged me to be myself,” Palmer reflected on how her upbringing shaped who she is today. “She encouraged me to be true, to not let other people’s perception of me be the perception of myself as a woman, as a Black woman, as a Black person, and as a young person. She always made me feel like I could defy whatever those odds were. Growing up in the church, I think that’s a place where many people can find their voice. That sense of community that I saw very early on, it always made me feel like I had that foundation that I could stand tall.”
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Image: Cierra Miller/ STYLECASTER.