“If I hadn’t chosen Howard, I wouldn’t be in the place I am today. And if I hadn’t switched to musical theater, I also wouldn’t be in the place I am today. It’s just like everything really fell into place — it felt predestined.” — Kennedi Reece 

Kennedi Reece, a 22-year-old musical theatre major in Howard University’s Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts (CABCOFA), is set to star in the highly anticipated sequel to the classic television show “A Different World.”

The show, which aired from 1987-1993, followed the lives of several students attending a fictional historically Black college located in Virginia. Watching Whitley, Dwayne, Kim, Freddie, and Ron navigate the ups and downs of friendship, romance and more — while juggling papers, study halls, and tests administered by Black professors on a campus overflowing with examples of Black excellence — was the reason many dreamed of and eventually attended an HBCU. In fact, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, enrollment in HBCUs increased by 26% between 1976 and 1994, with much of that increase reportedly happening during the show’s initial run. 

Reece will play Hazel in the upcoming Netflix series, which will take us back to Hillman College once again with a new class. However, this current Howard student hadn’t dreamed of attending an HBCU; she’d had her sights on the likes of the University of South Carolina, UCLA, Vanderbilt University, and New York University to study psychology. 

“My dad went to Morehouse,” said Reece, noting that he’d ask her to add a few HBCUs to her applications. “So, I applied to Howard and Spelman, and I got into both.” 

It wasn’t until she found herself on UCLA and Vanderbilt’s waitlists, with an additional acceptance letter from the University of South Carolina, that she decided to attend Howard. 

“I’ve grown up in PWIs my entire life,” she began, noting how much her father loved his HBCU and the fact that her best friend and future roommate was also attending the university. “I was like, ‘you know what, let me go to Howard. Let me be around people who look like me; I'm sure it’ll be good.’” 

“I chose Howard and it was literally probably the best decision I could have made,” she said. 

From Psychology to Musical Theatre 

Though she had been active in musical theater, school plays, or “some type of creative thing” since elementary school, Reece entered Howard as a psychology major, believing she needed to follow a “logical” career path. 

“I kind of grew up with that mindset,” said Reece. “It honestly didn’t really even cross my mind to look for schools for musical theatre, so I was just like, ‘OK, psychology, I’m good at it. I can go to law school.’ That was that was my whole plan — I was going to be a lawyer.” 

However, she didn’t feel the same passion for her studies as her friends did for theirs.

“I made some really close friends freshman week, they are still my best friends to this day,” said Reece. “All of them seemed very passionate about what they were doing. They were excited to learn more about what their future is going to be like, about their future career and what they’re going to be doing with the rest of their lives. I just really did not feel that about psychology.” 

Though she planned to get her degree and go onto law school, perhaps auditioning for things on the side, she eventually decided that she wasn’t comfortable with that plan.

“Either my career is put on the back burner, what I spent money to go to school for is put on the back burner, or my actual passion and my creativity is put on the back burner. And I wasn’t OK with either one of those,” said Reece. So, she decided to switch her major, finding herself drawn back to musical theatre. But first, she had to get her parents on board. 

“I called my parents literally September of my freshman year and I was like, ‘guys, I really want to change my major.’ And they said, ‘OK, well, what do you want to change it to?’ I said musical theater. And the first thing my dad said was, ‘well, that’s not going to happen, but tell me why” said Reece, laughing. However, when she explained things to them, they fully supported her decision. 

“I want to have a career that I am genuinely passionate about; I think that I’m good enough to do this,” she said, noting that she trusted in herself and her abilities to put in the work and make things happen. She did, however, agree to keep psychology as a minor. 

When asked about her major, the up-and-coming actress admits to being nervous about getting into the program. Although she’d done school productions in the past, she wasn’t a theatre kid in the vein of attending theatre summer camps or a performing arts high school, doing regional productions regularly like she imagined her potential classmates had. She soon found her worries to be unwarranted. 

“Honestly, it was such a welcoming space,” she said. “My first week of classes I was like, ‘oh, I like this a lot!’ It’s a lot; it’s hard, but I feel content. I feel like I’m actually learning, and I feel like I am being pushed toward my future. It was just confirmation that I'm where I was supposed to be.” 

Sharing that the program is run “kind of like a conservatory” and boasting that her HBCU is the only to offer a BFA in musical theatre, Reece disputes the misconception that her field of study is “just singing and dancing all day.” 

“We are, but also I dare you to come into my 8 a.m. ballet class and take that class before you go on to the rest of your day!” she said before giving a bit more insight into her real life as an HBCU student in the musical theatre department. 

“It’s very eye-opening to what it takes for you to be considered a triple threat, and that's what I like about the program at Howard — they really do train you in all three aspects of singing, acting, and dancing,” said Reece. 

“I chose Howard and it was literally probably the best decision I could have made.” — Kennedi Reece 

From Howard to Hillman 

According to Reece, opportunities to audition for regional productions or one-night performances to sing background vocals, for example, are often made available to students. In April, an email alerted students that the legendary Debbie Allen (B.F.A. ’72, DHL ’93) was coming to campus to shoot for an untitled HBCU project. 

“Everybody was like, ‘oh, this is it, this is the Different World reboot,’” she said. Students began putting together their applications, and all were required to submit an acting reel, which Reece didn’t have. 

“I threw together random monologues I had self-taped for class, and I had done a student short film the year prior,” she said. Putting the clips together, she submitted her reel and later learned she’d secured one of the slots to audition for Allen and showrunner Felicia Pride at the Ira Aldridge Theater on campus.

“I walk in and there she is, Mrs. Debbie Allen, just sitting there,” said Reece, noting that Pride and other show producers were present as well. “I just do my thing, super excited, fun, and great. I’m like, ‘thank you so much for the opportunity’ and I leave. It was out of my head.” 

She continued, “After that, I was like, ‘oh my gosh, that was so cool. I got to meet Debbie Allen. I got to audition for her, that’s so cool!’ I didn’t think anything else about it — it was just a great opportunity that I was able to get. I never thought in a million years that I would have been chosen.” 

Afterall, it was the first television show she’d auditioned for. However, a couple weeks later she received an email asking her to fly out to Los Angeles to do a chemistry read for the part of Hazel. 

“At that point I kind of still thought it was a lot of people in the running,” she said. “I remember meeting with my assistant dean, Denise Saunders Thompson (B.F.A. ’92) and she said ‘This is real girl. They want you.’” 

The student would make the journey to LA during finals week (she successfully rescheduled them all), to do the read with her future castmates. 

“Meeting with the cast was absolutely amazing. Like we just instantly clicked,” said Reece. A few weeks later she got the official call that she was cast as Hazel. 

“It happened pretty quickly actually, within the span of a couple of weeks, which is crazy. My entire life has changed that quickly.”  

While a lot has changed, much is still the same. Mostly. She is a college student attending an HBCU in real life and will soon be playing one on TV. When asked about this parallel, almost alternate universe-like situation, Reece agrees it’s wild to think about. 

“It’s a crazy idea because we filmed the pilot this past summer, and it was just like, ‘yeah, this is campus life guys; this is exactly what it’s like,’” she said. 

Surprisingly though, she is the only one of her castmates who attends or attended an HBCU. 

“I think some of them have gone to Homecoming, but nobody really understood it like I understood it,” she said. “I was explaining what the Royal Court was and just all the different aspects of what Howard has to offer, so my castmates could get some more context into their characters and what it’s like to be at an HBCU. It’s just really interesting — yes, I’m playing a character, but also, I relate to that character so much because I am a college student at an HBCU.”  

That said, it’s her dynamic and deepening relationship with her castmates that’s most relatable to her Howard experience. 

“Just the fact that we clicked so quickly and we fool around all the time, it does remind me of the friends I’ve made here,” she said. “Because like I said, my friend group that I made, it was freshman week, and we’ve stayed together through that whole thing.” 

Continuing Legacies 

Speaking of classmates who become friends, Reece has already learned so much from the young actors she’ll be walking the halls of Hillman alongside. 

“My castmates … all of them have done something in one shape or another professionally, and they’ve definitely taken me under their wing,” she said. “I felt safe with them, and I feel like I understand things a lot more because of them. It’s really nice to be around not only people in the industry, but people in the industry that look like me and care about me. It’s a beautiful experience and genuinely like we've created a family.” 

One member of that family in particular has taught Reece much in a short period of time. 

“I’ve learned so much; just watching Ms. Debbie work is a masterclass,” said Reece. “Seeing how she navigates meetings, directing, just how she navigates the industry in general. It’s just amazing to watch her.” What’s more, Reece is attending the very same fictional college that inspired many to seek higher education in a similar institution based on the direction of Allen, as well as her actual alma mater, Howard University. 

“She came from the same place I did. She came from the same school. It’s just so beautiful for me to be able to watch her and just look at her and learn by observing.” 

Reece went on to describe how appreciative she is for the opportunity to continue the onscreen story of a beloved HBCU, and most importantly, what it means to her to be a student at Howard, following in the literal footsteps of so many who paved the way. 

“Something that we learn in my musical theater class is the concept of backspace,” said Reece. “The way my professor described it was that your backspace is all of the people who have come before you — they’re all like sitting on your shoulders and they’re all behind you, supporting you. I really feel that, especially coming from the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts.

“I have him behind me. I have Debbie Allen, Phylicia Rashad, Taraji P Henson, and Anthony Anderson — I have everybody on my side, behind my back. Even if they’re not literally there, I can stand on their shoulders because they’ve paved the way for me. Just being able to be associated with them by the name of Howard University is truly an honor.” 

... your backspace is all of the people who have come before you — they’re all like sitting on your shoulders and they’re all behind you, supporting you. I really feel that, especially coming from the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts.”  — Kennedi Reece 

What’s For You Is Yours 

“A Different World” is the first big audition Reece went out for. She didn’t let the fact that she didn’t have a ready-made reel or doubt about getting the role stop her for going after it. 

“Don’t let yourself or your fears limit you,” she said, encouraging her fellow Bison and all those with an arts dream to trust in their artistry and abilities. “It can get really hard, and we can easily get down on ourselves and doubt our talent and doubt our abilities. But sometimes you just got to do the thing and see what happens. That’s really what I did.” 

The multi-hyphenate in the making went on to advise others to believe that what’s for them will be for them, no matter what. 

“Your journey is your own journey,” she said, stating that a ‘no’ just means there’s another opportunity out there for you. When it comes to her own journey, one of Hillman’s newest students believes it will be one of abundance. 

“Hopefully I’m going to be doing this for a long time,” she said. “I’m just ready to get started, keep moving, get my name out there and see what new opportunities come.”