My grown man crush is Morris Chestnut. He’s just timeless!
I would say that ‘Shake It Up’ was a chance for me to do two things I really love: acting and dancing.
I’ve always been honest with my fans, and I want to keep that up because I feel they can see through the fakeness.
Beautiful updos with natural hair are great!
My mom actually taught fifth grade, so… I’m good with fifth graders. That’s, like, my specialty.
You’d be surprised how self-conscious a lot of women are. That’s something I’ve witnessed firsthand.
My first part in a play was one of the witches in ‘Macbeth.’
There were a lot of times people would do my makeup, and it would be awful, and I would be orange. Nothing matched. So then you learn how to do your own makeup. I watched a lot of YouTube videos when I was little and taught myself.
My dad wouldn’t let me date until I was 16.
I did kindergarten twice because I was so shy.
It’s hard as a young person of a different ethnicity or background to look at the TV and not see anyone who looks like you. Representation is very important.
I love all types of braids. Single, multiple, box braids – I try them all.
I use my platform as a tool and a way to speak about greater change.
All my brothers and my dad at one point had dreadlocks.
I was that weird eight-year-old who was really interested in Shakespeare and understood it and appreciated the language.
I don’t think it is important to be a role model, because if you are a role model, you are pretending to be someone else.
My older brothers and sisters have kids and families.
Braids are not new. Black women have been wearing braids for a very long time.
When I was younger, I went through a phase when I didn’t like my hair. Because the school I went to was primarily Caucasian, there wasn’t anyone who had my hair texture. I remember one day I straightened my hair, and that was the first day that people gave me compliments on it.
Some things are really sacred and important to other cultures, so you have to be aware, politically, about those things before you just adopt them.
My room used to be full of Michael Jackson posters.
Honestly, I just love great performers and people who love what they do.
There’s no such thing as trends. There’s no such thing as style, even. It’s just whatever you feel.
I remember ‘Hannah Montana’ came out, and I was so depressed, I started crying because I was like, ‘I want to do that.’
Doing and making positive programming for young people is so important to me, and I will keep doing it.
I’m a chocolate addict.
I have parents and family who will never allow me not to be grounded. If I thought for a second that I could possibly lift off the ground, I have a thousand people who will grab my ankles.
I feel that if you shelter your kids from everything, one day they are going to be out in the world on their own, and they are going to have to figure it out. You can’t give them a test if you never taught them anything that’s on the test. They’re going to fail.
I talk about Beyonce too much. I am a diehard.
I can’t do chapped lips. If your lips are jacked up, Aquaphor is always a good go-to.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized my true models are my parents. My mom is like a sheroe. My dad is so strong.
I secretly want to shave my head.
I’m a little girl; no one wants to beat up on me.
I love singing and would love to record an album at some point.
Oakland kids are always the best.
The only way I was going to come back to the Disney Channel was if I was in a position of more power.
I haven’t always been confident enough to rock different styles because I used to be really shy.
I think, more than anything else, my dog’s death has made me grow up. I find myself thinking about the world in a more serious way.
It’s important to raise your voice in things you feel passionate about and things that you know about. Don’t raise your voice just to raise your voice if you have nothing behind it and don’t know what you’re talking about.
I love my fashion, so I gotta have my outfits.
As an artist, you have to work really, really hard because you gotta make something that will allow people to even take the chance to even listen to it, you know?
As a kid, my main interest was dancing. When I was 8 years old, I was in a hip-hop troupe.
Of course I’ve had a problem with people taking me seriously because of my age. People are always going do that because you’re less experienced; you haven’t lived as much.
What hasn’t Barbie been? I don’t think I can create an occupation that she has not done yet.
One of my dreams is to walk down the runway during Fashion Week!
I definitely enjoy working with people who can do their thing but also allow me to do my thing, you know? Who respect the process.
Fashion is a great thing, it’s a way to express who you are.
I was born an auntie. I have an older niece and nephew and many younger nieces and nephews.
People always want to doubt you.
I’ve never had a body issue; I’ve never had a self-confidence issue, and there’s been very few times in my life where I’ve felt down about the way I look or the way I feel.
I hate when books are written from the wrong perspective; when they’re written by adults for tweenagers. Like, do you truly remember what it’s like to be 12? No, not really.
Janelle Monae, she has her own style, and it’s specifically hers.
A lot of people don’t realize that hair is a big thing for a lot of people, not just African-American women. It’s something to be aware of and to be cautious of.
My generation, we really have to step up to the plate and vote. Tweeting is great – people say, ‘Oh, I don’t want this or that’ – but at the end of the day, tweeting isn’t a ballot. Just saying that you don’t like someone on Twitter is not going to turn a state blue or red. You have to vote.
Find something that makes you happy and go for it.
I shampoo every other day and only do the roots. I can’t shampoo all the way down to the end, because it will dry my hair out. I use a mask multiple times a week to restore moisture.
What is cool today is not going to be cool tomorrow, and what wasn’t cool yesterday is going to be cool tomorrow.
There are things that people say that hurt my feelings or whatever, especially with social media right now. It can be the most amazing thing, and it can also be the most negative and detrimental thing.
I love simplicity.
Age doesn’t mean anything. Age doesn’t mean I can’t work as hard. Age doesn’t mean I can’t do as well as everyone else. It’s just a factor. It’s just there.
Sticking with your vision and what you believe in is so, so important.
Remember that we are all human beings trying to do what we love to do.
My mother’s proud of where she’s from, and her history, and her past, and same with my dad. I have roots in Africa. Like, I am from Africa as well as from Germany, and I am very proud of that.
As you grow older, your music begins to mature and grow older along with you.
To all the parents out there, thank you for allowing me to be a role model for your children. I really, really do not take that for granted.
Why trip off some random person in Idaho that doesn’t feel my vibe? Like, no thank you. Stay in your life; I’ll stay in mine.
I’ve loved Michael Jackson since the minute I was born. He’s probably the most talented person ever. He was able to create such an amazing career and be probably the biggest star we’ve ever had.
Usually, I just don’t care what I look like. If it’s cold, I’m, like, putting on whatever I have to to be warm.
I was actually supposed to be a basketball player, not an actress. My parents had me playing basketball on competitive teams when I was in kindergarten. Even though my heart belongs to the arts, I’m a tomboy at heart, too.
When I first started out in the industry, I was 12 or whatever, and I wanted to be on something so bad, and I didn’t know what I was going to be on. At the time, I was in school, and I was working on drama and theatrical stuff, so I never thought that I’d end up going to comedy.
If there’s any definition to being perfect, you’re perfect at being yourself.
When you’re put in a position to really affect young people who are going to run the world one day, if you’re able to be in their life at a young age and make a positive impact, I think that’s a beautiful thing.
A feminist is a person who believes in the power of women just as much as they believe in the power of anyone else. It’s equality, it’s fairness, and I think it’s a great thing to be a part of.
