Her Campus Logo Her Campus Logo
placeholder article
placeholder article

Why We’re Still Obsessed with The New Edition Story Cast Men

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at CAU chapter.

    

     Photocred: http://weheartit.com/entry/276563023?context_page=2&context_query=the+ne…

    Earlier this year was the release of one of the most influential biopics, The New Edition Story. While seeing the rise of these stars and following their careers, I could not help but wonder why the stars of this biopic received so much love after the film. Movies such as The Temptations or The Jackson 5: The American Dream actors did not get near as much hype as the ones that played in this biopic. You never really hear much about the actors after they play the roles of their counterparts. However, for the extremely fine men of The New Edition Story this was completely different. We were blessed to see these men on and off screen with several movies, tv shows, albums, and celebrity appearances. I guess we could say these men stand out a bit more than the average cast. They are all so very talented. Without further a do let’s get into a bit about the stars Keith Powers, Algee Smith, Luke James, Bryshere Y. Gray, Elijah Kelley, and Woody McClain. These men are still dancing, singing, and occasionally rapping through our hearts nine months later.

    Photocred:https://media.giphy.com/media/l3q2Rsy62KqE0rYGY/giphy.gif 

    My personal favorite has to be Algee Smith. My favorite Scorpio. He’s extremely handsome and talented. He started off in one of our favorite childhood movies, Let It Shine. He played the role of Ralph Tresvant in The New Edition Story biopic. This year alone he has been in that same tv film, a major box office film Detroit as Larry, several tv appearances such as Wild N’ Out, and has released an amazing EP that he titled Listen that was released late June. Clearly this man is in demand this year. His EP is a R&B, Pop feel. It’s an easy listen and it’s worth it. One of my personal favorite songs would be “Girl”. This was the single of the EP. The video is even cuter. You can watch it here,https://youtu.be/AB_MlFfT0DE and you’ll fall in love too. He also had a song titled “Grow” off of the Detroit soundtrack. Algee has been casted to play in the upcoming film The Hate U Give as Khalil. He had his very first concert in New York over the summer. From the live stream it seemed amazing. Algee has been on a trailblazing storm taking over Hollywood and the music industry. No wonder why we’re so in love with him. Let me find out who his mystery girl is first, I just want to talk.  

    Photocred: http://weheartit.com/entry/294000579?context_query=keith+powers+gif&cont…

    Keith Powers, lots of heart eyes for the kid. He’s beautiful, so is it a surprise to say he was a model first? I bet not. Keith Powers started his very first movie role in House Party: Tonight’s the Night. He even made an appearance in Straight Outta Compton when he played Dr. Dre’s little brother. In The New Edition Story, he plays cool, laid back, and sexy Ronnie DeVoe. That’s Keith off screen too. He’s so calm and collected but don’t let him get started on Twitter about the inequality in this world. This man will get you straightened up real quick. He’s clearly that perfect Leo man everyone needs in their life. This year he has also played Jordan Wilder in Famous in Love, Cameron Drake in Reality High, Reggie in Let’s Be Friends a short film, and Gutta in Tales. Reality High is a Netflix film where he plays the major love interest. If you have watched the movie you would’ve fallen in love with his character. I also seen on his Twitter that Cameron is a character closest to his actual personality. Can I say I am most definitely marrying this man now? I can’t wait to see what Keith has to offer in 2018 and season two of Famous in Love on Freeform. Oh, and let’s find out if he’s going to be doing any modeling soon.

    

    Photocred: https://media.giphy.com/media/3oKIPygUQjvZdt3dRu/giphy.gif

    Our next chocolate dipped, heaven created, glitter sprinkled man is Luke James. Wow, that’s all I can say about this cute Gemini. What an amazing actor and singer. When I heard him sing I could not help but shed a tear because it’s beautiful. He played Johnny Gill in The New Edition Story. Luke started as a background singer and writer for acts such as Keri Hilson, Tyrese, and Chris Brown to name a few. He released his first EP titled “#LUKE” which had a single titled “I Want You”. This single is not only going to be played at my wedding but it won a Grammy nomination. After this he was chosen personally to be apart of Beyonce’s Mrs. Carter Show World Tour as an opener. If Queen Bey loves him, we love him. He had a role in Black Nativity in 2013 as Jo-Jo. This year alone he’s been seen in Insecure as Ben, Star as Noah Brooks, and he has an album coming out he titled “Joy”. If you haven’t gone to watch the video of his sexy single “Drip” here’s the link https://youtu.be/zYL3HPMiOho yes girl, he’s fine. I am so excited to hear this amazing album and perhaps see him in plenty more movies and shows. Let’s continue to bask in the beauty he’s putting out.

    Photocred: https://media.giphy.com/media/26gsjVoyQi1Wcx6Kc/giphy.gif

    So let’s talk Woody McClain, wow. This man can dance, act, he’s a comedian, and boy does he look good. This charismatic Taurus played the epic role of Bobby Brown in The New Edition Story. I can’t tell if the bad boy image was an act or not but I’m digging it. Woody started off on Vine as WoodyTheGreat. From then on he started gaining more followers via Facebook and Instagram. He then went to perform with acts such as Chris Brown and Fifth Harmony as a dancer. The New Edition Story was his first big film. However, this year alone he has played Raw Dogg in Training Day, Slim in Tales, and himself in a short titled You’re Sexist. He has also announced he will be doing episodic skits titled “Stories With Kev” based off of Kevin Hart’s stand up comedy. You can catch this every Friday with this link here https://www.laughoutloud.com/video/174405 so go watch. He will be playing MayMay in the upcoming 2018 film Canal Street. I can’t wait to see what other boss moves this cutie has in store.

    Photocred: https://media.giphy.com/media/k6L4tH8Ro9ve8/giphy.gif

    Oh, Elijah Kelley if only you knew what you do to us. Your handsome looks, astonishing vocals, suave dance moves, and impressive acting has us hooked. Clearly he has a long list of attributes so we can only really discuss a few. He sings, acts, and dances.We get to see all of this when he plays Seaweed in Hairspray. He also showcased all three talents playing Scarecrow in The Wiz Live! And what an honor that had to be. He has played in Red Tails, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, and Strange Magic just to name a few of his amazing performances. This notable Leo is the icing, sprinkles, and candles on the cake. He played Ricky Bell in The New Edition Story. Not only were we blessed by his acting skills yet again but we finally got to hear more of those vocals. I am in love and I think we need an album. This year he has also been added to the cast of “Star” as Andy. So let’s just get this together Elijah, deliver us an album ASAP and we’ll be completely satisfied. We won’t ask for anything else, promise!

    Photocred: https://media.giphy.com/media/l3q2WhITMb3c3SLFm/giphy.gif

    Bryshere Gray, oh lord. No one needs to discuss the talented Leo, but we will anyway. He acts, he raps, he dances, and he is beautiful. Bryshere plays Michael Bivins in The New Edition Story but clearly we know him from somewhere else. Scream it from the rooftops, yes it’s Hakeem Lyon on Empire. Ever since he’s landed this role, he’s been hungry for more. In 2018 he will play Marcus Brick in Sprinter, Kholi Styles in Canal Street, and Tyrell in Honey 4. Clearly Bryshere got it going on and boy does he know it. With some of his notable songs from the show such as “Money For Nothing”, “What the DJ Says”, and “No Competition” it makes me wonder when will we be hearing a solo album from him? We’re on season 4 of Empire and I hope you all know what’s going on. I am excited to see where he goes after this because I don’t know if I can handle a life without seeing Bryshere a few times a week. I just know he has nothing but success and wins ahead of him.

    I think it’s safe to say with all this Black Boy Joy and excellence it is easy to see why the men of this film has received so much hype since the movie. I have fallen in love with every single actor since. They are rising up from here and we need to follow their every footsteps. With cuties like these I might have to try to get a ring out of one of them. They are suave, clean, crisp, and hungry. They are about to take over every aspect of every industry a day at a time. So continue to enjoy and celebrate our beautiful black men and remember to stay tuned into them and support everything each one of them does.

 

Photocred: http://usedpimpa.tumblr.com/post/156427143401/new-giphy

Sources: IMDb, Official Luke James website, Official Algee Smith Website, 

Hey, my name is Demetri Dulaney. I am currently a sophomore at Clark Atlanta University. I'm from Columbus, Ohio and I am nineteen years old. I am a writer for HerCampus. I am a Mass Media Arts major with a concentration in Journalism.