Meet Tori Foxworth | Aspiring Actress & Creative

We had the good fortune of connecting with Tori Foxworth and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Tori, have you ever found yourself in a spot where you had to decide whether to give up or keep going? How did you make the choice?
When I first started training in theater, I often compared myself to others. Some girls had been training in dance since they learned to walk, and I’d only started at 15. After soaking in my inferiority while simultaneously judging myself for even allowing jealousy to enter my body. I realized my anxiety was giving me a small superpower. Even though I was judging myself unfairly, I was also analyzing greatness. I was able to latch onto the smallest details to understand what it was that made these girls so much “better than me”. I realized what I was lacking was a healthy lifestyle, training in dance, voice, and music, as well as self-confidence. But what I shared with them was passion. Once I realized that I was able to look at my favorite actors, rappers, authors, etc. And instead of feeling hopeless and wondering “How did they get there?” I was able to see their passion.

I was a little sapling staring up at redwoods, wondering how they got so much bigger than me! When all I had to do was move myself into the soil and wait. I believe that if your passion is great enough, you’ll face any triumph to allow yourself to grow.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Growing up, there were a lot of messages about what a black girl should be. Sassy, feisty, or sexy were the only commendable personality traits according to TV. I wanted to be cute! I loved cute things, which led me right to Japan’s Kawaii culture. I’d browse drawings of kawaii characters, but they all had one trait in common: pale skin. Through online tutorials, I taught myself to draw at 7 years old. There was a problem I wanted solved, so I made countless illustrations of girls in pastel dresses, with colorful hair, kawaii accessories, and dark skin.

That urge to problem-solve is what pushes me forward. When I was 14, I genuinely woke up one day in a cold sweat. There was a question blaring in my head, “What do I even want to do with my life!?” It’s like the Covid-19 pandemic put a black curtain on my life, and I went from a kid to a teenager with no time to process it! I thought about my childhood aspirations. I wanted to be a doctor, but after witnessing countless deaths from disease and institutionalized violence, I’d gained a deeply rooted fear that made the concept of working in a hospital disturbing. I wanted to be a YouTuber, but that didn’t seem super financially stable, and I also wanted to be an actor. I’d watch Disney Channel, and I’d wonder why the majority of girls could pass the paper bag test. and why the few who didn’t were “sassy”. I dreamed of a world where black girls could play nuanced roles. Where we could show emotion, have flaws, and have rich, developed personality traits. I saw a problem that I desperately wanted to solve, so I asked my mom to sign me up for an acting summer camp.

I was a socially anxious home-schooled kid learning that acting was communicating to an audience, when at the time I couldn’t even communicate with the Drive-thru kiosk worker to ask for a cheeseburger. Every day on the way home, I either cried, complained or both. And although I wasn’t aware of it at the time, I had passion. So whenever I fell, literally or figuratively, I got back up again. I didn’t have dance shoes. So I danced in my socks until my mom had time to take me to the store. I kept going blank during improv games. So I asked to sign up for an improv class. I realized the butterflies in my belly felt more like razorblades. So I decided to start seeing a therapist. Instead of passing by the things that worried me, I confronted them directly. I began to hone this resilient self-love for myself. I trusted that no matter what I was deficient in, I’d be able to put in my best effort using the tools I had.

Problems need solving, and finding which ones you’re passionate about will slowly but surely make the world a better place. Maybe I can’t tackle systemic racism or ingrained bias, but I can put one more black actress into the world.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I always recommend a good concert venue. Community is so important to me, and I love getting right into it. Being surrounded by excited fans, the way genuine joy flows through the air like the sound waves of the music. It’s a magical experience!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to shoutout Lopez Studios. Instead of just helping me to develop my skills, they helped me develop my character. They really award professionalism and kindness. Also, they helped me discover that I LOVE a good challenge.

I’d also like to shoutout Gail Everett Smith, my cousin and acting coach. She’s always been brutally honest and incredibly constructive.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/torifoxworth/