Keke Palmer. Aeon/GC Images

Keke Palmer has been making Us smile since her film debut at age 10, in 2004’s Barbershop 2. (She gave good eye roll!)

As the young performer evolved into a multi-hyphenate,, her ability to draw laughter only grew. (We’re still recovering from 2019’s “Sorry to this man” memed moment. To be fair, we wouldn’t have recognized politico Dick Cheney either.) But as Palmer, 31, illustrates in her new book, Master of Me: The Secret to Controlling Your Narrative, she also possesses drive and a talent to inspire. “Behind the scenes, I take all this quite seriously,” she writes. The actress/singer/podcaster dug into some of her stories in the newest issue of Us Weekly.

Idol Encounter

An episode of Law & Order: SVU profoundly impacted a 6-year-old Palmer because of Sєxual abuse she had experienced by another child a year earlier. When she was 12, she landed a role on the show.

Related: Keke Palmer Through the Years: Nickelodeon Alum to Motherhood

Throughout her career, Keke Palmer has proven that the sky’s the limit — and she’s only getting started. Palmer began singing in the church choir at age 5 and after moving to Los Angeles she quickly found success with acting. She rose to fame after starring on her own Nickelodeon series, True Jackson, VP, from […]

“Olivia Benson, she was my detective. You get what I mean? On set, my mom had to talk me down off a ledge — I almost couldn’t do my lines, I was that starstruck by Mariska Hargitay. She was so amazing and nice. Maybe two years ago, I DM’ed her: ‘Hey, Mariska, I don’t know if you remember we did Law & Order together. I just want to say I love you and think about how kind you were and hope you’re well.’ And she responded, ‘Keke, of course I remember. I’m so proud of you and everything you’ve been doing.’ It was lovely.”

Keke Palmer. Rob Kim/Getty Images for The Webby Awards
Lights! Camera! Kiss!

At 12, Palmer got her first kiss — from pal Corbin Bleu — while filming the Disney Channel movie Jump In! This was 2006, long before hiring intimacy coordinators became a common practice. For Palmer, the moment was pivotal.

“A lot of times, people aren’t thinking about kids with these things. They’re seeing us as professionals. I think people parentalize children in the industry, and we also act older because we’re trained to act older — but we’re not. So, emotionally, we can’t process, but people won’t know because on the outside, we act professionally. This was a little quick peck, but it was so meaningful to me. I had never kissed anyone outside of my family.”

Sara Jaye/Getty Images for Holiday Inn Express
Tuning Out the Noise

Despite critical love, her 2006 drama Akeelah and the Bee wasn’t an instant box-office success. She was 12 at the time and the disappointment was formative. Never again would Palmer seek out reviews and or let initial box-office results hold weight over her.

“Success is different. Dollar success and then impact success are different. And then even when it comes to impact success, sometimes people don’t know what the hell they’re talking about because Akeelah and the Bee became a hit over time. And people don’t really remember that, but I remember that because when it didn’t do what everybody thought it was going to do, I felt all s—y inside and I was like, ‘Oh, damn, everything everybody said didn’t come true.’ At that point, being that young experiencing that, I was like, ‘Yeah, I can’t do that anymore. I have to just be proud of the work I do and let that be enough.’”

Taking Back Her Power

Palmer’s personal life became internet fodder last year after then-boyfriend Darius Jackson — father to their son, Leo, now 21 months — publicly critiqued what she wore to an Usher concert. (“You a mom.”) Things got much worse between the two before they got better, but in June, she created a new Usher narrative, performing at a BET Awards tribute to him.

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Related: Keke Palmer Feels ‘At Ease’ After Darius Jackson Split: ‘Proud of Him’

Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images Keke Palmer is opening up about how she managed to get to a better place with ex Darius Jackson after the end of their rocky relationship. “I’m so proud of him and happy for him,” Palmer, 31, told People in an interview published on Wednesday, October 30. “I feel very at ease […]

“I never wanted my relationship in the public eye anyway, because I know people play too much. It becomes irritating because people are speaking on things they don’t really know about. My relationship is not the center of who I am as a person. My work is.”

“At the end of the day, aren’t we all putting on a performance?” asks Palmer. “The gag is, who’s pulling your strings?”

For more on Palmer, pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now.