My mother wanted to be an actress. She wanted to follow her dreams and she never really got a chance to do that. I feel like I'm following her dream in a way. She's proud of me for doing what I wanted to do, but at the same time, I'm kind of taking up where she left off.

I'm a very un-excitable person. I always take things with a grain of salt, I'm always very even-keeled, and I'm always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Dialogue is not always the best way to show emotion, to show your thought process, or to reveal yourself, as a character.

You see a lot of Baptist churches in Harlem, you see a lot of the same kind of cuisine, the soul food - there's a lot of places that remind you of its southern roots.

I've learned over the years, when someone is complaining or wants to vent and has something they want to tell you, they don't necessarily want you to fix it.

I worked at a group home for a survival job years ago, and kids who have a rough home life have always tugged at my heart-strings. I also care a lot about animal cruelty.

I respond to powerful women. I'm not intimidated by that, I like that, it's not something I shy away from, so I don't want women who are looking for me to take care of them. To me, that's a turn-off. I respond to strong, powerful, independent women.