KAREN BRAILSFORD
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CERO MAGAZINE
Amandla Stenberg Is Working to Reform Hollywood

Spring 2021

Super-cool Q&A with Amandla and the fabulous author of The Hate U Give, Angie Thomas. Plus amazing photos! A couple of highlights: The backstory of Amandla's viral video, "Don't Cash-Crop My Cornrows," and that time I had a fit when I discovered she wasn't doing her chemistry homework but swapping barbs with a certain member of a reality TV family who's now a billionaire. I don't think said billionaire did her homework, either!

A little history about how Amandla came to portray Starr Carter in the film version of Thomas' award-winning book. My friend and former People colleague, Paula Yoo, mentioned that there was a new YA novel coming out and that she thought Amandla would be perfect for the film adaptation's lead role. I'd read about a bidding war over The Hate U Give only days before, but I had not come across the specifics of the character. Immediately, I reached out to Amandla's agent at UTA, asking him to see how we might secure the rights. As it turned out, UTA's book department already owned them! I quickly read the manuscript, convinced that not only was Amandla perfect for the role, but that Thomas had written the character with Amandla in mind. And the rest is history! 

Read the Cero Q&A to see how Thomas confirms my belief. Check out the gallery of gorgeous photos by Craig McDean below. I'm hard-pressed to pick my favorite!
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© ​Karen Brailsford 2020-2025
​
  • Home
  • I am
  • Praise
  • Inspire
    • Sacred Landscapes (excerpts) >
      • Spiraling
      • Sacred Landscapes of the Soul
      • Go Directly to Jubilee
      • Bring the Party
      • A Life Is God Writ Large
      • Soot into Soil
      • In the Here and Now
      • Creation Story
      • In This Skin
    • Dalai Lama Global Vision Summit (talk + guided meditation)
    • Omega Institute Workshop
    • Inner Visions >
      • Burnished Love
      • An Appreciation
      • Forward
      • Life As We Know It And See It
      • Precipice and Presence
      • Sentient and Prescient
      • The I Am of Resonance
      • The Glass Is Always Full
      • You Will Know
    • Talks >
      • Still I Rise by Maya Angelou (recitation)
      • Knowing the Soul (conversation)
      • God's Love Keeps Lifting Us Higher and Higher (talk)
      • Go Directly to Jubilee! (talk)
    • Paintings
  • Agent
    • Aevitas Creative Management
    • Writer's Digest
    • His Name Is George Floyd
    • Kamala's Way
  • Write Volumes
    • Short Stories >
      • In the Eye of the Beholder
      • It's Time
      • It Takes All Kinds
      • All is Nothing
      • Ever After
      • Dinner Parties
      • Shades of Love
    • Essays >
      • Mommy, Still
      • Floating Like Butterflies
      • Feast
    • Poems >
      • Initiation of the Disembodied
      • Covid: Covert No More
      • Harriet and Me
  • Unity
    • Daily Word Magazine >
      • My Journey to Yes
    • Spirituality & Health Magazine >
      • Amandla Stenberg Channels The Force
      • Marianne Williamson: Evolving Out of Darkness
      • Lee Harris: Channeling As a Transformational Tool
      • Deva Premal & Miten: How Mantras Heal
      • Sharon Salzberg Cultivates Loving-Kindness
      • Kate Bowler Shows Grace in Gravity
    • Unity Magazine >
      • Smells Like Teen Spirit
      • From Grief to Grace
      • Rising in Joy
      • Blessed by a Dress
      • This Is How You Pray
      • For A Reason, for a Season, or for a Lifetime
  • Media
    • Download Kit
    • Articles and books
    • Podcasts, radio and video >
      • The Peace Studio Summit 2021
      • The Jenny McCarthy Show
      • In the Flow With Rev. Skip
      • Waking Up in Daily Life
      • The Only One in the Room
      • Bridges & Blessings with Rev. Julie
    • Press
  • Blog
  • Connect