*Annie Ilonzeh stars in the Benny Boom directed biopic “All Eyez On Me” as Kidada Jones, the fiancé of late rapper, TuPac Shakur.
Jones was engaged to Shakur at the time of his death, and as Annie told EUR/Electronic Urban Report during a recent discussion about the project, “this is a love story between Kidada and TuPac.”
“All Eyez On Me” is the true and untold story of the prolific artist, who was also an actor, poet and activist. The feature film premiers on the late rapper’s 46th birthday, June 16, 2017.
Ilonzeh is known for her starring role on ABC’s revamp of “Charlie’s Angeles” and as Maya Ward on “General Hospital.” You may also recognize her pretty face from Lifetime’s “Drop Dead Diva,” the CW hit “Arrow,” and FOX’s “Empire” as the tough reporter, Harper Scott.
While she didn’t get the chance to sit down with Kidada to talk about her relationship with Shakur, Ilonzeh told us that Pac’s family and friends “were really helpful in filling in the blanks for me.”
Annie says “it’s okay” that she didn’t get a chance to personally chat to Kidada about portraying her in the film because, “L.T. Hutton, the executive producer, and also Benny and other people that I talked to know her, or knew her during the relationship, and they were really-really helpful in filling me in (about) this tough woman that she was.”
On set she learned Kidada was “a real spiritual, cool girl that was really in love with this man, and they had a super-powerful, passionate, loving relationship.”
“L.T. just kept pushing the love, because we know the ending of the movie, or where it’s going to go,” she says, noting that her biggest challenge was “not to play what we know ultimately will happen with him.”
“I kinda battled in one scene on set,” Ilonzeh reveals. “I was like, ‘I don’t want him to leave! He can’t leave,’ cause you know what’s going to happen. It’s very unfortunate. And L.T. kept saying, ‘You love him. You’re not mad that he’s leaving, you’re not upset. You don’t know. All you know is that you love this man.’ So I just came from that standpoint of this is a love story between Kidada and TuPac.”
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“All Eyez On Me” stars Demetrius Shipp Jr. as TuPac Shakur, Katt Graham, Lauren Cohan, Hill Harper, Jamal Woolard, and Danai Gurira as Afeni Shakur, TuPac’s mother, who was a political activist and member of the Black Panthers.
Ilonzeh describes Danai as “a strong actress and couldn’t be anymore perfect for the role.”
Peep the rest of our conversation with Annie.
I’ve been reading comments and write ups about this film from music reviewers, bloggers and Hip Hop aficionados who are already calling it “the biggest film of the year,” and no one has seen a lick of footage yet. How does it feel to be a part of such a monumental project?
Annie: It’s pretty surreal actually. I don’t think I’m prepared personally. I think it’s so hard to gauge until you really feel it, which will be June 16th. But with everyone anticipating it, and everyone is so excited, along with the cast and crew, it’s really hard to put into words and it’s kinda hard to place the feelings. I know that it’s going to be so big, and I’m super excited. I’m almost kinda numbed out in a way. I keep pushing my parents, like “You guys have to come out here. This is it! This is the one. You gotta come and experience this with me.” I can tell I’m a little nervous cause I need my parents there. I also want everyone to respond to it the way that we want everyone to respond to it, which is, really appreciate the film and be just as excited about this project because we put so much into it. It’s been a long time coming.
Describe the energy on set, and did you learn anything surprising about the man, the myth, the legend during filming?
Annie: The energy was high. It was very intense and magnetic in a way. I remember the first time I saw (Demetrius) as Pac on set… he walked onto that set and I remember just how magnetic it was. He walked on and he was TuPac reincarnated. It was crazy and just goes to show how legendary this man was. When Demetrius as TuPac would walk by, people’s eyes would just bug and their jaws would drop because you’re just like, “Wow. This is TuPac in the flesh.” And to have that impact on so many different people, from all different walks of like, it’s amazing.
My dad’s Nigerian and I remember going to Nigeria and all of these kids and adults and everyone in-between knew who TuPac was. They had TuPac t-shirts, TuPac posters, TuPac cassettes… everyone knew TuPac and sometimes that was the only English that they spoke, was TuPac lyrics. So this man is, was, and will always be a legend. Again, speaking of legacy, when you leave a legacy and it’s that impactful — and sometimes it takes doing groundbreaking things. Sometimes it takes pushing the envelope. His mother was a Black Panther. She was an activist, hitting the pavement and not accepting that black was less than white, and she taught that to her son. I didn’t know the strength that that woman had and what she embedded in her son. I learned that through this movie. I had no idea that he was a theater kid, seasoned and trained. Of course I knew that he was in movies but I didn’t know that he was this trained theater guy. This man was educated and smart and a brilliant entertainer that cared about the world and shifting the world. That was one of my biggest takeaways. And again it’s like, what mark can you leave?
In what ways will this production enhance Pac’s legacy?
Annie: I think Pac is one of those artists that generations on generations know who this guy is, as an artist, as an activist, as an actor — entertainer across the board. I think the new generations of entertainers and artists can be influenced by him just as much as people in the 90’s. And millennials now, who maybe didn’t grow up listening to Pac, will now be refreshed and able to understand the impact of this man. Especially the times that we’re in right now, with racism kinda being at the forefront and different activists and movements, and Pac was heavily involved with that world too, not just a rapper.
So I think people will be able to see that side of him too and appreciate all that he did for the community, for the people. We need leaders like that, whether they’re currently here, or here in sprint and in legacy, but just to be able to keep those pioneers always in the forefront of our minds and to lead us to motivation and inspiration, as far as what our impact can be just like his impact. To know that someone decades later is still just as impactful as they were when they were alive, we need pioneers like that. I hope people find inspiration, I know I did on set, hearing all the different individual stories from people. His family would be on set and his close friends. The Outlawz, his group, they were on set. To hear the personal stories and their journeys with him, it was inspiring. It was like, wow, you can make a difference and continue to make a difference not actually living on this Earth. Your legacy makes a difference. (Pac’s) spiritual journey hasn’t stopped. We talk about him and talk about him, and hopefully we’re all inspired to do great.
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