Halle Bailey Covers EBONY Magazine

Halle Bailey is on the cover of the new issue of EBONY magazine. The young actress is on the cover to promote her new film, The Little Mermaid. Highlights from her interview are below.

On a major high and low she has faced in her career: “I think one major high would definitely be when my sister and I were nominated for Grammys. We sang “Where Is the Love,” by Donny Hathaway and Roberta Flack, and that was actually the performance that got me noticed by Little Mermaid director Rob Marshall. It was confirmation for me that my own abilities and belief in myself [is enough]. It was always other people telling me, ‘You can do it, you can do it.’ But recently, especially after I finished filming, I finally felt that within myself. I believed in myself for the first time. The lowest—which I guess really isn’t that low—is being in the public eye and having so many comments [thrown at you] on what people think you should be or should do or who you should surround yourself with. I think sometimes when you’re in the public eye from such a young age, people forget that you’re human. They forget that comments about your life can hurt your feelings. But I have to shift my focus off of other people’s opinions—and the naysayers, and the noise—and just silence it. I realized that when I step away from that, I feel 100% better about myself.”

On starring in the upcoming film, The Color Purple: “I am so excited to be playing young Nettie in The Color Purple. This film has meant a lot to me for a very long time—it’s a Black family staple. I also got a chance to write an original song for the film. It’s been really cool to incorporate my artistry into this new world of acting. I’m just so grateful to be a part of the film, and to be on set with legends and people I’m such fans of, like Fantasia and Taraji P. Henson. I cannot wait for people to see it. I think they’ll love it.”

You can check out even more from her interview here. The Little Mermaid opens in theaters on May 26.