Lanett Tachel- A New Voice Drops on Hollywood

Entertainment, People You Should Know — By Buddy Sampson on July 13, 2020 at 9:00 am

People You Should Know

By Buddy Sampson

The voices of Black producers and directors are more important than ever. There are many sides and perspectives that are important in the annals of African-American film and television history and there’s a new and dynamic voice, destined to be a huge one, and that’s the voice of Actress/Writer/Producer and stage professional Lanett Tachel.

Currently, Lanett Tachel is stewarding the production of “Pump,” an UrbanFlixTV comedy original, slated for broadcast later this year. The series, a story of the misfortunes of a successful fitness entrepreneur, Sean, features Ray J as the lead character, with Michael Jai White as Eric, Jennifer Freeman as Brianna and, well, Lanett Tachel gracing the screen as Tamika.  But who is Tamika? “Tamika has always been a hustler,” laughed Lanett Tachel. “She’s that girl that will do your hair, babysit your kids, she’ll do anything to keep the money coming in. She even slings things out of the gym.”

As you may know, Producers and Executive Producers are the “Big Cheese,” of any production. But being a producer can be quite challenging. “It’s a lot different than I thought it would be, being a producer,” said Lanett Tachel. “I know they say heavy is the head that wears the crown, but at the same time, the best thing about producing is empowering the people around you, so I kind of get to share the weight, which is great. Being the big cheese means I get the shot at putting a lot of people in a position where they can be their best, and in turn we all get the best product.” Speaking of the product, Lanett came up with the concept of “Pump” by observing the typical goings on at the gym. “I’ve always found the shenanigans of the gym to be funny,” she laughed. “A lot of people put on a character to go to the gym, so you see a lot of people represented.” She watched an infomercial of a famous fitness guru on TV and got much of her inspiration for “Pump.” “I was talking to my co-writer, Corey Grant, and I said, ‘this is so funny’” she laughed. And the concept for the hit series was born.

Lanett, who grew up in Prince George, Maryland, was heavily influenced by the sense of community in the city. “It was really short of amazing growing up there,” she reflected, “I didn’t realize while growing up there how different PG (Prince George) Maryland was from so many other places, cities and surroundings. At one point, Prince County was rated the #1 or #2 affluent counties for Black people. I was always surrounded by excellence.” With the proliferation and examples of Black excellence everywhere, Lanett learned the tools of how to succeed.

Lanett started as an actress at a young age. She played the role of Dorothy in a local production of “The Wizard of Oz,” and alas, she was hooked. The acting bug caught her. “From the first rehearsal, I knew this is what I wanted to do, you couldn’t tell me otherwise,” she laughed.  She later received her BFA from Howard University, doing several productions while there, leading to a unique opportunity in another country. “It was a liaison between Howard University and the Dominican Republic,” she said of performing the play, “The Bluest Eye” in that country. “We had to learn the play in Spanish and in English and we were able to intercut scenes of the play in both languages. It was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had coming out of college.”

Later, she produced an award-winning short, “Sister Sister,” and went on to produce and act in the suspense thriller “Illicit,” which featured Vivica Fox and Dean Cain. Her career has teeter totted on drama and comedy. She played Khaia in SYFY’s suspense movie “Surrounded,” and in the Lifetime movie “Psycho Brother-In-Law,” as Detective Torres. To demonstrate her versatility as an actress, she played the role of Shenita in “The Faux Show,” alongside Tiffany Haddish, Kim Coles, and Erica Alexander.

One thing is certain, Lanett will never bore you. The thrill seeker even jumped out of plane, trying her hand at skydiving. “I’m an adventurer,” she laughed. “Adventure is kind of what I do for fun.” Yes, this exciting new voice is destined to drop in on Hollywood and excel and viewers will have fun watching her and her productions.

Stay tuned for amazing things from Lanett Tachel. See “Pump” by visiting this link https://www.urbanflixtv.com/pump-series. For more information, visit her website at www.lanettonline.com or follow her on Instagram Lanett_Tachel.  You may also e-mail her at lanetttachel@gmail.com or check out her IMDB page IMDB.me/Lanett.Tachel.