After gaining momentum from a series of hit singles and with her full-length debut on the way, Saweetie is now looking to take her talents to the small screen. The Bay Area native will make her acting debut on the “grown-ish” midseason premiere portraying Joey Bada$$’s diva protege, Indigo.
“I think Indigo is just a little bit of a bitch. She means well, but just sometimes she says the wrong things,” Saweetie told Entertainment Weekly ahead of the series’ return. In a clip Saweetie shared on Twitter, Indigo demands a wardrobe change for her music video from Yara Shahidi’s Zoey Johnson, who last dropped out of college to become Joey’s full-time stylist.
“My favorite thing about [playing] Indigo was when both her and Yara were on the same page and having a good time,” Saweetie added. “You can just see the love and excitement that Indigo has for [Zoey]. I think the dynamic is like a cool, bossy, sometimes mean big sister to Yara. She loves her, but she just has a hard time showing you.”
Off-set, Saweetie said Zoey was a helpful mentor and helped calm her nerves.
“I would ask her for advice and she was so easy to work with, so it was an honor and a pleasure to work by with her,” Saweetie said. “I know she’s gonna continue to do big and great things.”
“Even if I would mess up sometimes, she was just so helpful,” she continued. “It’s always nice to work with someone who wants you to do as good as them. What I will say is that she’s such a team player. She was like hyping me up and gave me the motivation, so it was fun to work with her.”
Saweetie has previous acting experience from college, where she was a theatre major before pursuing music full-time. However, she revealed to EW, she also hired an acting coach to prepare for the new role.
“I wanted to make sure I delivered. I feel like with roles, whether if it’s an episode or in a music video, you always have to commit to the emotion of what you’re trying to portray,” she explained. “I thought it was cool; a little cheating but that’s okay — I played an artist and I’m an artist myself. But the girl’s attitude and personality is completely night and day with mine, so I did have to learn about her. She’s a diva; she’s bossy. She’s a little bit of a bitch, so I definitely had to commit to her attitude.”
The ICY MC added that she’s hoping the “grown-ish” role will lead to more on-screen opportunities.
“I could definitely see myself having a show like that or just doing more guest-star roles, or even doing a movie,” she said. “I think it’s art. It’s fun to step outside my comfort zone and [it] allows me to just explore my creative side.”
Check out a sneak peek clip from the show below. “Grown-ish” returns to Freeform on Jan. 21.