Brilliant Minds- I'm the Star of My Own Sitcom

Words by Te-Erika

Nika Williams was just a kindergartner when she began performing poetry in front of audiences. Her favorite poem was Madam & Her Madam by Langston Hughes. She would dazzle the audience with a speaking ability that was well beyond her age group’s capability and people would often tell her that she had a gift.

She realized that she loved the arts and being on the main stage would be a permanent part of her life. “I always knew that I wanted to be in front of people and make them laugh,” Nika said.
For a while she ignored the allure of the stage by actively participating in sports. It wasn’t until she went away to the University of Florida that she decided to pursue an acting career professionally. When she decided to major in Theatre her mother wasn’t excited about it. She asked Nika, “How are you going to get a job with a theatre degree?”

But Nika was headstrong and believed wholeheartedly in her comedic gifts. Once she earned her degree she went home to Miami to save money to make her move to New York. She figured New York was the place to be if she really wanted to achieve her fantasy of starring in her own television sitcom.

After having saved more than $8,000 she became nervous about the big move and blew all of her money on parties, clothes and enjoying the South Beach scene. When her funds were almost depleted she stopped in her tracks and realized what she had done. The only thing standing in her way of success was her own lack self discipline and focus.

Once again, she got her head together and set another target date for her move to New York. The move was successful but once she got there she realized that the culture of the city didn’t suit her. She went back to Miami to regroup and refocus, this time setting her sights on Los Angeles.

When the time came for her to move to LA, she moved forward with no inhibitions. She believed in the gift within and even more she believed in the God within. She spent the first few months hanging out in clubs hoping to be discovered. “I learned that the people who could “discover” me weren’t hanging out in clubs, they were at home sleeping so that they could be on the set the next morning,” Nika said.

It was during this moment of awakening that Nika shifted gears. “You have to do the work,” she realized. “You can’t expect people to just notice you because you’re talented or you look a certain way.”

She participated in sketch comedy groups as she honed her signature comedic style. Feeling the pressure from watching how differently her performances were from other comedians she decided to stick to what she knew despite the proven road to success.

“I have to get up and do my comedy the way that I do my comedy,” Nika commented. “Richard Pryor did the same thing. At first he was trying to be another Bill Cosby but it didn’t work for him. Finally he went his own way and now look at him.”

After having bit appearances on shows like Nick Cannon’s Wild N Out, Nickelodeon’s Hannah Montana and the CW’s All of Us, Nika feels that the time is almost near for her star to shine through.

Amidst criticism, she recently left her day job as a middle school teacher so that she could be open to embrace opportunities. “People don’t understand, but it’s not for them to understand. It’s my story. It’s my life,” she said confidently.

Five years after she first made her move to LA, fears and doubts about her future sometimes creep into her mind but she remains firmly routed in her faith and refuses to turn back and run. “Fear is inevitable,” Nika explained. “The whole point of fear is to overcome it and keep going. At the end of the day it’s about persistence.”