Emmy Nominated Actress Kelly Jenrette Talks Faith, All American: Homecoming, Upcoming Projects, and more! Written by: Kaila Haith
Many have seen her on-screen starring in shows such as Grandfathered, Mixedish, and most recently, All American: Homecoming. She has made a name for herself, even scoring an Emmy nomination for her guest appearance in The Handmaid’s Tale. However, when it comes to Kelly Jenrette, the actress behind the roles, she is just as much a breath of fresh air as her on-screen characters. Jenrette would describe herself as a happily married, Black Christian girl from the south, living the dream in LA. While acting was always something she loved, Kelly, a sibling of six from Atlanta, GA, never saw herself making a career of it. Her first play was in fifth grade, where Issue #14 2022
she played the lead role of Charlie in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. At that time, she fell in love with acting. Her love intensified after she watched The Five Heartbeats. “Acting was something that I really loved to do – but it wasn’t something that I felt like, oh, this is a real job that I can make a living off of,” said Jenrette. Growing up, Kelly said she wanted to be a lawyer who also did hair on the side. Looking back, she realized what she said was such an “actress thing to say.” After graduating high school, Jenrette set her sights on attending Xavier University in New Orleans with aspirations of
becoming a forensic psychologist. During her sophomore year, after reviewing the course load, specifically all the science classes, she thought to herself – “I’d much rather be one on TV.” Kelly decided to transfer back home to Georgia State University, where she obtained a degree in theater, and the rest is history. There were times when she could’ve given up, but the one thing that kept her going was her faith. Jenrette shifted her focus from being self-driven to allowing God to lead her. In doing so, she found that her faith has and continues to produce fuel that drives her. If she could give her younger self any piece of advice, it would be to love God more than anything else, more than
