Tristen Winger plays Darius in the Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl
Andrew Allan James plays A in t he Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl
For the past several months we’ve posted episodes of The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, and it seems the male cast Lyman Johnson (White Jay), Madison Shockley III (Fred), Andrew Allan James (A) and Tristen Winger (Darius/Baby Voice) have developed quite a fan base here. I thought it would be fun to catch up with the guys. So first up, are Tristen and Andrew.
Are you anything like your ABG character in real life? Do you draw anything from your real life experiences to play your characters?
Tristen (Darius/Baby Voice): Fortunately for me I’m not too much like my character “Darius”; I have a normal (better yet above) average voice but I do laugh LOUDLY with no inhibitions and I am not a vegan, I enjoy any and all of the meats. Similar to Darius however I am an aspiring musician of sorts. I produce my own music and do a little bit of DJing on my iPad and as we saw in the first part of episode 10, I share Darius’s passion for dancing ladies.
Darius’s characteristics come from different people I’ve met when working as a supervisor; people who have little to no expression when helping customers, oddly high pitched voices and shy/creepy mannerisms like looking just slightly off to the left or right of making eye contact and flaccid handshakes.
Andrew (A): I’ve never considered myself nerdy but I have been told that I am, to my surprise. I have been called, ‘off-beat,’ ‘quirky.’ Am I awkward? Definitely! I’m much more of chill, artsy, introverted kind of guy. For ‘A’, I mainly try to draw on how it feels to be different, misunderstood, oblivious… which I think we’ve all felt at some point.
You all fit your roles so perfectly! Can you give us some insight into the casting and character development?
T: I know Issa from high school where we acted in a play together and knew of her acting talent and humor. I really wanted to work with her because I would always see her posts on Facebook regarding “The Fly Guys” and that was something I wanted to be apart of. I saw that she just begun Awkward Black Girl (around episode 3) and I told her on Facebook that if she ever needed any help on her series that I would love to be apart of it. She was really enthusiastic about the idea and soon sent me the script for episode 4 with my role as Darius being introduced.
Darius was described in the script as “Quiet Office Guy” who spoke in a soft, quiet, baby voice. When I read that about my character I immediately thought about Michael Jackson’s speaking voice which was very soft and angelic… Like baby hair in audio form. So I took that angelic/baby hair voice idea, recorded myself playing Darius and posted it on my Facebook page. Issa loved it and filmed episode 4 a few days after.
A: Issa and I were friends from undergrad (Stanford University). I expressed to her that I had been exploring acting further after booking some auditions. A few months later she presented me with this project. I immediately said I would do it based on the work I’ve seen her do. Upon reading the scene descriptions I was immediately entertained. I thought it was really clever and I just felt a good vibe from it. A few weeks later we shot the first episode. I thought Issa was hilarious so I immediately started sharing the vid not knowing that I was the first ABG fan! haha…
I think ‘A’ has developed over time. Initially, all I knew about him was that he slept w ‘J’ and she really had no desire to communicate with him very much afterwards. By the way Issa played ‘J’ I just got a sense that this guy was really, really annoying and so I just tried to make him a pest who couldn’t take a hint. I remember asking to borrow my friends glasses before we shot on a whim. I learn more about ‘A’ with every episode. With any character I think he’s evolved based on the writing, Issa’s direction, and how I feel could best play him.
One of the reasons we love J is that her hair is natural. Are you feeling natural hair?
T: Whether or not it makes it into the storyline, J is actually my type of woman; she daydreams about performing dance routines from movies, slapping the tar outta rude ass supervisors, and is an aspiring rapper. Who could wish for anything more? I definitely adore J’s choice to rock the short, natural hair. I feel it requires a ton of confidence for a woman to wear her hair short and I love a confident woman. As long as she’s confident and comfortable, we’re good.
A: I am. I think you gotta rock whatever works for you. I think natural hair looks amazing on some people (e.g. Issa). Short, long, natural, ‘processed’… whatever. One shouldn’t be afraid to explore.
Are you single?
T: Yes, I am single.
A: Haha… single is as single does? Haha… yes, I am.
Describe your ideal girl.
T: My ideal woman doesn’t have a specific skin color, body type, height, or religion. My ideal woman is confident with herself, reapectful of everyone, supportive of me, loves to cook, challenges me to be the best man I can be, and loves to try new things and see new places.
A: Rihanna.
Thanks Andrew and Tristen for talking with us!
Stay tuned for Madison and Lyman. You can find Tristen on Twitter (@Trans_Am) and Andrew on Facebook.
I love Darius!
+1
Love Darius.
It would have been great if Darius has shared his hair care regiment.lol!
He has beautiful hair!
+++++++++1
And where are white “J” and Fred?
It says stay tuned for Madison (Fred) and Lyman (white Jay), so I guess interviews with them are coming soon! I’m looking forward to it!
hmm mmm mmm yummy
hey to everyone..im new to dis site,i started ma natural journey two months ago hope i get help nd we have fun together.Godbless
Welcome. We are a roudy bunch, but we mean well, and we offer damn good advice. 🙂
welcome Pepsco…I love BLGH!! you’ll find great info!!
More in love than ever before! #teamsexymenofABG
Darius is my favorite character on the show, he is just too funny.
love Darius! and LMAO at the differences in their response to the last question.
Not a vegan??? Noooooooooooooooooooooooo.
haha.
“Like baby hair in audio form”
I lol’ed. Love the show.
BGLH, y’all slippin’…how could you forget to ask Tristen about his hair regimen? lol 😉
Seriously though…thanks for introducing us to these two talented actors. I’m looking forward to hearing from the other two, and to seeing all of them in more episodes of ABG, and other things, to come.
BGLH, you have really outdone yourselves this time. Thanks for the interviews! The guys seem really cool.
Why did I take so long to watch this!!! I kept seeing ABG and said I’ll watch later today I watched Loved it, upside I didn’t have to wait for the next episode.]
Darius has my stomach hurting with that baby voice and the lack of expression on his face seals it.
Fred such a cutie pie, and the TWA on J shows her features so nice.
Love the show, really hope it goes far!
P.s. When it gets there make sure the UK fans get to see it >_<
I need an interview with my girl Patty!!!!
A and Darius, you guys make my day!
love Darius and they need to do a segment on his hair lol
[…] Part 1 with “Darius/Baby voice” Tristen Winger & “A” Andrew Allan James […]
I LOVE A! he’s gorgeous even with the scrunched up face!I like guys with quirky personalities they just seem more real. I love Darius too. His looks, His smile, he’s really funny with the baby voice. I have a baby voice. this is what I love about this show there are a lot of characters and all of them are unique in their own way.
I loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Darius he’s freakin hilariousand i loveeee his hair! A has my stomach turnin everytime haha him n his cringed up face
thats article was nice , Ihope thats well help me
I love Darius and Tristen is a interesting and smart guy!!!
Hilarious! Great interview.