Star of ‘Station’ struggled early with acting life

PASADENA, Calif. — At 25, actress Keke Palmer has earned the gravitas she displays as the determined CIA case officer in the Epix series “Berlin Station.”

Palmer’s poise as the sassy millennial who challenges the old guard at Berlin Station was hard-won.

The former child star sang in church as a youngster and was 9 when she first auditioned for a stage production of “The Lion King.”

Two years later, she was cast in the film “Barbershop 2: Back in Business” as the niece of Gina (Queen Latifah).

At that time, her parents — both former actors — decided to move the family from Illinois to Los Angeles to aid their daughter’s career.

It was a bold move, said Palmer, who has a younger brother and sister — twins — and a sister four years older.

“All six of us drove down here in a Dodge Caravan,” she said.

“The first couple of weeks, I did a national Kmart commercial, and a couple of weeks later, I did an episode of ‘Cold Case’ and ended up getting a movie for TNT called ‘The Wool Cap.’”

Her family’s sacrifice made her feel guilty, Palmer said.

“I felt tons of stress, tons of guilt. It wasn’t anything my parents were saying; it was just, ‘Oh, they did all this stuff for me and everybody’s life changed, including my older sister’s.’ She’s the oldest and so much of her socialization and adolescence was interrupted by my dream.”

Looking back, Palmer said, “It was really about the biggerpicture (message) that my parents wanted to send to their kids, but it seemed like it was all about me. That really made me feel separated from my siblings."

The most difficult time, she said, was her three-year stint as star of “True Jackson, VP” on Nickelodeon.

“The workload was so heavy, and it was hard to get a life outside,” Palmer said. ““My parents were overprotective, and they were disciplinarians — like no phone after certain hours … (But) that’s how I got a lot of my release or my access to the real world — through the internet, on Myspace, social media, Twitter, AOL (Instant) Messenger.

“So it was very hard and difficult,” she continued, “because I would be working all day and would have to be on set, then in school and couldn’t text on my phone. So I didn’t get any time to be something other than just a working kid.”

She thought she had no life outside of work — no balance.

“And I didn’t know how to express that,” Palmer said. “I didn’t know how to put it into words. It’s not like I don’t love what I’m doing; I just want to have another outlet." Palmer sought help. “I started doing yoga, meditating, went to a therapist,” she said. “My attorney ... made me feel very normal. He said, ‘This is very normal for an entertainer for what you’re going through, and you maybe should go see a therapist.’

The suggestion was very helpful, she said.

“I think a lot of people ... see going to a therapist or getting any kind of help means you’re crazy. It actually means the opposite. It means you’re smart and aware (when) you say, ‘I need some assistance because it’s hard being a human being — and whatever subculture you’re a part of, that has its own set of things on top of just having a brain and a heart and feelings.”