There’s a fine line between the real Persia White and the character Lynn, which she plays on the hit CW sitcom Girlfriends. She’s truly a musician, activist and a girl who loves tattoos. However, Ms. White is a bit more focused, has a steady boy-toy and a rock band dubbed, XEO3. Recently, MF caught up with the exotic beauty to discuss just about everything under the sun.
MF: You’ve had a lot of dates on Girlfriends, what would your dream date consist of?
PW: My dream date would be to hop on a plane and go to Europe. To spend a week walking around, drinking wine… and I won’t lie. Shopping!
MF: What type of guys do you usually date?
PW: If I had a line up for every guy I ever dated, there is no physical thread or look that would be definite to the type of guys I’m attracted to, except that they are extremely intelligent or talented guys. I tend to attract artists… definitely intelligence is one of the things I go for. AND THE REALLY SAD PART IS, I’ll attract a guy like that and then he’ll look at me like “you’re crazy with all those tattoos!”
MF: Are you currently dating anyone now?
PW: For the last couple of months, I have my heart wrapped around somebody… and I’m really happy. I’m sure he put a hex on me because I have been single and all I do is work, but maybe it’ll work out this time.
MF: What’s the "whackest" line a guy has ever approached you with?
PW: It was probably something I read on a want ad. Does that count?
MF: No.
PW: Well, on myspace a guy said you’re sexy, call me. I thought wow, thank you, that was deep. (laughter)
MF: Myspace doesn’t count!
PW: Wow, that’s a hard one. There was this one guy once who overheard a conversation and it came up that I’m Vegan so he came up to me and said; “You’re Vegan? That’s funny, all Vegans are fat and you’re not.” I was like Okaaaaaaay…
MF: Did he not know what it meant?
PW: He didn’t know what to say, I think.
MF: That’s lame, but it segues into my next question because I know that you are Vegan; so does that mean you would pass up on a meat and potatoes man?
PW: No. I’ve only dated one Vegan in my entire life. It would be hard for me to be with someone that was a real hardcore person killing animals himself. I would be like noooo! But no, life’s too short to judge people that quickly.
MF: Ok, so if you could make up the perfect man for Persia, what would the ingredients be?
PW: Perfect? Wait a minute! Perfect how, the person who grabs your heart?
MF: Yes, the perfect mix for Persia.
PW: Hmmmm, it would have to be someone compassionate, sensitive, intelligent and who’d make me laugh my head off everyday… that’s the main ingredient.
MF: What do you find sexy?
PW: A guy who’s sensitive and cares about things other than himself, money and gain. That’s pretty sexy. Intelligence will win at the end of the day over just simply having a hot body. You have to have a head that matches it because without intelligence they wouldn’t know what to do with that body to make a girl just go crazy.
MF: For the people out there who don’t know, what is the difference between being a Vegetarian and Vegan?
PW: A vegetarian means that you don’t eat meat, fish or chicken…animals. Vegan means that you don’t eat animals at all, including dairy.
MF: There are a lot of people out there that believe vegetarianism is all about fruits and vegetables? Yet, there are products that offer healthy alternatives to foods we eat everyday. Can you offer the readers some insight on food options and choices for living a healthy lifestyle?
PW: Oh gosh, that’s so fantastic of a question for me. Yes! There’s so much stuff. I would recommend a little reading which goes a long way. There’s a book called Diet for America which explains a lot. They talk about options and how different the meat industry is now than it was 50 years ago and why it’s so unhealthy in the United Sates than ever before. There’s so much knowledge available right now than there was before, when people would be hungry all the time and just eating carbohydrates, but now you can eat high proteins, zero fat, soy sausages, a product called seitan which you can make fake meats out of. It’s made from “wheat gluten” …there are so many options now which makes being a Vegan much easier.
MF: You are a hard core activist when it comes to humans, our environment and animal rights, and most recently honored by PETA: What do you think about the government debating on offering cloned meat?
PW: It’s horrifying. The fact that the meat industry is more concerned with profit, than health is disturbing. The people in our country today seem to trust the meat industry more than they should. The Bovine hormone which is given to cows was illegal in the United States at one point but now it’s back even though it affects our health, is linked to problems like cancer and has been proven to be dangerous and banned in other countries…
MF: I’m sure we can talk about this stuff all day…
PW: I know! Let’s move on to something sexy…
MF: I read something interesting on your myspace page that you don’t drink water… and this is supposed to be the healthiest alternative. What do you drink instead?
PW: What are you doing on my myspace page?! (laughter) I don’t like to drink a glass of water but I try… I want something tasty. But I make myself drink it because it’s healthy for ya.
MF: I know that you have a love for tattoos, have you received any new ones recently?
PW: No. I haven’t. I’ve been really controlled. I try to map things out so that I don’t become tattoo crazy. Plus the guy that I’m currently dating keeps saying enough!
MF: How many do you currently have?
PW: I don’t even know (she’s counting) There’s one that’s basically two, because it connects from the front to the back…let me see..1, 2, 3…4-5-6 (silence) about 12.
MF: Lets talk about your music. There are a few people out there new to the fact that you are a musician. What inspired you to create rock music?
PW: I worked with Tricky and different people, but I just happen to be very eclectic because at a very young age I was exposed to everyone from Marvin Gaye to Led Zeppelin, being in the Bahamas and listening to Caribbean music. I just mix it up and can’t help it because that’s where I come from.
MF: What inspired the name XE03?
PW: XE03 is a gas found on Mars and it’s 10 times heavier than air, rare and alien…I was trying to find a name that you don’t picture something when you hear it. I didn’t want to be placed in the box, so I tried to pick something that was sort of alien, kind of like the music…a bazaar mix.
MF: With Girlfriend’s up in the air, do you have any alternative plans?
PW: Well, I think part of my planning has to do with holding on until that question is answered because I don’t have a lot to do with what happens next. If Girlfriends doesn’t come back I’ll be doing film predominately and just music. But if it does come back, I’ll still be pursuing music.
MF: At the end of the day who’s Persia White?
PW: (Big Laugh) That’s a really good question, let me think about it… I’m not like a “celebrity” that’s all I can say. I’m regular. Most of my friends aren’t in the business… I like to rent DVD’s and lounge with my dogs on the bed and watch movies at night while having a drink of wine. I’m very simplistic in a lot of ways.
Dominga Martin is a New York based writer and the Editor-In-Chief of Crème Magazine
