Keke Palmer Says Her Definition of Success Has Changed With Age: It’s ‘Just Doing the Thing You Love’

The actress and new mom opened up to ‘Elle’ for the magazine’s first-ever Impact Issue.

Keke Palmer.Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

Keke Palmer is passionate about diversifying the entertainment industry to include new and underrepresented voices. The Emmy award-winning actress, who just had her first baby with boyfriend Darius Jackson, opened up to Elle for the magazine’s first-ever Impact Issue about her success in the industry and what’s next.

“Knowing what I know about how the industry works, I felt like I could be of service to other people. I want to educate and allow people to see themselves, not just in front of the camera, but also in all of the different [behind-the-scenes] roles that go into creating a movie or a TV show,” she said. “We could use a lot more young millennials, Gen Zers and people of color, especially when we talk about ownership and changing the kind of content that we see. It starts from being in those kinds of positions.”

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The Nope star admitted that she doesn’t have all the answers, but she’s found her way through sticky situations before and it’s always worth it. She noted that throughout her acting career—which began in 2004 and skyrocketed with Akeelah and the Bee in ’06—her definition of success has changed several times.

The 29-year-old now believes that success is “just doing the thing you love.”

“As a kid, I thought success was being on Disney Channel or Nickelodeon or being in a movie with someone that I was a fan of,” she explained. “It’s not a system that you always have a blueprint for. With entertainment, you may never get on a television show or you may be like Ellen Pompeo and be on Grey’s Anatomy for 20 damn years. The industry is weird in that way.”

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Palmer added that she feels thankful to be living in a time when women are breaking so many barriers—from politics and entertainment to health and wellness.

“Don’t take things personally. The true gift is to be able to see beyond that and to not let other people’s projections about you penetrate your spirit,” she said as advice to younger generations. “Accept whatever you’re up against, but don’t allow it to hold you back. Judge your success off of where you came from, not where someone else is. Are you doing better than yesterday? Well, then that’s a celebration.”

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