Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Antebellum’s Tongayi Chirisa

Tongayi Chirisa is one of the breakout stars of 2020. This year, he made his feature film debut in the must-see drama-horror Antebellum. It’s a dream come true for the up-and-coming talent, but as an artist, Tongayi has learned not to be defined by the jobs he books or doesn’t book. Pop Culturalist caught up with Tongayi to learn more about his journey from Zimbabwe to Hollywood, the lessons he’s learned, and of course, Antebellum.

Career

PC: How did you discover your passion for the arts?
Tongayi: Oh gosh. I don’t think I discovered it. I think the teachers around me did that for me. Growing up, we did a lot of these little plays for school. I remember this one particular Friday, we were doing a play. Right after the performance, we headed back into class. My teacher at the time walked up to me and she was like, “Wow, you’re really good at this. You should continue acting.” That was when I was nine or ten. I was not about the acting life. I was like, “Why would I do this? I’m really good at playing soccer and hanging out with my friends, so this is what I want to do.” But throughout my time in school, I always kept getting these reminders from my teachers and professors. When I was sixteen, that’s when the coin dropped and I had this epiphany. I was like, “Maybe I should take this seriously.” That’s where the journey started for me.

PC: You moved around the world to pursue your craft, from Zimbabwe to South Africa to LA. When you look at your journey thus far, what’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learned about yourself as an artist and as a man?
Tongayi: That’s a great question. I think the biggest thing that I’ve learned is learn to live in the now. Learn to live in the moment. Do not take your career as the end of it all. That should be the cherry on top with everything else going on in life. Live life. Let the acting be a pleasant inconvenience to what’s already going on. Once I learned to separate that, I stopped waiting on my life to happen based on all the calls or jobs that I booked.

PC: You’ve been really open about the highs and lows of the industry. During those more challenging times, how were you able to persevere? Who or what has instilled that fight in you?
Tongayi: I’m a believer. I’m a Christian. My faith is the central, most important thing to me. If I can keep my mind, body, spirit in perfect pace, then even in the times where there was no work or I had to do odd jobs, I was never discouraged because I knew everything has its season. Everything has its time. We don’t know when that’s going to happen, but if you stay the course, eventually opportunity will come knocking on your door. When it does, you walk in.

There’s far more important things in life than the job, because at the end of the day, it’s a job. It’s not my identity. It’s not who I am. It’s what I do. Whether success comes or not, I’m not beholden to the mechanics of this industry that we’re in, which is a great feeling to be able to have that type of freedom to say, “Hey, look, if it doesn’t happen, nobody else can say that I didn’t give this thing a shot.”

Antebellum

PC: Tell us about Antebellum and what drew you to this project.
Tongayi: This was a wonderful, wonderful project. It’s a psychologic thriller about a black woman, played by Janelle Monáe, who finds herself trapped in this horrifying reality. She has to uncover this mind-bending reality before it’s too late. What drew me to this project? I’m always hungry for exciting material. This was definitely one of those projects. This is my first studio picture, so there was a lot of excitement. It was a dream come true.

But then most importantly, it’s about who opened the door for me: Christopher Renz and Gerard Bush, the two directors for this project. They saw something in me. This is what every actor hopes for. You’ve worked so hard for that opportunity. When it does come, it doesn’t feel like an opportunity because you’ve been on your grind for so long that when the door opens, it’s like “wow.” That’s exactly what these two directors did. This is also their first project and feature film. I’m excited to see how the audiences will see this and what’s in store for them as filmmakers. It was a first for so many of us.

PC: Did you feel any pressure, given this milestone
Tongayi: Absolutely. I mean the story itself is very, very heavy. You can see that from the trailer. I did my research and had to understand the history of slavery, which was a lesson in and of itself. I felt the pressure to do a good job, but thankfully, there’s enough resources. You speak to enough people to help you through the process. As you toil in this industry, the mechanics of getting prepared have been so instilled that working on this was another project to tackle, which made the pressure a little easier to handle.

PC: What was the biggest takeaway?
Tongayi: There’s a lot of levels to that question, but I think it just reiterates certain fundamentals. Hard work does pay off. If you’ve done enough research and preparation for your character, whatever happens when the camera starts to roll is your freedom to explore this character and the world that you’ve created. It reiterates the fundamentals that you can’t escape. Preparation can’t escape hard work.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Tongayi: I’m a huge fan of Martin, the old-school sitcom. I watched that religiously. My first two years, when I first moved to America, Entourage was the book of life for me. I learned a lot from that show. I watched it four or five times, just watching the journey of the characters. Because it was like, “Oh my God. He’s living my life. So I’ve got to understand some of the inside scoops of the industry, especially in a place that I never visited and I’ve never lived in.” Although fictionalized, there’s some truth to some things. When I speak to people in the industry, the show wasn’t far from the truth of what transpires on a day-to-day basis in Hollywood. So definitely those two.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Tongayi: I’m a Martin Lawrence geek, so Blue Streak has to be one of my top favorite films to watch. I know it’s old, but I remember seeing this in high school. I just loved the humor in that movie. Also, Braveheart. I don’t know what it is about that music at the end. It touched my soul. Mel Gibson is a very fine, fine actor and storyteller.

PC: Favorite book?
Tongayi: There are so many. If we’re talking nonfiction, there’s a series called The Chronicles of Brothers. It’s about the angel Gabriel, Michael, and Lucifer and how these mighty angels were best friends in heaven until Lucifer lost his ways and began to challenge the throne. it takes you through this period of before time was created right up until the apocalypse. It’s intertwined with this war between Gabriel and Lucifer and how mankind is being affected in this raging war.

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Tongayi: I saw The Lion King in South Africa. It blew me away.

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Tongayi: I think you might find a song from Lady Gaga, Taylor Swift or Julio Iglesias.

To keep up with Tongayi, follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

Photo Credit: Stanley Takwana Tongai