Conversations with Elijah Washington

Today we’d like to introduce you to Elijah Washington.

Hi Elijah, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Let me take it back to where it all began. I was born and raised in the state of Maryland to Bob & Sabrina Washington. I am the second child of three (R.Isaiah Washington & Asiah Washington).

Since I can remember, I was always involved and immersed in the Arts, whether singing in a kid’s group, performing in plays/musicals, or playing piano. I am very grateful for my upbringing. My parents pastor a church in Baltimore City, where the arts are an integral part of the culture there which has allowed my siblings and I to grow into the artists we are today. I’m thankful to have parents who would often challenge my siblings and I to write plays, produce and direct plays, as well as cast and act in the plays we created for our church during the Christmas, Mothers Day, Fathers Day, and Easter holidays.

At a young age, I took piano lessons, but I did not commit to practicing piano as I should have, so my parents made the decision to end the piano lessons. By sixth grade, I had an epiphany and realized just how much I loved the piano. I expressed to my parents how I wanted to get back to piano lessons, but they needed to see how serious I was this time around. I recall my parents waking me up VERY early on Saturday mornings to go to the church and watch the musicians at the church practice and prepare for Sunday morning worship services. My parents shared that if I was serious, I needed to learn from the musicians how to play piano. So I began to learn the various piano chords for the Sunday Services songs prior to me participating in choir rehearsal because I also sang at the church every Sunday. I remember one Sunday, our piano player was running late, and my parents told me to hop on the piano and begin playing so we could start service on time. All of those early morning rehearsals paid off! I can’t say I wasn’t terrified, singing was one thing, but playing the piano too wasn’t easy! But as the saying goes “Stay ready, so you won’t have to get ready”.

I also participated in various productions (musicals, recitals) as a child. It was middle school where my acting capability caught my parents’ attention. My first major musical as a lead was so invigorating for me. I felt free being on stage, which was major for me because I was an extremely introverted child growing up. My parents were so impressed with my performance that they encouraged me to consider applying to a School for the Arts High School. However, I was also a track athlete at the time, so I decided to continue participating in the arts where I attended school so that I could still compete as an athlete.

While in high school, I began taking music theory and more structured music classes to hone in more on my music. I then began writing music more frequently, which led to my brother and I writing our first song together. By this time, I knew for a fact that entertainment was what I was meant to do. I was then accepted into Anderson University (Anderson, Indiana), where I received my Bachelor’s in Music Business with an emphasis in Vocal Performance and Composing/Songwriting. While at Anderson, my parents encouraged me not to neglect my acting, so I continued taking acting classes.

After graduating, I chose to move to LA to begin my career in the music industry as well as jump start my acting career. Within a couple of months of living in LA, I was fortunate to have my first Synch Deal with BET, which essentially is writing a song for a movie or TV show.

While I continued to write and work on music, I also began taking acting classes at various studios to continue sharpening my craft. Within my first year in LA, I was able to book my first Guest-Star role on a Daytime Emmy Nominated Show. This led to me signing with my first talent agent and then shortly after COVID hit!

During COVID, I was able to be still for a second and refocus on my goals and objectives as an artist. This led to me creating my production company, Fire Rock Productions. My siblings and I came together to write and produce our first short film, entitled “Diminished” which will be out very shortly and includes an amazing soundtrack. We initially planned to shoot in LA, but because of the pandemic we decided to do everything in ATL.

This feels like a complete full circle moment because I reflect on how my parents would have my siblings and I write plays for church and now we are creating films together.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Life will always present its own challenges and obstacles, it’s inevitable. I think it’s safe to say the pandemic was a major unforeseen obstacle that caught many of us by surprise. Many of us lost loved ones during this time, jobs, opportunities or were impacted financially. Many of these were the case for myself, however I chose to see this as an opportunity to hone in on my vision as an artist and all-around creative. I also chose to walk in a place of gratitude and appreciate the mere fact that I have breath in my body.

Faith is what keeps me going everyday. Everyday I have to make a conscious decision to trust God and believe that everything will continue to fall in place the way it was intended. To be completely transparent, there are days when it’s difficult, especially during these precarious times, however I am a firm believer that God never gives me more than I can handle, even if I feel overwhelmed some days. I also believe faith without works is dead. So while I trust God and the process, I believe it’s incumbent upon us to actively pursue and put in the work to whatever we feel called to.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am an artist in the fullest sense. I love being in my full creative state, whether that be creating music, brainstorming on script ideas, writing, or acting.

There are so many things I am proud of, for one making the leap of faith to initially move to LA and be able to create traction for myself in this town. But if I had to narrow it down to one thing I am MOST proud of, I would say, creating my production company (Fire Rock Productions) and through that collaborating with my siblings (R.Isaiah Washington & Asiah Washington) to write, produce, and star in an amazing short film during the pandemic, oh and also create the soundtrack! It was not easy by any means, but that’s what makes it so rewarding and allows me to be so proud of this piece of work.

The Short Film entitled “Diminished” chronicles a young, talented musician who must learn that failure and loss can be the catalysts that sparks our creativity and the foundation that anchors our magnum opus. Diminished in our modern vernacular means to make or become less. In regards to music, diminished is a particular chord which is not commonly used because of its dissonant, unique sound. Ezra represents the diminished chord, a very unique individual who tends to be in the background, constantly overlooked and underrated. Ezra is content with his eldest brother being “the star” until life circumstances challenge him to augment his perception of his own talent and grow into the artist he is meant to be.

We were so grateful to have an amazing crew and cast believe in our vision. Our cast consists of some amazing actors killing it in Hollywood. Terayle Hill, who can be seen on Judas & the Black Messiah, Netflix’s Cobra Kai, Starz’s Step Up High Water, & Tyler Perry’s House of Payne to name a few. Aaron Dominguez is another amazing actor a part of the project and can be seen most recently as a series regular on Hulu’s Only Murders in the Building playing opposite of Steve Martin, Martin Short, & Selena Gomez, as well as Shaft and CBS’s Seal Teams to name a few. We were also fortunate to lock in Brittney Level who can be seen on National Geographic’s Aretha Series, BET’s American Soul & The Bobby Brown Story to name a few. Courtney Nichole is one of our other amazing cast members who most recently has been working as series regular on Tyler Perry’s Assisted Living. Vanoy Burnough is another amazing artist in the cast who has been seen on various stages performing everything from August Wilson to Dominique Morisseau. Of course, I cannot forget my baby sister, Asiah Washington, who is a part of the cast as well and is currently pursuing her BFA in Acting from Azusa Pacific University. And lastly, our amazing award-winning director, Frederick Tabiyus Nah IV (CEO of Phoenix 4 Productions).

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
I define success as actively fighting for what you believe in and seeing the fruits of your labor. Successful people never give up, and in order to achieve a certain level in your career, you have to keep that fire lit.

I also believe success is balanced. Oftentimes we refer to success in terms of our career, but I believe having a balance between your career and personal life is the ultimate form of success and is what I am continuously aspiring to achieve.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10857088/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_elijahwashington_/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eijahwashingtonofficial
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC48-CMDK7t_-ICmMLAQUSuw

Image Credits
Alejandro Martinez Matt Kallish James Mcshane Justin Bivins