Amirah Vann on Bringing Tyler Perry’s Vision to Life in ‘A Jazzman’s Blues’ and ‘Queen Sugar’s’ Final Season

When Tyler Perry wrote the screenplay for “A Jazzman’s Blues” in 1995, he imagined Diana Ross in the role of Hattie Mae, mother to a young man named Bayou (Joshua Boone) and an entrepreneurial woman who opens a juke joint in the 1940s South. When Perry finally made the movie — a passion project he held onto for 27 years, which is now streaming on Netflix — he turned to Amirah Vann to play the role.

Best known for powerhouse performances opposite Emmy-winner Viola Davis in “How to Get Away With Murder,” as well as major roles in “Queen Sugar” (as Parker Campbell, a foil to the OWN series’ central Bordelon family) and “Underground” (as Ernestine, the fiercely protective matriarch and head house slave of a Georgia plantation), Vann was “honored” to get the call from Perry — and even more so that he believed she possessed acting and singing chops comparable to Ross.

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“The first time I remember him saying it, I was like, ‘Wait a minute?’” Vann tells Variety over the phone. “It just made me feel so honored. It lets me know, at this point in my career, that God is like, ‘You’re on the right path. You are where you should be.’ That’s the real deal.”

The same could be said of Vann, whose layered performance in “A Jazzman’s Blues” has earned positive notice from critics. But it’s the unexpected compliments from other Black women that she admires — like Pauletta Washington and Kevin Durant’s mother Wanda Durant — that affirm her decision to assess each project for what it shares with the world about the African American experience and, personally, for the legacy she’s leaving her 20-month-old daughter, Nyla Fe Oyeku.

“When they say ‘Wow, your performance has really touched me, and the way you represent us as Black women really makes me proud,’ I do take a lot of pride in telling stories where I feel like we’re putting goodness into the world, that can help us grow and be better as humans overall,” she explains.

Below, Vann talks more about “A Jazzman’s Blues” and “Queen Sugar’s” final season.

When “A Jazzman’s Blues” premiered at TIFF, Tyler Perry introduced the cast to Oprah Winfrey on the red carpet. What was that like?

Oh my God, it was insane. I know that Oprah and Tyler are friends, so the cast was talking amongst ourselves, saying, “You realize we will probably meet Oprah today, right?” We were all trying to keep our bearings, stay calm and try not to come up with silly things to say that we’re going to regret later. I remember just standing in front of her and being like, “We’re so honored to have you here.” And I left it at that.

Then Oprah told you her grandmother was named Hattie Mae.

Yes, which is very interesting, because then when I spoke to my mother, she told me that I have an aunt on my father’s side who’s a Hattie Mae too. Hattie Mae, just the name alone resonates with a lot of people and elicits some warm feelings, so I feel like that’s great she made a connection. If she’s bringing it up, hopefully it inspired good feelings.

How did you get cast in the role?

My reps said, “Tyler Perry’s gonna call you,” which in and of itself was a huge honor. I was like, “Excuse me, who?” But I’ve felt that numerous times in my career already — when they said, “Amirah, we need you on a flight tomorrow to play opposite Viola,” or when I’m talking to Ava [DuVernay] about “Queen Sugar.” These are people who I am always inspired by. These are people who pass the baton sideways, because as much as I look up to them, we’re all happening right now. I feel grateful that Tyler’s like “I want to give you an opportunity,” and Ava’s like “I want to give you an opportunity.” It’s a huge honor to be able to learn from and work with these extraordinary artists.

When Tyler called me, I expressed my passion for Hattie Mae and I auditioned. But the first thing he said to me was, “What’s her name?” and he was referring to my daughter. It was beautiful. That lets you know the kind of man he is. [Editor’s note: At the time of filming, Vann was a new mother, having given birth to her daughter just a few weeks prior.]

When you got the script, what did you relate to about this character?

As soon as I read it, I said, “Oh, my gosh, I need to do this.” I requested Hattie Mae; I said, “Tyler please…” I love the music of the period, the story itself drew me in, but, I’ve gotta say, there’s something about the way Tyler writes. We always talk about representation and seeing ourselves — and I see that now with my daughter; she can recognize someone who looks like her where she goes, “Oh, it’s like I’m looking in a mirror.”

With this movie, Tyler also captured the rhythm of how we speak; how we say things in a certain, very specific way, like “Child, I’m moving on” or “Not on yo’ life.” It’s short, and sometimes it’s clipped and brief, but it’s direct and to the point. Sometimes it’s more poetic, but everyone gets the feel of it, and it adds humor in places that I don’t think the average person who would try to tell our stories would understand. It’s so natural and honest about how we have existed for centuries. I love hearing our sounds in there. It adds another layer of joy in the midst of everything that we had to overcome during that time, and during every time, really.

Because this is set in the jazz era, there’s also lots of singing. What did you enjoy most about getting a chance to show off your pipes?

To be able to collaborate with Terence Blanchard and Joel C. High, both of these men are really super talented, super loving.

The musical language that I speak is always story first. Prepping for it was fantastic because a lot of these songs are originally sung by men, so it was very much in the low register, which I enjoy singing in anyway, but it’s much lower than the way I normally sing. That was fun, to keep going down and getting into that bass and those rich colors.

Once all of that work was done, we recorded all of this in studio in Atlanta. It was really wonderful to be in the studio and have Terence directing a few of the songs. At that point, it’s not about perfection. You’ve done the work, but now you let the story lead, and whatever the voice is doing, that’s secondary to the storytelling, and that’s everything that we learned in theater. I was so at home.

“A Jazzman’s Blues” debuted in the Top 10 on Netflix, and people said they’ve been moved to tears by the story. What do you think has been resonating so deeply?

It’s always the simple things we can all identify with. Hattie Mae is balancing working as a washerwoman during the day, working as a midwife, and then what I loved about her is she found a way to find her passion and really live her dream. All these decisions that we make and try to find balance and joy — she’s trying to raise these two boys, and I’m trying to figure out balance, let me tell you, with this 20-month-old. Is taking care of her something that means that you give up on your dreams? No. It really is [a chance to] let me be an example, to show you how you can do all of these things. When Mommy says, “She has to go to work,” she gets to go to work; it’s not has to. You know, “Mommy’s doing what she loves. Mommy gets to tell people stories.”

Acting is always a very personal experience, and I take it very seriously to represent that in the most truthful way. Something always comes up that really hits home for me.

What have been some of the most memorable or powerful comments you’ve heard so far?

In general, life is hard. Life is difficult, and we’re all constantly trying to figure out the best way to navigate it, to find joy, to be able to take care of our families, to find love and to do work in a place where we don’t have to be miserable. I think it’s really fantastic that people can look at “A Jazzman’s Blues” and feel like, “Wow, there was a lot more joy than I expected.” That always means so much to me. Sometimes you need to feel compassion and to feel seen.

As “Queen Sugar” winds down, will we see more of Parker Campbell? What has that experience represented for you?

We will be seeing Parker, which is exciting. I think she has a really shocking ending. I love the journey that Parker has taken, and it is a really good full circle moment for the character. When I read it, I was like, “Oooh, this is good.”

Every time I showed up the cast was so welcoming, and I felt the same way about them, because I’m a huge fan of their work and the story that they created. Even to collaborate with DeMane Davis — one of the female directors of the all-female directed series — I met her on “How to Get Away with Murder,” so to be able to reunite with her is wonderful.

What’s next for you?

That’s always an actor’s fear — work and what’s coming next. It oftentimes takes saying, “You know what, I’m going to trust God that if I sit here, still, with no next job, God is going to provide.” And he always has opened the door. It’s difficult because you can’t always see it — I can’t see that Tyler Perry’s watching my work and is going to call me for his next movie, I can’t know that that’s happening.

I just finished filming “The Changeling,” [the Apple TV+ series starring Lakeith Stanfield] and I’m super proud of that and I love the role. But while I was there, I was like, “I don’t know what this is going to be or who it’s going to touch, so all I can do is be in this room, be in this space, telling the story with my whole heart, and thinking about this woman and all the complexity of who she is and what she wants to be.”

And “Shirley,” directed by John Ridley. To sit opposite Regina King — I’ve had the pleasure of acting opposite her before on a potential pilot that didn’t get picked up — she’s my friend, and she’s a great person, but she’s also one of those people who you look at and they crack your whole soul open in the most beautiful way.

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