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'Bel-Air''s Jazlyn Martin Says This Is What She’d Ask Tyra Banks About Her Character ‘Jackie’
One of the most-watched television shows in Black family homes in the 90s was NBC’s Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The series was on-air for six seasons, ultimately concluding in 1996. It reached over 20 million households and became one of the top-rated primetime television series of its time. The popularity of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air slingshotted then-newcomer, Will Smith into a multi-decade career of acting, producing, and music-making.
Fast-forward to today, one of Peacock's most-streamed original series to date is Bel-Air. The series has been streaming for two seasons and just renewed for a third. The popularity of Bel-Air slingshotted now-newcomers such as Coco Jones, Jabari Banks, Simone Joy Jones, Olly Sholotan, and new-to-the-series regular, Jazlyn Martin into the spotlight.
And none of them are slowing down.
What I enjoy most about the Peacock’s reboot, is that they don’t try to overly mimic the original show or rely solely on nostalgia, as a means for a reboot. Instead, the series acts as a modern revamp of the classic, making its characters more relevant to Gen Z, and introducing R&B singer Coco Jones, who plays the hella bourgeois Hilary Banks, and Will, who is played brilliantly by Jabari.
Jazlyn Martin, a rising Afro-Latina actress (This Is Us, The High Note) plays a new interpretation of one of Will’s childhood friends and love interests, Jackie Ames, the role previously held down by supermodel tycoon, Tyra Banks. Additionally, instead of portraying one of Will's childhood friends from Philly as her older counterpart once did, Martin's version of Jackie acts as Will's new love interest. She's also the niece of his new basketball coach, Doc (Brooklyn McLinn).
Martin recently sat down with POPSUGARto chat about the highly-revered series. Here are the highlights:
On being the new girl for Season 2:
"At first it was a little intimidating because they're so close and I'm the new girl on the block, so I'm like, all right, I feel like I have to prove myself to be here a little bit. But they were super welcoming. They were super warm. They're so funny. Being on set, it doesn't feel like we're at work. It just feels like we're on a playground and we're just goofing off. The entire cast is hilarious. Cassie [Cassandra Freeman], she's a comedian."
On bringing her own take of 'Jackie' to the role:
"I was just really determined to bring authenticity. I knew it was going to be a different take from Tyra's and I think I lived in that, that it would be different. Bringing an Afro-Latina girl from South Central and not dumbing that down or giving what people think they want to see. I just wanted to be truthful to Jackie's perspective and her life and really showcase and represent that."
On what she would ask Tyra Banks:
"I would ask her what her perspective of Jackie was. What she sat in as Jackie's truth and how did Jackie grow up on her side."
On the best love advice she's ever received
"How you love is just as important as who you love."
A WORD.
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Featured image by Jazlyn Martin/Getty Images
Charmin Michelle is a southern native and creative spirit who works as a content marketer and events manager in Chicago. She enjoys traveling, #SummertimeChi, and the journey of mastering womanhood. Connect with her on Instagram @charminmichelle.
This Black Woman-Owned Creative Agency Shows Us The Art Of Rebranding
Rebranding is an intricate process and very important to the success of businesses that want to change. However, before a business owner makes this decision, they should determine whether it's a rebrand or an evolution.
That's where people like Lola Adewuya come in. Lola is the founder and CEO of The Brand Doula, a brand development studio with a multidisciplinary approach to branding, social media, marketing, and design.
While an evolution is a natural progression that happens as businesses grow, a rebrand is a total change. Lola tells xoNecole, "A total rebrand is necessary when a business’s current reputation/what it’s known for is at odds with the business’s vision or direction.
"For example, if you’ve fundamentally changed what your product is and does, it’s likely that your brand is out of alignment with the business. Or, if you find your company is developing a reputation that doesn’t serve it, it might be time to pump the brakes and figure out what needs to change.
She continues, "Sometimes you’ll see companies (especially startups) announce a name change that comes with updated messaging, visuals, etc. That usually means their vision has changed or expanded, and their previous branding was too narrow/couldn’t encompass everything they planned to do."
Feature image courtesy
The Brand Doula was born in 2019, and its focus is on putting "the experiences, goals, and needs of women of color founders first," as well as brands with "culture-shifting missions."
According to Lola, culture-shifting is "the act of influencing dominant behavior, beliefs, or experiences in a community or group (ideally, for the better)."
"At The Brand Doula, we work with companies and leaders that set out to challenge the status quo in their industries and communities. They’re here to make an impact that sends ripples across the market," she says.
"We help the problem solvers of the world — the ones who aren't satisfied with 'this is how it's always been' and instead ask 'how could this be better?' Our clients build for impact, reimagining tools, systems, and ways of living to move cultures forward."
The Brand Doula has worked with many brands, including Too Collective, to assist with their collaboration with Selena Gomez's Rare Beauty and Balanced Black Girl for a "refresh," aka rebrand. For businesses looking to rebrand, Lola shares four essential steps.
1. Do an audit of your current brand experience — what’s still relevant and what needs to change? Reflect on why you’re doing the rebrand in the first place and what success would look like after relaunching.
2. Tackle the overall strategy first — before you start redesigning logos and websites, align on a new vision for your brand. How do you want your company to be positioned moving forward? Has your audience changed at all? Will your company have a fresh personality and voice?
3. Bring your audience along the journey — there’s no need to move in secret. Inviting your current audience into the journey can actually help them feel more connected to and invested in your story, enough to stick around as changes are being made.
4. Keep business moving — one of my biggest pet peeves is when companies take down their websites as soon as they have the idea to rebrand, then have a Coming Soon page up for months! You lose a lot of momentum and interest by doing that. If you’re still in business and generating income, continue to operate while you work on your rebrand behind the scenes. You don’t want to cut existing customers off out of the blue, and you also don’t want so much downtime that folks forget your business exists or start looking for other solutions.
While determining whether the rebrand was successful may take a few months, Lola says a clear sign that it is unsuccessful is negative feedback from your target audience. "Customers are typically more vocal about what they don’t like more than what they do like," she says.
But some good signs to look out for are improvements in engagement with your marketing, positive reviews, press and increase in retention, and overall feeling aligned with the new branding.
For more information about Lola and The Brand Doula, visit her website, thebranddoula.com.
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Exclusive: After Focusing On His Career For So Long, David Banner Is Now Ready To Find A Wife
During the Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heistpremiere, David Banner, who stars in the film, opened up about his weight loss and his desire to get married and start a family. At 50, David has accomplished many feats, from rapping, producing, and acting, and now he's ready for the next phase of his life. "I want to get married," he tells xoNecole.
"I'm tired. I want to find my wife, have some kids. We chase all of these esoteric goals, and sometimes we look back, and we left the things that really matter. I looked up one day, I had all of them, the music accolades, the film accolades, not all the ones that I want, but a lot of them. I had accomplished my goal, had chased my goal so long that when I looked up, I saw that I ran off and left everything else."
He also shares how working in the entertainment industry can sometimes affect his life and relationships with others. "We forget to be human beings, and people don't allow us to be human beings," he continues. "So, that's the reason why I said what I said, because I know what y'all platform means, and I want people to know that there are still some human beings that's up on that camera, and sometimes we hurt too."
Back in 2016, the "Like a Pimp" artist released the single "Marry Me" and shared in an exclusive interview with us how he is working on becoming his best self for his future wife.
"I just want to be the man that most Black women want to marry. I want to be a Black man that stands strong," he said. "I'm not perfect, but [I want to be the man] women want to marry and that kids want to be their father. I want to be that man. [When I die] I want people to say that that's a strong African man, I am proud that he's a part of my culture."
During our most recent interview with the "Get Like Me" rapper, he also revealed that he lost 35 lbs and dished on how important it is to take care of your body. "I have this thing that I want to be our children's superhero on the screen and off, and people always talk about mental health, but part of your mental health is what you put in your body," he says.
"People always talk about God. People always talk about the church, but the real church is your body, your temple. So I am treating my body and my temple as if God is in there."
Fight Night is out now on Peacock.
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Feature image by Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images