Copyright Essence
“I had never been to the Empire State Building before,” Taylor Polidore Williams says. “I thought I was going to be scared, but I wasn’t. It was beautiful.” There’s something poetic about that image. Standing at the top of New York City, unafraid, taking it all in. “The top,” as it’s often called, is a metaphor for the pinnacle of success. But Williams isn’t rushing through it. She’s trying to be present, and to feel what it means to arrive somewhere she’s worked years to reach. As the star of Tyler Perry’s Beauty in Black, now in its second season on Netflix, she’s doing just that. In Season 2, Williams’ character, Kimmie, is no longer the underdog. Once dismissed as an outsider, she’s now the newly crowned COO—and the new Mrs. Bellarie—ready to claim her place in a family business built on beauty and betrayal. “Kimmie starts the season letting everybody know she’s not going to be disrespected anymore,” Williams says. “She’s stepping into her power.” It’s a big leap for the former exotic dancer turned business mogul, and just as much for Williams herself. “This role has stretched me in ways that I haven’t been before,” she explains. “Tyler Perry Studios moves at such a unique pace. We shoot super fast. It’s like an actor’s boot camp. I call it theater on steroids. The volume of what we do in a day is insane, but I’m proud of myself. It made me feel like, ‘Oh, I can do anything now.’” Working on a Tyler Perry production is its own kind of initiation. The long days, the constant motion, the faith it takes to keep up. But Williams has embraced that rhythm. “It’s fascinating to witness,” she says. “Tyler has a system, and when you’re in it, you realize it’s not about perfection—it’s about truth. You have to bring your full self every take.” The commitment to excellence also shows up in the chemistry between the cast, and especially with Williams and her co-star Crystle Stewart, who plays Mallory, Kimmie’s fierce rival. “First and foremost, I adore Crystle,” Williams says. “She’s the sweetest woman, which is funny because Mallory is not. Crystle doesn’t even cuss! Off set, she feels like my cousin—we’re both from Houston, both Virgos. And I think that makes it easier to play opposites because we trust each other completely. It’s fun. I would never talk to her like that in real life, so we just go crazy in character, knowing it’s all love.” The irony of working at TPS present day is the city in which it’s housed. Williams knows Atlanta well—t’s where her roots as both an actress and a woman solidified. A proud graduate of Clark Atlanta University, she earned her degree in Mass Media Arts with a concentration in Film, joined Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., and built a network that still carries her today. “I don’t know what my life would be like if I hadn’t chosen an HBCU,” she says. “It’s a family. When you meet someone who went to an HBCU, there’s this unspoken understanding. Those relationships have helped me navigate my career and my life. I mean, I married a Morehouse man,” she laughs. The HBCU community gave her confidence and grounding, which are both essential in Hollywood. “It’s a space where you feel seen,” Williams adds. “And that feeling of being seen and supported makes a huge difference when you’re trying to build a career in this industry.” Now, between shooting days on set, and balancing married life in Atlanta, Williams is doing what she’s always dreamed of—telling stories that matter and showing up fully for every moment. “I’m trying to stay present,” she says. “Sometimes we move so fast in this business that we forget to appreciate where we are. I just want to take it all in.” Just like that moment atop the Empire State Building, Taylor Polidore Williams isn’t afraid of the view. Instead, she’s enjoying it.
