You know and love her as Tamika on ABC’s hit series, Mixed-ish but did you know that actress, Trinitee Stokes recently made history?! The actress [who just turned 15] will attend Emerson College in the fall – making her the youngest student to be accepted to the college! Did you also know this talented young lady is a motivational speaker/social activist for positive body image? We caught up with the young star to discuss everything from her recent accomplishment, her experience on Mixed-ish, and much more in our exclusive interview.
Tell us about your experience recurring on ABC’s hit series, Mixed-ish.
I started Mixed-ish from the beginning, so about two years ago. It’s been so interesting for me to be able to see the character, Tamika evolve in her relationship with Rainbow. Initially, Tamika was a bit harsh towards Rainbow, but as the seasons have progressed, they are really close friends now, even best friends as shown in the later episodes. I also really enjoyed filming the latest season (season two). It was so interesting with the new regulations for COVID. We were tested multiple times and there was a limit on how many of us were together to shoot scenes. It was really interesting to see how the characters were still going to evolve with the evolution that was happening with COVID. It’s been a really fun experience for me. I definetly wouldn’t trade it for the world.
How would you describe being a creative during this time of COVID-19?
It was different. The first month or so, I was kind of in shock, along with everyone else. I didn’t really know what the year was going to look like or what that would mean for filming. I’m so glad that I am used to finding odd things to do. I resulted to painting, knitting, coloring, I started playing around with makeup to hone my skills. I’ve done at-home products, chalking, and baking. I tried to use the time as resourceful as I could to be able to try all the things that I’ve been wanting to try, that I wasn’t able to do before COVID. This was also the perfect time for me to be able to dive right into my schoolwork. Thanks to COVID, I had so much extra time for school. I’ve been able to graduate school three years early.
How does it feel to be committed to Emerson College as the youngest person ever to be admitted and accepted in their history?
This accomplishment is so exciting for me. It’s totally new! College is totally new, although I’ve taken some college classes in high school. I’m really excited to be going to Emerson. It’s the perfect school for me, specifically the smaller learning environment. It’s just the perfect ground for me to be ablet o learn the best way that’s available to be. It’s such a unique, artistic school. I’m able to really create my own path. That is something that is exciting about Emerson. Being able to be the youngest person in Emerson’s history, going to the school is just oh my gosh! I didn’t even think about that when applying. When I received the acceptance, that was the furthest thing on my mind. I don’t think that me being the youngest will interfere with my learning experience. That is something that was also really important to me because I will be 15 when I start college [I was accepted at 14]. It really won’t interfere with my learning and participating in clubs – which was also an important factor for me going to college as well.
photo by Derek Palmer | provided by The Stokes Family
You are a motivational speaker/social activist for positive body image. Why is this so important to you?
My goal was to make sure that people are able to be themselves and view themselves in a positive light. I want people to feel okay with their body, not just okay but to love themselves the way that they are. This is a cause that is near to my heart because as a curvy individual, there aren’t a lot of role models out there that look like me and look like others. There are typically just one or two standards of beauty. With that limited amount of positive standards of beauty, it can cause people to lower their standards for themselves or even look at themselves in a negative light. For me, I felt myself a couple years ago, sort of going into that realm of believing my body may not be perfect. I thought I needed to do something to change it versus viewing my body as perfect just the way that it is. I do love myself that God created me. That is of course, my mindset now but it wasn’t an easy task. It definitely wasn’t an easy mindset to come out of, especially with social media and all of the different trends and Photoshop as well. I definitely took on the charge and challenge to make sure that others go through what I went through when it comes to maintaining a positive body image. I don’t want anyone to do it alone because a lot of times people feel the need to portray that I’m perfect or that nothing is wrong with me versus showing that they are truly human. Sometimes we don’t feel great but just sharing that feeling with others and being able to quickly come up with a way to solve it.
What are you currently working on and what can we expect to see from you in 2021?
That is a great question! I have a lot of projects that I am working on that are my own. Currently, I’m pitching some of my own projects. You guys should be hearing from me in that field a little later on. Stay tuned to my social media to be updated on everything that is happening.
photo by Carla Rhea
For more on Trinitee Stokes, follow her on Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter.
Featured Image by Carla Rhea
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