When P-Valley premiered in 2020, it quickly became a TV obsession. Viewers were invited into the layered lives of the dancers and patrons of The Pynk, a strip club "down in the dirty" of the fictional Chucalissa, Mississippi, owned by the gender-fluid Uncle Clifford. Portrayed by the brilliant Nicco Annan, Uncle Clifford runs her club — and her life — with the philosophy that it's not about what you do, but how and why you do it. "Rule 1: Let that stage be your stepping stone, not your tombstone."
It's a lesson that Nicco has learned first-hand as an actor, dancer, and activist in Hollywood. Here, we speak to him about his journey to playing Uncle Clifford, the status of P-Valley Season 3, and more for Black History Month 2024. Check out our full interview with Nicco below.
Note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
BuzzFeed: How has your role on P-Valley impacted how you show up in the world personally?
Nicco Annan: It proved that things come to you when you're ready. I started my journey with P-Valley in 2009, when it was a play called Pussy Valley. The experience of playing someone gay and nonbinary as an actor who is gay and not nonbinary illuminated issues that LGBTQIA+ people go through that I personally didn't necessarily have to go through.
It also changed my perspective on gender and size. You know, I'm a tall drink of water. I'm 6'3". So there's a certain presence when I walk into a room of like, "Oh, there's this big, dark-skinned dude in the room." But I also knew in the same frame, donning a different identity, would broaden my range as a person and artist. I can play a king, I can play Hamlet, I can play in Happy Days. I can play in Friends or Living Single. I can play anything.
What's your favorite thing about P-Valley's portrayal of Black and LGBTQIA+ people?
Its message that we don't throw away our children. There are people who throw away their children. But a lot of people relate to the relationship between Clifford and her grandmother, whether it's with a blood relative, a friend, or a neighbor who looked after them. The relationships between the characters are part of what we really get right, as well as how we cover identity issues within the LGBTQ+ spectrum.
Can you tell us anything about P-Valley Season 3?
I can tell you that if you thought Season 1 and 2 were giving you something, Season 3 is going to be more than worth the wait.
What about a release date?
It's a new day, it's a new year, it's 2024. I am sure that the doors of The Pynk will be open very soon. I am not back at work on that project. I am at work on another project that's down in the valley and will give you all a tease and a taste of some good-good in between. But the doors of The Pynk will absolutely be open again soon.
Part of my job as an artist is to go to some places that are very different and stripped down and bare.
You recently hosted BET's Black and Iconic Soiree. What does Black excellence mean to you?
At the soirée, I said that it doesn't matter what your platform is, if you are in front of the camera, if you are the top basketball or sports person. It doesn't matter how many people see you or how many followers you have. What truly makes you Black and iconic is owning your shit, whatever that is. Because once you own it, you take the power away from somebody else that can try to turn it and weaponize it against you. Baby, I know I'm dark-skinned. Do you want a piece of chocolate or not? 'Cause it's good for your blood pressure.
What's your proudest moment being Black and gay?
When I told my dad I was cast as Uncle Clifford. When I was doing the play, he wasn't able to come and see it. Later, he read the reviews and told me, "I haven't been able to see the play. But I do see that you're not a joke." His understanding of the conversation around expansive gender expression was something that was totally foreign and unexpected to me. My father is from Ghana and had never been exposed to those parts of our culture. So it was great to have that conversation and be embraced by him.
Has he watched the show since?
My father has seen the show. He loves it! He's always surprised by the scenes. It makes me happy because there was a time when he wouldn't look at certain content. He actually felt bad about that, because it seemed rooted in internal homophobia. I had to tap him on the shoulder and say, "Dad, listen. I don't think Halle Berry's father wanted to see her in certain positions in Monster's Ball, either. Part of my job as an artist is to go to some places that are very different and stripped down and bare." My dad didn't want to offend me, but he was being conscious and trying to correct his way of thinking.
Did you ever think your sexuality was a phase?
Never. I was really blessed in that I never thought, like, Oh, I'm going through something. Something's wrong with me. I was more concerned about how people would respond to my truth. My journey through adolescence to high school was about figuring that out.
Do you have any advice for young Black queer people?
[My advice is to] listen and control your fire. Sometimes we have so much spark in us. That's not just because you are queer. That is because you are who you are. Embrace your identity and don't let others use it as something that can be weaponized against you. It makes you who you are. You are well-made. There is nothing wrong with you.
Also, give yourself space and time to be able to grow into who you will be. I'm still grinding. I think we all grow until we die. So don't feel the need to define everything in your life because society says [you should] or [you have to]. Do things on your own time.
I want to be able to put my own stamp on something and show more of the differences and nuances that were being missed in the things that I saw.
What are your hopes for Black queer representation?
I hope the days of "the first" soon come to an end because there are so many of us who are doing amazing things. I pray we gain access to the things that make our dreams manifest. But I also know that sometimes you gotta go through things to know what you want to do. So until then, be easy with yourself. Know that you're the ish. You got the goods, baby.
What does Black history mean to you?
It shows I'm not alone. It also lets me know what's possible. Sometimes, as an artist, you can create what has not been seen. I grew up knowing the portrayals of queer people and certain tropes in the industry. Now as an artist and a man, I want to be able to put my own stamp on something and show more of the differences and nuances that were being missed in the things that I saw.
What were some things you wish you saw being represented more?
I wanted to see more representation of myself on screen when it came to different body types and complexions. Black comes in all shades, shapes, sizes, heights, and ways of speech. I see more representation of that now. It can be very scary to be a part of that change to say, "This is the way [dark] skin looks. Melanin looks like this in the moonlight. This is the way that these tiger stripes shine." But I wanted to be part of that change because it's sexy and beautiful. It's also powerful, not just something sexual.
I'm not gonna cry over spilled milk. I'm going to rejoice and dance in the meantime, knowing that we're here right now, and you ain't shaking us, and we ain't going nowhere.
How much progress do you think has been made for LGBTQIA+ people in all?
Representation has definitely advanced. Last year, I won the NAACP Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series, not even just as an openly gay man, but by portraying a character that is queer and nonbinary. That award came from one of the oldest organizations that we have in this country. Frederick Douglass and Ida B. Wells are part of building that. The fact that the organization went from no public acknowledgment to acknowledgment and honor shows progress to me.
Again, I just don't want to be "the first." My brother Colman Domingo is so great and so good. He was recently on the cover of Out magazine with the headline, "First Black Gay Movie Star." I was like, "Colman isn't the first, is he? Oh my God, he is!" As beautiful as it is, it also makes me a little sad because so many people have come before us. Bayard Rustin, André Leon Talley, Billy Porter. Why didn't they have the space to do these things? But I'm not gonna cry over spilled milk. I'm going to rejoice and dance in the meantime, knowing that we're here right now, and you ain't shaking us, and we ain't going nowhere.
Thanks for speaking with us, Nicco! Be sure to keep up with him here and check out P-Valley now on Starz.
You can read more Black, Out & Proud interviews here.