Tisha Campbell ON CAREER, WORKING W/ SPIKE LEE, BEING ACKNOWLEDGED BY HOLLYWOOD, UNCOUPLED CANCELED

Dre so we tell the stories to lift each other give hope to push us further encourage one [Music] another tsha Campbell proves that she is definitely still here this New Jersey native talks to behind the scenes Beauty about her amazing five decade long career in this episode Tisha talks humble beginnings how she feels about being acknowledged by Hollywood and we go down memory lane of some of her most iconic films as well as what Tisha is looking forward to in her second half all right you are tuned in to another episode of behind the scenes Beauty today I have with me I feel like I'm a track star because I've been chasing her down we have she's an actress she's a singer she's so many things she is the amazing Miss Tisha Campbell how are you finally did it finally I felt like since the Press tour for at your age that I was like okay I have to have her on the show I have to have her on the show and you're here I'm so glad to I'm so glad to you are one of those people that I can't think of a time in my life you were not there like from I'm serious like you have been on television for a long time every phase of my life that's very funny yes from since the 70s but it I mean I'm are you no you're not that old 78 oh look at you listen okay he was born in the 1900 boo Rags to Riches I know I know your resum wait wait wait that was you that was you that watched that show you the only one in America no no no no I was telling Sarah from the view the girl I work that's my talent at the show and I was telling her today I was working with you she was like oh yeah I definitely know her from R Rich she was talking to the executive producer about y'all yesterday and didn't even know we were doing this today about that show specifically ain't that crazy yeah that's crazy how how was doing that show that a new dress he noticed she made it herself no kidding it's really pretty a bit of spring Simplicity for the Casual mad relle the price to me $49.99 cost us six bucks plus labor now you're talking like a Foley girl oh was amazing it was my first time coming out to LA actually no sorry my second time my very first time coming out to LA it was to audition for 227 really they FW me New Jersey no um no I was I was auditioning to play Regina King's friend and my one of my friends got it but um it was devastating because I really wanted to work with Mara Gibbs and I almost quit the business after auditioning for 227 I was like Mom I'm done this is just too much I'm just going to I want to be a regular kid I want to go to the summer arts program at Ruckers with my friends cuz I went to school the Arts in Jersey they had this big summer arts program and I quit and then um right after that my mom calls me she was like your agents calling me like crazy there's this audition for a Little Shop of Horrors and they really want you and I was like I just tell them I quit and she was like all right so she hung up they she called me back the next day Tisha just you can leave school you leave the camp for like one day audition so it could stop bothering me and I was like all right Mom but I could come right back to camp and she was like yeah you can go right back to Camp so I went to the audition not expecting anything and immediately I was I was there all day and and some of the girls that were there were flown from all over the country including outside of the country in London um England and um I wound up getting it oh and then I was flown to London that was my first time being out of the country oh so y'all filmed in London yeah okay we filmed in London for almost a year so you're from new New Jersey I'm from nework New Jersey okay you have siblings oh I got tons we'll get to that the fact that you found one later yeah no I have like I have seven siblings oh wow yeah there's there's a ton of us so are are y'all in the Arts that's very funny no I'm the weird one I think they all are very talented which is very interesting um all my brothers are like can sing and stuff but uh I was the only one that kind of took that part up so how does someone realize like how did you know this is something you want to pursue it was always something I wanted to do like okay so I've been in this business for 52 years right since I was 3 years old and you I've been around for a while you don't look like what you've been through thank you you look amazing and when I was about three I was really I understood how completely poor we were like it was really really bad um and I wanted to help out and so when I was about 5 years old um I was singing in churches and schools and stuff but when I was about five my my parents my we didn't have a television that worked and so I heard that there was this Talent contest in norc New Jersey at norc Symphony Hall where the second prize was a color television I was like Mom I want to win us the color television and she was like you're the only like child group that would be in the whole entire thing and I was like I don't care I want to try to win this television first so I entered I didn't win the television I actually won the first prize which was a car yeah it got stolen a couple of a couple of months later after we got it but right I won the car and that's what made me realize that I really did love what I was doing like and I understood that I could help my family out of their circumstances and so I always say I tracked that through my entire career because you know I was never one who wanted who was in really wanted the fame and the fortune and it wasn't my main focus it it was to help and so to help other people was the the main thing that I took away from you know that one instant that changed everything that is bananas so did you ever feel like you had to choose cuz you're an amazing singer yeah but you're also an amazing actress as well did you feel like there was a lane you had to take or you always knew you sort of wanted to mail the two of them together no no you know what um I I kind of fell upon acting it was a it was like a mistake my mom was looking through this paper this newspaper back in the day called backstage and show business and she saw there was auditions that they would post in there when you would go to those those are called open calls that's what it was called back then and those open calls there would be thousands of people online it was like an American Idol type audition so if you didn't get an agent and I didn't have an agent at the time if you didn't get an agent to set up an appointment you were going to open calls so I kind of went on an open call with thousands of people we were online all day um when I was about 7 and I went in there with my parents both my parents were with me that first audition and and I walked in and for some reason I had a lot of confidence I felt like I was one of the Little Rascals and so I had to sing and dance and act and I sang and they brought me back in for the call back and my parents were sitting on the sidelines and they said well can you do ballet and I said yeah of course I never took a ballet got dog on class in my life and so I started twirling around from things that I saw on television right and they like oh she's wonderful my parents were like this Jesus go get her June she is in there ly lying June go get her go get her go get her that's my mother ballhead l so I'm sitting there and um then then they say can you tap can you do all these things and I'm like yeah and I can I can dance I can do disco as well it was the 70th and so I started dancing they're like oh she's wonderful she's this she's that and so it was my first audition and I wind up getting it it for the Broadway play really Rosy oh so you've done Broadway too oh yeah I started out doing plays and after the singing in churches and schools I started doing a lot of musicals and that's how I you know kind of HED the except for his name which is window Jam window James is name forone who's he is small and he can't TI you is right and he also a devil when he gets [Music] mad wind [Music] James see I thought you were cuz I I I saw this uh after school special with the man trying to burn the books oh yeah oh no I'm so sorry that was my first audition that was the first one and then the the one after that I started doing really realos mean I be on my stuff that mean I'm good yes you are cuz that's I was telling the wrong dog on history but that yeah that was the one that was the first one okay that's really Rosy was the second big thing okay so you go on and and like so what's after little shopa Horus like what what comes I was about 16 then and then oh gosh what happened over um right after 16 was um I came back to the States and audition for rag rich but what's funny is right after I got Rags to Riches um I was about to go film the pilot and I get this really strange call from this woman she was like hi it's Donna um I want to know if you tashaa Arnold and Michelle weeks from Little Shahara would be my background say I said who is this she said Ladonna I said ladana and she said madana and I said this ain't no Madonna and I hung up are you serious the woman time because you know that that you know the tour where she was in black and white and she filmed it what was that one with the the vogan one yes yes um she wanted us to be her background singers oh my God and so I was like well she calls me back and I was like wait is this Madonna Madonna and I was trying not to freak out that I just hung up on Madonna and she say it's Madonna and I was like well I'm doing a a a a show right now and tashaa Arnold is doing you know um all my children no Ryan's Hope oh um she's doing a soap oper so we I don't know if we have we're contracted right um and then she just hung up a I know she was like thanks anyway and hung up is this your first time sharing this story yeah that's the first time an exclusive it's an exclusive I never I forgot all about it until you started talking about right riches oh my God yeah so that's the first time i' I I think I talked to her oh my God that is so So Dope yeah okay so thank God we were booked and busy thank God from the beginning yeah thank well let's talk about your first sh with TSH cuz you guys have been working together for since we were 11 and 12 we've been friends and what's what I love about it is that y'all like she makes me say I was 12 because she wants to be younger than me forever but how many how many months is it really is on my Hills how many months is it like CU it's a year a full year okay yeah so we're the same age for like two months and then that's it oh okay yeah okay but the beautiful thing is y'all's career like as friends there's never anybody that's lagging behind like no you know what we started out um being each other's underst studies and auditioning against one another but we've always had the the mindset of supporting one another so it if it's not me then I want it to be you I want you to win you know what I mean and vice versa that's how we've always operated when she wins I win every job she gets I'm happy for her even if when I'm not the person that gets it I want her to win yeah and she is an Unstoppable amazing talent she will hate this interview because she hates compliments so I have to say it quick and get it out so she doesn't call me going why are you complimenting me but why why she ain't though T's always been a very humbl person you know we're both from the church um tashaa more so than me because she was going to church every single day that's what I'm saying like I would go on Sundays but she was in church every single day we grew up in this business where we're only as good as our last job so neither one of us really watch our work I'm just starting to watch The Martin Show recently like in the last four years so I've been watching and it's really funny are you serious we don't watch our work because you're literally only as good as your last job so as soon as something ends you stop thinking about it and you're moving on to the next thing wolfy say she doesn't watch your work yeah it's like you know I we're all from the same you know era where you just do it and keep it pushing and you just keep it pushing so question though you've been doing it like you said for 50 years do you still love it with the same passion and intensity that I love it more really yeah based off of what like what based off of well for my whole first half of my life I did this for other people now my choices today are for myself gotta today everything that I do is because I enjoy it or that I love it or I'm doing it because it's it I'm not doing things for money yeah like I think it was 2022 or 2023 I don't remember which one it was 2022 I think was the year of the yes for me so I was into I said to myself I'm not doing anything for money if a friend of mine calls me and wants me to jump in and be in a movie I'm not even going to read the script I'm just going to see what happens M and support them and support the way that I can and lend my talents or whatever they need from me and that's what I did and I I worked the whole entire year with um you know I'd get paid here and there for whatever gig I was doing outside of that but if a friend called I was going to be there and it was the best thing that that I've ever done because then I'm just doing things because it makes me happy to do it gotta but I don't know if you realize like you are so embedded in culture like I feel like you're the most unappreciated really I I feel like you you deserve Oscars Tony like you deserve to be an e yeah you know it's interesting we don't think of it like that I I again we come from a certain era where I was talking to somebody about this cuz I just went to the Emy for the very first time in my life that's bananas to me like I can't imagine yeah and you know back then let's let's just say the Martin show for instance I remember having this publicist who H just so happens to be Caucasian just so happens just so happens to be Caucasian I had a publicist and in our second season I asked hey do you think it would be a good idea for us to try to nominate me for and Emy since you know we're so successful she was like no tsha now and I go now what you you know they're you're not even going to get a nomination and I was like okay what about what if we trick them what if we nominate me for best supporting actress right and she was like Tisha you you're not going to get nominated and I was like tell me why she say come on you know why I cuz I'm black she was like pretty much I'm really sorry but you're not going to get nominated back then we didn't look at things to get accolades right right right we were just trying to feed our families right and we had to take away that we would be acknowledged for the things that we do we could not look at it like that we could not look at the past we could not look at our past work we just had to move forward and continue to do our best to feed our families that's what we concentrated on not anything else I'm so blown away cuz you like like I mean school days to me Martin My Wife and Kids uncoupled which we'll talk about okay like I just look at so much of your work and I just think like and then as a like you were a triple threat like you were saying I'm not real dancer but you were killing it like house party like oh my God like and that's why I say it's like I get that I understand as a as it being your craft but I am really blown away and I want you to know you deserve all that emo I app I do you know what when I get acknowledged by my people on the streets yeah I think that keeps me going you know I again I'm not trained in my brain to look for accolades yeah I'm trained to just keep you know trying to better myself in my craft and and uh love my art form um but it took a while to even to even get there I've been kind of protected from the insanity of this business because of my Artistry so I've been working working working working working and all I I'm in this bubble so I'm just starting to really truly understand that everybody's not nice and and everybody's not like you and you um so I'm just starting to learn that too and starting to really embrace it because I was the kind of person who will whistle past the graveyard like there's no zombies sitting right there oh no they're not trying to eat my head you know what I'm saying like they're not trying to eat my brain um I've always been the per kind of person that believed in a good a man first yeah you know um almost to just too much to your detriment to my detriment but I'm starting to understand that what there there's um there are some really nice people in this business but from my perspective my friend who I keep a good Millennial around me at all times to keep me popping or JY listen so you know in talking to her about the business and I was like oh it's like 5050 50% nice 50% mean she was like oh T you're such an idiot no not idiot but that's a good way to look at it because you don't want to become jaded it's not true though it's not true but you don't want to become jaded and I what I had to learn in this business is I'm not going to let the people change me but I think there is um a place for reality yeah and a reality check because only that can um make sure that it protects you yes you have to look at things realistically true but you don't have to let it not you don't have to let it take away your joy yeah or your happiness or anything yeah I'm not going to let nobody I'm too grown for that let anybody take my Joy or my happiness exactly I have this new found freedom and I don't want to let that go a yeah I love that yeah okay so tell us because I brought it up earlier but I love school days thank you it one of my favorite movies thank you what was that like working with [ __ ] Ley and H how did that film change you or how did that film affect you oh it was really interesting because I was only 18 when I went in there I was the youngest person there and I was a baby and when I when I auditioned for it I just wanted to be in a spike movie I didn't care what part I didn't care if I was an extra right so I assumed I was going to be one of the extras anyway so when I went in there and I auditioned um I said Thank you and laughed and then you know Robbie Reid the casting director for school days hit me um well I didn't know it was her but I get this call and they say you have a call back no they said you have a dance audition and I'm not a dancer so I was like uhuh you keep saying it but that was full on choreography good and bad hair see if I care good and bad hair yeah yeah no they they I hung up on the person and then they call back and it was Robbie she was like Tisha this is a call back I was like oh it's a call back for school days oh no I'll be there I'll be there what time is the earliest call and what time is the latest call she said uh 10:00 and 6 o' and I was like give me to 6 o00 and she says okay so I show up at 10:00 so that I could learn the dance moves and the the the choreography and I stayed there all day long till it was time for me to go in at 6 o00 that was my trick that was smart yeah no it would take me all day make sure that I had it down I didn't even take a water break oh wow I was so focused on making sure and I remember seeing Spike come in and peek in I didn't know he was peeking in on me but he was to see how I was doing and then okay this is another exclusive show I know is going to hate me for telling this story but you did do that to me oeline is the choreographer of school a so so back then I don't know how it is now but back then they would take 10 people in as at a time so you would be actually auditioning in front of your you know uh your peers and the people competition and so they put five people up up and they put me I I stayed in the back just in case and they put me they said Shea come up front I was like darn right so I stood up front and then Otis Otis told me later he wasn't he really wanted a a trained dancer to be the lead and again I didn't know they were considering me for the lead I thought that Vanessa Williams the the singer actress I thought she was the lead right so I'm just in there and Otis walks around me slowly just circling me like I was pray and he's looking me up and down and I'm just standing there like a little 18-year-old and he goes he whispers in my ear you don't have to do this you know and I go but I want to try and he goes and walks away right and I was like this oh man oh man I got the so I just tried my hardest and what I learned in those hours that I had to learn it and then when I went home I got the call from Spike and he told me I got got it and I was like oh what role and he was like the lead and that's how I got it oh my gosh okay so question yeah when they told you you had to lick the part on man let me tell you about that part I was I always whenever I look at it I be like I'll be fast forward that's the D going through her mind when she had to do that you going to make me curse on this let me tell you something so in the script spike in the script there was no love scene there was no love scene in that original script that I saw right and so one day I'm in dance rehearsal because we were like in 3 months worth of dance rehearsal okay I'm in dance rehearsal in Atlanta Spike and Carlo they call me outside and I'm sitting on a corner on I'm like looking up at them I'm sitting on the curb and he goes yeah te you for the good of the script I think you should you know John Carlo should be naked on top of you and I was like nope so he goes Tia I'm telling you for the good of the character you said and so John Cara tries to John Cara tries to talk me see know he's the car play a good C bad C he says Tisha I really truly believe I said uhuh I said you're a grown man I'm an 18-year-old child I pulled a child card and and I'm going to tell my mother so I run I get up off the curb and [ __ ] is like I'm sick of you on your mother so I go to the I go to the corner and there was a um a foone booth back in the day that's how old it is so this is the ' 80s so I pick up the phone and I call my mother collect collect coffin t-shirt I said M want on me n get him on on top of me I don't want to know it I'm on my way right so she comes flying from California oh God for my love scene which was the next day and so we're at the love I said Ma you just stay in this room if I need you I'll call you but this is my first love scene I didn't know the protoy I didn't know anything right and I didn't mean to hold up production that's to happen to but it happens and so um I'm talking to the continuity person that's the person who shows you what happens next and makes sure everything's on track and so the continuity person is showing me the scene and it says um um one um kiss two lick the part three lick the uh brand brand yeah and like okay I know he has a brand um uh what what's what's lick the she she looks at me like this the part in the middle I said I'm telling my mama Spike was like Jesus not her mama again what wrong with to but he sat me down and he said Tisha I have to show this character her um and this is how he convinced me to do it said I have to show how far she will go for GF I have to show how far she will go for her man and I have to show this um and it made me go okay you can't one you better make it good and so instead of him being lying on top of me I still had like a half bra on and underwear and then the way that he he shot it very beautifully him and Ernest Dickerson they they had John body this way where my body is this way but his chest is laying on top of me so if they're shooting from behind it looks like he's on top yeah but it me but I was you know I was young and it was my first love scene I promise to anybody who wants to do a love scene with me it won't be do that I am so I feel so like elated that I could finally ask that question cuz all my life always thought what in the world she the nastiest thinking I still don't watch like I I got why you did it and I get what their reasoning was behind it but I still was just like that was a lot wrong that was wrong that was a lot I mean the movie was as exciting and fun as it looks because it was a lot of our first movie a lot of us came from theater a lot of the dancers in this I already knew I already worked with but we were green see she had just done Little Shop of [ __ ] and then she got um this movie so I think she was like 18 but she's Fierce you know she was a joy to work with as well Jasmine Guy was one of the nicest she just took me under her Wing oh she was really nice she's I just met her recently she was super sweet she's still super sweet she She'll always be that just just who she is as a human being um and then I remember going you know there were the wannabes and the jigaboos I would mostly hang out with the jigaboos because and I even hate calling them that but during that time on the set he to make it more realistic spike it split us up mhm and he put the wannabes or the lighter skinned girls in a nicer Hotel than the darker skinned girls to build up that resentment towards one another and then on top of that he put all the boys in the lighter skinned girls so then there was tension amongst us oh wow as well or our group um that was a method to his madness he was brilliant yeah and it it absolutely worked yeah um I remember when Kim the other lead girl in school days we were being separated cuz we we got there before all the other girls to build our chemistry and do our rehearsals um when they were moving her to the other hotel we were literally crying and you know didn't want to leave each other um and I would just go hang out with cuz I was basically saying I don't know if you realize you're such a National Treasure because you've been in so many Classics especially for the black like okay that is I you don't you don't go into a job thinking oh this is going to be a classic right you don't know whether you're even going to end up being in the movie or in the show cuz you know with editing and things like I never told anybody that I was in the in the movie Boomerang you want to keep it down get ready to ask some company okay so who's the victim tonight hey Von I don't feel like playing with you okay stop why don't you just tell her the truth tell her you're going to use her then you're going to dump her like you did me excuse me excuse me I did not dump you we went out it was whack and it was your fault and I wish look why don't you get over and go find another man huh get out of here I hope you catch a disease and your dick falls off oh well I would expect you to say something crash like that don't forget I have the court order for you to stare we ain't even supposed to be that close to the gate I'm call your probation off and why is that well because there were so many amazing comedians in that film and so I assume assumed I was my pages were three pages long that's all I had in the entire film I had lived a lot but you know so did everybody else and so I assumed that oh they're not going to keep my little scene so I just didn't tell anybody and then I ran into Reggie hudin on the Paramount for some reason we were on Paramount and I ran into him he was like oh my God we just screened the movie you're so good in I was like oh thank you thank you for keeping me in he was like no Tisha you're really funny in it I was like oh yeah Reggie thank you thank you for you know right making sure that I have a part in there and he's like okay right and so then when I went to the premiere I saw that you know like I have a substantial part in here yeah so wait a minute was was Boomerang before house party or house party house party was first okay so you already had a relationship with Reggie hler yes okay let's go back to house party tell us I once again one of my favorite one and two um so tell me like what was it like doing that and um how was it working with Robin Harris oh Robin Robin was funny okay here's another exclusive Robin had the sleeping disorder oh yes uh narcoleptic he was narcoleptic so he could just fall asleep at any moment at any moment like if if you see there's a there's a scene where a kid goes out of the the house and sneaks out of the house and the door closes and his eyes pop open well they had to keep slamming a book on the floor to make his eyes pop open like that because he was knock to sleep yeah he was really knocked out and I felt really bad for him but after we filmed um Robin Aj Johnson and I did a um did a a video right um to promote the show um it was a music video so we danced in it and Robin was in it and he was standing between me and a J Johnson and so we're standing yeah we're waiting for the shot and he just falls asleep right there and I looked at a in the middle yo he sleep and she goes standing up and so he goes but you [ __ ] look at ain't nobody looking at you Robin ain't nobody looking at you oh my my God yeah he could sleep standing up best bananas yeah I felt for him so so what is one of your Fondest Memories from from that set of working with house party yes there were so many because I I think it was just being able to work with AJ Johnson I had met her on the set of school days and she had snuck onto our set on school day set over and over and over again because she wanted to be in the movie and she was relentless I thought the [ __ ] was actually in it cuz she was in because she was always on set and always at eating lunch with us like she would go get her plate right like AJ just was sneaking on wait minut was she Union there or wait no she wasn't an actress then okay so she this what she wanted to do and so she was so relentless that Spike finally gave her a role oh wow right and so then we became friends then she moved to California and while we were um you know just hanging out we hear about this audition I was like it would be really cool if we you know audition for house party together and that's what we wind up doing We snuck in and was able to maneuver U we were set to work to be in the room with two other people M cuz they auditioned two girls together together to see the chemistry yeah okay so then you go and then you hit jackpot gold on sitcom well let's go back cuz this uh the cast of uh different world came to the view yeah and I saw that yes and so when they were there whoopy was in an episode and she was actually in an episode with you yes where you played a young lady that had AIDS yes they about how she um how all the sponsors were trying to pull out of that episode and how whoopy was one of those people that stood up that to come to be a part of that episode how did that episode affect you like well first you know back then me getting on a sitcom at all was a big deal because I couldn't get arrested doing anything comedic and I wasn't there to do comedy but just getting that credit was a big deal to me right I couldn't get arrested right right um but they needed somebody they needed that drama girl they needed the the girl who could you know cry on a dime I guess and and that's what I was known for back then in my earlier years and so um being able to do that iconic episode and I'm playing standing opposite of whoopy Goldberg was so huge you know I these were my my associates and my my friends from the school days cast most of them were from the school days cast and so I felt at home with them and I knew there was a comfort there but being able to play opposite of Whoopi she was iconic and for such an impactful role at that time because that's at a time where where a wasn't talked about you know safe sex wasn't talked about and not about how it affects straight black women absolutely yeah absolutely so actually y'all were really so Cutting Edge cuz now that I think yeah I was really before it's time yeah so wow I was glad to be a part of that yes yeah okay so then you end up on Martin yeah I remember seeing Martin in New York sitting next to freaking Diana Ross so cool are you serious yeah he was sitting next to Diana Ross at the premiere of boomerang okay right and so as I'm passing by him and saying hello he goes Tisha I'm about to do either a a movie or a sitcom and whichever one I do first I want you to play the girlfriend I was like okay Martin right sure you know cuz you know you don't really people don't really keep their words and so I I was like okay sure but what wind up happening is I I got a pilot um I got a pilot and it was being picked up you know the the time had lapsed and it was being picked up um for a do you remember what the pil was yeah I guess we're not going to know okay we'll keep it it's it's did it go on to do something well let me just say um because I love this director um Kevin Sullivan um it was an amazing pilot and Martin came and was like Tisha I'm doing a series and I was like Martin I just got a show and he was like I'm coming over your house right M now tashena had just flown out for pilot season to see if she could you know MH so she was living with me ah but she didn't tell any she was like don't tell anybody because I have an audition for this Martin Show and I don't want no nepotism I want to get it on my own she's always been like that I was like but if I tell them we're like friends and he just tried to offer me this she was like no don't tell him nothing I want to get it on my own so he had just meta in an audition for The Martin Show right and so and she was auditioning for the my house she was auditioning for the roll of Pam okay right and um she he walked in and he sees Tash and goes what are you what are you what are you do and she goes you know we're friends right and so I was like yeah she's living with me during piloty he was like oh okay well teacher I really want you to do it some kind of way he come I just knew in my heart I was like God this other job is already set I have seven episodes It's Already Done he wants me to do a pilot that is not guaranteed to get picked up but something in my heart something in my soul said choose Martin choose him and so I did and I was like Martin I'm going to take a chance I'm going to do it and he was like cool perfect then he W up telling me about to Sheena he said how long y'all been friends I was like all our lives since we were kids and he was like are you serious and I was like yeah he goes I was like yeah but she not going to want me to talk about her right in front of you right cuz she told me don't tell you that we're roommates right and so he goes Tisha she came into she's going to get the part he said Tisha she came into the audition like this y'all ready like I came here attit and that got her a role she didn't even have to right she didn't even really have to audition after she said that cuz you know everybody com hi I'm I'm Cheryl and I'm ready to audition I'm auditioning for the roll of Pam no not CH arold T Arnold plays no games okay she comes she does her stuff and she leaves but that's what got her to roll oh wow the stiness greeting and she kept it throughout yes the run of the show yes so that's that's that's what happened oh my goodness and they called us while um I happened to be U I tricked tohaa to do a song with me in the studio we were in the studio when we found out that she got the go so wow okay so wait a minute was that don't ask my neighbor was that when yall did that yes okay yes and then we got push yes okay so how was that how did it feel to finally put out music ah I wasn't I was I was too young really yeah and I I didn't understand or take in the fact that this was something that was really a a a great opportunity MH and I took it for granted MH and I didn't give my all when I did that first album a okay so you go on and then you start to do Martin ends and then you go to do My Wife and Kids was my wife and kids now that was like in the 2000s so I jumped what did I miss there's so much I don't know 1997 was the last episode of Martin and then I started um My Wife and Kids in 2001 okay so so there was a little break there there was but I was still working I don't remember what I was doing I'm so sorry there's things oh that's there's things on my resume I've never seen really did it it went on and didn't even ask what it never seen it and there are some things that I I remember um another exclusive yes stff give it to me give it to me listen no I remember not too long ago I had done this movie it was it was it didn't have a title okay it was the Untitled blah blah blah movie right and so they asked me to do it I went to San Francisco I did it for them came back home and then I'm getting all these calls oh my God you're so amazing in this movie I was like I'm not in a movie and they're like no it's it's I just saw it what do you it's it's in all the festivals and and and it's it that Sundance and it's it's one of the talks of Sundance and I was like I'm not in a movie what are you talking about yes you are is it not another church movie no this is no I'm not going to say which one cuz I still haven't seen the movie but we want to see the movie y'all got to just look how can we look we don't have we don't have a name I don't care I'm not saying it because I've never seen it and it's gotten a lot of I mean even the white coming up to me that's more Reon why people were coming up to me oh my God I love your movie so much right like it was a a really like heartfelt movie and I still haven't seen it so there's more reason for them to for you to tell us I just don't I just don't watch okay so I don't you but okay yall I am I'm going put y'all on it to go check it out and then somebody hit us in the comments and let us know yeah don't don't say that I didn't watch it though right well it's too late there a lot of stuff I have never watched oh my go okay well do you do you because you've sort of been pushed into this category of a comedic actress in no way yeah do you want to do more dramatic roles or do you enjoy comedy and comedy so it's funny that it's it's the same question that pops up when people ask me do you enjoy singing more then you enjoy acting more do you enjoy being by the behind the scenes do you enjoy cooking do you enjoy painting and I can't choose because I get a different type of high from each one mhm so I I can't choose whether I love movies more or whether I love gotcha single camera multi- camera I love everything and recently I just did a multi camera I was doing two things I was doing a single camera what was the single camera uncoupled okay and then a multi- camera at the same time okay explain to the people that don't know what the difference is okay so the multi camera is four cameras and it's it's like a sitcom th those are you know sitcoms usually um and then the single camera is more like a movie style yes so you can do a single camera comedy or you can do a multi- camera or single camera drama blah blah blah um and I was doing both and so with UNC couple the writing was so amazing was the best writing that I've ever um had to play off of it had been one of my favorite shows I thought it was interesting yeah that it was going I thought it did it was on it was on Netflix yep people were talking about number three in the world right it was so huge did not get picked up didn't get picked up got picked up by showtime and everybody was excited everyone was excited we was looking forward to it I was looking forward to it then the we were actually in pre-production and the strike happen writers so we had to the writer strike and we and the actor strike and we had to stop production and then once that was over we were gearing up to go back and um and film I was it was okay on a Thursday on a Thursday chilling on a Thursday we chilling on a Thursday they just sent me seven scripts that were absolutely mouthwatering juicy to work with it was so good um they were casting for my significant other Al so they were getting ready to go deeper into your character I had just gotten my New York apartment a um I was supposed to move in um on April 15th and um that was a Thursday on a Friday the next day I started getting all these ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding ding notices I look at my phone and and I see a deadline post that says we uh Showtime is no longer moving forward with uncoupled first time in the history of me being in this business 52 years that we didn't get a a a notice or someone at least tell but it happened with all of us none of us knew the producers there the writers the actors the teamsters nobody knew and when you and found out in the trade and when you call or your publicist call or your people calling like what's going on is anyone giving you any answers no there's no answers they just announced it and didn't didn't notify us first usually you get a notification but that was the first time in my career and you know me I just I moved forward really really quickly but it was shocking yeah but you know what honestly I've been through five strikes really yeah I mean since the 70s going to be around at Le was at least five um I've been through a number of strikes and every time there's almost like they got to put you back in your place yeah I'm not saying that that's allegedly I'm not saying that that's what they were doing right right right but it was just a very strange way to find out that they've moved forward yeah and that you have to Pivot yeah but I really good it you know pivoting thank God God you know gave me the gift of tenacity yeah and I just prayed about it and just kept it moving okay so like you have this vast amazing career so is there something that you haven't done that you want to do and have you ever have you ever done anything outside of the acting have you directed have you written so so during covid isolation um you know we were all in this bubble and it was for the first time in my life that I didn't have anybody in my ear telling me what to do or telling me what I couldn't do so I tried everything that I've ever wanted to do and one of the bigger things was that I've always wanted to be a writer since I was seven years old really I've always wanted to write I wanted to write a book I wanted to be an author I wanted to do that um and so I started writing and formed a production company sold five things while I was while we were in Co isol um and so now you know I have uh Danny Wright who is the head of creative at you go girl and I have another company called the term pike Alliance shout out to Jersey and we love Danny yeah yes we love Danny and then there's Andrew Jameson my other producing partner and we you know co-founded the turnpike Alliance we just sold a show to NBC congrat which is a drama thank you so so much it's funny because when I first started writing most of the things that I wrote were Thrillers mhm which is such a depart dras it's departure from what people know me as but it was the thing that motivated me the most and and and I could get out my my stuff um comedy is a little bit harder for me to write because I'm a little bit more judgmental and I know that people are looking to see you know what I mean is it funny enough right exactly so it takes me a little while longer to to do the comedy um stuff gotcha yeah yeah yeah okay but yeah that's what I'm doing and I'm also writing a book is it it is not a salacious tell all book it is actually a book about me and my son's Journey with autism a that's amazing my baby like a lot of people I I got choked up this morning I was watching something on CNN about this guy that does a car wash to make sure that people with I saw that I was in there have jobs yes and to make and the way they said it up so that they can um if they forget what they're doing they just do the past code so great I was I was like it's 9:00 in the morning I know my favorite yeah I was dying this morning but this journey was such a you know yeah and I it's funny what resources did you use it's hard to explain I have to tell you because this book is is really it's kind of different because I'm not using a ghost writer I'm writing it all myself um and which is funny because when I got a book agent he when he read my pages he says so who's helping you I like nobody he was like nobody's helping you I like no nobody I I you wrote all of this like yeah like I would just jot down my feelings over the past 22 years and you know kind of combined it into this book form and he said Tisha you're a really good writer I was like are you serious really are you just saying that and he was like no I wouldn't say that I would tell you if you needed help because we need to sell it Tisha I'm actually excited about this book it's filled with so much heart heartbreak triumphs um hope laughter like there's this journey is like filled with ups and downs but and it's almost like a house to how you did what you did he said so it's a really good book and he said you should be really proud of yourself so for somebody to tell me that I'm a really good writer is probably the biggest thing for me because it's something that I've always aspired to do how when should we expect this like do you have I would say next year okay yeah I'm only six chapters away from finishing oh wow yeah so I'm excited I'm excited about that yeah and because I know a lot of people with amazing children that have dealt with autism and it's just learning how to Pivot and and teach them how oh it's a lot yeah it's a lot it's a lot to it and um did you have support system like did you did were there other people that came around yes I couldn't do anything without my Village my dad was a big big help uh my dad worked with group home children our whole life I lived in a group home with um it was me my three brothers my mom my dad and 14 other brothers oh wow so that's crazy yeah yeah the stories and the things that I've seen are you know amazing and heartbreaking but my dad was so amazing with children and um I always say you know I watching him and the fact that I was trying to become an actress was the reason why I was given the gift of Zen which was my son that's his name zen um that y y'all used to have nightclub named after we did there was a there was a nightclub named Zen after my son yeah yeah okay so we have something in common uhoh I told you a little earlier uhoh what was that we're we're both thieves of dressing rooms then when we go into green rooms we have to steal the snack listen don't put it in there don't put the snacks in there if you don't want me to get them yeah cuz the snacks are nice cuz I know Danny told you that you should just eat it while you're there we just left the show I'm with this one over here if just want to say hello to the people hi thank you and so we leave the show and she took every oh come on piece of snack hold on it's it was in my dressing room that they let me have it in my dress room give me get off my stuff all the snacks as if these will go great in my house but you have a million snacks at but but they left it in my dressing room I'm supposed to just leave it there for the next person but you're supposed to eat it in the dressing room no no no bro you can afford some chips they left it in my dressing room when I tell you it's not even water left in there Ste oh that is a lot no that's stupid no I I agree thank you so when you go with yours celebrity clients right and then they go and they hit their dress room and then there's a bunch of snacks there it's time to go grocery sh got some good snacks Sher I love going to the Sherry show I love going to the Tonight Show have you been to Jimmy fall I have not he got good snacks you we got to get you on Jimmy Fallon he has the milk cookies he has a whole thing yeah he yeah he Jennifer Hudson got some good snacks I ain't never been to Jennifer I got to go to Jennifer good you know what it's a combination she but you know when I saw that video that you you and Danny did you did come away listen listen I'm taking all the snacks I'm doing the it's going to look good in my house I can put it in my guest room my kids will be happy and yeah I might have a couple of those things already in my house but shoot I'm sitting there I'm not supposed to leave it for the next person I totally agree listen I have taken whole fruit trays and listen if if you want a good snack tray is one that is like it's got the fruit it's got the sugar and it's got the grains and the nuts and the grass and stuff too and the seaweed but you got to get all of that don't just give me the nuts and the seaweed I don't want that Good Morning America used to give you a plastic tray of fruit but it would have it wrapped in and I have been known to take a bag absolutely it's grocery shopping time it's grocery shopping time listen they don't pay us enough we got to get our they put it on they put it on Jennifer Hudson too they was I thought that was wrong that she put you out there like I thought that was very wrong her but I'm not going to talk I'm not going to talk about I love Jennifer so we not we're not going to put her out like that okay and so I got two more questions and then I'm done sure so you're out here single now what is a Tisha Campbell type what what what does she look for C don't know you don't know I don't know you got to understand something sir I'm I was in an almost 30-year relationship prior to that I had nothing but boyfriend so I've never been on a proper date with a man before okay let me say that again a proper date and I'm a cheap date too I don't like steak I don't like lobster really I'm just I'm yeah just get me some turkey or chicken or something and I'm good right like I'm I'm a cheap date right never been are you serious never been and this whole newness of it all is kind of weird for me cuz you know there's apps and I was going to say are you open to the apps no I'm not open to any apps it's nothing but 20 year olds hit on me anyway 20 something year old that's good though look here that mean you a young look you're a young tender that mean come on listen my friend Danny I'mma tell you what she said what she said see again a keeps me a good Millennial around me not only to keep it popping but to tell me the truth but she could be a little bit nicer when she said that so she goes Tisha you know you're not marriage material I go I am true marriage material right and she goes she goes she goes no honey nobody wants to marry you they want to have sex with G that is um it's the truth it's the truth no I don't believe it I don't believe it it's the truth Danny is it the truth Danny true that's right your son calls you Gina my son does call me Gina my I've never shown my kids my work I don't watch it so they're not g to watch it right they and if they pass by the television they see me it's just their life right they don't pay attention to their mother's on television right they know what I do for a living but they've never um they I don't sit down and let them watch my work that's crazy normally because I just wanted them to look at me as Mommy and that what I do is just a job like anybody else's job like the teacher or the policeman or the anybody that you know it's just a job right so um recently I let my kids I sat my kids down to watch house party okay now I've never shown them the Martin show or anything somebody else showed Zeke so that's why Zeke calls me Gina G right he don't even call me Mommy I don't care I just answer cuz it's just it's too much you don't even fight it it is what fight it right so he just Gina what we having for dinner Gina I miss you Gina I just go thank you baby well anyway so we sat them down to watch house party for the first time and what was their reaction my son Zeke said I mean mom was okay I just don't understand why it's a classic right are you serious like okay let me me sit you down and explain right I said at that time there were no movies about young African-American kids just having a good time and living life the only things that were being green lit at that time were shoot them UPS or gangster films and stuff like that and yeah that's a a smidgen of our lives but there's other things that happen with African-Americans other than that and to just to see some young kids dancing and and having a good time and and um living life and coming to age that was a big deal for us because you get to see black people on television and they're represented all the time even in cartoons now but we didn't have that I think we had Fat Albert and uh the Jackson Five oh well yeah we had the Jackson Five and that little and what's his name on on the peanuts that couldn't sit with everybody you know he got his own show now I saw Franklin Franklin got his own show got his own show but it's interesting because my kids don't have the same reality as we did you know and representation really does truly matter it does right um there was a time where I was the only little girl on TV TV yeah you know do you go around your house playing scissors gogina no you don't play that I no I hear it if it's playing if it comes up on my thing I don't go out of my if if SC when it first came out I was like oh that's really dope yeah and then I met her and that was really cool she was like I put you in my I was like I know that's so cool but to see how people rever those two characters or um Jay and Michael on My Wife and Kids with Damon wein it's such a it's such a cool thing for me yeah that people still call me that yeah yeah okay so my signature question that I ask everybody is boy it's a easy one it's an easy one it's really simple is what does Tisha Campbell find beauty in what do I find beauty in yeah mountains grass my kids oh I absolutely find the beauty in my my two boys um and I'm starting to find the beauty in myself which is a really big deal was that hard for you yeah too much noise too much noise too much people telling me what I need to do who I should be um I truly believe that now I'm starting to appreciate myself um I've always put myself last I've always put myself in the background I've always made myself smaller to make other people comfortable m um and just embracing um who I am today in my second half I don't mind I like her I'm starting to like myself a lot I I hope someday that I am get better and just continue to get better and continue to help people and stay the course that God put me on so I want you to know I love you thank you I if you're if your second half is anything like your first half then oh baby you better buckle up thank you Jesus hope so I love you so much thank you thank you for doing this no thank you for doing this you have no idea like I've done I've done quite a few interviews now yeah you make you actually make my 50th oh youat thank you I just celebrated five years oh my gosh of doing this show that's fantastic and so to have you be my 50th interview it has made my heart so glad cuz I I wanted to do something that someone that I revered and I love so much and that I don't have to put on to have the conversation that I would truly I adore you and you're a really good interviewer so much than I do appreciate you listen where can we find you what you got coming up what you want to promote right quick oh right now I'm doing um I'm in Lopez versus Lopez George Lopez and Mayan Lopez um I'm also work and also in this movie not another church movie it was one of those you know um year the yes movies that I did for a friend were you nervous about doing that cuz that feels like I mean cuz it felt from watching the previews and looks like it's like poking fun oh it's a it's a parody Got You Gotta you know it's nothing that you take seriously um um yeah it's just it you know it's just a par got you I I wasn't nervous I honestly again it was one of those year or the yes things where I'm not going to read the script I'm only going to read what I need to do um but I love playing different characters um so no I wasn't I wasn't nervous when does that come out it's out now oh is it it's in theaters okay perfect Tim then yeah yeah yeah okay and what else anything else be on the lookout for the book just reg somebody write to um Instagram and tell them to change my name back to my ma name they will not let me change it because I have too many follow followers thank God I have followers but seriously like can I have my real name back please Instagram please do it Instagram oh come on St so hard come on okay so that's Instagram and then um are you big on Tik Tok I am tsha Campbell on Tik Tok okay there we go TSH Campell all right you guys thank you so much for watching be sure to click like And subscribe and thank you so much bye you guys thank you [Music]

Channel: Behind the scenes Beauty w/ D.M.

Views: 72,824

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Id: ko_9DOiuerk

Length: 66min 6sec (3966 seconds)

Published: Mon May 27 2024