Being that you studied at Sylvia Young and had a passion for acting could it be possible that your prolific rise in film and TV was no accident…Did you plan it all along? Nah, not at all. When my mum put me in Sylvia Young, it was to for me to do something new, to be away from my peer group. But mainly for her to get to see her mates, cos she was a young mum - she was 18 when she had me. At the time I had no plans for what I wanted to do in my life or my career, but I enjoyed it. And I suppose it has given me a few extra strings to my bow after So Solid.
What was your first real acting break? Was it Bullet Boy? Not really. I was in Grange Hill for a while. I had quite a big part in that. I’ve been in Holby City. Then I was in Storm Damage. That was a screenplay. I was working with people like Simon Callen Jones, Lennie James, Adrian Lester who’d just come back from doing Primary Colours with John Travolta. People saw me in that. A lot of people were touched by it too.
The media has really taken to you. You get good publicity and damn good roles…What is your secret?
I’ve been very honest and open in interviews and with the media. Not many people knew me when I was in So Solid because there were so many of us. Doing my own stuff I can express myself and say what I think. It’s important that the kids hear that not everyone is a gangster that it’s hard work and there are struggles. So just being open really.
How did you get the role in the 50 cent movie ‘Get Rich or Die Trying’? It was a straightforward process. I auditioned for the director Tim Sheridan. I recorded myself, spitting a short 16 bars. It got sent to America, 50 liked it. It was very straight forward. (continue...)