By Giana Levy
For CAU alumna and actress Geffri Maya, star of The CW’s hit show “All American,” her journey as an actress has not been easy. From performing in plays to now having her spinoff show, Geffri Maya credits her life experiences and time at Clark Atlanta University to succeed and progress as an actress. In true Panther fashion of finding a way or making one, Geffri Maya continues to trailblaze her path while inspiring the next generation of actors to do the same.
The Panther had the opportunity to chat with Geffri Maya about her current role on “All American,” time at Clark Atlanta University and more.
Q: Let’s start from the beginning. You’ve gone from your first TV credit as Allison in “Jericho” to starring in All American’s spinoff show as Simone. What has your acting journey been like for you up until this point?
A: It has not been an easy one, but any type of accomplishment never comes with ease. What makes the journey beautiful are the trials and tribulations that you come against that help build and craft the artist that you are. In this case, the artist that I am has been crafted through hard work, hills and valleys, trials and triumph. It has been a wild one, but the benefits that I am reaping are by the grace of God, preserving and staying diligent in what I believe is my passion and purpose. I started with plays in my elementary school. Now, I am able to perform on stages, shows, and movies that people love and will be able to see for a lifetime. It is not easy, but I am here and happy.
Q: Is there a specific moment or person that inspired you to become an actress?
A: There are so many talented people that I believe have added to why I do what I do. To be honest, I initially got this urge to want to be a performer when I was really young. The first time that I ever said that I wanted to even remotely be on a television screen was when I was three years old. I used to watch shows that had children. We speak so much and so highly about how representation matters, so seeing little kids on a TV screen in a magical, mystical place that I wanted to be in made me look at my mom and say I want to do that. She did not understand it at first because I used to say that I want to go “in” there, meaning I wanted to be in this place with these kids. So, I started off very young. I used to watch after-school shows like “Zoom,” “Out of the Box” and “Barney.” Anything that had kids that looked liked I could do that really inspired me. As I have gotten older and been able to experience theater, tv and film, there are so many actresses such as the late Cicely Tyson, Tessa Thompson, and Viola Davis. There are so many people that I could name that I feel added to my artistry in terms of inspiration, representation, strength, grace within the roles that they take, personal life experiences and how it translates into the work that they do. The list can go on and on but it is a plethora of people that I can talk about all day.
Q: What have been one or two challenges that you believe have contributed to your professional and personal growth?
A: While being in that transitional period of your life in college, you start to figure things out, let things go and start to attach to certain things because you are in a space of growth. During my time at Clark Atlanta University, I still was not sure if acting was something that I wanted to do because I had done it for so long. I had started professionally when I was nine years old. I decided that I did not want to act anymore and wanted to indulge in other things. I was a journalism major when I first went to Clark Atlanta University, so I wanted to explore and experience different things. I think that having this idea of giving up this dream of mine added to both the celebrations and what felt like a demise when things were not necessarily going my way or when I was auditioning for roles and being told no. That was very challenging for me because I started questioning if this was the right thing to do. Should I have followed my dreams of trying to be this artist? If I did not let it go by the time that I did, how much further would I have been within my career? I thought that if I did stop acting and give other things a chance or opportunity, then who would I be then, and am I not honoring that person? There are so many different ways and directions that we could go, and I beat myself up for that for a while. It was a whirlwind of thoughts and questions. It is never fun to question yourself, but it is necessary in order for us to be on our journeys. Everything is full circle and when you think about it, everything is so much bigger than us. So, once I figured out that this is what I wanted to do and this is where I want to be, I started really digesting everything that I went through and received it as I was supposed to go through that in order to be where I am today.
Q: In what ways would you say attending an HBCU impacted who you are and your success as an actress?
A: Originally, when I thought of college I had a whole different plan for my life. Before I was even an actor, I was a dancer. I wanted to be in companies and travel the world. I had a whole plan with one of my best friends. We were going to move to a loft in New York and live together because she was a dancer as well. Literally, that completely changed when one of my other best friends told me that we should try to find a school outside of Los Angeles. We came across Clark Atlanta University at the Black college expo here in Los Angeles, which is a huge opportunity for Black kids to come and experience an awakening of HBCUs. Initially going to an HBCU did not cross my mind but the expo exposed me to so much; truly an eye opening experience. I feel like going to a HBCU does not really hit you until you are actually able to look back and think about the experiences that you had. For me, it is always a beautiful experience to be nostalgic because it makes me think even further about the history of our university’s founders..the trials and tribulations they had to face to simply get educated; be embraced for the power and beauty that they already had. When you think about the legacy as a whole, for all HBCUs, it is really next level...it gives me chills! You do not really feel it until it is done and you can actually sit with your contribution, experiences, etc. The idea of being educated with people that look like me by people who look like me will forever be inspirational and empowering.
Q: Speaking of HBCUs, The CW spinoff is actually set to explore your character Simone and her experiences attending an HBCU. How does it feel sharing that similarity with your character?
A: It is an honor to do that because of the legacy, founders and our ancestors that fought to simply allow us to be. I am very grateful to be able to tell that story and have it also come from a real place. Going to a HBCU is a different experience. It teaches you so much about yourself, brothers, and sisters while living, working, and growing together. I am still very close with most of my best friends from college and it is because of that growth, push and pull together. It takes a tribe; it takes a village. Truly, that was the experience for me which was building and growing through it all with a village. I loved it.
Q: Fans of “All American” were first introduced to Simone Hicks in season two. As we progress throughout season three of “All American,” we see that she had her baby, gave it up for adoption, and now wants to be in her baby’s life. Have you found it difficult to execute such a complex and layered character?
A: When I first became part of the show, I had no idea the severity of Simone and Jordan’s relationship or the direction of how far it was going to go in terms of the story. In this situation, I think that Jordan’s position is a beautiful bond that is created between the two despite the ups and downs. It is still beautiful to see Black love and kids wanting to do something good and support each other especially in moments of being a young mom. I have never personally experienced that but I know that there are girls that have been in that situation, teens who have gotten pregnant or teens who have carried full term. The show is touching on topics and ideals that are nice to see such as Black families being able to come together. It has everything to deal with representation, and I think it is important to see that we do not live one kind of way. We are not one kind of being. We all do not have the same shared experiences. Topics like adoption, teen pregnancy, single parenthood, or joint families are beautiful to see and very real for a lot of people. The beautiful thing about acting is the ability to tell stories that people can feel and be affected by.
Q: You’ve been able to play many different characters from being on Private Practice, Snowfall, Blackish, and more. Do you ever find it difficult to disconnect from a character when the time comes to perform another role?
A: I would not say difficult. You take a little bit of them everywhere with you. Of course, I let it go but it is still a part of me. It is still a part of something that I have done. It is still a memory attached, a physicality, a tone and an energy. In a weird way, I do not like to disconnect because I get sad when I know things are coming to an end. They are moments, memories and experiences that live inside of you.
Q: Out of all the characters you have played, who has been the most challenging?
A: Honestly, all of them. I say that because with similarities there are differences. And with any difference, it is not easy. It is never going to be easy to be a person that you have never met before. You have to find that person. Each role that I have played has had its challenges and difficulties, but it is fun. If everything came easy, then where is the experience?
Q: As a Black actress, how have your personal experiences influenced the different roles and character stories that you decide to take on?
A: Representation matters. In terms of how I choose my roles, I base it on how I want to be remembered. I base it on how I want people to feel, receive me and how I think of myself as a Black woman. It is not to say that the roles that are created and crafted to represent all Black people are good or bad- it has nothing to do with that. I think that it has everything to do with the person that is being offered the opportunity.
Q: What would be a dream role for you?
A: I want to do everything! My next goal is to do a feature film...a Black love story. I would love to continue to work with amazing storytellers.
Q: What advice would you give to aspiring actors?
A: Trust God. Trust the direction that you are going in. I know with social media, access, and so many different avenues and directions that you could take, trust what you believe is within you. Trust your gut. Trust your craziest ideas. Do the work. I do not care what social media shows you or what you think something is because of what you see-- that is their journey. Trust what you have and what you want to do. Trust the fight that you are going to have to get there. Do not compare yourself. Just do the work. Take class. It is not about the quantity, how fast you can do something or how many followers you have. If you are an artist for the craft, history, and the world you are going to create, do the work. If you want to be an artist, it takes time. It is more than the perks, fame, and glamour. It is really about the work, but make sure to have fun.