Naturi Naughton quotes:

One of my biggest inspirations growing up was Whitney Houston, so I was devastated to hear about her passing. I'm from East Orange, New Jersey, and started singing at New Hope Baptist Church, so she was like my fellow Jersey girl.

I don't just want to be a cute girl in a comedy or the actress who just does the same thing over and over again. I want to play roles that are distinct. I want to have a more varied career like actresses Viola Davis or Angela Bassett - those are the people that I grew up watching and admiring.

I'm a true singer who grew up singing in church, so I love singing my heart out.

I work out and go to the gym, but I still enjoy my soul food and snacks. But I'm a pretty petite young woman, and I just do everything in moderation and make sure that I just keep everything together.

I want to be back on Broadway one day. That's a dream of mine. There's nothing like live theater, and I think it's so important for me to be able to be on stage with an audience that responds.

I was excited to play Lil' Kim and I wanted to do the role justice. I worked really hard on that role, whether it was performing the rhymes, studying the dialect, her swagger and her stage performances. I wanted people to see my range and stretch my wings as an actress.

As a black actress you've got to work doubly hard. But it doesn't ever get me to the point where I give up on myself. It just motivates me to be more prepared, focus and disciplined. That's why I care so much about doing black films and making sure that we represent and are represented correctly.

I definitely feel like, as a singer, I've been able to transition into acting because I always saw them in the same vein. It's all about connecting and telling a story.

Starting in music, where I get a chance to connect with the lyrics of a song, I learned so much about performing on stage and connecting to your audience and to what you're singing about. Singing is very emotional. Every song has its own purpose.

I definitely want my career to continue to branch out. I've had the pleasure of working in different areas of entertainment, from being in the music business as a teenager in a girl group to doing Broadway.

Never compromise and sell yourself short.

Remember to be yourself.

Singing is my passion and something that I still love to do and I'm always going to want to do it.

I want to do stories that inspire people.

I think a lot of young people don't realize the price of fame is a lot higher than they imagine.

I deal with emotional pain through therapy, writing, therapy in music. I think emotional pain is best dealt with when you use art to express it.

I feel the most vulnerable when I'm in love. When my heart is open, and when life is making me feel like I have to open up myself completely. Love has a tendency to do that.

Singing is my passion and something that I still love to do and Im always going to want to do it.

Hold your dreams, don't ever let it go

For people who don't know or didn't know that I started off as a singer, singing requires a certain level of drama, in itself. Honestly, it really prepared me to do this, and I've been really blessed to be able to transition into the acting world very smoothly.

God is real. God is in me and in my life. I've been blessed, and he continues to bless me, and that is one thing that I will always know for sure.

I feel the most vulnerable when I'm in love.

'm really starting to learn the value of silence and meditation. I keep my sanity in the middle of a hectic day by taking some me time or sometimes watching a guilty pleasure on TV, doing absolutely nothing, or just hanging out with friends and family. They keep me grounded and centered.

Never compromise and sell yourself short. I've been in the music business, a girl group . . . I've been through so many different things in my career, and when you compromise and try to let go of who you are, you wind up being unhappy, and what is success without happiness. You have to have both, and that is important to me.

One thing I'm passionate about is directing. I've always wanted to direct.

When I was young, I was always telling my parents and telling everybody that I was going to be a singer and an actress when I grew up. I took classes. I was in dance lessons. I took singing lessons. I was in the plays. I took acting lessons. I did different things that continued to keep me ready for this opportunity and ready for all the things that are happening now.

When I'm working, on stage, entertaining people, or watching someone do something amazing, it inspires me to be the best artist that I can be. I enjoy being around art - whether it be a museum, a Broadway show - or even writing a poem. Those are things that make me feel alive and inspire me.

When you're singing, it can be looked at as a monologue, in a way. If it's about telling a story and connecting with your audience, you can do that through song, through dialogue, or through a monologue. That's what's special about being an entertainer.

You have to think like a businessman or a businesswoman, and I can't wait to continue to grow, as an actress, but to also continue to grow as a brand and show people that I have so much more to offer.

From film to film, I realize my strengths and my weakness, and I realize how much better I get. I learn the lingo, I ask questions and I'm on set trying to figure out which shots they're going to use. For me, it's exploring the art. It's not just making a movie.