I've worked so hard to just be my full self and God has just validated me in so many ways.
I feel like that's a blessing [ Ralph Angel role]. I really just think it's about the overall message, the way it's conveyed and the people involved in the project. Find people you want to create with because it's infinite, unlimited expression.
I really got attracted to the idea of touching so many people and that idea of art transcending entertainment and art and activism being synonymous.
I just owe it to myself, to God and to everybody who supports me and people who don't even know me yet, to just be fully intentional and authentically real with everything I do, say and create.
As a young, Black man, I absolutely feel responsible.
I try to be as intentional as possible.
I feel responsible to know what I'm talking about and to actually express myself the way I choose. We have to put those messages on a global platform period. That, to me, is inspiring.
Louisiana taught me another level of humility. Everyone is so content, not socially content but spiritually. Everyone is happy with who they are and loves their city regardless of what has happened here with Katrina and all the different stories. They have a sense of pride and it really rubbed off on me.
People respect us, they love us and they're entertained by us, so it's like when you trust somebody on that level, it's a lot easier to speak some real knowledge into their minds.
Everyone has a platform, so if we could just use that and combine what we have and know -we talk about it in private - we might as well talk about it [publicly] together.
If I choose this platform [The Black Arts Movement] and God validates this platform, I feel like we have to use the hyper-reality to get people closer to [actual] reality. Right now is so special because it's the information age and people just want to be aware and there's no better way of doing that than through art.
I think that's really the allure of acting for me. I really want to connect with people.
I really wanted to be a part of that movement or better yet create that movement.
As much as he's been through, he's so alive and open to change. That's what I wanted to channel and I feel that's the root of who he is. So I was still and listening to God. All of that came together to really birth this human being known as Ralph Angel.
I started in this industry [television] as a kid doing commercials. Ever since I was introduced to it, I loved it.
That [Louisiana culture] was all very new to me. I read books and watched documentaries, just trying to immerse myself.
When the dialogue is on point and I feel like the overall story and message is really serving something that's socially progressive, it really makes me want to be a part of it.
Ralph Angel was such a great character. The single-father image has been portrayed in so many ways so having the ability to be a part of that narrative excites me!
Ralph Angel, for me, was about getting in touch with the similarities between the characters. I felt like he was a human being that I knew and [somebody] that I've been and am currently still exploring.
[Ralph Angel] was really about figuring out the humanity aspect of the character and not really paying attention to certain things like him being incarcerated or him being a father and showing that type of love and putting something before you, despite me not having kids in real life. He's vulnerable, ambitious and alive.
As a kid, there [on TV] were things I wasn't aware of - insecurities while transition from teen to adult. When I was around 17 and 18, I started seeing the benefits of this world.
Working with Ava [ DuVernay] and Oprah [Winfrey], they're just so intimate. I feel like we're really family at this point.
I think that's something that Oprah [Winfrey] and Ava [ DuVernay] do seamlessly. They know how to connect to people and they know how to share our stories. To be a part of that is a blessing.
I feel like the stillness of Ralph Angel - him being formerly incarcerated, being a Black man, being misunderstood in this world, I felt like that brought him to a place where he thought he had to be an observer - externally and internally.
