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The highly anticipated film All Eyez On Me features the cinematic debut of Demetrius Shipp Jr. as Tupac Shakur, and though co-star Kat Graham is a seasoned veteran, she also has her share of pressure playing Jada Pinkett. Graham talks about the support she received from Pinkett Smith and her lifelong collaboration with acting teacher Ivana Chubbuck.
Along with doing extensive research on Jada Pinkett’s youth, Graham continued her acting journey with an important mentor/collaborator in her life:
I work with a woman by the name of Ivana Chubbuck. She has been my long-term partner in crime and we do everything together. We worked on The Vampire Diaries for eight years together. Every episode and everything in between and everything after. And when we started working on (All Eyez On Me) we wanted to break down the best way to embody this amazing, powerful woman and what to use in my life that would connect me to this story. – Kat Graham
Thank you @vanityfair ???? #AllEyezOnMe
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Though Graham didn’t meet Pinkett until production finished on the film, she received only words of encouragement from the actress. Graham, being a bit self-deprecating and candid, admitted that she probably wouldn’t handle if the situation happened to her (Graham says she’d be a control freak over the actress’ performance!!)
Click on the media bar below to hear Graham talk about Jada Pinkett’s support and why she’s a “phenomenal” woman:
All Eyez On Me opens in theaters June 16.
****Kat Graham’s latest album Love Music Funk Magic, which probably owes a musical debt or two to Prince (by the way, that’s a good thing), was released on June 2. Here’s a live set performed by Graham in support of the album:
