If you follow me on any social media then you’ll know that I love juicing, smoothies and pretty much all healthy food! I started on my healthy trek about a year and a half ago and I haven’t looked back. I’ve had a lot of requests to post and talk about recipes for smoothies and juices but to be honest I don’t have any exact recipes, I just go with what I like and what’s in my fridge lol. The key for me is using a variety of fruits and vegetables and experimenting so that your body gets something new all the time! Check out my video and my juice and smoothie ingredients below. If you’re a juicer let me know what your favorite recipes are.
(inspiration for actors) Full Uncensored Drama Actress Emmy Roundtable Video
May 30, 2013 by
I love Hollywood Reporter for doing these roundtable talks. They’re endlessly awesome and loaded with little bits of inspiration and confirmation that you’re not crazy, you’re on the right track and keep going! Last night I watched the round table with Kerry Washington (Scandal), Monica Potter (Parenthood) Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad), Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men), Connie Britton (Nashville) and Kate Mara (House of Cards). These women are all beautiful and have been through pretty much everything in the industry. It was nice to hear them all talk about bad auditions, joe jobs that they sucked at and tv shows they wish they were apart of.
Parts that struck a chord with me:
Kerry Washington says that her approach to auditions is just taking the next 15 minutes to do what she loves and not have any worries. A few years ago an amazing acting coach and casting director Deb Aquila told me this exact piece of advice and I’ve tried to apply it ever since to all of my auditions.
and
Elisabeth Moss said the best advice she’d gotten before an audition was that you don’t have to hit the bulls eye just get on the board. That advice is perfect for auditions, you don’t have to be perfect!
and
Monica Potter is just so casual and hilarious, it’s really refreshing to see.
Watch the full video and if you’re an actress let’s dream of what questions we’ll answer when we’re there! 🙂
(video) Closed Mouths Don’t Get Fed, Ask for what you want – Weekly Memo
May 27, 2013 by
“Closed mouths don’t get fed, you have to ask for what you want”
This is a lesson that I’ve learned many times and in a recent conversation that I had with a new actor on set I was reminded of how I used to be ad how afraid I was of people telling me NO! But I realized after awhile that I felt worse not asking than I did hearing a “no” and that “no” didn’t stop me from continuing on until I got a “yes”. If you don’t ask you won’t receive, so please this week ask for everything you want because a closed mouth won’t get fed! xo
(New [Vlog] Video) Filming a new movie and getting my goals done
May 24, 2013 by
Hey guys this is just a quick post to let you all know I’m filming a new movie for TV in Parry Sound, Ontario right now. I can’t get into a lot of the details for the film just yet but it has a really great cast and it’ll be out this year so eventually I’ll give you guys the 411 on this new project. But anyway I’m really excited because this was one of the goals on my list so check and check! I’m getting them done slowly but surely! Hope you guys are completing your lists too 🙂 have a great weekend xo
(video) Q&A with A.Lewy answering some of your questions
May 20, 2013 by
“I’m making a list and checking it twice!” …ok so that might be a line from a christmas song but I think it somehow applies to my list of goals as well since I do check my list on a daily basis to remind myself of what I’m going to accomplish.
#12 on my list is creating a successful youtube channel. I’m part way there by starting the channel in the first place and now to make it successful in an unconventional “youtuber” kind of way. To kick off this goal I decided a few days ago to put out a message on my instagram, twitter and facebook page asking you guys to ask me whatever you wanted and a lot of you responded with some great questions. I wish I could of gotten to them all but I’m thinking of making this Q&A a regular thing, what do you think? Check out my Q&A below where I talk about letting go of my fears to start, “Black Actress”, what happened to TGAW. Advice for upcoming singers and how to stay positive! Thanks to all that sent in their questions.
(New Post) New Channel, New Beginnings – Closing One Door to Open Another
May 16, 2013 by
In order to move to the next chapter of your life you have to open the door in front of you and be able to close the one behind you.
I can safely say that the last 2 years of my life have been a slow but steady preparation for me to get the place that I am in right now. Mentally, physically and spiritually ready to close and open the doors in my life.
I started my online journey as a “Wild Girl” and over the last 4 years I learned more than I could of imagined about the power of the internet, how to build a brand, business and friendship and what I truly want for myself. My years as a WILD girl were sometimes actually Wild but the good and the bad were all experiences that I needed and I am happy to have those years to look back on but I’m more excited for what’s to come. I saw my friend @LeonaJess tweet something the other night that hit the nail on the head for the stage that I am getting to, “growing into my wings” (and it feels good!)
I told myself at the end of 2012 that I was no longer going to wait, or doubt myself or get in my head and hold myself back from anything that I wanted to do no matter how big or small, no more excuses! Life is too short to not live the life you want and I’m proud to say that I’m doing it! I wrote out a list of about 80 goals and I’m sure I’ll add some more but the start of my journey with these goals was starting a new youtube channel youtube.com/andrealewichannel) and then finally getting as much of this list done as I can! Like I said some of the goals are big and some are very small but all of them are to make me better, smarter, and healthier as a person. I hope that all of you will do the same, if you have a list of wants and goals go out and accomplish them and tell the world or at least tell me and we’ll inspire each other :).
At the end of the day I’m still a “wild girl” at heart but I am saying goodbye to that chapter and eagerly opening the door to my new chapter as a woman! New Channel, New Chapter, New Beginnings! Thank you to everyone who has grown with me so far, join me on my new journey xo
(New Post) How do you deal with an addict?
April 30, 2013 by
I officially stopped drinking in late January of this year. I did it for multiple reasons, I was never much of drinker and I can barely handle more than 2 drinks of the light stuff so it felt like drinking was a waste of my time and to top it off I’ve witnessed the terrorizing effects of alcohol on people in my family and it’s turned me off to the point that I have no desire to drink anymore.
I’ve been dealing with an alcoholic in my family for nearly 7 years and I HATE it (I don’t like to use the word HATE but…) It’s been incredibly hard on myself and the other members of my family. We’ve dealt with it all, physical altercations, verbal abuse, theft, DUI’s, threatened jail time, multiple car crashes and walking on egg shells because pretty much everything causes this person to drink whether its good or bad. It hurts to have a person in your life that refuses to take help and is so trapped in their own mental state that they refuse to see anything else that life has to offer besides a bottle. Why do you feel the need to drink before a movie? A walk? Going to see your Grandma? Unfortunately the problem is bigger than you at that point, the hold is so strong that your decisions are so clouded that rational choices sound crazy to you!
My mom has been the strongest through all of this and has had to endure the most amount of pain as a result for her patience. Literally everyone has turned their back on her, told her to give up like they did and to worry about something else. But how do you give up on your family? Even if they constantly hurt you? How do you give up on someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing? A person who can’t hear themselves and unfortunately wakes up the next day and doesn’t even realize the damage that they’ve done to their family and most importantly themselves? Alcoholism and addictions is a serious disease and mental illness and the further someone gets in their addiction the more you see that their mentality is not like yours which is why they got to this place at all.
The easy answer is “send them to rehab” and yes we’ve tried but I realize going to rehab is like everything else in life, you have to want to do it, you have to want to change in order to get a change. I remember when I was 17 my best friend and I did a bunch of sessions with an amazing personal trainer, who gave us great advice and tough work outs but we literally got no results from her training because we didn’t care and we didn’t try. As soon as we were done with a workout we’d go to McDonald’s because we were hungry and figured the “workout” made up for the food we were eating. We were 17 and the concept of our metabolism slowing down was foreign to us. Crazy!
When an addict looks in the mirror if they see a superhero and not a villain it’s very difficult to convince them that they need to change and that the person they’ve become is very ugly. So this is a post to ask you guys a question, what would you do? Or what have you done if you’ve dealt with addicts in your life? How did you get them to want to change their life? I’m truly afraid that if my family member doesn’t get the right help that his life may go to a place that I don’t even want to imagine.
– Andrea “begging and pleading for a prayer” Lewis
(New post) How Courageous are you? Ask @mayasworld — inspiring
April 24, 2013 by
This post is to celebrate my good friend Maya Washington aka Shameless Maya! I’m immensely proud of her, she’s one of those friends that I watch and admire like a mix of a proud mama and a genuine fan. It was exactly a year ago today that she started her youtube channel and journey of completely shamelessly promoting herself for 365 days and today she has 2 million views, almost 80,000 youtube subscribers, 19k instagram followers and an amazing amount of support from people all over the world. The girl has done good for herself!
As long as I’ve known Maya she’s been crazy talented, creative and beautiful. She wasn’t one of those people searching for who she was and what she wanted to do because she’s always been very comfortable in her own skin and has always been the epitome of a true artist with no limitations to what she could do from makeup, photography, interior design, dancing you name it Maya can do it and do it very well! I’m genuinely a fan of my friend.
I remember the conversations we had before she started the “shameless journey”, she was scared, she was worried, she didn’t know what she was doing or why but she did it anyway. I am the biggest supporter of “doing it yourself” no matter how scared you are because what people don’t realize is that when you truly decide that you are going to do it and give it your all, the universe puts you on its back and carries you so fast that you can’t even imagine getting off. The energy and the drive that opens up inside of you when you commit yourself to truly being who you are and getting what you want is so powerful that you don’t have the time to look back at your old life. Maya found that energy this year and rode the wave further than she could’ve imagined.
As I mentioned she’s always been an artist and in a true artist fashion she celebrated her anniversary by letting go of one of the many things that made her popular, she shaved her head!! My girl is ballsy son! Her hair is beautiful and many people started to follower because of it but she never let that become her “thing” and she refused to do it just because it’s popular the motto was always, “ok you like my hair? I’ll make some hair videos but that’s not all that I’m about”. In the words of Maya, “life is filled with so much color and there’s so much more to talk about than just hair”. It’s so true! Maya is one of my friends that I can talk to for hours and our conversations cover everything from hair, to God, our dreams, love, music, fashion, race and happiness. She’s got a vast amount of knowledge and now her followers will get a real chance to see that her inner beauty is even more stunning than her outer beauty.
Maya i’m proud of how far you’ve come and how much further you’re going to go. Long hair, no hair you’re just as beautiful and your courage is inspiring! Keep doing you boo! xo
The big buzz
Day 1: Be Shameless
(post) I am a new age feminist ….ladies can we do better?
April 23, 2013 by
Yup, I said it, I am a new age feminist. I love, support, pray for, and want to help as many women as I can. Don’t get me wrong I love men and I’m a strictly dickly kind of chick but right now at this time in my life I think women need some help.
I’m so tired of the image that I see and hear of the overly sexualized and the constant comparisons and competitions that fashion blogs and many other media outlets puts us all in everyday. And I’m especially tired of the media forcing us to make role models and idols out of reality television “stars” who are all women that are practically soul-less. The image they shove down our throats is that we should only care about money, trapping a man of a certain status, fame and wearing as many of the latest designer fashions that we can fit on our overly enhanced body parts. It’s sad, and this image doesn’t only effect women but it effects our men and the way they look, treat and feel about us. It’s no surprise to me that we’re in the middle of a rape epidemic, with the amount of reports you hear on the news and teenage girls being bullied into silence and committing suicide because of it. There is a loss of respect and value from both men and women. I always tell people how thankful I am that I’m not a teenager in 2013 because I don’t think I’d be able to handle the pressure. When I look on tumblr all I see is pictures of beautiful girls with luxurious hair, perfect bodies and distressed cut off jean shorts. I feel the pressure today to “look” a certain way and be sexy and the value on our bodies is constantly in your face and I honestly don’t think I would have done well if I was 17 right now.
With all that being said the images that we see of women today are too one sided. We need to see more women who are courageous enough to state a real opinion, to stand for a cause, to say NO to the image of outer beauty and YES to finding inner beauty. We need to show that there is more to us than just being able to “beat that face”, and that it’s not cool to be “ratchet”. Don’t tell me to bow down, pour it up and show me another way to body party and I don’t want to “praise” you because you dress well and have a big butt. I want to be inspired by what you do and why. I want to hear music that makes me feel good about being a woman and watch television that makes me feel proud and aspire to do more, be more and say more. I’m proud to be a woman and I want to see us all do better.
I was very happy to hear this song NOW my body can party!
Thank you….What I learned from @indiegogo
April 21, 2013 by
I apologize for not writing this post sooner but after the last 40 days of social media over load I needed a bit of break from looking at my computer lol.
So back to our regularly scheduled program. Wow! We did it! 40 days, teasers and interviews, countless tweets, too many instagram screen shots and Facebook status updates and we hit our goal! I can’t describe how amazing it felt when I finally saw that number on the indie gogo page. I was overwhelmed, I thought I was reading it wrong lol. It was one of those moments when I said, “you like me, you really like!” lol.
From day one of releasing information about, “Black Actress” I received endless emails full of support from people who told me they were rooting for me, they wanted to help me and they were inspired by me. Those emails made me feel amazing and was the one constant source of inspiration I had throughout the entire indie gogo campaign. This campaign was tough, I have friends who have done crowd funding in the past and they all warned me that it’s a lot of work and very stressful and they didn’t lie. I’m not sure I slept for the entire 40 day of the campaign and to top it off I was doing a million other things during the campaign, I was filming another project that was full of night shoots so my sleeping schedule was all kinds of jacked up, I was dealing with health issues, a little bit of family drama and I was doing the pre-production for the show. It was a lot on my mind but at no point did I question the work load. The whole time, it just felt right, like it was the beginning of how busy I am going to be and how busy I want to be.
The most important thing I learned while doing the indie gogo campaign is who my audience is. I always thought I had a good idea but for the first time I felt like I actually saw and heard them, and really felt the support and presence of YOU guys. It was a real blessing to see the people who may have never tweeted me or commented on anything now coming out of the wood work to give what they could and asking people to donate and help make this series happen.
I realized during the campaign that our dreams are bigger than us and we should always strive to make them as big as we possibly can. Without you realizing it your dreams can connect, inspire and change life for so many other people. I had a long conversation with a woman that I idolize in the entertainment industry and I explained to her how for the first time in my life my dream felt so heavy that it was now pulling me instead of me having to dragging it all these years. The simple shift in weight was subtle but so important to what I was doing, I was going in the right direction.
I think crowd funding is like your life on steroids. Whether you’ve been chasing your dream for 10 years or 1 year, you know what it’s like to need support and finances and man power and so many other things to just make a little stride to being closer to your goals. Crowd funding is everything you’ve already been doing and preparing but to the next level, you’ve always been had to be shameless and asking people to give you a chance and some help but now you have to do it with a time constraint. It’s stressful as hell and the epitome of being your most vulnerable as an artist and entrepreneur. But at the end of the day it’s worth it! It made me stronger, made me proud and made me realize that I’m not a flake, I’m not just talking out of my ass, I’m dead serious! I want this, I’ve wanted it my whole life and it doesn’t matter how long it takes me I’m going to have it. It’s important to confirm and remind yourself of who you are and what your goals are. Indie gogo helped me re-confirm my promise with myself and added one more dot to my journey. Thank you to every single person who wrote, tweeted, instagrammed, facebook’d, emailed, donated and supported “Black Actress” and my indie gogo campaign! Some serious big tings a gwan!! xo
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