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May 18, 2023 • 36 mins

Ally sits down with Paige Hurd to discuss growing from her role on 'Everybody Hates Chris' into a full-fledged actor and the lessons she's learned along the way.

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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Today's podcast is sponsored by sea Geek. If you didn't know,
Sea Geek is the official ticketing partner of the Brooklyn Nets.
Whether you're trying to go to a Nets game, Liberty Game, concert,
or any other event at Barclay Center, you really only
need Sea Geek. Welcome to court Side Conversation. I'm your girl,

(00:31):
Ali Love. After years on the hardwood as the in
arena host for the Brooklyn Nets, it's time for me
to take a court side. We're here with artists, athletes,
and all of our favorite people to break down the
game called life. We're getting real about the grow up and.

Speaker 2 (00:47):
The glow up. So let's take a seat.

Speaker 1 (00:56):
What's up everyone, It's your girl, Ali Love. Welcome to
court Side Conversation. My next guest.

Speaker 2 (01:01):
She's an actress known for her role on Everybody Hates
Chris The Oval and PowerBook two Ghost that premiered just
this past March. Please welcome Page herd high page.

Speaker 3 (01:11):
Hi Ali, how are you?

Speaker 4 (01:13):
I'm good?

Speaker 2 (01:13):
How's everything?

Speaker 3 (01:15):
Things are going pretty well? Thank you? Well?

Speaker 1 (01:18):
For those of you that are listening, you can't see
page right now. And every time I've seen her, she's
always look studying, but even today she has that glow.

Speaker 2 (01:25):
She has that glow.

Speaker 1 (01:26):
So I'm excited to sit down court side and just
talk about the game of life. So we could talk
about the glow up of page.

Speaker 3 (01:33):
Thank you, thank you so much. You look beautiful too. Thanks.

Speaker 2 (01:37):
All right, let's jump right in. Let's chip off in
the first quarter. Now.

Speaker 1 (01:40):
One of the things that we discuss is kind of
like the career pathing. I think a lot of times,
growing up, we don't always know and I've said this
multiple times, but I find it's so imperative. We don't
always know what's available to us in life in terms
of our career opportunity sets. And even more so now
that we're in this age of slash generation and where
you can do multiple things, many people are taking a

(02:02):
career shift or pivot.

Speaker 3 (02:04):
For you.

Speaker 1 (02:05):
When it comes to being an actress and a craft
where it is a very public and I would say
competitive sport in itself. How did you choose acting or
would you say acting chose you?

Speaker 3 (02:20):
I guess I would say acting chose me, But really
it was my mom who chose it for all of us.
When I was younger. I am from Dallas, and we
would just like go out to eat and I guess
she said that I would just start performing while we
were waiting to be sad at tables, And so that
led to couples and stuff always coming over to our

(02:43):
tables and like sending over desserts and like, you know,
whatever baby drinks you can have for me and my sister,
and they just wanted to always send us stuff and
pay for stuff. And so I guess my mom had
this brilliant idea that while my sister was doing sports
in Dallas and she was a stay at home mom,
to put me in acting. And so I started out there.

Speaker 2 (03:06):
That's lovely? Is your mom? Like, which one of your
parents are outgoing?

Speaker 3 (03:09):
Like?

Speaker 2 (03:10):
Are they all outgoing folks?

Speaker 1 (03:11):
Are They're very much like they're like homebodies like my
family's My parents are homebodies.

Speaker 3 (03:16):
Okay, so my dad is that way. My dad is
very homebody, quiet, don't get much out of him. My
mom is like black Puerto Rican loud, cackling everywhere, like
she's the outgoing one. For sure?

Speaker 1 (03:31):
Are any of your siblings when it comes to acting?
Do you think that any of them have that neck
as well? Like was that something that you did? Were
you an individual in that capacity where your siblings were
also a little bit more laid back or was it
just a part of like the relationship y'all's had.

Speaker 3 (03:46):
I have. So I'm one of five, I would say
that most of them are laid back. My younger brother Peers,
he's pretty out there. Like I have two younger brothers,
one raps one and it has down syndrome and is
just the one that I'm talking about that is super energetic.
And then my two sisters, my older sisters, she's, you know,

(04:07):
a Howard Pepperdine graduated like, she's very polished, I recall her.
And the younger sister she's just she's just like going
to college and she's quiet, but she can be very
outgoing too if you get her out of her shell.

Speaker 1 (04:21):
Now when you start acting and you had like that
moment that and we'll get into like the moment where
you have that unlock of like this is what I'm
going to do for the rest of my life. But
when that moment happened, how how did your siblings react?

Speaker 3 (04:32):
At that time, it was just my older sister and I,
so the other three weren't born yet. I don't think
she really had a reaction. I don't think we knew
like what what we were really doing, you know, or
what I was really doing. Once we let's say, like
fast forward to now, how do they react. They're just

(04:55):
they're supportive, but just very chill, like we're very normal family.
Like even I just feel like so regular, like, oh,
I guess to just ask, but I'm just back to
my little regular life, you know.

Speaker 2 (05:08):
So it's weird. There's no real crazy reaction over there.
So let's talk about the journey itself. You're taking acting classes.

Speaker 1 (05:15):
When was that moment that you were just like at
any age like this is going to be an unlock
for me, I can tell you. For me, falling in
love with dance was after I got hit by a
car nine years old.

Speaker 2 (05:25):
I fell in love. Like my mom put me in
like this summer camp.

Speaker 1 (05:29):
And a part of the summer camp at like a
daytime summer camp is that they would have a dance
class for like an hour whatever forty five minutes. And
I just remember getting into the dance class and having
the instructor, like the teacher put on music and have
this follow along. Was very informal, was not like it
was not a ballet class. It was just a dance class.
I just remember like having those feelings at a young age,

(05:51):
saying like, Wow, this feels good. I don't know what,
I don't know how to articulate this, but I know
it feels good. And it was then that my dance
teacher had the conversation with my mom and was like,
I think you're not only enjoys this so much. Because
I would come in day camp and I'm like, what
time is dance happening?

Speaker 2 (06:04):
Can we do more of it? She was like, not
only do you.

Speaker 1 (06:07):
Your daughter enjoy it, but she's actually she has a
talent for it. You might want to explore it. Where
was that moment for you in this education of honing
acting that you were just like, I want to do
this forever.

Speaker 2 (06:20):
I could do this forever.

Speaker 3 (06:22):
Yeah. I mean I probably had sometimes when I was
a child where I was like, Oh, this is fun,
this is cool, But like a very clear moment for
me was I think around twenty eighteen ish I had
kind of just been super fed up and I didn't

(06:43):
really want to do it anymore, and I just felt
really discouraged. And I met my acting coach at the
time who has since passed away. His name is Dustin Felder,
and I remember kind of just like walking in his
room to coach for an audition and he was like
how are you And I never met him before and
I was like I'm good and he was like, no,

(07:03):
you're not. And like this session actually ended up being
like me crying for just hours telling him how I
was ready to be done with this and give up
and all this stuff. And he was my coach for
about a year and I think he started making me
like refall in love with it and be like okay,
like I know how to really like break this down

(07:25):
or I know how to navigate this role. And it's
so wild because he passed the day I found that
I got power and I was able to tell him yeah.
But I think working with him, those were those moments
where I was really like, Okay, I'm really excited about this.
Because I was a kid. I wasn't really thinking about
it too much because I started at four, so I

(07:47):
was just it's like what I knew to do, and
it was almost like a career instead of it being
something that was like fun for me. I just was like, oh,
I'm just I work as a kid. I didn't think
anything else.

Speaker 1 (08:00):
How old were you when you were having those moments
of like doubt where you're just like, I don't know
if I want to do this, and where did that
stem from.

Speaker 3 (08:06):
Let's see, I was twenty like twenty seven, twenty eight,
and it was just sitmming from like after Everybody Hates Chris,
I had like a really long period of time where
I wasn't like working consistently. You know how you can
get jobs here and there, yeah, you know, and it's

(08:27):
just like that's what was happening. Nothing was really coming.
Like I even went and got a job at Abercrombie
right after Everybody Hates Chris ended, like when I was
like eighteen nineteen. So for years I was just trying
to figure it out. I was just like, maybe this
isn't for me, because I understand waiting your turn, but gosh,
this is a long time to wait your turn, so

(08:49):
maybe it's never going to be my turn and I
have to find something. So I was like around that
age and then, and I'm not going to sit here
and say that doesn't always happen, like you know that,
I'm always constantly kind of you know, question get but
I know I'm passionate about and I know that's what
I want to do, but it's just such a waiting game.

Speaker 2 (09:06):
So yeah, let's jep into the second quarter.

Speaker 1 (09:09):
We're talking a bit about adversity, and we talk about
this in the second quarter of life.

Speaker 2 (09:13):
Most times we look at it in two ways.

Speaker 1 (09:16):
The adversity helped shapes you to who you are, but
it is really hard.

Speaker 2 (09:20):
When you're going through it and you're kind of touching
on it.

Speaker 1 (09:23):
When you had kind of this sixt year stint where
you had, you know, everybody hates Chris, You're now working
at Abercrombie, You're figuring out those moments. I'd love for
us to dig into that a little bit more because
as much as when we did the opening my Girl page,
you're like, I'm normal, my family's normal, when folks look
at you on social and on TV, you know, and
across media platforms, you are not normal. And that is

(09:46):
in the most complementary way, is that your life has
a difference, has taken a different path than most people.
We are consuming you instead of you consuming us in
that sense, and so it does it that's a bit abnormal,
and so I think I think the relatability does happen
when similar to you, like both of us.

Speaker 2 (10:04):
There are gigs like you get gigs don't.

Speaker 1 (10:06):
You're not always sometimes not always on as much as
you'd like to be, as much as you're working, as
much as you're auditioning.

Speaker 2 (10:12):
You're not always it's not always landing for you.

Speaker 1 (10:15):
And a lot of people know that feeling, you know,
that feeling of like adversity.

Speaker 2 (10:19):
So I'd love for you to like.

Speaker 1 (10:21):
Maybe touch on a few points within that six year
span of what was keeping you going? What were some
of the internal dialogues that you were having with yourself.
Who were those folks around you that you were you
were conversing with to makes you said you were steadfast
in this path.

Speaker 3 (10:33):
It's a great question. I feel like I've always been
very faith based and so my relationship with God has
been super strong, and so you know, anytime I felt
discouraged or just like I just wanted to give up,
like I it gave me the downtime to really focus
on my relationship with God and to really go to

(10:56):
church and to really listen to what they were saying
to you. And you know, you know, you go to
church a lot, and they're always like God has a
plan for you, and your time is coming year and
church like yeah, and then it's like two years past
and you're like all right, they're doing it again. You're
like okay, and you just keep holding on. So that
was a huge thing where I just kept holding on

(11:18):
to God's promise because I believe that it's true. But
then outside of that, because that can get very hard,
you know. I think people always say like or people
sometimes will say like God and that's it. But no,
that was hard. But then I had to have something
like physical here that's showing me signs, and that was
my family, my therapist, and so I just kind of

(11:40):
stayed grounded in my family. My mom was a huge advocate,
the people who are around me as I went through
different teams, you know, they were very supportive and everybody
always smoke life into me and seeing big things and
just to be patient. I also do realize that I
looked I always have looked younger than I am my

(12:02):
whole life. So that plays a huge part in it
because then a lot of times I wasn't able to
do the auditions and shows I wanted to do that
my peers were doing because I didn't look our age.
And then just kind of like I know, you said that,
like people are consuming me, but like during that downtime,

(12:23):
I was consuming like like I'm a reality show type
of girl, so I'm you know, I'm just like living
my life. I'm just figuring it out in this world.
And then I'm like, oh, I get an audition here
and there. But I would say like those three things
is like God, family and my therapist. And of course,
like my friends were supportive as well.

Speaker 2 (12:43):
Wait, who are what are your reality shows that you
love to watch?

Speaker 4 (12:47):
Oh my gosh, Okay, So it can really ratchet and
it can get like like right now, I'm really into
the vander Pump scandal that's happening, but I've been into
it prior to the scandal.

Speaker 3 (12:57):
But vander Pump Rules is one. There's this new one
on TLC that I just keep like here and there.
It's called You, Me and My Ex. It's the most
chaotic thing I've ever seen in my life. Ninety day fiance,
teen moms, Like I could go on, that's really love
after lock up.

Speaker 1 (13:15):
Yes, I have to have to share. I have to
share a secret which I don't think I've ever shared.
I've never watched any of those shows. It doesn't make
me better than anyone.

Speaker 2 (13:22):
I just when it.

Speaker 1 (13:23):
Comes to TV. I don't think I don't opt in
to watch TV. I'll opt in to like listen to
a book or I talk a lot, so I just
my husband.

Speaker 2 (13:30):
I always talking.

Speaker 1 (13:31):
I'm always calling a friend, you know, I'm almost phoning
a friend annoying them.

Speaker 2 (13:34):
But I've never seen any of those shows.

Speaker 3 (13:38):
You I think, I think you and your husband would
enjoy ninety Day Fion say, that's like just it's just
like for me, I can't sit down and watch shows
that like have storylines like I've a secret, I haven't
even seen this season of Power.

Speaker 2 (13:56):
But two, I'm not sharing secrets.

Speaker 3 (13:58):
I'm sharing secrets like I watch episode one and I've
been on the go ever since. I'm gonna have to
catch up. I still haven't even finished BMF. Like there
is those type of shows where you have to watch
the storyline, like sometimes I just don't have time to do. So.
You could even be on the phone with your friends
with ninety Day Fiance in the background or Love after
lock Up in the background, and I'm telling you, just

(14:20):
ask some of your friends that you talked to you.

Speaker 2 (14:22):
No, I know people, so I have while I've never
seen any of the shows you mentioned. I did watch
there was a Real Housewives of Miami.

Speaker 1 (14:30):
I'm from Miami, and so I was interested because I'm like,
I wonder what is like I live in New York. Now,
I've lived in New York for a few years, so
I'm like such a New Yorker as an adult. But
I grew up born and raised in a county of
Day and then moved to Free University. So in my mind,
I was like, I'm curious on what's happening, what's going
on in Miami, Like what's.

Speaker 2 (14:47):
The drama and where are they located?

Speaker 1 (14:49):
It is so but when I watched it, it's so intense,
And then it's also it's hard for me because I'm like, girls, y'all.

Speaker 2 (14:57):
Are finding about nothing? Like nothing is like, y'all are
okay fine? That wasn't even the thing.

Speaker 1 (15:01):
Like, so I I've I've consumed a little bit of
it in terms of the Miami but the other shows
I don't.

Speaker 2 (15:08):
I couldn't.

Speaker 1 (15:08):
If there was a game of is this title a
reality show? I would absolutely lose it.

Speaker 3 (15:13):
Oh you should? You guys should play that at the
barklay That's dope. I would win that.

Speaker 2 (15:18):
I don't would nail it. You would nail it.

Speaker 3 (15:20):
I would, And I will say if since you did
mention Real Housewives, Real Housewives is like my top of
the top. That is my number one. Beverly Hills, Atlanta, Jersey.
But I think you'd really enjoy Atlanta and Beverly Hills.
Beverly Hills is just like inspiring because like, wow, I
aspire to be that rich and not have to do much.

Speaker 2 (15:41):
Yeahs aspirational goals. I love this.

Speaker 1 (15:47):
Today's podcast is sponsored by sea Geek. If you didn't know,
see Geek is the official ticketing partner of the Brooklyn Nets.
Unlike any other apps, seat Geek makes buying tickets super simple.
Whether you're trying to go to a Nets game, Liberty game, concert,
or any other event at Barclay Center, you really only.

Speaker 2 (16:06):
Need seat Geek.

Speaker 1 (16:07):
Seat Geek puts tickets from all over the web in
one place to make buying simple. Keeping this kind of

(16:27):
like jovial pursuit here. One of the things we talked
about before we get into halftime is our assists. I
think nobody can ever get to any place in life
without a supportive network. And sometimes, and I would say
in most times, it's an assist that comes from.

Speaker 2 (16:42):
An unlikely place.

Speaker 1 (16:43):
So you talked about your acting coach that passed away,
God bless his soul.

Speaker 2 (16:47):
You talked about your family and your friends.

Speaker 1 (16:49):
But what I'd love to do is use this opportunity
to shout out an unlikely assist in the sense of
someone that has helped you, that would either positioned not
to technically help you, or that it was a surprise,
or that no one knows that they helped you.

Speaker 2 (17:01):
Right Like, you've never talked about it.

Speaker 1 (17:03):
So who is that person or person's that you would
give your assist to today?

Speaker 3 (17:08):
Oh okay, so I'd have to say two of like
my girl best friends. One is one of my sisters.
But you know, my sister Maury has always been super
super there for me. We got like our first places together.
You know, she moved out here from Texas. I was

(17:29):
moving out on my own. So we moved together for
two years until we were like, we're going to kill
each other child like class base, but we love each other,
you know what I mean. But she has been just
like a NonStop rock for me in my life. And
then my best friend Brittany has always been super super great.

(17:49):
She allows me to just stay the cancer soft hearted
person that I am when I try to talk myself
out of that, to just try to be like hard
like the rest of it people, or I from getting
my feelings are like. She definitely talks me into just
staying grounded. So you know, I don't think I get
to mention them too nearly enough, So I would. I

(18:10):
would definitely mention them too and say thank you girls.
I love y'all. You know you're my racks.

Speaker 2 (18:16):
I love that. That's beautiful.

Speaker 1 (18:17):
All right, let's jump into halftime, haveltime. It's rapid fires.
What I call it a couple of questions that are fun,
so they give us a little bit more insights to
your personality as we build this beautiful picture of you.
I'm gonna say it. You can just answer whatever comes
to mind. Doesn't have to be.

Speaker 2 (18:32):
That deep, you know the deep?

Speaker 3 (18:33):
Ready?

Speaker 2 (18:34):
Yeah, all right, here we go. What is your favorite sandwich?

Speaker 3 (18:38):
Oh, just a good croissant turkey sandwich. Let us fato
mayonnaise and halleens.

Speaker 1 (18:45):
I love that favorite tradition. It could be a holiday,
It could be a tradition that you and your family like.
It could be anything that you do every year. That
you're pretty keen on.

Speaker 3 (18:55):
Okay, I'm like such a Christmas girl Christmas.

Speaker 2 (18:58):
Are you do you play? Wait? Do you play Christmas
music in November? Are you one of those?

Speaker 3 (19:02):
I'm I'm all year round, I'm one of I know.

Speaker 1 (19:06):
So you're the reason why Mariah's song is like always
trending number one is because you and all the supermarkets
are playing it all year round.

Speaker 3 (19:13):
Kind of. I'm more like play is yes, Like I
will go and Target get an iced coffee in the
middle of summer and be like, it's beginning to look
a lot like it's not age. It's not, but yes
it is because after my birthday is Christmas time.

Speaker 1 (19:27):
It's Christmas time, Oh my goodness, minus Thanksgiving.

Speaker 2 (19:31):
I'm I think Thanksgiving there are no presents.

Speaker 1 (19:33):
I think you get every when things happen over food,
people are way happier, even if they're you know, having
a little drink.

Speaker 2 (19:39):
When there's a lot of food.

Speaker 1 (19:40):
And abundance of food, I think people tend to like
are happier, although there are some tough conversations around the
table that do happen.

Speaker 3 (19:46):
Oh no, absolutely, And I like lead up. I like
the leading up to Christmas. So like from Thanksgiving on
I like just all the things you can do, you know,
Christmas spirity wise, I think Christmas Day is actually tad boring.
M got it.

Speaker 1 (20:01):
The tradition leading up our childhood celebrity crush.

Speaker 3 (20:06):
Ooh, I've been getting tore up online because I just
told everybody this. It was eminem But gosh.

Speaker 2 (20:12):
Wait, what are the people saying? You know me, fill
me in? I'm not that cool? Okay.

Speaker 3 (20:16):
So I only could read a few comments before I
had to get off because I'm too sensitive. But they
were like I guess they're like, girl, you know he
does snow or he does this sound, and so I'm like,
I don't know what he does in his personal life.
I just know I how to crush on him.

Speaker 2 (20:28):
Yeah, I had a crush on what is his name,
Jonathan Thomas Taylor.

Speaker 1 (20:30):
I don't know what he does. I don't even know
where he is right now. Oh my gosh, it's okay.
He was on It's a show. It was like a
show that would come on reruns when I was a kid,
Like we couldn't watch a lot of TV, like we
just didn't as a family, but it would come on
like the local CW channel or whatever. And it was
Home Improvement, but it was way after the show, so

(20:51):
none of my friends, like all people my friends had
cable and they would watch like other things, oh that
were way cooler, like reality shows, clearly, and I would
watch reruns of old TV, like we watched Sanford and Son.
We watch Good Times, like all reruns of old TV,
and then kind of like some of those early two
thousand sitcoms.

Speaker 2 (21:09):
And one of them that come on was Home Improvement.

Speaker 1 (21:12):
So I assume when I he was my celebrity crush,
she was probably like thirty five, but on the show
he was like, yes, my age, but he's an actor.
He's one of the suns. I can't believe. I don't
even know. I don't even know what he does.

Speaker 2 (21:25):
I like literally only know he's from a Home Improvement.

Speaker 3 (21:27):
I feel like I know which one. As soon as
you said home his long hair, Yeah, I had a
face fime of mine. I think, yeah, am there? You go.

Speaker 2 (21:38):
Here? How do you unwind?

Speaker 3 (21:41):
Oh? I like to come home. I really like to
be in my own space. A glass of wine could
be cool and just like sometimes though, I could just
sit in here in silence and just like sit and
like maybe watch a few TikTok videos.

Speaker 1 (22:01):
I've been off TikTok for a while. I'm trying to
stay the course. What's the what's the least organized part
of your life? The most least are organized? Like it's
always a.

Speaker 3 (22:13):
Mess, it's always an f checking my emails and responding
on the timely manner.

Speaker 1 (22:21):
Are you one of those people that your icon has
like a thousand, like it has the number on it
and it's like mad emails unread?

Speaker 3 (22:26):
Yes, let's see no way, No, yeah, it's bad. It's
at where are they? Oh my god, you don't want
to know?

Speaker 2 (22:36):
No, we do, now, we come on, come on, page
what is it?

Speaker 3 (22:39):
Twenty three eight?

Speaker 1 (22:41):
Uh uh you are fired? Get off, We're done. Podcasts
over leaving seriously.

Speaker 3 (22:46):
Yeah, my text messages are also at one hundred and
sixty one, and my miss calls are at three hundred
and thirty seven.

Speaker 5 (22:53):
I have this one hundred two and I don't know,
but I will say I will say that is a
combination of emails, you know how we can combine all
of them on one Apple phone and they that.

Speaker 3 (23:07):
Dates back to like obviously a very long time ago.

Speaker 1 (23:11):
Pages over here try to like negotiate her way out
of the fact that she literally doesn't answer her emails.
If I saw that, like there's a part of me
that I just couldn't breathe, Like I would have to
delete the whole app, Like I would delete my account
and start all over.

Speaker 2 (23:25):
Like that's how I am.

Speaker 1 (23:25):
I'm like one of those things that if I can't
clean it up, it can't be organized, throw it all out.
I tell literally Andrew in the kitchen, He's like, I
can't fit anything in the fridge.

Speaker 2 (23:33):
I'm like, you know what you do right now?

Speaker 1 (23:34):
You take everything in the fridge and throw it in
the trash, not to be wasteful, but like if you
need to like organize, like let's go from a place
of nothing or organize it.

Speaker 2 (23:43):
Like I can't be in the between.

Speaker 3 (23:44):
Yeah, I mean, I just got a new work email,
But for some reason, I think maybe I have to
take all the other ones off the phone and just
keep the work email on because then I can see
but everything's coming in and I'm trying to keep up,
and then you know, when people start responding and it
turns into a thread. So it's like several and I'm
trying to keep up. I'm just like just text me

(24:04):
I'm overwhelmed. It's hard. It's hard.

Speaker 1 (24:07):
Oh all right, last question I have time before we
get into the third quarter is what's the most organized
part of your life?

Speaker 3 (24:14):
Everything else I'm ocd. I'm very like everything has to
be completely planned, cleaned. Like I shared with you, I've
been fighting a cold past few days, and although it's
been really hard to like get up and do stuff,
I had to make sure this house was clean. That's
actually how it started. I was cleaning all day Tuesday

(24:36):
and I started kind of getting the sniffles. But like
any everything else in my life is organized. I just
don't play with unorganization. The emails is just hard to answer,
But everything else on time, Like, yeah, I'm around here,
so it's that's it.

Speaker 2 (24:56):
All right, let's up into the third quarter.

Speaker 1 (24:58):
You mentioned right before we step and to have time
just like the navigating of your career, right and that
what you do is you're on set with a lot
of personalities. You talked about the transition of teams, because
when you were talking about your career, you like, with
my teams and the transition of those things and having
the support systems.

Speaker 2 (25:16):
How do you how do you operate in people's skills
knowing that.

Speaker 1 (25:20):
You have to be in contact with so many people,
some people that you're building relationships with, some people that
you're you're working with once in a while, but you
potentially will know forever like how are you navigating and
managing those those people skills?

Speaker 3 (25:37):
I think that will just have to go to how
I was raised. You know, I'm just always going to
be kind and personable. I know how it has felt
to be like, you know, how people in the industry are.
They can be very nasty, they could be very mean,
and I've felt that plenty of times. I felt overlooked.
I felt a lot of negative things come my way

(25:58):
that I didn't deserve. And so for me, I always said, like,
I never want anybody to feel that. I never want
anybody to encounter me and feel like, Wow, she was
mean or she was rude, and not just to like
uphold an image, but just because I want somebody to
feel loved or to feel seen and valued. So that's

(26:19):
I can just my mom and just how I was raised.
I have to give that to that one hundred percent.

Speaker 1 (26:26):
Yeah, well, how do you deal with the times that
you are receiving some of that Where you said unnecessary
coolness or negativity. Again knowing that you are on set.
You have to be on set, you have to perform
your job. Your job is a performance, and it doesn't
it has to happen in tandem with your feelings.

Speaker 2 (26:41):
And sometimes you're not in a good headspace.

Speaker 1 (26:43):
Mentally, like meant you can feel mentally unwell, emotionally unwell,
but also circumstantially unwell given some of the interactions, Like
how do you pull yourself back to center and then
still be able to get in front of the camera
and not even that do it to time after time?

Speaker 3 (27:00):
I don't know, Like I just it's just a skill
that I've mastered. And again, it's just one of those
moments where it's like, let's say something was to happen
to me, I just want to go on set and
not give that same energy to somebody else because I
just know how it felt for me. I'm also really sensitive,
so sometimes I have to take a moment and talk

(27:22):
myself into everything doesn't have to make you cry, or
everything doesn't have to like you don't have to take
all that on and take that home, like and learning
that a lot of times people's behavior has nothing to
do with me, but also really just going to my
therapist to home that in my head because as a
child actor, we don't get those conversations. People just treat

(27:44):
you how they treat you, and then they're moving forward.
So you're trying to understand and process as a kid,
like what in the world. Usually you're just dealing with
kids being mean to you at school, and you're talking
about grown adults who are treating you crazy and talking
to you wild. So I think just kind of growing
up in and I was like, yeah, I will never
treat anybody wild, even if I'm having a bad day,

(28:07):
Like it just is what it is, Like, We're gonna
have to have a conversation. I'll fake it till I
make it.

Speaker 1 (28:13):
On set, who do you think you've learned the most from, like,
on all the sets you've been on.

Speaker 3 (28:18):
On all of them. Ooh, that's a good question. I
would definitely say it would have to be like back
when I was working with the adults, So it could
be Queen Latifa, it could be, it could be you know,
I was working with Shane Johnson this past year on
Power and Peyton Ashbrook. You know what I would say,

(28:39):
Peyton Peyton, she plays Jenny Sullivan on our show, and
she has taught me a lot, a lot about my
emotions and my feelings. She just was super helpful and
helping me stay grounded, and she allowed a safe space
for me to vent or to share some feelings because

(28:59):
I I lost a family member in season two and
I had to keep coming to work and that was
really hard for me. And then season three, I couldn't
tell anybody I was working on the show but the
people that were there, so that also made it hard.
But Peyton was a really really great support system, and
I would have to say that she taught me a
lot about just kind of mastering my energy and not

(29:21):
taking other people's stuff on That's very special.

Speaker 2 (29:25):
Yeah, that's very special and that same kind of lane.

Speaker 1 (29:29):
Was there any person and it doesn't have to be
an actor that can be off camera that you worked
with that was just and surprisingly in the best way,
surprisingly refreshing and innovative that you were just like, Wow,
I came on and I thought it was going to
be this one way I knew would maybe be good
or but ended up being exceptional.

Speaker 2 (29:48):
Was there anyone like that exception except you said that's
a big word, that means a lot exceptional.

Speaker 3 (29:57):
That does who was exceptional?

Speaker 2 (29:59):
Let me you're like, I mean what I say and
I listen.

Speaker 3 (30:04):
I call myself a little Kanye sometimes I'm so honest. No,
I don't think anybody has been overly like. I don't
think anybody's been like exceptional like. You know, it takes
people a lot of times for some reason in this
business to warm up to people. Mmmm. It's like the
craziest thing. I just don't get it. But yeah, no,

(30:24):
I don't think.

Speaker 2 (30:24):
So Okay, we're gonna we're gonna keep our eyes out
for exceptional we are? How do you exceptional?

Speaker 1 (30:30):
I want's stump it to the fourth quarter. Now we're
going to round it out here. And I would talk
about two things. The first thing, it's fun. You were
you did our celebrity influencer game at practice in the
park for that's yes.

Speaker 2 (30:44):
Tell me about it.

Speaker 1 (30:44):
Tell the folks about it, the people that didn't show
up that day. Wait, what made you say? What do
you play basketball? Did you play basketball grow up?

Speaker 3 (30:53):
So? I wanted to very bad. I I wanted to
play in high school and I auditioned to see how much.

Speaker 2 (31:03):
You and I are the same person. I would have
said the same thing.

Speaker 3 (31:05):
Lord, I tried out for the team. I went to
transfer schools and go and I made the team, and
I was super excited, but I was working on Everybody
Hates Chris at the time, and I couldn't play, so
I stopped, like and I honestly had just started playing
like that summer because I'm very like, if I want

(31:26):
to do something, I put my mind to it, and
I'm going to do it. So I tried out for
the team and everything had to go back to work.
Didn't end up playing, So I never played basketball after
that unless it was in like a few celebrity games.
And my fun, like my running joke with my people's
is like I don't know why people keep asking me
to do these games, Like I'm not good at them.

(31:48):
And when we did the one, like I came through
the iced coffee, like I was not prepared. I wasn't
I was out there playing around, you know what I mean.
I don't even know if I I did touch the ball,
but like nothing really happened, but it was so much fun.
I had so much fun.

Speaker 2 (32:04):
Do you I know you're come to a lot of
the games.

Speaker 1 (32:06):
Where does your love for sport in particular basketball come from.

Speaker 3 (32:12):
I'm not sure where it comes from, but I just
know like basketball and baseball have always been two of
my favorite sports, and I just always really enjoyed going
to basketball games, like I enjoy watching it on TV.
And I think my dad's like a big sports head,
so he's more like football and stuff. But yeah, I've

(32:36):
just always been super into basketball, and I think maybe
it's because I wish I could have played, Like if
I wasn't an actor, my dream was to go to
college like the University of Texas and play basketball, and
just like I just really like the competitive competitiveness of
it and just the sport itself. So and I just

(32:57):
like being there at the Barsty Center. I like made
myself a little bit.

Speaker 1 (33:01):
You are and it is it is a special place.
It's a special place, all right, last thing before I
let you go. I know, oftentimes people ask you what's next,
and feel free you can share if there is a next,
But I think what I always like to close with
most times it's like what is your now? Look like,
what are the things that you are focused on right now?
And it could be a professional or personal or the

(33:21):
intersection of two uh huh.

Speaker 3 (33:24):
So I've always kind of been like, oh, you know,
I want to do this. I want to do that
for my career, and you know, I don't think I'll
ever be able to plan what's next there, So I
just trust God in that sense. But as far as
like my personal I use these down moments to work
on that. I'm just trying to master, like gentleness in

(33:47):
my life. I'm trying to master you know, I grew
up very tough and like very in survival mode, and
like I said, being in this business, I didn't have
the greatest experience is and that made me like maybe
not date the best people or so now I'm just
trying to master like what vulnerability really looks like for

(34:09):
me and what strength really looks like, which is me
being vulnerable and me being able to be in my
soft girl era as we would call it. So I'm
I'm trying to master that discernment of knowing who to
have around me and who can be my friends. I'm
very open hearted, so I've seen that the past few years,

(34:31):
I've went into things very blindly thinking, well, I have
a good heart and these people can't do that to me.
And I've been just like looking back I'm like, wow,
could you not see it? Because I came in with
pure intentions. So I really want to work on discernment,
gentlemeness discernment, and I had lot more. I don't know,

(34:51):
I forgot what the third one is, but I like
haven't written down, but like those are like the things
that I'm working on. And then just I'm always always
getting ready and so I can stay ready, Like I'm
boxing right now, I'm training at the gym. Yeah, eating healthy,
just putting myself on thirty day cleanses randomly to discipline myself.

(35:13):
Just making sure we have that discipline so that way
when the next big thing comes, I'm focused. I'm ready
for it, and I don't feel like it'll get snatched
away because I don't know how to act with it.

Speaker 5 (35:25):
There you go.

Speaker 2 (35:26):
Look, I love that you're doing. You're doing the prep work.

Speaker 1 (35:29):
It's like God to position you, but you got to
be prepared for it, and I think you're taking that
preparation and so when the position happens, that's when you're
in your purpose. Yeah, I just made a sermon up.
This was courtsy. I was like, wait a minute, let's
write that down. Well, thank you.

Speaker 2 (35:45):
So much Paige, I really appreciate your time. This is
so lovely.

Speaker 1 (35:49):
Thanks for taking a courts I seat and sharing the
game of your life in four quarters.

Speaker 2 (35:53):
It was lovely to.

Speaker 1 (35:54):
Get to know you even more because everyone that's listening
obviously loves you already.

Speaker 3 (35:59):
Oh thank you. I wait to come take my poton
class anytime.

Speaker 2 (36:02):
Come to the studio, my girl. I told you I
got what.

Speaker 3 (36:05):
I'm back in New York. I'm gonna reach out there
we go, yeah h yah,
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