Keesha Sharp is the actress who always brings beauty, poise, and grace to any stage she lands on. Known for her role as Monica Charles Brooks on the hit CW television series “Girlfriends” and her recent film role as Vivien Buster Burey, wife to the late Thurgood Marshall, Sharp has continued to embody the epitome of a strong-willed woman. Recently, we sat down to chat with Sharp about her steady role on “Lethal Weapon”, starring her TV husband Damon Wayans, her more than 20-year marriage to her real life husband Brad Sharp, and her thoughts on the voice of women in the entertainment industry.
Los Angeles Sentinel (LAS): What’s most gratifying about being a part of the “Lethal Weapon” franchise?
Keesha Sharp: I love this show. I love the movie too, so to be a part of the franchise is exciting. Also, I love that we are showing this family on television; the Murtaughs, this Black beautiful family. They love each other; they’re raising their kids and they’re keeping it sexy in their relationship. Whether they’re Black or White, it’s exciting to see a marriage that’s working. I’m proud to play this woman Trish, who is this powerful lawyer, a loving wife and a loving mother. It really is something that I’m proud of.
LAS: What’s different about this season?
KS: I think you get to know a lot about all the different characters this season. Last season, you had to really travel through Riggs’ life and how that really affected everyone around him, and this season you still are traveling through Riggs’ life, but we are also getting to know the other characters.
LAS: SAG-AFTRA recently announced that they would be featuring all female presenters at this year’s SAG Awards. What is your take on sexual assault and abuse in the entertainment industry?
KS: I think it’s time that we take our power; I think it’s time that we stand together. I think there’s been a lot of women who have always spoken up but it wasn’t united. I feel like we’re uniting and when we’re uniting, it just makes us stronger. I’m excited about the change, we will not be silenced and it’s time. It’s happening in every industry, and maybe we’ll be the industry to give women the voice to speak up.
LAS: You recently released a holiday single on iTunes. Can you tell us more about your passion for music?
KS: That’s where I started; I was doing musical theater and singing and playing the piano, the cello and the clarinet. So, I thought in my young years, that perhaps, I would be in an orchestra or singing, and as I progressed, I found that what I really love is the acting, but I will never turn away from music. It’s part of us; my husband and I met singing, so it’s always been a big part of my life. I always feel like if God gives you things, you’re supposed to use it. You don’t always know when and how and perhaps this is the time I’m supposed to be using it.
LAS: Your husband is the only man you’ve been intimate with. What can you say to young women and young girls about valuing their temple?
KS: It’s really the way God set it up for me in my mind and what I believe is that it is precious. When you share yourself with someone, you’re really sharing your body and your mind with someone; it’s not just an act. When it’s saved for marriage and in a safe place, it becomes something so beautiful.
A lot of people didn’t have someone to tell them wait. I was scared, I didn’t want to disappoint; I didn’t have a desire to do it. Just because you have, that doesn’t mean you can’t stop and say. ‘no. I’m going to save myself now for the person I’m going to be with forever.’ It doesn’t mean you’re damaged or that you’re not loved. You can say that I’m that special to wait for the person who’s going to love me for the rest of my life.
Sharp says that with all the projects she has running at once, she stays centered with the help of her husband, and foremost, God, prayer and meditation. Sharp says the key in keeping her marriage lively is a mutual understanding of each other’s love languages.
As far as acting, Sharp affirmed that she would love work with Denzel Washington and Daniel Day Lewis, if he decides to come out of retirement. Sharp also says that she would love to be a part of an action, Marvel, or superhero franchise. “I just want to be surrounded with incredible actors, directors, scriptwriters and producers, even if we don’t know their name,” she stated. Currently, Sharp is preparing to star in an Eartha Kitt biopic and is also nominated for the 49th Annual NAACP Image Awards for her role in “Marshall”, alongside Chadwick Boseman and Sterling K. Brown.