With 'Underground,' we see that the wounds that we all, as a nation, inflicted upon our brothers and sisters during slavery have not been healed.
— Jurnee Smollett-Bell
The real trendsetters are the ones who rebel. Those are the ones who everyone in fashion eventually follows.
I'm a nature lover.
I always said, 'Whenever I get pregnant, I'm going to embrace all of the body changes that happen.' My focus has not been on any sort of snap-back or anything like that, because your body won't be the same after giving birth, and if anything, that's something to be celebrated, embraced, and owned.
Marriage is a work in progress, but it's beautiful.
There are obstacles and challenges that my dark-skinned sisters face that I will never know. How they are perceived when they walk in a room of strangers is something I will never truly know.
I wouldn't even call myself a former child star. I was a child actor; there's a difference.
My mom bought me an 'Anne of Green Gables' journal. And I just remember thinking it was so cool, and I could write anything in it.
I just live my life. I go where I feel God is calling me.
I'm a grandma at heart.
You go through those awkward, dorky, geeky stages, and growing up in the industry amplifies all that. Fortunately, I have a mother who encouraged me to build my confidence from within and embrace my imperfections.
Never let anyone silence your voice.
I try to give each performance my own soul, to bring a truth to my character. Hopefully, when I bring that much truth to a character, it resonates with somebody, and it sparks some kind of emotion in them.
My little brothers loved baseball. I'm not as big on that as basketball or football, but I understand the game.
There's still a really divisive residue in our nation that's called racism and prejudice and oppression and sexism.
The AIDS epidemic began before I was born - I've never known a world without it. And yet, despite its omnipresence in our lives, there remains a pervasive silence around AIDS among young people, particularly young women.
It's such a transition and it's so empowering to become a mom, but there are also many challenges. Just remind yourself, every minute, every day, to be kind to yourself.
I'm such a huge fan of Gap! My mom used to dress me in Gap overalls that I would wear all the time, and now the idea of bringing my son into that tradition is so ironic and full-circle for me.
It is a beautiful thing to work on your relationship.
That's something I've struggled with my entire life - people underestimating me.
If I have a jump rope and a resistance band, I can work out anywhere. Even without a jump rope. If you do 200 jumping jacks, then drop and do some crunches, and then do some squats, you're good.
Oftentimes, a history book in school will talk about the Underground Railroad as if it's one sentence. But thousands of people decided to run, and they single-handedly changed the trajectory of our nation. By running to the North, they put a face to slavery, which recruited a lot of abolitionists.
I have so many passions outside of my passion for acting.
My best advice would be that you have to be vulnerable with each other. Like, everyone says you have to be honest, you have to communicate; like, yes, of course, but you gotta be willing to be vulnerable.
When I was younger, I really struggled with confidence.
Everyone has a past, but I try not to let that affect the way I see them; I want to get to know who they are today.
I love music, and I love drumlines. I like school bands a lot. There's nothing wrong with cheerleading, but I'd rather be a band geek. It's a little more interesting.
I come from a family of four brothers, so I like sports.
We never get fashion shows in L.A.! Ever!
How often do you see young actors playing scholars? Or striving to be intellectuals, you know? It's not that often.
After being a mom, we are now in a different chapter in our womanhood, and instead of trying to be our old selves or get our old body back, we should embrace who we are now.
I wouldn't say I'm a Method actor, but there are times where a role will require you to live in their world.
I would be ignorant to say colorism doesn't exist; it's gross and disgusting.
People look at you, and they think they know you. They think they can place you in a certain category by what they think they know about you. But there's so much more to all of us than what we know and what we see at face value.
You learn a lot about yourself just by writing it down.
Vanessa Williams in person is like... the camera cannot capture how gorgeous this woman is! She is just so breathtaking.
As an artist, you want to stretch. That's the only way you're going to grow. If I stay inside my comfort zone, do roles that I've done before, then I'm never going to get better as an actress.
I am oftentimes the ear for some people that I know and love. Which I like being. I don't know if I'd like being a marriage counselor, though, because that's too deep for me.
There are so many people who will try and make you feel like your opinion doesn't matter, and I've learned how important it is to use your voice.
I don't really think about the critics or the commercial success.
I like sitting down and watching games.
