AfroTech: Larenz Tate Explains Why He Was OK With Being Paid ‘Peanuts’ When He First Joined ‘Power’

AFROTECH: Larenz Tate isn’t looking for a money grab when pursuing acting roles in Hollywood.

The “Love Jones” actor took the stage on Oct. 12 during the Building Wealth Today for Tomorrow (BWTT) Financial Empowerment Summit held at Chicago, IL’s UIC Forum. The one-day event, free to attend, is designed to promote generational wealth building.

“Building Wealth Today for Tomorrow is the largest financial education program of its kind. It brings together experts and leaders from businesses, community organizations, and city, state, ​and federal agencies to lead workshops and discussions that help Chicagoans build a more financially secure future,” Chicago’s City Treasurer Melissa Conyears Ervin said in a statement shared with AFROTECH™.

Taking to the main stage, Tate, Westside Chicago’s very own, was candid about his foray into the entertainment industry, which unfolded after he moved to Los Angeles, CA, with his family to join his father, Larry, who worked in education for a number of years. The area where they lived was beginning to be impacted by a drug epidemic, which prompted Tate’s parents to enroll their children in performance arts schools to distance them from that environment.

“They got us into performing arts to keep us busy, to kind of keep us out of the streets, if you will…We never went to Los Angeles to become actors or be in the entertainment business. We just went there for some other opportunities, and thanks to our parents, they got us involved in the performing arts. And from there our careers have taken off,” Tate said during BWTT.

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