Anjelah Johnson: From Raiders Cheerleader To Funny It Girl
- Details
- Last Updated: Tuesday, 12 November 2013 05:45
- Written by Lupe Haas
Anjelah takes the spotlight in OUR FAMILY WEDDING, now on DVD, with a scene-stealing performance opposite America Ferrera, Forest Whitaker and fellow comedian Carlos Mencia. Before cheering on the Oakland Raiders, Anjelah started out as an actress but that didn’t stop her from paying close attention to her FAMILY WEDDING co-star's methods.
"Watching America [Ferrera] as she works with the script, breaks it down, and how she would take charge definitely spoke volumes to me," she tells CineMovie. "Same thing with Forest Whitaker. You're watching an Oscar winner how he handles a script."
The comedienne turned actress plans to use that on-set experience to advance her acting career in hopes of becoming the next Sandra Bullock. Sandra Bullock's comedic timing and choice in roles has made a fan out of the up and coming actress. "I really admire her in the films she's done like Miss Congeniality where she is just so vulnerable and goofy. She’s not afraid to look sexy in one scene and then fall flat on her face in the next scene.” Anjelah further adds that she would not mind taking on a Miss Congeniality type role herself.
Sandra Bullock is not the only person Anjelah’s focusing on working with in Hollywood. The Hollywood director she wouldn’t mind working with is none other than the master of blockbuster action movies - Michael Bay. As a fan of Bay’s Bad Boys and Transformers, she would “love” to work on an action film where she “can be funny, pretty, and shoot somebody.”
The acting career, however, has not distracted the comedienne of Mexican and Native American descent from her comedy routine. Currently on a cross country tour promoting her DVD "That's How We Do It" Comedy Central special, Anjelah prides herself in being different from her fellow comedians by poking fun at her own life with a method she calls “observational comedy.” While most comedians and late night hosts joke about Mel Gibson's recent rants on tape or Tiger Wood's sex scandal, Anjelah takes the comedy high road by avoiding celebrity scandals. The comedienne does admit celebrity scandals are a “wake-up call” for herself as a lesson in “being on your best behavior” to avoid becoming the “butt of a comedian’s jokes.”
While Anjelah is still navigating around Hollywood, the stand up comic has her comedy method down. She shares her tips and method to her stand-up act with CineMovie. Initially, the comic does not sit down and write out jokes. According to Anjelah, she prefers talking to herself out loud while driving, showering, or getting ready and jotting things down in her blackberry or on a recorder. Once she finds it funny, she will play with the wording on paper and try out the new routine on stage.
For aspiring stand up comics, the comedienne offers valuable advice on stage presence.
"Be confident in yourself, even if you've never done it before. It puts people in the audience at ease. If you go up nervous and not sure of yourself, or your point of view, the audience sees that and don't respect you. That's when the no laughing comes and the heckling.”
As one of a few female and minority comics, Anjelah considers it a “blessing” to be where she is today with the “respect of her fans” but the pressure to stay on her “A-Game” and deliver is a constant concern. Anjelah's hard work and talents, however, will no doubt pay off in the next stage of her career in movies.
Catch Anjelah Johnson in OUR FAMILY WEDDING on DVD and Blu-Ray now.
