After playing Ahshah Hayes on the VH1 series, Taylor Paige knows how to use her body to seductively swing her hips and “Hit the Floor,” but for her role in the new movie “Zola,” the actress Hit the pole too.
“Zola,” inspired by 2015’s infamous 148-tweet “Hoism” Twitter thread, details the epic and outrageous sequence of events between two strippers, Zola (Paige) and her new friend Stephanie (Riley Keough). The two embark on a trip to Florida, where they attempt to make bucket dollar bills by dancing on stages at thongs in Tampa.
Paige, 30, A East Los Angeles Laker Girl And Dancer, no stranger to moving her body to the crowd, but to channel Zola for the A24 flick, she worked very deeply.
“I’m a Dancer, but I Worked in a Strip Club for Four Weeks,” Paige Explained In a recent interview with The Wrap. “I think all my life experiences prepared me for the role. I didn’t want to look like an actor trying to dance, I didn’t want to try to look like a dancer, I was in such circumstances. Wanted to look like this guy who works in a restaurant and dances too.”
To tap – or shall we say, gyrate Even further in character – Peggy was lucky enough to befriend Azia-Mone “Zola” King, the former Detroit waitress who inspired the drama that created huge buzz after a successful premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.
“We just talked a lot and I got to know his voice and his soul,” Paige said. “She’s just so funny and fast and smart. Her use of punctuation, like everything about her… she’s on any other s–t.”
Although the role of Zola required Page to be locked into the social media starlet’s inner spirit, it eventually opened up a new freedom within herself.
“[The role gave me] The freedom to be a woman and to love my body and my sexuality, and not be self-conscious or such a perfectionist,” Paige said of King’s impression. Giving myself the grace to be as honest and sincere as possible… It marks a really, really, really important change in my life.”
“Zola” is only available in theaters right now, which is a good thing because it’s definitely NSFW on your WFH laptop, too.
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