Andy Allo Dishes on Her TV Roles, Honoring Her Culture Through Food and Playing Ping-Pong With Prince (EXCLUSIVE)
See how the 'Chicago Fire' and 'Upload' actress found inspiration in her time as a member of Prince's band
At just 36 years old, Andy Allo has already lived many lifetimes. The actress, musician and chef released her debut album in 2009 and caught the attention of none other than Prince, which led to her joining his band, the New Power Generation, in 2011, and in recent years, she’s become a TV star, as she had a recurring role in Chicago Fire and starred in the Amazon Prime Video series Upload. The sci-fi comedy recently aired its final season, and currently, she’s pursuing yet another passion as a professional chef devoted to bringing African food to the masses.
Allo sat down with Woman’s World to discuss her multihyphenate career and share memories of working with Prince.
Andy Allo reflects on her TV roles
After five years playing Nora Antony, a customer service representative for the virtual afterlife, in Upload, Andy Allo is appreciative of how the show handled existential questions. “Upload forced me to start having tough conversations about life and what comes after death,” she says. “One of the things I love about the show is that it really covered all its bases and showed all the different perspectives around technology, and Nora’s connection to technology came from an emotional place. [Series creator] Greg Daniels and the writers captured the heart of what technology can be, and what I believe it should be, which is something that enhances our humanity.” “Being on the show has been a dream, and it’s been life-changing,” she says emphatically.
Allo also immersed herself in a decidedly different world from Upload’s futurism when she played fire department lieutenant Wendy Seager in Chicago Fire. “The role was so fascinating,” she says. “I never knew much about firefighters until I was cast in the show, and I got to learn all about the hours they put into it, the training, the volunteer aspect of it and the side of fire investigating, where you find out whether something is arson or not. They actually had a fire consultant on set so we could learn all about the intricacies of that job. It’s really intense.” “Working on the show gave me so much gratitude for firefighters and everything that the fire department does that I had no idea about,” she adds. “It was challenging, but I loved every minute of it.”
Andy Allo’s ‘beautiful’ time with Prince
Andy Allo isn’t just a TV star—she’s also collaborated closely with one of the most iconic musicians of all time. Music was Allo’s first love, and she started out playing open mic nights, which led to her being featured on a show on the Africa Channel about up-and-coming African musicians. When the channel began working on a show featuring Prince, they reached out to connect her with him, and soon enough, he asked her to play with him and personally requested that she join the New Power Generation.
“I feel like my life has had so many beautiful gifts, and when I think about some of the things that I’ve experienced, I’m like, ‘Did that really happen?’ It feels so surreal, and I never would’ve imagined in a million years that I would meet Prince,” she says of her time with the late performer. “My mom always said, ‘Luck is when opportunity meets preparedness,’ and I’ve been really lucky, but I’ve also always been prepared for when these moments present themselves.”
Prince once said of Allo, “We knew she’d be leading her own revolution soon,” and reflecting on these powerful words nine years after his untimely death, she says, “I don’t take it lightly. My mission is to live a life that inspires others to live theirs, and in exploring all these different careers and interests, I hope that my legacy is showing that whatever dream you have, you can achieve it.”
“Everything is interconnected,” Allo says. “Something that Prince did so beautifully was bring a lot of people together, both as listeners and as musical collaborators. There’s an inclusivity that he created and that you can hear in his music, and it’s very inspiring. He also didn’t put any limitations on himself, whether it was in his genre or his legacy as an artist, and what he stood for with record labels and the ownership of his creativity.”
How Prince taught Andy Allo to embrace her inner child
Andy Allo gets emotional while discussing Prince’s legacy, but she’s also eager to look back on his lighter side. “He was such a character. One of the most surprising things about him was that he could be so stoic, but he also had this charm. I was very surprised to learn how much of a prankster he was,” she says with a laugh.
“We would have ping-pong matches that were so competitive,” Allo continues. “I’m the most competitive person, and we’d play for hours in Paisley Park. We would play match after match after match. I remember after one long bout of ping-pong, I ended up winning the final match, and he screamed, threw his paddle down and ran out of the room. It was hilarious. For a moment I was like, ‘Is he serious? Did I just piss him off?’ Then, of course, for dramatic effect, he took his time waiting, and he ran back in, like, ‘Gotcha!’” “When he didn’t come back in the room and I’d go to check, he would be hiding around the corner, and he’d jump out and scare me. He was always very light on his feet and had good reflexes,” she recalls.
“I learned a lot from Prince, and one of the biggest things was that he had such a childlike energy. He was innocent in a lot of ways, and he was like an open channel that allowed things to flow in,” Allo says. Today, she follows Prince’s example by prioritizing activities that feed her more whimsical side. “Cultivating my inner child has been really helpful in staying creative and inspired,” she says. “I got a mini trampoline because I was remembering how much fun that was as a kid, so from time to time I go jump on there. I try to remember how I used to see the world as a kid, when everything was awe-inspiring.”
Andy Allo’s foray into food
On top of all her other fascinating projects, Allo is also a trained chef, and has been hosting pop-up dining experiences where she cooks food from her native Cameroon. “I’ve always secretly dreamed of being a chef, but my life has taken me on a winding road as a musician and actor,” she says. “During the actors’ and writers’ strikes my interest in it crept up again, and I thought it might finally be the right time to explore it, so I took a leap and did a nine-month apprenticeship program. I’m a zero to 100 kind of person, so I had no chill about pursuing it!”
Allo sees cooking, music and acting as all being connected. “The throughline for me is that I’m a storyteller, and I tell stories through different mediums,” she says. “I tell stories as a singer-songwriter, I tell stories as an actor and now I tell stories through food.” “The cuisine that I focus on is very related to my culture and my upbringing, and I get to tell stories around that,” she says. “Most people in the U.S. haven’t had Cameroonian food, so that really excites me and motivates me, and my mission is that everyone gets to try it. It’s such interesting food and it’s so delicious.”
Allo immigrated from Cameroon to the U.S. at 13, and says, “The foundation of my growth and how I approach things really stems from growing up in Cameroon and coming here at such a precarious and sensitive age.” “I didn’t sound like anybody else, and I had such a different upbringing, so I really had to adapt and learn American customs. I picked up my American accent because I wanted to fit in and not be bullied. That tough time as a kid really helped me be adaptable,” she notes.
“Joining Prince’s band was a huge opportunity,” Allo says, tying her music back to her early days. “I had been preparing, but there’s also nothing that can fully prepare you for that level of excellence and that standard of performance. I was thrown into the deep end, and how the fans related to me wasn’t always positive, so that was challenging to navigate. Learning how to adapt and go with the flow early on has really served me in these challenging situations.”
Andy Allo’s spiritual side
Allo credits her faith with helping her balance her many different projects and find inspiration. “My faith is integral to what I do, and I see God in everything,” she says. “I saw the most beautiful sunset the other day, and I was like, ‘Wow, that’s God, and what an artist God is to paint the sky that way.’” “Sometimes, I get so distracted that I lose sight of the beauty that’s all around me, so part of my creative practice is reminding myself to pause and look around at my surroundings and find inspiration in things that you normally wouldn’t think are inspiring,” she says.
“I have this uncanny ability to take things that are fun and part of my self-care and turn them into my job,” she says with a smile. “Playing guitar and singing definitely calms my nervous system. I am a total workaholic, and my justification is that all the things I do are things I love.” “What I’m exploring now is finding things that aren’t tied to my various careers, as much as I love all of them,” she says. “I like to spend time in nature and spend time with God. I’ll go on a walk or cook dinner and invite God into that experience.”
Allo may have a full plate, but she also finds value in slowing down. Asked what advice she’d give her younger self, she says, “I would tell her that there’s no rush. Sometimes in this industry, it feels like there’s a time limit, and you need to do everything right now, so I’d tell her to really savor every chapter, because it all works out.”
“Everything leads you on this epic adventure, and that’s the fun of it,” Allo says. “Rather than being scared of not knowing where things are going, it’s more about asking ‘Where’s this gonna go?’ and being excited for the adventure. I think that’s the purpose of life. Life is just one wild adventure we all get to be on, and there’s no rush.” Clearly, Andy Allo has found joy in her journey and the results, from making music with Prince to acting to cooking, have been wonderful to witness.
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