Danielle Brooks waited until she was in her thirties to purchase her first vehicle — and when she finally did, it came at the perfect time!
“I just got my first car in 2019 because I had my daughter [Freeya, 5, who she shares with husband Dennis Gelin],” the actress, 35, shared in Us Weekly’s 25 Things You Don’t Know About Me feature, on stands now. “It was a Toyota RAV4, but now I’m rocking a beautiful white Range Rover. That’s my baby.”
“I didn’t have a car [before] because I went to a high school where we lived on campus, so you couldn’t have [one],” she continued. “Then, when I went to college, I lived in New York, so I didn’t need — and couldn’t afford — a car.”
Despite not having her own ride, she was still able to cruise around in her younger years for work.
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“I got my license at 16,” she told Us. “My first job was driving two kids to extracurricular [activities].”
Keep scrolling for more fun anecdotes from Brooks, and check out A Minecraft Movie, playing in theaters now.
1. My celebrity crushes growing up were Usher and Mario — their vocal cords just did it for my 13-year-old self —and when [Family Matters’] Steve Urkel turned into Stefan. Jaleel White played the heck out of that part. He really should have been nominated for Emmys, but they were playing games.
2. My go-to meal is a salad bowl with quinoa and salmon, dressing on the side, a side of fries [and] a chocolate chip cookie.
3. Out of all the projects I’ve done, The Color Purple has a special place in my heart. I did it on Broadway for a year and it changed my life. Then, I did the movie and it changed my life again by getting me my first Oscar nomination. More than anything, it gave me the confidence to know that I do have a place in this industry and that young women can look up to me.
4. To get myself into a good mood, I listen to music, don’t talk to anybody and eat my dark chocolate peanut butter cups.
5. My good mood song is Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin.’”
6. I shake off bad memories with a workout or dance.
7. I’m one hell of a baker and make a sweet potato cream cheese-filled bundt cake with cinnamon that is to die for. I also make a mean banana pudding. I am an amazing chef.
8. I just got my first car in 2019 because I had my daughter. It was a Toyota RAV4, but now I’m rocking a beautiful white Range Rover. That’s my baby. I didn’t have a car [before] because I went to a high school where we lived on campus, so you couldn’t have [one]. Then, when I went to college, I lived in New York, so I didn’t need — and couldn’t afford — a car.
9. Anytime I meet or talk to a contestant I really love on American Idol, I freak out.
10. Jack Black was the one person who could get me to break on the set of A Minecraft Movie, without a doubt. I’d just look at his eyebrows being raised and start laughing.
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11. My favorite film is Parasite. It’s a dope movie [where] this family decided to intrude into this other family’s life and take over their house. It’s pretty epic [and] a really good story.
12. The thing I have in common with my A Minecraft Movie character, Dawn, is we both think we can do it all, and we can’t. I’m always thinking I can get a hundred things done in my day and I cannot.
13. My alternate profession would be as a background vocalist. I love singing, but I don’t want to be in the spotlight. I just want to hit a note every now and then.
14. The songs that bring back the best memories are the nostalgic hand-clapping songs, like “Miss Mary Mack,” [that] we used to do as little girls.
15. My best subjects were theater, English and social studies.
16. I got my license at 16, and my first job was driving two kids to extracurricular [activities].
17. The two TV series I just finished are Paradise — by my cousin Sterling K. Brown — and Traitors.
18. When I was in high school, I was the best typer in my computer class. I would have made a good secretary.
19. I love pictures and used to collect Polaroids. If you came into my apartment [back in the day], you’d have to take a Polaroid and I would put it on the wall. It was really cute and like a guest book.
20. I can’t leave the house without a 3-1 phone charger, Trader Joes’ dark chocolate peanut butter cups, hand sanitizer and Bath and Body Works’ Champagne Toast perfume.
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21. My mother would want me to say that my favorite book is The Bible, but I enjoyed The Measure. It’s [a book about] if everybody in the world knew exactly when they were going to die, based on a string. This box gets dropped in front of your door with a length of a string in it and that tells you how long you’re going to live. Some people know they’ll live until they’re old and gray, and somebody else will find out they’ve probably got like, one month to live. [It’s about] how we all would act and respond in the world if we knew how much time we actually had. It’s really interesting and a good fictional book.
22. I’d like to [visit] all of the seven continents. Right now, I’ve been to Africa, Asia, South America and North America, and need to hit three more.
23. I love talking about working out. My favorite workout is a 60-minute HIIT workout, and then 20 minutes on the treadmill.
24. My favorite way to spend the weekend is a staycation at Dunya Camp with my husband.
25. My ideal place to vacation is Turks and Caicos. Get me on a private jet, get me a nice hotel and we got a trip.
