Then, the star born Lauren Palmer shows how she uses that nickname to her advantage. A social chatterbox in the best of ways, she has a lot to say about, well, everything. Her 20-year-and-counting career. Her big, boisterous, twin-filled family. Being a proud boy mom to 3-year-old son, Leo (with ex Darius Jackson).
Palmer herself has been making it work since she was all of 12 years old and spelling her heart out in 2006’s acclaimed hit Akeelah and the Bee. At the time, Palmer and her family (she’s one of four kids) were just a few years removed from uprooting from their native Illinois to Los Angeles so she could live out her showbiz aspirations. She flourished in a hurry.
And that’s just her acting highlight reel. Palmer, 32, also shines as an R&B singer/songwriter, podcaster (Baby, This Is Keke Palmer), Emmy-winning Password host (the new season starts June 2), queen of viral content—who else would dare to sing a riff from “Defying Gravity” directly toCynthia Erivo?—all while being unapologetically herself. Yet Palmer knows she still has work to do: “I’m still trying to build a brand and find a voice through my artistry. That’s very challenging.”
Zooming in from Los Angeles, Palmer has a kiki with Parade.
Dalvin Adams
Keke Palmer: I relate to Corvette so much. I think Corvette is what we're thinking about when it comes to the influencer economy. She is very representative of what the generation is going through, which is trying to be their own boss, trying to create their own thing, and then finding themselves asking the question of, wait a minute, “Can I be a good person and be as successful as I want to be? Like, what does that look like? How does my drive or my ambition relate to those around me?”
Always. And I always see so many of my friends asking themselves that. There's no blueprint for how you do it the right way. We just have all of these ideas of what we think it looks like that sometimes seems like not the way to go about it. A lot of people will be able to relate to what she is struggling with.
It was one of the most incredible, unique and special times in my life. I was experiencing so many grand versions of firsts, you know what I mean? I grew up thinking I would love to be like Raven-Symone. It was so cool to have my own show. And then there was also a very difficult reality of what it means to be a star of your own show, and have that level of a workload. There was so much that came with fame; it changed my life.
During True Jackson, VP, Keke Palmer won Outstanding Performance in a Youth/Children's Program four times in a row at the NAACP Image Awards.Photo by Kevin Winter on Getty Images
I don’t know if one stands out. I always have loved multi-camera sitcoms. I really loved working on that show and the vibe of coming to set and rehearsing and then having a big show on Friday, and having friends and family in the audience. There was a live theater element. I hope and wish that one day I can do another sitcom with the live studio audience again. I think that’s one of the reasons why I love hosting Password so much. I love being with people.
Oh yeah. I'm one of those people that started acting as a kid that really still loves my kid work. Not everything I can revisit because maybe there's not a story there—but in terms of looking back, I have no shame.
She’s probably the head of Mad Style. She is curating spaces, and she's being just the boss like she really became. She understands what she gave up in her years of being focused as a career woman and building this legacy for herself, so she's now dealing with having to go back and understand the spaces in which she was not cultivating—whether that's love or friendships or just things that started to run when you’re out there chasing your dream and being ambitious. She’s going to revisit that part of herself that she kept deferring.
That's my girl, Jennette. I'm so proud of her and the writer that she has become. This is who she's always been. But now the world is getting a chance to see her, and she’s continuing to evolve.
It wouldn’t scare me off. I am holding firm on being able to pass down what I've learned as a child entertainer. Being somebody that has been able to come out on the other side of it, I feel like I see things clearly, but I still want to be able to share that. So if I could share that with my son, that would be amazing. If I share that with somebody that's not related to me, that's amazing. But I don't believe that we should steer away from things that have a risk. I think we should actually supply people with the tools to understand how to navigate that risk, especially in a creator economy.
Keke and son Leo in 2024Photo by Sara Jaye on Getty Images
I would be very, very clear on what it means to say yes to something and carry through — whether it's acting or sports or anything, he’s going to have to commit himself. I had a lot of pressure on me as a kid, and I feel very proud to understand what it meant to start something and finish something. I think it made adulthood easier for me in many ways because I knew how to accomplish goals.
I really want him to get into the cartoons—I’d love for him to see Ice Age and Lightyear. He did see Under the Boardwalk and he got into that one a little because it’s a musical. As far as live action, I can't wait till we can watch Jump In together. It’s the Disney Channel movie that I did with Corbin Bleu back in the day [2007]. I tried to put on Jump In one time, but he was so uninterested in it. But, I mean, he's only three. Why would I think that he would watch that?!
SNL called. I'm pregnant. But I was like, “Well, shit, let me do it with the baby.” You have a lot of confidence when you're pregnant. I had nerves and I had weirdness, but I also had this immense feeling that I could do whatever I wanted. So I was excited to have the opportunity. I always wanted to do SNL and I’m a big fan of that show's legacy. And I love the live studio audience vibe; if you mess up, you really almost might even make the sketch better. So I decided to go for it. It was so crazy—I just remember rolling around on the ground during a sketch even though I was full-blown pregnant! Maybe it's a Virgo thing because Amy Poehler did it when she was pregnant, too [in 2008].
Keke Palmer—pictured with SZA and Natasha Lyonne—reveals her baby bump while hosting SNL in December 2022.Photo by NBC on Getty Images
Oh my gosh. Well, it's so cool to see my personality reflected through him. There’s nothing better than seeing how his character develops. For me, he has a lot of boundaries. He tells me all the time, “No more kisses.” Earlier today, I was like, “Give me a hug before you go to school.” He was like, “No, no, no.” And I pick him up and I hug him, and he starts counting. Because when he's in trouble, I start counting with him, like, I'll be like, “1,2,3.” So I picked him up to hold him, and he counted until I put him down. It's just so cute to just see him feeling free to define his character and his personality. I did think he was really unique because he was so into cars and trucks, but apparently that's all the boy DNA.
People overdo it with twins. I feel like twins are chill. They’re not always thinking about the fact that they're twins—they don't know anything outside of being twins. Or they go through periods of being really close, too close, and then they can be the hardest with each other. My dad’s twin brother and him were as thick as thieves. He just passed away, rest in peace.
You never felt excluded?
What’s the most middle child thing about you?
Do you feel like everything needs to be fair, too? That’s a defining trait.
You’ve had so many iconic Internet moments over the years—from “I’m sorry to this man” to “You know it’s your girl.” Do you realize in the moment that something is going to go viral?
Which one of yours is your favorite?
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Ha! I love the realness.
Building spaces. I started that a little with the KeyTV network. We did 20 shows on YouTube. But it requires a lot, and so I have to create more spaces, workshops, labs, easy access and support for others to be able to create. But one of my biggest beliefs is that in order to support and get great art and help the next generation, we have to allow them an opportunity to practice. You can't get good at anything that you don't have practice with. And you can't really know how to define yourself and protect yourself as an artist without having proper stewardship.
I know. It’s nuts!
There was no way I could have known how meaningful it was going to be—I almost wish that I filmed every single minute or was writing down more things at that time. I don't think I had started journaling just yet. I just think about how it was really a magical time where I feel that I was writing the beat to my future on such a great foundation. I already had a great foundation in my relationship with my family and my personal life. But my access to that material taught me how to think about myself and my gifts. I'm happy that I had that as a kid.
Pulchritude? P-U-L-C-H-R-I-T-U-D-E. Pulchritude.
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