The highly-anticipated return of Bel-Air is sure to be full of exciting plot lines and twist—and, of course, the iconic soundtrack that will include songs from Kendrick Lamar, Meek Mill and Tyler, The Creator. Fans are especially looking forward to the return of Will’s cousin Hillary Banks, played by Coco Jones. Coco, in addition to being an actor, recently released her major-label debut EP What I Didn’t Tell You (Deluxe). For the Record interviewed Coco to discuss the new season, the balance between her music and acting careers, and Hillary’s character.
Courtney "Coco" Jones is an American singer, rapper, songwriter, and actress. She portrays Hilary Banks on Peacock's modern-day reinterpretation, Bel-Air. Jones began performing at a very young age. Her first stage performance was during her kindergarten graduation; at the age of six, she performed America the Beautiful. A few years later, when she was nine, Jones met with the casting heads for Disney, and from 2010 to 2011, she was featured on Radio Disney's Next Big Thing, but she rose to prominence from starring in the 2012 Disney Channel film Let It Shine as Roxanne Andrews. In January 2014, Jones was dropped from Hollywood Records, thus becoming an independent artist, and on August 29, 2014, she released a video for her debut independent single, Peppermint.
Coco has three siblings - Steven, Aja and Mike Jr and was raised in Lebanon, Tennessee. She used to sing from a very early age and made her first stage performance at her kindergarten graduation in front of a packed auditorium of parents singing ‘America the Beautiful’ at just six years of age.
She explained: ‘It’s definitely a different approach when the shows you are used to doing are more lighthearted because Bel-Air is definitely a drama. It can get really intense at times. You learn what works and what doesn’t when you fail – trial and error. But that’s just anything in life. When you’ve been told for so long that what you’re doing is correct and then you get in a different environment it won’t likely work and you have to adjust. But I think that’s what makes you a true artist – when you can reemerge as something different from who you were and learn from your past, but not be defined by it’.
#5. How did drawing from your own experiences help her portray Hilary and her talent as a chef?
‘Well, Hilary draws a lot from her culture and that’s something I do too’, she added. I’m from Nashville and I’ve learned a lot from my grandma and my mom on cooking classic Southern dishes from scratch. My grandma makes this incredible pound cake, I feel like I’ve been trying to perfect it since I was a kid. But on a more personal level, I drew a lot of inspiration from my own passions as well. My music is such an important form of inspiration to me because when I create, I tap into my culture as well. As a Black woman that’s a source of inspiration that Hillary and I share, whether it be through my music or her cooking’. Aubtu.biz is a website that provides you with sport updates and Entertainment news to brighten your day. Don’t hesitate to visit our site to know more about entertainment news.
Source: People 
Source: Variety
Source: USA Today
Source: IMDb
Source: People