KiKi Layne

“Aaliyah is my favorite singer.”

“It's important to me that I'm more than a pretty face or another person starring in movies. That's great, but there's so much more than can and should be done.”

“I'm learning so much about my style just having access to so many things now. Growing up in Cincinnati, we really didn't have much money so it was really about places where you can go to get the most for the least.”

“It's important for me to not be put into any type of box because that steals the fun of acting. I want to do everything.”

“It's not lost on me to have the ability to be wearing custom Dior or Gucci, with my box braids or my bantu knots. It's another opportunity to show that Black girls belong in these places and that what I naturally bring as a Black girl belongs as well.”

“When you hear these stories about different cases of police brutality, don't even just make that person just another hashtag, another statistic. That is somebody's father, brother, sister, mother - be more aware of what that means.”

“It's the first way I feel we can really express ourselves. There's always a story you can tell with fashion.”

“It's just always been in my heart to perform.”

“We all live in different worlds and situations, so what's the issue with representing that on screen?”

“I started off with the flute and French horn, and then I was playing trumpet in the jazz band.”

“I'm just hoping that, as more black artists take control of the narratives that are out there, more opportunities will come around for artists of colour. We want to make the same waves that the white artists do.”

“I think a lot of times for women, especially in this industry, we're forced to do things for beauty that aren't good for what we already have.”

“Love & Basketball' has stuck with me since I first saw it.”

“I always say, food is the way to get KiKi Layne wherever you want her to go. As long as I'm not cooking.”

“I'm very grateful that 'Beale Street' was that opportunity for me to be introduced to the industry in that way and have some doors open for me.”

“It's not about opening a door and shutting it right behind you. I want to keep it open so others can come behind me.”

“I want to push the boundaries on the roles that have historically been given to actresses who look like me. There is so much more we can do. There always has been.”

“I think the biggest thing is reminding myself how hard I worked for it,' Layne continues. 'It wasn't just handed to me. I trained so hard; I've been so committed.”

“I'm not extra, I'm not going to be the person walking around the house in an extravagant gown during quarantine.”

“I don't want to be put into a box.”