Ashanti is taking on a new role.
The R&B singer has joined the cast of the upcoming drama No Address, which centers around a community of homeless people fighting eviction from their encampment.
According to Deadline, Ashanti will play Violet, an Iraq War vet who suffers from PTSD and turns to drugs as a coping mechanism.
The film also stars William Baldwin, Xander Berkeley, and Beverly D’Angelo, as well as Ty Pennington, Lucas Jade Zumann, Kristanna Loken, Patricia Velasquez, and Isabella Ferreira.
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“So excited……..I’ve never played a character like this before,” Ashanti said while announcing the film. “Violet is an Iraq war vet who suffers from PTSD and has turned to drugs as a coping mechanism..which leads her to become homeless.”
Principal photography is currently underway in Sacramento. Julia Verdin (Stander, The Merchant of Venice) is directing and also co-wrote the script with James J. Papa.
“My hope in making a film about people experiencing homelessness is that it will open people’s hearts to remember that we have human beings out on our streets with nowhere to go,” said Verdin.
The film has been endorsed by a number of West Coast organizations supporting the homeless community including Step Up LA, Union Rescue Mission LA, the Downtown Women’s Center, and the First Presbyterian Church, Hollywood.
Ashanti is no stranger to acting. She previously graced the big screen in movies including Coach Carter, Resident Evil: Extinction, and John Tucker Must Die.
When she’s not acting, Ashanti has been in the studio re-recording her 2002 debut album. Back in 2021, she revealed that she now owns the masters to 2002’s Ashanti and will be releasing it independently.