Catching Up with Keke Palmer
Keke Palmer has just turned 18, but unlike many of her peers, she already has a successful career - and now, she’s ready to take control of it. Keke will both produce and star in Nickelodeon's made-for-TV movie Ragz, set for release in 2010, and the actress/singer said that adding producer to her resume wasn't easy. "When I first started out, everything was so fresh and so new and so fun, and I didn't really pay attention to the business side of things, but as you get older, you start to notice things that you hadn't really thought of before," Keke told The Huffington Post. "It was hard at first. I was almost uncomfortable having so much power. It was hard to let myself have an opinion on things. Being a producer gives your opinion a little bit more weight."
As if that's not enough, Keke has just wrapped up one one busy summer. The teen star appeared in the season 11 premiere of TeenNick's "Degrassi" and debuted two new songs, "Walls Come Down" and "The Greatest." She also wrapped filming a one-hour True Jackson, VP movie special, "Mystery in Peru." On August 26, her 18th birthday, she took a break from filming Ragz when her costars surprised her with a birthday cake on the set. She posted on her Twitter page that evening: "I really want to take the time out to thank everyone for wishing me a Happy Birthday!"
Keke at UNCF's Evening of Stars, August 2011
But 2012 will be Keke's biggest year to date - producing and starring in Ragz, lending her voice to Ice Age: Continental Drift, and starring in Joyful Noise with Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah. "Filming with them was absolutely amazing," says Keke. "I had the pleasure of filming my first ever role with Queen Latifah, and she was just as kind this time as she was the first time. She was just so welcoming, and then Dolly Parton - oh, my God. I just expected her to be a little bit guarded, but she wasn't at all. She's like a mother. She made fudge bars for everyone on set."
The teen also wants to make it big in the music industry, hoping to release her sophomore album next summer. And just this week, Keke was cast in the upcoming coming-of-age movie Virgin Mary. Described as film in the tradition of Sixteen Candles, Mary centers on a 15-year-old girl ( Abigail Breslin) who vows to have sex with her best male friend if they're still both virgins by the time they turn 18. Keke will play the best friend of Abigail's character.
We're so excited to see Abigail and Keke, two of our favorite young actresses, onscreen together!
As if that's not enough, Keke has just wrapped up one one busy summer. The teen star appeared in the season 11 premiere of TeenNick's "Degrassi" and debuted two new songs, "Walls Come Down" and "The Greatest." She also wrapped filming a one-hour True Jackson, VP movie special, "Mystery in Peru." On August 26, her 18th birthday, she took a break from filming Ragz when her costars surprised her with a birthday cake on the set. She posted on her Twitter page that evening: "I really want to take the time out to thank everyone for wishing me a Happy Birthday!"
Keke at UNCF's Evening of Stars, August 2011
But 2012 will be Keke's biggest year to date - producing and starring in Ragz, lending her voice to Ice Age: Continental Drift, and starring in Joyful Noise with Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah. "Filming with them was absolutely amazing," says Keke. "I had the pleasure of filming my first ever role with Queen Latifah, and she was just as kind this time as she was the first time. She was just so welcoming, and then Dolly Parton - oh, my God. I just expected her to be a little bit guarded, but she wasn't at all. She's like a mother. She made fudge bars for everyone on set."
The teen also wants to make it big in the music industry, hoping to release her sophomore album next summer. And just this week, Keke was cast in the upcoming coming-of-age movie Virgin Mary. Described as film in the tradition of Sixteen Candles, Mary centers on a 15-year-old girl ( Abigail Breslin) who vows to have sex with her best male friend if they're still both virgins by the time they turn 18. Keke will play the best friend of Abigail's character.
We're so excited to see Abigail and Keke, two of our favorite young actresses, onscreen together!