A natural star since birth, actress and rising star GG Townson is ready to share her story and create an avenue of escape for her beloved city.
Born and raised in Los Angeles’s Valley Park-Windsor Hills area with her family, the granddaughter of Ron Townson of Fifth Dimension knew from an early age she was made for the spotlight. With a little help from her grandfather, she signed her first contract and booked her first Disney gig as a child actor. Townson worked for years, taking breaks in between to live a normal teenage life, but somehow acting continuously returned to the forefront.
“At one point I just wanted to be a regular girl in high school. I was a cheerleader and even in the first couple years of college I was cheering. Of course, when you get to a certain age, boys come into play so I kind of put to rest acting for a few years, but I always found my way back to it,” said Townson. A seemingly organic twist of fate, but fully in alignment with her purpose. As both a student and performer, she looks up to Kerry Washington who often works beautifully both behind and in front of the camera, a long-term goal for Townson. For now, she continues to work and build her craft, one push at a time.
“I’m still young and my body of work is still constantly expanding. I don’t think that I’ve had that moment of defining me as a person [or actress]. I will say that the relationships that I did build with Cheryl on the Salt-N-Pepa project definitely made me look at myself just based on the type of person that she was or is,” Townson shares of her most recent role as Cheryl “Salt” James in Lifetime’s highly-anticipated “Salt-N-Pepa” biopic. “Hearing the experiences, the stories that she would tell me about her life and what she had going … she would give her reasoning why she chose to do certain things. I feel like that made me sit back and think to myself like, I want to be a person that radiates love, walks in purpose, you see my light whenever I walk into a room. Those things are undeniable, because those are things in her.”
Townson shared that the role was full of triumphs as she was tested each step of the way. Her initial feelings of pressure were removed as she reminded herself that she was chosen by people who had watched her audition for a month. She expressed the biggest reward was that she had the opportunity to play the role, which she had a ton of people wishing her well both on and off set. During filming, she worked closely with James who often gave advice and assisted in bringing her character to life. For the young actress, she couldn’t have asked for better support. “Having her there was an amazing experience. I appreciate her being there, not only just there to answer the questions that I needed answered from a script aspect or even just an executive producer aspect, but she was there on a personal level. We shared certain things with each other on a personal level and even after the film she would check in.”
“I am most excited for the world to see the ‘Push It’ music video!” continuing, “I’m not going to hold you, we kind of killed it! Not even going to lie,” she laughs. Prepared for side-by-side comparisons and fans ready to critique their every move, Townson confirms it’s pretty dope!
As she continues to maneuver through film and television, she tells that with each role, her goal is to provide a haven in her work for viewers to fully connect and escape into a new world. “I would like to be able to tell stories to people that oftentimes don’t feel seen. To make people fall in love with the idea of love and light. To be able to speak to and create worlds for people to fall deep into.”
“Sometimes people just need an escape if just for a second. Something to brighten their day, to shift their mindset, to shift their thought process or their feelings. I want to be able to create projects and be a part of projects that do that for people and just put out and create really great work,” she detailed.
Along with “Salt-N-Pepa,” Townson will have a recurring role in The CW’s “All American” television show, as well as a role in the upcoming film Welcome Matt alongside Tahj Mowry. As she strives to make sure her family, her city, and most importantly, that she is proud of herself she holds tight to her faith and positivity.
“In the sense of everything that I do, every audition that I have – what’s for me will be for me.” While she holds the message tight, it’s still her home base and close network that keeps her afloat. “I am definitely one that is proud of my city and proud of being from where it comes from. I will always remain humble and thankful for all the support from my city, my friends, and family. I will always give back to my city where and when I can because my city is important to me.”
“Salt-N-Pepa,” starring GG Townson, premieres Saturday, June 23, 2021, at 6 p.m. PT only on Lifetime.
