Zuri Adele

Zuri Adele is best known for her betrayal of series regular Molika on the award winning TV series Good Trouble, Now in its fifth season, tell us a little bit

about where your story began. You know, it really starts with just being raised and brought into the world by parents who are artists themselves and who just really were steeped in the liberation of people of African descent, and just being in that household where there was like this additional curriculum of like learning about our power and our our knowledge, and having this free space to perform, like being around my mom and drum circles and my dad

being a performance poet, and just having a lot of nurturing to really express myself. And I always wanted to take a stand and where education was also really important, and I can tell that has fully informed like me becoming this self proclaimed storyteller grio who I feel like I am, and I'm really grateful to be able to embody and share stories through my voice and body. That leads to that type of liberation work, that abolition work.

So that's the whole gist of it, where like it's this combination of like community and expression through performance art with this intention of collective liberation, and that's like, that's the womb I was brought up in. When you were a young girl, did you think you would grow up and be a storyteller? I knew I was going to

express with my voice and with my body. I didn't know what that was, but I wasn't blessed with the singing talent, so it's just kind of but no, you know, what it really was is that I wanted to be everything. Like I would watch something on TV or go to a play and I was like, I want to be a princess. Oh, I want to be a doctor. I

want to be a lawyer. Oh maybe I want to do all of these things, and sort of the fomo of it all lead me to want to portray all of like learn all of these life perspectives and portray them on screen or on stage. Like maybe that's a noncommittal version of me too, because it's like, oh, I don't have to take it home, but for three yeah, I can do some research. I can learn about this perspective. I can be you for three months. Yeah, all of that.

If you ever feel though, like I wish I had pursued a career in law or a career in politics or anything else, or are you always satisfied with where you landed, I'm really satisfied and excited about where I ended, and I am without any regrets. I am really excited to keep learning more so now that, like, at first, a lot of my acting was in like self expression and storytelling was in the former theater and the stage

and the live audience experience. And now that I'm having a lot of experience on the camera and television, I'm craving to learn even more about filmmaking and directing and producing because I'm like, this machine is phenomenal, and I want to know more and more about like and it, and it has such a large reach, like motion picture is such a tool for like socio economic change and it reaches, it can reach so far so quickly that I want to learn more now about the behind the

scenes work of how that happens. So no regrets, but I am like, oh, now I now I want to learn more how to produce, and now I want to shadow a few directors and learn that, and I want to learn how like the money moves to make all these things happen. So yeah, we just spoke with amazing and it's amazing to hear nine year old talk about

her career in the present tense. So I'll give you a little bit of grace here, but like, what do you think your career will look like when you're seventy When I'm seventy five, I will be I will for sure be letting my voice and body to tell as many stories through that seventy five year young body that can be told, and I'll be producing and directing content that feels like it's liberating, uplifting, all in all the

ways that I wanted to. I'll be Boston around, you know, to be out of the and hopefully it'll be like on Good Trouble, Like I have this dream that Good Trouble is going to be like the Gray's anatomy vibe. So I'm like, let me get my Debbie Allen on and you know, be this producer on there and and

bring these new generations into the show. So, like I pray when I'm seventy five, there's something going on there or at least something that's like an extension of that type of storytelling where we're focused on activism and abolition. And my daughter, who is a young activist, she and I watch your show together. We love it. What would you say to a teenager growing up today, given the possibilities and also sort of the angst that has gone into a world in which everyone is so aware, HyperWare

has access to so much information. I would say, trust yourself, trust your instincts, trust your inner voice. Like we've learned so much through that generation that we can uproot any system that is harmful, and we can take action in really creative and new ways we can reach people and really unconventional ways with our work and our content. And so I would just continue to tell that generation like, thank you, and trust your instincts, trust your self awareness,

Like keep following that yellow brick road of your voice. Okay, so you're a storyteller, if you could put your career story into three words, what would they be? Undaunted by the fight? I know it was for I know still I rise. I love it. That's amazing. So you wake up every morning, and what do you do first? What's

your routine? As best as I can, I read a morning devotional and like a daily devotional, sort of get my head in the game and meditate and then right now, I have two puppies, so I'll take them outside, do

a little snuggles and um. Always I usually do like a martial arts training in the morning if I can, or I'll just meditate and go to work if I have like an early call time, but something where like definitely a practice of sorts where I'm like grounding and hearing from the source about how we're gonna stay you know, present for the day. How do you find a way to stay connected to the source, the universe, God, whatever

we call it in a really noisy world. I go, I start with my body, like I do a body scan. I make sure I can feel, you know, the air hit my skin, a seat beneath me, my feet in the ground. It could be on the subway, it could be anywhere. But just like start with where the body is and where the breath is. And that helped me really, like we all just took a breath right now. That just helps me get present. It's so interesting. Someone said this to me the other day because I've always thought

of myself as the world's worst meditator, saeb. My brain is always going. But that's like the practice it is, sit there and let it flow, let the tabs be open. If someone explain to me that, truly, in the whole world, your breath is the only thing that has to live in the present. Oh, that's why we focus on That's good even I like that baby's gallery of time spelling being cross where that's yeah, that is a meditation. You're

getting your breath. Yeah, you're strategizing. Yeah, you're having quality time with yourself. You're unplugged and plugged in. No, that's good. That's how you get your brains. Yeah, yeah, you're wu woo. Don't try to hide it out. OK. So how did you land your role on Good Trouble? Oh? So I it was this audition process. So you know how Good Trouble is the spinoff of the Fosters. So I had audition for a role on the season finale of The Fosters a couple of times, and I was excited about

it and didn't end up booking it. And then I, you know, a few months later, had this audition for this untitled Foster spinoff I think it's what they called, and I was like, oh God, it booked that just in case there was overlap, and um yeah. There were four rounds think four or five rounds of auditions, and everyone in the audition room was like looked so different. You know, everyone was a black woman. It had like a different you know, body type or energy or um.

There were just so many different forms of self expression. And I loved how inclusive the character description of Molika was. And I'm just so grateful I was in for all the divine reasons. I guess like we were that character and I were soul made. And I just kept coming back for round after round with the producers and the network and each actor, like as we narrowed it down to like the final three, each one was so talented

that we were like cheering each other on. We were like, if it's because we were all so different, we just all have really different like temperaments. It was like, Okay, well, if that's Molika, then that's Molika, like and it's me that it was just like, oh, at this point, it's not about talent. So it really also developed like this really cool sense of like sisterhood and yeah, but it

was keep the other two I do. Well, there's one of them was already a friend of mine, which was really amazing, and yeah, she's doing so great, she's her career is incredible. So yeah, we keep in touch. Audition. Yeah, so in particular for TV, you know, you received the script. Besides, sometimes you receive also the script of like the rest of the episode or or the rest of the film, and you may get less than twenty four hours, maybe

you get forty eight hours to prepare it. It could be sometimes it's like a couple of pages, but sometimes it's usually like ten pages, and just prepare it and study as much as you can and film it with a friend like Sean who helps me with my auditions all the time and makes them so great and stretches me and pushes me, and it's helped me find the joy and the playfulness and like working with friends and just trying not to see it as like okay, let's put this job as much as like, oh, we get

to workshop and play with this thing today, and well that's right now because it's on tape because of COVID. But before we used to go into the audition room and audition for the casting directors and eat them. And I do kind of like now being able to do it from home and do it a few times and

choose my favorite one. But everyone has like a different you know, preference on that, and then there are other rounds where it's like, you know, if they want to move forward, then then we go in and read with the casting, you know, with the either the casting directors and or the producers and the writers. And now I've been on the other side of that a little bit more playing Melika, like where other characters will do a chemistry read with me to like come into my story.

And I've learned that's helped me so much because I've learned, like, oh, everyone is so talented, like this is the reasons that like someone will be cast have nothing to do with by the time it gets to like the final three, you know, it just hasn't it doesn't have any it's never personal um and that's helped me. The personalized like the outcomes of my auditions and just used to have fun. And now a quick break, you've succeeded in a career that most don't. Yeah, why do you think that is?

I'm still learning the answer to that, And thank you for saying I've succeeded, because I don't think I see it that way. I feel successful, but it's like I feel like I'm at the beginning of so many things and still audition and not booking them, and you know, all the things like good Trouble is like probably the most recent audition I booked and I was five years ago. And um, I do think that it's because everything is in divine order. I know you don't want to hear it.

I know, I really think yeah. But I also think it's about the energy that we bring into a room. I think, like, how president you bring the best energy? And by the way, for everyone listening your outfit, I'm kind of like Gaga over and I don't like, yeah like that, so tell me about it and so describe it. I'll describe it to our listeners. But it's silk and it's matching, and is it one jumpsuit or is it it's a two piece? But you know make um oh for it's this West African company so amazing, Oh f

you you are e it is gorgeous. Yeah, yeah, they do really great like high Ways two piece, which I love a set. I love it anyway. So in terms of your own personal life, what are you doing on the weekends or with friends or do you date? Tell us about your your romance. Oh juicy, I'm spicy. Well, listen. Our schedule is just so my work schedule is. So I'm still learning, I think, because that's that's more of

an excuse than a reason. But I am still learning how to balance like the ever constantly, ever changing demands of my work schedule with a personal life. So I date. I also just started working with a matchmaker and that's been Yeah, that's been fun. So I was like, I'm trying to I'm working on delegating everything. So I'm now I'm delegating like we've had other guests. Great. Yeah, that's been a fun ride because it's also just taught me what I like and like what I'm attracted to and

then how I like to be treated. And it's also really held me accountable to be honest about like if I'm feeling a second date or if I'm not, and just to be clear and unapologetic about what I what I like, which I love your question about like well why is it that you are successful, because it's like damn,

I want to be humble. But also I think there is something strong about saying like it is important the energy that we bring into a space and like how present we can be and how people feel when we leave. Do they feel, you know, drained or do they feel filled up? And I like to honor that, like I do my best work to fill myself up so that I can fill people up when I'm in the rooms. And I do think that that has an impact on

my career. And I think you can be incredibly humble and share about your success and other people see it because yeah, what we don't need right right? Girls? Yeah, I think it's women especially, it's so important, Like Amy and I love to talk about women and money, like, yeah, we want to make a lot of money. And people are always like you just said that men never cover their mouths, Like what, so talk to us about money and your thoughts on money, where you time therapy? Okay,

we're really okay, hold me accountable? Yeah, money, my relationship with money is growing because I went so like when I first booked Good Trouble, I was on food stamps. I was just you know, I was making minimum wage, working part time at a yoga studio and auditioning you know at night and by the day, working out a

yoga studio by night. And because I had not booked like guest Stars or other sort of like less consistent parts, I went from what felt like zero to a hundred when I both the series regular contract on Good Trouble. So there's a lot of like personal finance, like financial literacy that I needed to learn in sort of a crash course, and it's been imperative to have people around me who I trust, who can guide me through that.

I learned a lot about saving, a lot about taxes, a lot about like whatever we negotiate for ourselves is really like like we'll really take home half of that um by the time we you know, pay out our taxes, pay out our teams, all of that. To keep those things in mind and to invest. And I'm still in a crash course, but my relationship with money has really stretched me lately to remember that there is no lack like you know, it's always like, well, is this the

last season or are we gonna have more? Should I save up? Am I not gonna work for a couple of years? And so it's had me have a little bit of like a scarcity mindset sometimes, like I don't ever want to go back to where I was again. It is a free mindset. I mean that's a thing

that yeah, the corporate salary on that journey. And then it's also like I like nice things, and because my schedule is the way it is now, I need to delegate a lot of things, and so that costs even more money, but it helps me show up so full at work. And then when I show up full at work, I make more money because I booked more jobs and okay, now I got to delegate more. So it has taught me that there is this cycle that comes right back to me. You were in my therapy session. Yeah, my

purpose is gonna be very happy. She asked me that question. There's no sh would do like a quick speed round. What book are you reading? Speak up by tune day, Oh your name? What is your favorite beverage? Charl with oat milk and a little goving. Where are you taking your next Vacation Barbados, Who leaves you star struck? Oh we all star struck, but I do leave me starstruckank you? Thank you so Amy. Good Trouble was one of the shows that Ellen and I watched together, and she just

goes gaga oversary. She thinks she's the disknees and I understand why. She's incredibly charismatic and thoughtful and really smart, very smart, and she's definitely one of those people you meet and you and meetly want to be friends and hang out and want her to succeed because she's one of those really rare individuals that seems super kind and ambitious and interesting, like it's a mix you don't see a lot. Well. I love the fact that she's an activist.

You get the sense that she's not going to take on a role where she doesn't believe in the ethos of the show. And I think that that also is rare in Hollywood. When it's so hard. I mean, you heard her story, it's just so hard to make it. And I found her story really inspiring and it made you think, like, if you're out there and you've gone all these rejections, all it takes is one right one yes.

Whether you're in business, whether you're in theater. It's just one yes that can change your life absolutely, and so the point is to keep going until you hear the yes. Thanks for listening to What's Her Story with Sam and Amy. We would appreciate it if you leave her view wherever you get your podcasts, and of course connect with us on social media at What's Her Story podcast. What's Her Story with Sam and Amy is powered by my company, The Riveter at The Riveter dot c o in Sam's company,

park Place Payments at park place payments dot com. Thanks to our producer Stacy Parra and our male perspective Blue Burns