A biography for Ayo Edebirihasn’t been written yet.
“I have so many memories of watching 'Oprah' with my mom after school and really feeling united with the country. Her show was such a window into culture at large for me because I grew up pretty religious; I was sneaking a lot of TV. But that was one of the things that I could unabashedly watch.”
“I grew up in Boston, and in my adolescence your parents are trying to send you to like 'better' schools and a few of those were predominantly white institutions.”
“I found out about Sister Song through Poppy Liu, who's on the show 'Hacks.' Reproductive rights are human rights, and I wanted to shine a light on this organization. It's really empowering to see an organization that's prioritizing the reproductive rights of women of color and also has a lean toward education.”
“In sixth grade, my mom got me a green iPod Nano that she won at a work raffle and I cried.”
“I love being a sponge. I just want to learn as much as possible.”
“I think there's something that's in the Boston tap water that makes you a fan of Boston teams, regardless of anything. They can do no wrong. Everyone is the bad guy and we are the underdogs, even though we've been champions 57 times.”
“I went to NYU for writing. And I think writing and being in writing rooms in service of other people bought me time. It gave me the confidence to be, like, 'Okay, here's what I can do.'”
“Being able to mold and create new stories for yourself, new journeys, it's very freeing.”
“I remember always being afraid of the chefs.”
“Life is a journey of growth.”
“In comedy there's a lot of drama, and in drama there's a lot of comedy. The two meet more than the word 'genre' might indicate.”
“I have a hard time with red wine, because it gives me headaches. I'm sensitive!”
“I didn't really think of acting as a job that I could do. I wanted a real job that would make me money.”
“I was babysitting. I was working restaurant jobs, doing freelance, doing late-night shows where you could transcribe. I was working as much as possible.”
“I couldn't predict tonally what the show was going to be, and that not knowing, that curiosity, really drew me to 'The Bear.'”
“I feel like it's a real privilege to like what I do and feel challenged by what I do and just want to keep working, keep learning.”
“There's a lot of Black women on TV in the media and I feel like we look different, but we also still look like ourselves. I feel like that's important and beautiful.”
“I fell in love with improv but like the good, repressed, immigrant child I am, I bottled that energy up and used it to fuel this idea of doctor for like eight years. And then my senior year in high school I so bravely and dramatically told my parents I wanted to do comedy and they literally did not care.”
“I realize how much fashion can help you tell stories, really. As an actress, as a storyteller, that's so crucial.”
“I tried to find ways to express my style. And I think once I got to school, especially, I was like, Oh, now I can. I don't have to wear a denim skirt every day. I can kind of figure out what my voice is.”