- Speaking with Cliff "Method Man" Smith,
or should I could call you Davis MacLean (laughs)?
- Either one works for me, brother.
You look like Method Man right now (laughs).
- Hey, easy.
(upbeat hip hop music)
Hey, what's going on, guys?
I'm Grant Yanney with BET.
We got Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson here from "Power".
You guys know the man. - Hey.
I'm here, baby.
What's going on with you, you good?
- Man, I'm great.
You know, right now, everybody's really excited
about the new season.
I know you and the show creator, Courtney Kemp Agboh,
have always said the show's about power dynamics.
- Right. - Can you walk us
through this process of trying to merge
these new, rich characters in
with such an illustrious storyline already?
- Yeah, well, it's,
it's interesting, 'cause Courtney,
when we talked about the lifestyle itself,
like in any community, any of the inner cities
and those communities,
when someone is, whether the police got 'em
or something happens and he's hurt or something instead,
there's always a new regime, a new crew of people to come in
and start to do things.
And then, there's always people that you didn't see.
Like, I brought Mary, 'cause she was,
she was actually, she was on tour,
she stopped and was in the city.
And I had her come to meet with Courtney
to talk about, you know, just the show.
'Cause she was, there was that "Power" Party thing,
like when people get together and watch the show together.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- Around, we was doing that, and they hit it off.
Like they, it wasn't even,
I was not necessary to do nothing else after that.
'Cause her and Courtney got along,
they started to develop ideas for the characters,
and stuff like that.
There's so much stuff.
Like they're my stars, man.
Like this is my age group, they're the stars,
and I'm aspiring
to be, you know?
So when, I'm not acting on the show
and I have an opportunity to bring them onto it,
I know some are really is passionate about their work
in those time periods, and that really loved him,
will tune in.
And it's a stronger possibility
that "Power" has an increase in audience.
- Mm-hm.
What's it been like, you know,
embarking on this new franchise
being a part of the "Power" series?
- Man, it's been nothing but excitement,
because I can't even believe, as a huge "Power" fan,
I'm even involved.
I'm a part of the show now (laughing).
- Yeah. - So, it's just like,
it's surreal, it's unbelievable.
- Can you tell me who is Monet, Monet Tejada?
- Monet Tejada is a queen pin, but she,
and she's a survivor.
She's a mother first, so she's trying to raise her children
and keep them safe in the drug game.
And she has to do it on her own, so she's not happy.
She's really a monster herself, because she's a mama bear
and she's gonna make sure her children are good,
and she's gonna make sure she lives the way
she wants to live.
So,
she's really not a nice woman
at all.
- Like, where do you, where do you see your character being
within the social media sphere
with all of the power talk,
and all, "I love Ghost, I hate Tommy!"?
Like, where does your character fit into that?
- I mean, you know, it's a character,
so people are gonna have their opinions
and feel the way they feel.
They might hate Monet, they might love Monet.
They might see, okay, she's a woman trying to survive
and she's not having it.
And she's gonna use any tool, whether it be Tariq,
whether it be Tasha, whoever, she's gonna use anybody
and make them feel comfortable doing it.
So, they might love her for being such a strategist,
or they might hate her for thinking, you know,
she's, you know, messing with, you know, people they hate,
you know what I mean?
- So, this new world, you know,
there were already such rich storylines already
for, you know, over six years of "Power".
How do you feel your character is gonna add
to this whole story, and really kind of take it
to the next level?
- Okay, I'm glad you asked that.
Davis MacLean is a brilliant, ethically challenged,
sharp, highly motivated Defense Attorney
with his own secrets, who gets drawn into
the St. Patrick's world of murder, mayhem, and drugs.
But the only thing that he's addicted to is winning
at the end of the day.
And this is a high profile case,
as far as Tasha and Tariq go.
I mean, you can pretty much see for yourself
where Davis MacLean plays into all this,
and the challenges that await him.
I don't think he's fully prepared
for everything that Tariq brings to the table really,
but he's a consummate professional
and can adjust on the fly.
And I think Davis MacLean is gonna be around
for a long time.
They're not gonna proctor me.
- What's the chemistry like with you,
with 50 on set, with Naturi, like with everybody as a whole?
- That set is one of the coolest sets I've ever been on
in my life, and that says a lot,
'cause I've been on a few cool sets.
Working with Michael, he's great.
He's going to surprise a lot of naysayers
that, you know, really hate Tariq at this point.
I think he's going to turn that all around.
His growth, I mean, you've seen it
over the past six seasons on the original "Power".
And yeah,
he, a lot of growth there.
The kid really stepped up and he's doing,
he's taking charge of this series.
- I mean, there's not too many college freshmen
with two bodies on 'em, first of all, you know?
(both chuckle) So, it's like,
could you speak, could you speak on that transformation
and where you feel your character is heading?
I mean... - I mean, honestly,
I feel like this is,
this could be like Tariq's redemption, you know?
He has like a lot of decisions to make.
So, you know, whether he makes the right one or not,
you know, it could be good for him.
I feel like people get, people are gonna get to see
how smart Tariq can be, you know?
They're gonna see him maturing, you know,
not just acting off of anger towards his family.
Now, he's acting off of just like,
"Yo, I gotta do this for ma, I gotta do this for grandma.
"I gotta do this for Yasmine."
So, it's definitely a different type of Tariq, you know?
He's growing up, he has a lot on his shoulders,
he has a lot of responsibility,
so I feel like it could be a,
it could be a redemption for him, for sure.
- As one of the longer tenured members on the show,
actually the oldest tenure with you and Naturi,
how do you feel the dynamic is
bringing in these new characters,
and you know, these new players onto the show?
- I love it.
I love the new characters,
especially them as people, as well,
because like my cast is amazing.
We're like family
I feel like we've been filming forever.
I mean, it's our first season, but our chemistry is great.
Everyone is super cool with each other,
and honestly, it's just a blessing to have a cast like this.
I'm definitely very excited to, you know,
to keep working with them, for sure.
- All the actors really make really great choices,
but I feel especially between that dynamic
with you and Tariq- - Mm-hm?
- The chemistry is right there.
Like, can you go on to how- - Yeah.
- How you're able to emote so easy?
I feel like now, it's like very, it was always effortless,
but it's a very firm dynamic now between you and Tariq,
you know? - It really is.
And he's grown so much.
I mean, I feel like that's my baby, he's my son.
We spent six and a half seasons together.
And I've watched him grow up as a man,
as a young, as a young man.
And I feel like the chemistry is natural and organic,
because we've earned it.
We've done the work.
We know what it takes.
Especially, you know, a mother/son relationship
has some special, you know, complexities.
And I think that it's coming across organic
and beautiful now, because we know each other,
we support each other.
I've watched him grow up, literally on the screen,
but in front of my eyes.
Yeah, Michael Rainey is like six feet now,
and I'm like, "Don't think you grown
"just 'cause you taller than me!
"I'm still your mother." - Right.
Do you feel this year, there's gonna be someone new
to get all these stray bullets on social media?
Do you feel like Tasha's gonna be,
she's gon' be out the paint now?
- Yeah, 'cause people were mad at me
the last couple years. (Grant laughs)
I mean, I was getting so much, like, you know,
people hittin' me up on Instagram and Twitter, like,
"Girl, what you doing?
"Why you sleeping with the lawyer?
Or, "Girl, why you over there messin'?
"You know you should get back with Ghost."
So I'm like, "Do you not see how this man has treated me
"for six seasons?
"Hello!"
So, I think this season,
I think people will definitely have some, you know,
issues with her allowing Tariq to kind of partner up
as, you know, as she knows he's selling drugs.
But I think people will empathize with Tasha,
because at the end of the day,
all she's doing is trying to protect her kids.
And if she knows we've got to do it anyway,
why not give him the game?
Like, "Imma teach you the game."
And I think that's where it's important.
- Last question.
What is one word that you can describe what fans
should come to expect with this new season?
- Ooh, one word?
Intrigue.
- Evolution.
- Mm, eh, shock.
- Electrifying.
- In one word?
Oh man.
Can I get two words?
Next level.
- Yeah, you go ahead, man, you know, spit your box.
- It's to the next level, man.
- Oh man, that's solid.
Man, I'm looking forward to it.
Hey listen, I don't wanna cut anybody else' time short, man.
It's been a pleasure speaking with you.
And you know, I'm Grant with BET.
We're looking forward to September 6th, bro.
- Let's go.
(upbeat hip hop music)