WATCH: Eve, Brandy, Naturi Naughton and Nadine Velazquez talk about the new musical series ‘Queens’

Music industry veterans Eve, Brandy and Naturi Naughton joined their colleague Nadine Velazquez and Variety journalist Angelique Jackson at the Entertainment All Access event at the 2021 ESSENCE Cultural Festival presented by Coca-Cola to preview their upcoming ABC drama series “Queens. “

Featuring original compositions by legendary producer Swizz Beatz, this highly anticipated musical drama stars 4 actresses as members of the hip-hop supergroup Nasty Bitches, who reunite after years apart for a chance to regain fame. Now, of their 40s and years of no contact, can these ladies rekindle the pride that made them industry-leading hits in the Nineties?

As an artist, Eve says she identifies with the plight of former rapper Brianna aka “Professor Sex” and understands the must keep that inner spark alive. “They were the biggest hip-hop group of their time,” she said. “It was these girls, period. Every girl desired to be them, every boy desired to be with them. And identical to in real life, life happens. But you usually need that fireplace back. You all the time must return to “that girl.”

A highly respected singer from an early age, Brandy was most drawn to the musical elements of this new acting enterprise. However, she will need to have drawn from some greater inspiration to delve into the rap aspect of her character Naomi, also often known as “Xplicit Lyrics.”

“Music is my first love, so it’s a dream role to be able to sing, rap and perform all the musical elements of this show,” Brandy said. “Naomi loves singing and that’s one of the reasons she joined the group, but she realized she could also rap. So I draw inspiration from Nas, Biggie, Pac and that era. It was an amazing time to play both Naomi and Xplicit’s lyrics.”

Naturi Naughton felt transported back to her days at 3LW while filming music video scenes as Jill aka “Da Thrill” and used her own experiences to bring her role to life.

“It was great fun,” Naughton said. “I kind of went back to when I was making music videos, being in a girl band, working in the music industry and reliving some of those events. It was definitely a little nostalgic for me, but fun!”

Seasoned film and television actress Nadine Velazquez is greater than comfortable in the acting arena, but she leaned on the support of her co-stars to transition into musical mode as Valeria aka “Butter Pecan.” “We all know I don’t have any musical training,” she laughed, while her co-stars supported her, letting her know she was “killing it” in her role. “Coming into it as someone who has no experience in rapping, singing or performing live, and yet each of them has context and is held together, I was able to get through it because they are just fucking awesome. They were very supportive and helpful, so a bond was formed. There was honesty, rawness and realness to it and it really shows (on screen).”

Watch the entire conversation in the video above. For more information on every part you missed during the first week of Entertainment All Access at the 2021 ESSENCE Cultural Festival, visit the official website HERE.

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