An Interview With Edward Sylvan
I’m really trying to impact everyone. My partnership with Lo Lo is about knowing your options for pregnancy prevention, and the focus is women, but I really hope that even men or someone who doesn’t have the ability to get pregnant will look at the messaging and ask how I can be supportive of my partner. I hope they will find different ways to get the right information and tools to help support their partners.
As a part of our series about stars who are making an important social impact, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Kat Graham.
Kat Graham is an actress, singer, dancer, and producer, working across a variety of genres in film, television, and music, but another big passion of hers is advocating for women, especially for women’s health. Most recently, Kat partnered with Lo Loestrin® Fe, a prescription birth control pill used for the prevention of pregnancy. Kat is a Lo Loestrin Fe patient, and her goal is to talk about the importance of feeling empowered to prioritize reproductive health, especially when it comes to contraception.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you share with us the backstory that led you to this career path?
I’ve been acting and dancing since I was about five or six years old. When my mom brought me to America from Switzerland, she introduced me to the entertainment industry almost immediately. From what she tells me, I was pressuring her to be taken to classes. It became an obsession!
Throughout this process, I was doing Disney work, commercials, and guest star spots, while backup dancing and making music. About five or six years ago, things really shifted for me in terms of understanding my audience and that they needed a voice. My humanitarian work really kicked off around 2013/2014, and I started to lean into it as part of who I am as an artist.
Can you share the funniest or most interesting story that occurred to you in the course of your career? What was the lesson or takeaway you took out of that story?
One story that sticks out to me involves a woman that I’ve been working with for every project over the past 12 years named Ivana Chubbuck; she’s a legendary acting coach. Once I snuck into her Christmas party that I wasn’t on the list for and walked over a velvet rope to work with her. She’s taught me to use every heartache or difficult moment in my life and to put that into my art. Through the process of working with her is why my audience, which I refer to as my kids, are so attached as they feel connected to me emotionally from my work.
What would you advise a young person who wants to emulate your success?
Fail often, fail forward, and take a chance on yourself. Nothing has come easy in my career, my relationships, or my journey of self-love or health. No matter what you see on screen or online, it takes a lot of work to get there, a lot of meditation, a lot of research.
Is there a person that made a profound impact on your life? Can you share a story?
I know this sounds corny, but I would say my fans because they’ve shown such vulnerability and honesty with me. They’ve told me how I’ve helped them, which has been really the catalyst. For the big moments when I decide to partner with a brand or take on a role, my fans have been my conscience. I always ask myself how young girls would feel about my decisions and use that as a guide.
How are you using your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share with us the meaningful or exciting causes you’re working on right now?
To speak to my humanitarian work, I’m the Governor of the Recording Academy Atlanta Chapter for advocacy for artists’ rights. I’m a council member for the LGBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders. I’m also a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador for refugees and last year was honored by PETA. Most recently, I decided to partner with Lo Loestrin® Fe, a prescription birth control pill that provides pregnancy prevention with the lowest daily dose of estrogen available. I decided to partner with Lo Loestrin® Fe (or Lo Lo for short) to educate women about their options for pregnancy prevention. This partnership with Lo Lo is so important as it aims for women to educate themselves. I was excited to find out that Lo Loestrin Fe was a fit for me; it is now the birth control I use! I learned that Lo Loestrin Fe offers pregnancy prevention that may also provide short, lighter periods. It’s not uncommon to have some bleeding and spotting between periods. Speak with your healthcare provider for more details or if you have any concerns. Lo Loestrin Fe may not be right for everyone, for example, if you smoke cigarettes and are over 35 years old.
Over the last two years, I’ve also been really excited about starting a wellness company called Modern Nirvana with my two friends Frank Elaridi and Bryant Wood. We hosted a wellness conference where we highlighted and profiled different people and products that help you to be your best self. This started as a private wellness journey and selfishly became something I wanted to share with the world.
Can you share with us a story behind why you chose to take up this particular cause?
I want to address the women’s health revolution that I’m part of. I want to help lead uncomfortable conversations and conversations that also empower and educate women. When Lo Lo approached me about a partnership, I was already working with Dr. Mindy Pelz on a podcast, My Wellness Right, so the partnership felt like a perfect fit for where I’m currently at in my life.
Can you share with us a story about a person who was impacted by your cause?
I’m really trying to impact everyone. My partnership with Lo Lo is about knowing your options for pregnancy prevention, and the focus is women, but I really hope that even men or someone who doesn’t have the ability to get pregnant will look at the messaging and ask how I can be supportive of my partner. I hope they will find different ways to get the right information and tools to help support their partners.
Are there three things or are there things that individuals, society, or the government can do to support you in this effort?
- Address the stigmas around our sexual health. I think there are so many stigmas that I’m chipping away at. With my work with Dr. Mindy Pelz and with my friends, family, and readers, I’m doing what I can to get through these stigmas. Sexual health is not celebrated. As a society, we’re not getting better at celebrating all different types of bodies.
- Be aware of social media. Some things that are celebrated on social media aren’t necessarily what needs to be celebrated on social media.
- Have those tough conversations if somebody uses words that are demeaning to women. Women should want to learn about their bodies or medications for the prevention of pregnancy. We need to address those tough conversations where somebody might say “you must be PMS’ing.” Now, I challenge that conversation when I didn’t use to, and I think about standing up for yourself. Women need to be brave, for each other and have uncomfortable conversations.
What’s one thing “I wish someone told me when I first started”
Focus on being someone of service to others. This clicked for me about 5–6 years ago that if you make it about yourself, you can only go so far. This is something I wish I would have known sooner. For example, my partnership with Lo Loestrin Fe is not about me, it’s about listening to the needs of women and making sure they have everything to prevent pregnancy and do what they need to do for their bodies with all the resources and education possible.
You’re a person of enormous influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
We all know that it’s just day by day, the more conversations we have, the more education but it’s not going to happen overnight. It is the journey of self-discovery that’s so beautiful to look in the mirror and say I don’t have all the answers, and I might need a little bit of help here and there. It’s okay not to know everything, but you will get there eventually.
Can you please give us your favorite life lesson quote? And can you explain how that was relevant in your life?
My favorite quote is nothing splendid has ever been achieved, except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance. I think that’s also why my Lo Loestrin® Fe partnership is important because we’re talking about real people having conversations about their bodies that could be uncomfortable. Don’t worry about your circumstances just work from the inside out; work from your mind and your heart and build from there. My mom raised me Jewish and one of my favorite people is Anne Frank who always said in her diary she believed that people were really good at heart and that’s something I also swear by.
Is there a person in the world who you want to have a private breakfast or lunch with and why?
RuPaul — over 10 years ago, I was just finished touring with the Black-Eyed Peas after releasing my own singles. At the time, the only place that would let me play was the gay bars; no one else was interested in my music. The gay community embraced me in Atlanta, and I joined a drag house called House of Brooks. Some of the girls had been on RuPaul’s Drag Race, and every time I watched the show, I was reminded that no matter how different you are, you should celebrate yourself. The LGBTQ community is my community, even though I’m a straight woman, many of my friends are transgender and gay. I love to celebrate them.
Thank you so much for these amazing insights. This was so inspiring, and we wish you continued success!
Stars Making a Social Impact: Why & How Kat Graham Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.