Life & Work with Jasmine NaTasha Anderson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jasmine NaTasha Anderson.

Jasmine, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was born in Atlanta, and my family moved to San Diego, CA shortly after. I grew up half of my life there, the other half in Clayton, NC. It was a huge culture shock, I felt completely out of place but I found comfort and a sense of belonging through the music I listened to specifically folk, singer-songwriter, and neo-soul. Artists like Corinne Bailey Rae and Colbie Calliat sung so much peace into my heart and they were the biggest influence on how I developed my sound. I then became involved in choir, theatre, and musicals and this continued throughout my first year in college. I took some time off, moved to Baltimore and got wrapped up in the everyday work routine and suddenly it had been years since I had done anything creative. I forgot the very thing that made me so happy.

In 2013, I began singing back up for a Jazz Band “Austin 27” led by Michael Austin and began to fall in love with music again. It wasn’t until I moved to Durham, NC in 2015 that I began to take myself serious as an artist and release original music. I would pack my blue Brownsville guitar “Luna”, my little practice amp and travel across the state performing at open mics, coffee shops, all types of events, I’d sing for anyone who’d give me a mic. At this time, I released my single “Hello Love”. In the spring of 2016, I was nominated for R&B Artist of the year for the Carolina Music Awards and I just remember feeling so proud of that moment because I remember a time where I couldn’t sing in front of a single person frozen with fear. I moved to Atlanta Summer 2017 and went back to NC that August for the Awards, this time nominated for R&B Artist of the year also R&B Video of the Year for my single “Hello Love” filmed and directed by Tailiah Breon of Fashion Prodigy. After I moved to Atlanta in 2017, it was a huge adjustment and I decided to take time off from music and work on myself as I wanted to be as mentally and spiritually strong as I could be especially with ATL being an industry driven town.

During this soul searching, I found my passion for acting once again this time in film. I’d had some amazing opportunities to work on several films and tv shows, shadow some of the industry’s most talented actors and learn so much. In 2019 I decided to take a leap of faith and move to Los Angeles to pursue film and television full time. It was the best decision I had ever made. Within a few months of moving, I booked a commercial, signed with my manager, Matthew Roberts and shot my first short film, “The Truth Behind Us” directed by Alvaro Sebastian Gonzalez. I was on cloud nine and so hopeful for my future in LA, but shortly after, Covid hit and everything was at a standstill. It was a challenging time for all creatives. No one knew what was happening or when the industry would open up again. In the midst of a global pandemic, powerful protests and an election looming, it was almost impossible to find peace and it seemed like everyone was struggling to keep their balance. I found solace in gardening, meditation and writing. I was given a challenge in my acting class, led by Don Phillip Smith, to write a scene and cast my zoommates. I’d written plenty of songs but never anything remotely close to a screenplay but surprisingly, it was a huge success.

In that moment, I realized that I wanted to be behind the camera as well as in front of it, and that inspired me to begin writing my first pilot. As Los Angeles began to open up again and Covid protocols were put in place, auditions starting coming in again and just like that things began to feel a little “normal”. Now here we are not even two full months into 2021 and I have shot four commercials for brands like Pup Mom Crate, Nurx, Flo and Savage X Fenty and am currently in rehearsals for an incredible musical web-series set to film March 2021 titled “Flawed The Musical” written and produced by Troy Boone. I made a decision for this year to step completely out of my comfort zone in every way possible and it has only opened up more and more opportunities to me. I’m so thankful for the wonderful people I’ve met thus far and I’m feeling so hopeful and optimistic and more driven than ever to create, create, create and make this an amazing, prosperous year.

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?
My biggest struggle has been thinking I am superwoman and booking out every hour of my schedule. Humans man, lol. We think that if we are not moving or doing “something” that it means that we are becoming stagnant or failing. Rest does not mean that you’re not being productive and that was something I had to learn and am still working on today. I tend to overwork myself. From 6am workouts to 2am self-tapes, memorizing lines, working full time and everything in between, I have to remind myself that it is a necessity to stop, breathe and be in the present moment. When we are on autopilot, we miss the authenticity and all of those magical moments that make life so special. I have also learned recently that it is so important to be a clear communicator and set even clearer boundaries when it comes to what you need as an individual for a healthy mental state and overall quality of life. You can’t pour from an empty cup, so I just try to remember to carve out time just for me even if it’s as simple as cooking myself dinner and enjoying a good show.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am known as a neo-soul singer, guitarist and songwriter. Since moving to LA, my focus has switched almost entirely to my acting career which I couldn’t be more proud of and I do plan to continue to create music and produce more original work this year. I am currently writing a pilot which is something I never thought I’d be doing this soon but here we are, and I’m so excited to share more as that process unfolds! I’ve also, recently, had the amazing opportunity to work with Warner’s and Savage X Fenty, two of my favorite brands. Though I never really considered modeling professionally and certainly never thought I’d shoot a lingerie ad lol, body positivity is something that is so near and dear to my heart. There is something so beautiful and empowering about owning your body, something I never had the confidence to do before now. I am in awe of the confidence that has grown within me since moving here. I am fearlessly doing things that would normally scare me to bits, and I am so proud of the risks I’ve been taking, especially the risk to move across the country and wholeheartedly go after the things I’m so passionate about. Working in the entertainment industry has always been a dream of mine and I’m so thankful that I stepped all the way out of my comfort zone, followed my bliss and continue to create the opportunities to do so.

What makes you happy?
Being in complete alignment makes me happier than anything in the world. For me, alignment is a feeling of pure happiness and confidence in the absoluteness of knowing that you are in the exact place that you’re meant to be in that moment in time and that everything is okay. That no matter what’s going on around you, things are moving and working in your favor because there is no reason for them not to be. People often think “I’ll be happy when…” when I get that job, or land that role, or fall in love but I say be happy now. There’s so much to be thankful for. Find that thing within you that sparks joy, let that be your main focus and I promise, your outer world will have no choice but to mirror the way you’re feeling on the inside.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.JasNaTasha.com
• Instagram: www.Instagram.com/iamJasNaTasha
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/iamJasNaTasha
• Youtube: www.YouTube.com/JasNaTasha

Image Credits:
Tailiah Breon, Myles A. Evans, Katherine Kirkpatrick, Alvaro Gonzalez