Drew Sidora -
By: Christine Le
You may recognize her as Chantel from Disney Channel's "That's So Raven," or from the hit dance film, "Step Up." But what you don't know about Drew Sidora is that she'll be playing a break-dancer in what is likely to be another phenomenal dance movie. You'll also get a chance to hear about her personal life in her debut album due out early 2010.
TheCelebrityCafe.com's Christine Le spoke with Drew and discussed her blossoming career.
Christine Le: What was it like being on "That's So Raven?"
Drew Sidora: For me, it was amazing to work with someone so talented. Raven [Symoné] is one of the writers on the show; she was executive-producing the show during the season I starred in. We had a lot of fun. The show was full of jokes and physical comedy, so it felt like going to work and just being a big kid. I really enjoyed it, and I'm so glad Raven is successful with everything else in her career after the show ended. For her to grow up and still continue with everything she's doing since the show ended, and for me to work with her—that has just overall been a great experience.
CL: That's wonderful. Have you and Raven become good friends, working together on the show?
DS: Definitely. All of us kept in touch after the show ended. Orlando [Brown], Rave, me. To this day we still keep in touch. The show is no longer filming, as you know, but we still call each other and, you know, just be there for each other while we're all following our passion.
CL: That's good to maintain that network so you can always help each other out. In 2006 you starred in the film, "Step Up," right? Were you in both the original and the sequel?
DS: Just the original, because the cast changed in "Step Up 2." The original "Step-Up" definitely influenced the sequel, but, you know, it was lucky to have established the whole dance phenomenon. They call it one of the classic dance movies of our generation, so it was really nice to be a part of that. It was also great working with Adam Shankman, who has been the producer of countless amazing films, like "The Wedding Planner." And to work with director Anne Fletcher, it was just so fun. That movie was simply the biggest thing for my career because it was right up my alley, allowing me to combine my talents of dancing, singing, and acting. That, for me, was really, really amazing.
CL: Wonderful. So I hear you're going to have an album out soon, correct? You're starting singing now?
DS: Yeah, I've been singing since I was 13, along with learning ballet, jazz, hip-hop, all of that. In "Step Up" I got a chance to show my singing, and got a couple of vocals on the soundtrack, including "For the Love," which I did with Mario, and "Till the Dawn," which I performed in the film. And now, just after being signed to Babyface Labels, it's day after day in the studio. I've gotten a chance to work with an amazing producer, Lamb. I also got to work with Ne-Yo on a song. You know, just working with a lot of great up-and-comers, so I'm really excited. This is a chance to let people get to know me more personally—my experiences, heartbreaks, all that stuff.
CL: And when are you expecting the album to come out?
DS: January or February of 2010. The first single will be "Ladies Go," produced by Lamb.
CL: And you started recording in December 2008?
DS: Right, that's when I signed my deal with Slip 'N Slide Records. You can visit www.slipnslideworld.com and www.slipnsliderecords.net for even more details.
CL: How do you compare singing to acting? Do you like one better than the other?
DS: No, both are my passion. It's just that when you're doing a film, you're taking someone else's creation; you're portraying their characters according to how they want them to be portrayed. Whereas with music, it's my baby. It's my creation; it's me pouring out my own emotions, so it's a little more personal. From my roles on television and film, people have known me as a love interest, a daughter, etc. So this album is more of a chance for people to get to know who I am, what I like—to know me as a person.
CL: I'm curious, Drew, as to how you got started with acting. You were a member of the "Hook Players' Theater Ensemble" in Hollywood, right?
DS: Yeah. My sister had started me in the whole acting thing. She wanted me to become involved, so she got me an audition at that Ensemble. With that, she also got me involved in the Richard Pryor Theater. And a lot of actors you see now on Broadway and television actually got their start in the "Hook Players' Theater Ensemble." We got to do monologues and plays—I really got to experience theater, before I even landed my first job. I felt that really built the foundation and helped me to understand the art of acting. It really prepared me. My first gig was a show called "Divas," (it's actually on TV now) which I did when I was 12. It was the first job I had, working alongside more seasoned actors. But yes, it was really the "Hook Players" that ingrained the foundational training, so I really owe it all to that. If you can do theater, you can do pretty much anything else, because there are no cuts, no retakes, it's all one take.
CL: That's right. It's all live, all happening at that time. And you have to be louder too.
DS: Exactly. In film, you can just talk to the person next to you. But in theater, you have to speak out to the audience, even though you're just talking to the actor next to you. Like I said, if you can do theater, then it's like you can really do anything.
CL: It's great that you got that important foundation at a really young age. A lot of actors start out with film or television, and then they do Broadway later, so it's kind of backward to how you got started.
DS: Yeah. Theater is just a different way of acting.
CL: Were you going to school at the same time when you started acting at age 12?
DS: When I got my first job in L.A., I ended up getting homeschooled for about a year after I had returned to Chicago—which is where I'm from—from L.A. I always knew that I wanted to come back to L.A., but it was important to my parents that I got an education, and just to come back home and make that my priority. So I went to eighth grade and high school in Chicago. Yet, I really wanted to go back to L.A., since I was doing modeling and voiceovers there. So my parents said that once I graduated high school, I could go back to L.A. That made me really focused, so I ended up graduating early. Thus, once I was back in L.A. I went to school for three more years, then got my first television series role on "What I Like About You" with Amanda Bynes. And from there I was on the Howie Mandel show, the pilot episode. From that point on, I got to star in "White Chicks" and "That's So Raven" and I just never looked back!
CL: You've had a lot of guest-starring roles.
DS: Yeah, including "Without a Trace," "Girlfriends," "The Game," and then I went on to star in the movie "Never Die Alone." My role in "That's So Raven" was a recurring one.
CL: What are your other plans now in regards to acting? I know you're busy recording your album, but in the near future do you plan to do more film, TV, or theater?
DS: I went to Africa and did a film called "The Killing of Wendy," which is coming out later this year. And also "B-Girl," which is a break-dancing film that centers itself around girls and the whole culture of break-dancing. The star of the film, opposite of myself, was actually the runner-up on "America's Best Dance Crew" on MTV. She's one of the legendary B-girls (a B-boy or B-girl is someone devoted to hip hop culture, particularly break-dancing). She was on Oprah, and known for breaking the record for doing things like spinning around on her head and doing a whole bunch of tricks. The film is specifically about a woman trying to enter the break-dancing world, which is historically male-dominated.
CL: Sounds cool. That's definitely a message that should be more vocalized, made more known.
DS: Exactly. And I mean, there are all these dance shows, like "America's Best Dance Crew" and "So You Think You Can Dance;" dancing is just so prevalent and international. There's not one person on earth who doesn't like dance—even if they can't dance! At least they like to watch others dance. And there's this whole following of breakers (break-dancers) across the globe as well.
CL: Do you play the role of the main character in "B-Girl?"
DS: I play opposite the main character. I play a girl named Regis, who comes from an underprivileged background, but she's a breaker. Then the other girl—the one who in reality was in "America's Best Dance Crew" like I had said, comes from New York. In the movie her name is Jules, and after she and her friend go through a tragedy, she basically wants to start over. So she comes to L.A. and wants to break into our breaking group. But because I'm the only female in that group, I don't welcome her because I want to be the only B-girl, and there aren't that many spots for that role.
CL: You don't want competition.
DS: Yeah, yeah. But then you see how that transforms into a mutual respect that we have for each other, and how we all come together to win the big competition in the end. Basically I play an incredible breaker, haha, so it took a lot of time and dedication to transfer this story onto film to make it believable and to connect with the audience.
CL: It sounds like a really good and inspirational film.
DS: Yeah, it is, and it was directed by first-time director, Emily Dell. It's just an all-around, feel-good film.
CL: It definitely sends out a message encouraging aspiring female dancers, especially. I imagine it must've been exhausting, involving a lot of dancing and practicing.
DS: Yes. A lot of training, a lot of stuff like that. I had to learn the moves—I'm not at all a professional breaker. It's really a whole different culture. And I did a lot of research on it all, so that the character could be really, really real. And it was quite something to work with the professional breakers to recreate something that would be believable and a good film!
CL: So you've had dancing experience before?
DS: Ballet, jazz, hip hop, tap, salsa.
CL: Wow. Do you feel that taking all those types of dance—even though they weren't break-dancing—helped prepare you for this break-dancing movie?
DS: Break-dancing was something I trained in for a little bit, but yes, all the other dancing really helped, in terms of the flexibility, movements, etc.
CL: So, do people recognize you when you're out, you know, as the girl from "That's So Raven?" and whatnot?
DS: It's funny because I get people ranging from kids to 30 and 40-year-olds, saying, "Hey, that's the girl from 'White Chicks!" and "Nuh-uh, it's the girl from 'That's So Raven!' " And I'm like, "Oh, that's me; it's the same girl!"
CL: Now, does it ever get overwhelming? Do you always get people coming up to you and making a fuss all over you, when you just want to eat out or do some shopping?
DS: It's actually very low-key. Because in L.A.., you have everyone from Rachael Ray, to Tyra Banks, to Beyoncé just roaming the streets. So compared to them, I don't stand out as much, haha. And in my hometown Chicago, where there's less celebrities, then yeah, I do get people coming up to me more often. But like I said, it's pretty low-key. I like having people recognize me so that I can interact with them and encourage them to pursue their dreams, whether it be acting, singing, or anything else.
CL: Cool. As long as there isn't paparazzi following you around, right?
DS: Yeah, so far, so good. I'm also part of this charity called Liz Claiborne's "Love is not Abuse" campaign. It focuses on teen-dating violence, and really reaching out to school systems and educating students and teachers on different forms of abuse and violence. And we just really encourage them to talk about it, because a lot of abuse in young people's relationships goes unreported. A lot of people don't feel comfortable talking about such things in their relationships, which can lead to death or serious injury, as you know. Or even prison. It's prevalent in society right now. So it's important to educate people on things like emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse. But understand, though, that it doesn't always have to get to the physical abuse. It's good to know, especially if you're in a relationship, so you can recognize the signs of potential abuse in order to not become a victim, or to prevent a loved one from becoming a victim. I'm very excited about it. This is going to be a school tour that we're going to do with my music tour as well. Wherever we travel, we're going to make contact with schools and just get people to talk about it—that's the biggest thing: to support each other.
CL: It's wonderful that you find time to do public good, alongside your filming and your singing.
DS: It's important to give back, and to have a voice that people will respect and listen to.
CL: Well, keep up the good work, Drew. You have a lot of great things going on.
DS: Thank you! And also, check out my music on my MySpace at myspace.com/drewsidoramusic. You can also keep up with me on Twitter at twitter.com/drewsidora.
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