From actress to activist, Yara Shahidi has packed quite a lot into her life already.
The Black-ish star is barely an adult, yet she is wise beyond her years.
If you aren't familiar with her yet, you will be soon!
Cuz this young woman is taking the world by storm.
Shahidi seems to know more than her young age might suggest — a quality she's shown
since her childhood, when she skipped first grade.
Her teachers wanted to send her straight into third grade, but her mom Keri felt that skipping
two grades would be too much.
Keri told Town & Country,
"If you’re around Yara for more than an hour, you’ll see […] she's highly intellectually
motivated."
While Yara started acting at the age of 9 in Imagine That, her acting career wasn't
deliberately planned.
"You gotta do better than that."
Yara told Refinery29,
"I wasn't one of those kids who woke up and said, I want to be an actor.
I've always wanted to be a historian.
For my tenth birthday party, I dressed up as a historian in a seersucker suit."
Although she didn't plan on a career in showbiz, it's clear where she gets her talent.
Her father is a cinematographer, and her mother is also an actress.
With an Iranian father and an African American mother, Shahidi's multicultural family taught
her to appreciate diversity.
Her paternal grandfather nurtured a love for history in Shahidi, while her maternal grandfather,
who was once associated with the Black Panthers, nurtured her spirit toward activism.
Yara told Town & Country,
"Because of my family's background, I understand how interconnected cultures are.
Traditions may be different, but in terms of shared values, they're transcontinental.
My love of history, or even being socially engaged, stems from having, firsthand, people
to care about around the globe and at a young age expanding my community beyond these fake
borders we put on each other."
"Being happily half-Iranian, and happily African American, I've been able to witness just the
importance of culture."
Shahidi is also conscious of the marginalization that can come with being a minority, telling
Refinery29,
"Half of my family is on a list of countries that cannot enter the US and then the other
half of my family has had to deal with systematic suppression."
Shahidi admits that being born at the turn of the millennium also meant she entered into
a turbulent era.
She explained to Vogue,
"So much is happening socially and politically, in a way that is terrifying but at the same
time is producing this incredible level of unity.
People's lives, their livelihoods are at stake."
"The one thing I've learned from you, is the act of engaging whether you know that person
or not."
So what do you do when you're a young person faced with so much unrest?
For Shahidi, the answer is clear: advocate for real change.
She told the outlet,
"Part of being an engaged citizen is looking around you and asking, 'Why is this happening,
how is this happening?
Why were the cops called on a young girl napping in her common room?
Why were they called on a woman at Waffle House?'
You have to find the common denominator — and, for me, I realized I shared that common denominator
and couldn't help but be involved."
When Black-ish first aired, Shahidi was just 14 years old.
"From the moment I read the script, I really wanted to be a part of it."
While her childhood was far from a typical one, growing up on set provided her with a
nurturing and supportive upbringing — one that Shahidi is still grateful for.
"I should have gotten adopted by Madonna."
She told Net-a-Porter,
"It's a funny place to grow up because they appreciate you being a kid, and then there
are moments in which they want to know your opinion like a peer.
I've always been asked how I felt, whether it be at the dinner table or at my place of
work, but overarchingly, what Black-ish has shown is the power of aligning with projects
you truly believe in.
It's set a precedence.
It is a privilege to be able to say pretty much from the get-go that this is what I enjoy
and for my opportunities to be so aligned."
When you're a celebrity, rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous is simply par for
the course — but Shahidi has gotten some endorsements that would wow any celeb.
Former first lady Michelle Obama was so impressed with her that she wrote her a letter of recommendation
to Harvard — where, of course, Shahidi was accepted.
Oprah is also a fan of the young activist, and thinks that she could become president
one day.
"Yara Shahidi" "Hope I'm still around when she becomes president of the United States.
That is going to happen."
Shahidi claims she hasn't ruled out a political career, but she's not sure she wants to end
up in the White House.
She told Entertainment Tonight,
"I definitely want to be in like, a politics-adjacent kind of position."
"I do want to be in a place in which I can implement that level of change."
But she admitted she's not totally sold on "President."
"I always think about how strange it'll be that they'll be going back through my Instagram
that I had when I was 12."
"So that's a little eerie, but I definitely want to be D.C."
If you're thinking that Shahidi's life seems charmed, you're not alone.
Even she can't believe the breaks she's gotten.
But one of the things she's proudest of is getting into Harvard — because it's something
she had to actively work to earn.
"I finished all my twelfth-grade coursework.
Committed to school."
She told Vogue,
"Getting into college was a big deal because I realized it's probably one of the only things
I've fully planned.
The rest of my life has been, for the most part, a nice little happy accident."
But the actress has always prioritized her education, even while focusing on acting.
"I mean I've been a student as long as I've been an actor, if not longer."
She admitted,
"School has been the one thing that I've consistently had my eyes on for the past 12 years."
"I think Grown-ish has opened my eyes to all of the other things that happen at college.
I really was expecting to just go to class and go to sleep."
Shahidi is active on social media, but she doesn't just use it just for the likes.
Her online presence is a powerful tool for activism, as it is for many of her peers.
She told Refinery29,
"Social media matters.
[…] Sometimes in fantastic ways, and sometimes in not-so-great ways.
When you look at my peers on social media, a lot of them are doing other things outside
of it."
With nearly 4 million followers on Instagram and roughly 400,000 on Twitter, Shahidi is
certainly keeping her fans engaged.
But not everything she posts is serious — which is a critical part of her brand.
"Half the people are like oh!
Yara's doing her thing!
And the other half are like what in the world is happening."
As she told Town & Country, quote, "There's power in just displaying joy."
For Shahidi, turning 18 was especially exciting because it meant she was able to vote for
the first time.
And she celebrated the milestone with a birthday party that doubled as a voter registration
drive.
She told Net-a-Porter,
"The one thing that I am looking forward to is feeling more empowered to contribute.
My friends have always said that if I got a fake ID, it would be to vote early."
"I really want everyone turning 18 to register to vote this year.
You only turn 18 once, so let's make it count."
A month before her birthday she launched Eighteen x 18, a voting initiative aimed at encouraging
young people to vote, while also educating them on hot button issues.
"We focus on two things.
Voter registration, voter education, well I guess a third thing, and how we make civic
engagement a daily activity."
Yara told Bustle,
"It is about getting rid of that barrier to entry and the intimidation that people go
through about not being smart enough […] to be involved in politics."
Acting, and even activism, aren't enough for Shahidi.
And she's determined to give back to the community.
Along with Eighteen x 18, Shahidi's other initiative, Yara's Club, is a mentorship program
that brings together high school students to discuss social issues.
"Whether it's furthering their education or just being more interested in topics that
they're studying, I knew that I wanted to be involved on a regular basis and Yara's
Club was the way to do that."
Shahidi told Forbes,
"Being a part of a generation in which societal contribution and action are expected, I've
had the great fortune […] to exponentially grow my own philanthropic platform, impacting
my global community for the better."
Shahidi is blessed with an impeccable sense of style.
But she's more focused on feeling comfortable instead of dressing up for the cameras.
She revealed her off-duty look, telling Net-a-Porter,
"Usually I am just a kid in a hoodie, jeans, and a fanny pack."
Still, dressing casually doesn't mean that she's not making a bold statement.
Shahidi is very aware that fashion often carries a deeper sociopolitical message and goes beyond
just looking good.
"We're always being pushed into new areas " "And it's very easy to feel small, and so
often times I'll use my outfit to kind of solidify where I am in the world."
Yara told Net-a-Porter,
"I wear a ton of political T-shirts because I get to wear things that state my political
opinions.
Fashion is associated with an ideology.
You could wear a beret, but when you tilt it to the side, you go from Parisian to Black
Panther."
Shahidi admits that the opportunities that have been afforded to her might not have come
so easily if she didn't fit a particular standard of beauty.
And as an African American woman with lighter skin, she recognizes that she experiences
a certain amount of privilege.
She told Refinery29,
"So many times in the conversation, [colorism is used] as a straight up denial of blackness.
We use it as a denial of any sort of experience versus using it as an affirmation that there
are things that I haven't had to go through, and the reason that I'm probably not aware
of them is that I haven't had to go through them."
"As a young girl I think it's easy to get overwhelmed, and you have always been that
example of just how to own your space."
Shahidi added that she's even experienced the issue at home — with her own mother.
She revealed to the outlet,
"Having a mother with the exact same face, but with different skin tones, has always
made it a conversation in our family."
You've probably gathered by now that Shahidi isn't your typical young Hollywood celeb.
While she grew up in the public eye and has certainly banked enough money by now to retire
early if she wants, she's focused on making the most of her opportunities.
"I'm a really great DJ.
My brother would disagree with me, but I still fervently support my possible career in being
a DJ."
While some people her age — celebs or not — might be out partying, Shahidi is staying
focused on the future.
But what might seem like a tendency to be a homebody isn't just a personal preference,
it's also a decision Shahidi makes because she is conscious that Hollywood can come down
harshly on women of color.
She revealed that she doesn't feel she couldn't get away with getting into as much trouble
as her white peers, telling Refinery 29,
"I definitely do believe there's a culture which makes it harder to mess up or get back
up once you've messed up.
I am hyper aware of my surroundings at all times.
I'd be lying if I didn't say I was hyper aware of what other people around me were doing.
I'm never going to find myself in positions in which I genuinely regret what I'm doing."
So what's next for the successful young woman who seems to have the world at her feet?
Graduating from Harvard is definitely in the stars, but, like many people her age, the
rest of her plans are uncertain.
But wherever she goes, she's determined to make her mark.
The actress revealed to Net-a-Porter,
"I have this whole thing about legacy.
A legacy only lasts 50 years, and when that generation ends, then what was my impact?"
"Baby, your future's so bright it burns my eyes."
When asked about what her plans for her acting career might be, Shahidi was ambivalent, saying,
"I guess I start by saying, Hollywood is seemingly extremely trivial.
Media is important, but the machine around the media is centered around red carpets and
this idea of celebrity and personal cachet.
All of these things in the long run don't have much of an impact."
It's a bold statement for a young actress whose career is on the rise — especially
one who has been a lucky beneficiary of that Hollywood machine — but it's also proof
that Shahidi is here for something much more real than fleeting fame.
"The future is ever expanding and opening and undefinable."
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