Lupita Nyong’o is sharing her journey of accepting all aspects of her identity.
In the debut episode of her new podcast Mind Your Own, the 41-year-old Academy Award winner reflects on her struggles with her speaking style over the years.
Having been born in Mexico, raised in Nairobi, Kenya, and residing in the U.S. for two decades, Nyong’o expressed, “To launch this podcast, I had to truly embrace my own voice.”
While she proudly embraced her African accent during her time at Hampshire College in Massachusetts, her relationship with her speaking shifted when she enrolled at the Yale School of Drama for her acting pursuits.
“I made this pact with myself that I would learn how to sound American in a way that would guarantee me a career in acting,”she explained, “because obviously I didn’t know very many people in movies and television with Kenyan accents. There was just no market for that.”
Dedicating herself to numerous voice lessons each week to perfect an American accent proved fruitful when a casting director was taken aback upon discovering Lupita Nyong’o’s Kenyan roots.
Prior to embarking on the promotional tour for the 2014 film debut, “12 Years a Slave,” which she landed right after graduating from Yale, Nyong’o made a significant decision.
She reached out to her publicists, expressing, “I’ve made up my mind to revert to my original accent starting tomorrow. I want to convey the message that being African is sufficient.” This choice surprised her publicists, as they had never heard her speak in her Kenyan accent before.
Nyong’o has since used her unique voice across various projects, from narrating documentaries to portraying Maz Kanata in the Star Wars series and starring as the lead in The Wild Robot (releasing in theaters on September 27).
In her Instagram post, the A Quiet Place: Day One star described Lemonada Media’s Mind Your Own as a platform that delves into the personal, intimate, and quirky narratives that illuminate the essence of contemporary African identities.
Alongside Nyong’o, The Wild Robot features the voices of Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Catherine O’Hara, and Mark Hamill, hitting theaters on September 27.

In the debut episode of her new podcast Mind Your Own, the 41-year-old Academy Award winner reflects on her struggles with her speaking style over the years.
Having been born in Mexico, raised in Nairobi, Kenya, and residing in the U.S. for two decades, Nyong’o expressed, “To launch this podcast, I had to truly embrace my own voice.”
While she proudly embraced her African accent during her time at Hampshire College in Massachusetts, her relationship with her speaking shifted when she enrolled at the Yale School of Drama for her acting pursuits.
“I made this pact with myself that I would learn how to sound American in a way that would guarantee me a career in acting,”she explained, “because obviously I didn’t know very many people in movies and television with Kenyan accents. There was just no market for that.”
Dedicating herself to numerous voice lessons each week to perfect an American accent proved fruitful when a casting director was taken aback upon discovering Lupita Nyong’o’s Kenyan roots.
Prior to embarking on the promotional tour for the 2014 film debut, “12 Years a Slave,” which she landed right after graduating from Yale, Nyong’o made a significant decision.
She reached out to her publicists, expressing, “I’ve made up my mind to revert to my original accent starting tomorrow. I want to convey the message that being African is sufficient.” This choice surprised her publicists, as they had never heard her speak in her Kenyan accent before.
Nyong’o has since used her unique voice across various projects, from narrating documentaries to portraying Maz Kanata in the Star Wars series and starring as the lead in The Wild Robot (releasing in theaters on September 27).
In her Instagram post, the A Quiet Place: Day One star described Lemonada Media’s Mind Your Own as a platform that delves into the personal, intimate, and quirky narratives that illuminate the essence of contemporary African identities.
Alongside Nyong’o, The Wild Robot features the voices of Pedro Pascal, Kit Connor, Catherine O’Hara, and Mark Hamill, hitting theaters on September 27.

Olekanma Favour is a resourceful, self-motivated, and result-driven writer with a passion for crafting compelling narratives and insightful content. She loves tackling complex topics and weaving engaging stories.
When she’s not writing, Olekanma enjoys immersing herself in a good book, exploring new cuisines, and discovering new cultures.