Our BIGGEST-little Star
Arguably the greatest phenomenon to come out of social media culture are memes.
From Chrissy Teigen’s infamous half smile at the 2015 Golden Globes to a fro-ed out, baby Cardi B with her hand on her hip. The hilarity is endless. And the internet did not disappoint after last Sunday’s BET Award’s with yet another viral hit from Black-ish star Marsai Martin stemming from her surprise at winning this year’s “Young Stars” award:
If you’ve been paying attention to meme-culture, or hell, if you’ve paid attention to Black Twitter at all within the past five years you’ve definitely seen her face before.
As hilarious as they are, Miss Martin’s meme’s and consistent Twitter trends could never do her true talent justice.
With her recently released comedy Little ( a story line based on an idea she came up with when she was just 10-years old), alongside fellow Hollywood newcomer Issa Rae and heavy-hitter Regina Hall, Martin has achieved the feat of becoming Hollywood’s youngest Executive Producer ever and the youngest person ever to sign a first-look deal with Universal at 14-years-old. This achievement was a long time coming for Martin who’s acting career began shortly after she turned 5. She was featured in a few national commercials until she landed her role as the hilarious and witty Diane Johnson on Black-ish. Because of her work on the show, she’s been awarded three NAACP awards for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a comedy series. And in 2018, was named one of TIME’s most influential teens.
But in the midst of all the accolades and her rise to a higher peak, Martin recently spoke candidly on Instagram about her struggles with depression and mental health saying, “Moments from this year, I was in a dark place. A place that I didn’t think I was going to get out of. I thought I wasn’t good enough and I thought I needed to present myself in a way that was “perfect” when I didn’t need to. Putting so much pressure on myself. Fighting with myself. This feeling had nothing to do with how child actors think. These were my own personal thoughts. The more I kept how I was feeling hidden, the more this dark emotion got bigger.” She goes onto explain how talking about it openly was difficult, but necessary in her healing. Something so many of us as adults can relate to and which can certainly inspire this level of bravery in black girls everywhere.
Based on these credentials in such a short amount of time I think it’s clear: Marsai Martin is very likely to become our next film superstar and movie mogul. From the bravery she displays in her personal life to the creativity and boldness she displays on the screen. She’ll be at the forefront of movers and shakers in the film and tv world who will help usher in the next generation of black girls and black woman magic. And as such we must protect and support her at all costs.
