We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rashida L. Hudson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Rashida L. , so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
I keep my creativity alive by staying in Improv. As an actor it’s important to be sharp and creative with trying new ideas/ materials.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Hello, my name is Rashida L. Hudson and I have an artistic career where I’m proud to call myself an actress. What I find most exciting about my career is the many different stories I can assist in bringing to life. I love playing different characters that have a great story line and depth. In junior high, my fine arts teacher encouraged me to audition for the spring musical, “Cinderella with a twist…”, where I landed the fun and exciting role of playing the Wicked step-mother. This was a moment where for the first time, I felt a rush of excitement and passion on stage in front of a live audience. My life changed ever since that moment. Here’s a little back story; in the 6th grade I was a shy kid but I always loved to watch movies dealing with old the Hollywood lifestyle, but I was too shy to get involved in any extra curricular activities. So, the 7th grade came around and I had a chance to take a fine arts class where my instructor brought me out of my shell by having the class dress up as different characters and reading different plays. Within that, we performed different scenes in front of the class and I loved it! Something sparked within me, and my teacher (shout out to Ms. Lucas) encouraged me to audition for the upcoming spring musical. I was really hesitant and shy because of the upperclass and popular kids, who were also auditioning, and a few of them had gotten cast in some of the main roles. Now, fast forward to the opening night, I realized that me being intimidated by the upperclassmen and the popular kids didn’t matter on stage nor to the audience. That really helped me to understand my passion and gain the confidence to pursue acting. From there, I was able to further explore my development by attending a performing arts high school named the Detroit High School for The Fine and Performing Arts aka DSA. That was followed by an after school community theatre named the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit. After graduating from high school, I attended the amazing Michigan State University (GO GREEN!) to major in Theatre and Psychology. Excitedly, I do have a few new announcements where you can find some of my work. I have a new film that I’m starring in along with a couple of big named celebrities, and I can’t say TOO much but I’m really excited! My other film, “Fractured”, directed by the very talented David Skato, is currently streaming on Peacock, Prime, and Tubi. Also, I’m in a new upcoming slasher film titled “Pancake Man” directed by the awesome Bron Theron. In addition to those films, I have a 3-spot commercial campaign with SlimFast that’s currently airing everywhere promoting all their yummy new products.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The three most important areas that impacted me on my journey, whether you want to label it under qualities or knowledge or even skills 1.) Being a great listener/ coached without the ego.
2.) Continuing the development of your skills and talent.
3.) Be confident but KIND and respectful in the process.
My advice to anyone in the artistic world early in their journey is to find something that you really love and enjoy doing. Don’t just do something because everyone else is following the crowd or it’s trendy, but find what really makes you happy and what makes you uniquely stand out. With that being said, are you willing to be coached and not solely rely on your talent? Are you willing to develop your talent further? You have to stay studying and learning everything in your field. Also, as you continue on your journey, be a great listener not only as you’re being coached, but as an actor in the moment. You’ll find out that when you truly listen in the moment, you’ll have more of a natural and organic reaction to what’s being said without indicating. My last piece of advice would be to always be confident and proud to call yourself an actor/artist if that’s your career choice. There’s no shame in being in a creative field, but remember to always be kind, respectful, and professional with everyone that you work with. This is a relationship based industry, and it could hurt your reputation if you’re not good to work with, so leave your ego at the door.
How would you spend the next decade if you somehow knew that it was your last?
A particular challenge that I’m currently facing and working on is remembering to have FUN in the process! Remembering to have fun helps remind me of why I started on this journey of an acting career. It’s best not to get distracted, discouraged, or take yourself too serious, especially during life’s distractions. I’m learning to get a grip on trying to achieve perfectionism when finding out that there are a ton of lines and technical things to remember for an audition, along with a fast turn around time. Just have more fun, be in the moment, and get out of your head.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://imdb.me/RashidaLHudson
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rashidalhudson/
Image Credits
Headshots : James Pratt -actors choice photography
Dimitri Tzoytzoyrakos- SlimFast BTS photographer
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