THE NEW YORK-BASED ACTRESS CHATS ABOUT HER CAREER ABROAD

After graduating with a master’s degree from Columbia University

in 2016, we did a showcase for agents and managers in LA and NYC. I found a great management team and have been working with them ever since. They submitted me for the Orange Is The New Black (OITNB) role, I auditioned and just like that, booked the job! I feel really blessed and grateful for the opportunity to learn and

grow as an actress. I’m still quite new to TV — I’m a theatre kid at heart. I’m lucky to cut my teeth in such big and well-run productions.

Being a young black, foreign and female actress is tricky but

fun. I’ve learnt some tough lessons along the way and had to really take that “thick skin” cliché to heart. The industry is very competitive. People don’t see the rejection and the hustle; they just see that one opportunity you’re fortunate to get, and assume all’s smooth-sailing. It’s still a struggle for a black actor, let alone a woman, to find well-written roles for them to play.

Much like myself, Akers, my character on OITNB, plays a good

game at appearing tough. A lot has made her create a hardened exterior, but she’s very sensitive and permeable. I’m drawn to what could’ve landed her up in maximum security at such a young age. I feel that a lot of prisoners in the system are there because of unfair circumstances that pushed them beyond the line. I think it’s now safe to call NYC home. I have an incredible support system and when things get tough and gloomy, I’m seldom lonely. I chat to my family regularly even though the six-hour time difference is a hiccup.