Isaiah Crews is just 15-years-old. The son of veteran actor and fine artist, Terry Crews (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”/”America’s Got Talent”), this young man has just started making his own money, as an actor, in “Side Hustle” which airs on Nickelodeon Saturdays at 8:30 pm ET / PT. The teen series is from the trifecta of kid’s comedy writers and executive producers Dave Malkoff (“Sam & Cat”, “Victorious”), and John Beck & Ron Hart (“Fuller House”, “Liv and Maddie”).
In this new live-action buddy comedy “Side Hustle” Crews plays quirky friend ‘Munchy’ of the stars social media sensations and real-life best friends, Annie LeBlanc and Jayden Bartels. The comedy follows their lives as they find themselves in a sticky situation after an accidental mishap destroys the police vehicle belonging to Munchy’s dad. Forced to come up with creative ways to earn money to pay for the damages, the best friends enlist the help of Presley’s tech-savvy younger brother, Fisher (Mitchell Berg), to create an app called “Kid-DING” to connect with people looking for help with small jobs.
With Munchy’s bossy older brother Jaget (Jacques Chevelle) making sure they keep up with the payments, the three friends must do any jobs that come their way no matter how crazy they are. Taking inspiration from his fathers’ comedic legacy, the young Crews character work is in the same vein as other iconic characters like ‘Steve Urkel’ (“Family Matters”) and ‘Screech’ (“Saved by the Bell”).
The series premiered on Nickelodeon on Saturday, November 7th, and currently airs every Saturday at 8:30 pm ET/PT.
Here is what Isaiah Crews had to share about watching his father Terry Crews work and his fascination with Japan and Japanese anime.
LOS ANGELES SENTINEL: Isaiah Crews, I can’t believe that you are only 15-years-old and making your own money. TV money. Sweet.
ISAIAH CREWS: (laughing) You mean “Side Hustle”.
LAS: Is there another series? Are you working that hard in 2020?
IC: No. Just “Side Hustle”. It’s on Nickelodeon.
LAS: Nickelodeon is not shabby and an amazing start. So, did you visit your dad onset when you were young?
IC: I did.
LAS: And?
IC: A lot of the times, when I was younger I use to go, with the rest of my family to the set of EVERYBODY HATES CHRIS.
LAS: I love that show. Pure evergreen.
IC: (laughing) I use to watch him [my father, Terry Crews] act the complete fool in front of everyone and I thought that this looks like a really fun job.
LAS: Hey!
IC: Then later, I am watching him perform with Andy Samberg and everyone else of BROOKLYN NINE-NINE and that’s when I discovered that I wanted to do this with my life.
LAS: I repeat, hey! Learning on a set is priceless. Do you agree?
IC: Yes.
LAS: In your bio, it’s mentioned that you have an affinity with the Japanese anime, culture, and language. Have you ever visited Japan and do you speak, Japanese?
IC: Mainly I grew up watching a ton of it [anime], I mean I love watching DRAGON BALL when I was growing up and I just had a certain liking for it. I don’t know. Just the graphics, the writing — everything about it intrigued me somehow.
LAS: Are you going to attend a Japanese language immersion program? Wait, have you been to Japan?
IC: Never but I am planning to go next year if everything eases up.
LAS: COVID-19 a buzzkill for international travel, for sure.
IC: I’m trying to learn Japanese but I can’t find any online classes for it?
LAS: You can’t find any online classes for it? Hold up, let me ask Siri.
IC: (laughing) Ok.
LAS: Siri found a lot. Here is one. https://www.fluentu.com/blog/japanese/learn-japanese-websites/ and make sure, please to re-tweet this article and give us a shout out. I am all about people of color learning languages. There is a young African man who started a Korean online class.
IC: Really?
LAS: Yes, Hold on, let me ask Siri to find that link.
IC: (laughing) Ok. That’s cool.
LAS: Here it is — blackenterprise.com/meet-the-polyglot-who-started-the-first-black-owned-online-korean-language-school/ — he’s a polyglot.
IC: What’s a polyglot?
LAS: A great question. It’s a person that speaks multi-languages. Maybe he can suggest a Japanese tutor for you?
IC: That would be wonderful because I plan to move there for college.
LAS: Hey now, or according to Goggle translate, in Japanese, I’m saying おい (Oi).
IC: (Laughing) I’m thinking about studying art or finance.
LAS: Do you paint like your dad?
IC: Well, I do paint a lot but I’m not very good at it.
LAS: Oh. Ok. Well, art is subjective.
IC: Wait, maybe I will take a major in education when I study in Japan. I want to be a teacher teaching maybe English or science.
LAS: Education? Did you have a great teacher that inspired you to lean toward this profession?
IC: No! All of my teachers except one was kind of sucky. Maybe the thought of them being sucky is what is pressuring me to [learn] and become a great teacher.
LAS: That will do it. Hey now — おい (Oi). Learning is fun.
IC: It is. Learning is a lot of fun!
LAS: You should become active with organizations in L.A. that focus on Japanese culture. Try the Los Angeles Japanese consulate.
IC: Cool. I never thought about that.
LAS: Let’s ask Siri again. Here you gohttps://www.la.us.emb-japan.go.jp/itprtop_en/index.html.
IC: You are cool.
LAS: Hey, did your dad ever give you any advice about being in the industry?
IC: He said don’t be cocky. He’s told me a couple of stories of his where he’s been cocky in the past and then proven wrong, instantly. He also says to stay humble. That’s another piece of advice. He said that if you get too big of a head it might over in flat and explode, you know.
LAS: That’s a funny picture but I get his point and you got his point.
IC: He also said to be careful of what you say and to never read your YouTube comments about the series that you are on, which I broke this week.
LAS: Isaiah Crews, let’s hope that you hold fast to the other advice that your father gave you.
Isaiah Crews appears on “Side Hustle” which airs on Nickelodeon Saturdays at 8:30 pm ET / PT.
“Side Hustle” TRAILER:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rw8I9z_qZw
https://www.oh-fuji.com
https://www.la.us.emb-japan.go.jp/itprtop_en/index.html
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
