[Video] This 'P-Valley' Star Says Pole Dancing Helped Her Overcome Negative Self-Talk

I hate to break it to you, sis. But you've been looking for love in all the wrong places.

While a man can provide consistent d*ck and good conversation, many of my good sisters know that true love hit different when you're falling in love with yourself, and that's exactly the lessonBrandee Evans learned firsthand after taking on the role as a certified pole assassin on the new STARZ hit series, P-Valley.

Last week, Brandee and her co-star Shannon Thortonjoined Keyaira Kelly for xoNecole's biggest Pajamas and Lipstick event to date featuring more than 2,800 viewers for an intimate discussion about how pole dancing helped them ditch negative self-talk and fall in love with their flaws. Brandee explained:

BRANDEE EVANS & SHANNON THORTON GIVE THE INSIDE SCOOP ON P-VALLEYwww.youtube.com

"Before P-Valley y'all, I didn't like my legs and now it's like I had to embrace it because it is what it is. I have stretch marks. I have cellulite. Like when you start looking around, what woman doesn't? We've got these scenes where we're topless and we're looking at each other and I'm like, 'Sis, you look good.' She's like, 'You look good too!' Like that moment where it's not a competition with each other, but a moment of uplifting each other. That's how it felt on set."

The series, which premiered last Sunday (July 12), was created by Memphis-born activist and playwright Katori Hall, who based the show on years of interviews and research on women in the sex work industry and tells the story of a complex group of men and women who are often overlooked and dismissed. Shannon told xoNecole:

"You're going to see humanity. I think what this show does so beautifully is really peeling back all these layers and you get to delve into the psyche of these women, into their logic. And I think audiences will leave empathizing with these women and rooting for them. What Katori is doing, she's shining a light on a group of people who are marginalized and who are often dismissed."

Shannon agreed with Brandee and said that taking on the role was a journey of self-love that required a great deal of soul-searching and told xoNecole that because the show was shot in a female-directed environment, she was able to get out of her own head and feel even more confident in her abilities and her own skin––even if that was all that she was wearing.

"I think a requirement to do this job is to really just get out of your own way and not worry about what other people think. Like I would catch myself sometimes judging myself or wondering if other people are gonna judge me if I'm too sexy or if I move around in a way that's just too overt. And I'm like, you know, what, if I just relax and just enjoy this and own it, it's gonna be so beautiful and so sexy. You can't hold back and judge the person that you're playing as an actor, you have to have your characters back. It's something so beautiful and so liberating within that when you're on that stage and you're just owning it and you're just moving your body to the music. It's, it's wonderful."

To watch the full video, click here!

Featured image courtesy of Instagram/@therealbrandee.