Jazlyn Martin comes with many talents — singing, acting, and dancing. She is best known for playing Jackie, a 17-year-old Afro-Latina from South Central LA and Will’s love interest, on Peacock’s hit series “Bel-Air,” a modern reimagining of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” She joined the cast in the second season, which became Peacock’s most-watched original sophomore series to date. Season 3 of the show premiered last Thursday (Aug. 15), where Martin reprises her dynamic role, bringing fresh excitement and depth to the series.

“Jackie is a very interesting character, and I think this season, she's really longing for community, and sometimes that doesn't look healthy,” Martin says of her character. “But, she's looking for a sense of belonging, a sense of community, I think she feels quite unlovable, which hasn't changed from the previous season. But, you see her really go to measures to feel loved.” 

Martin also discusses the show’s cultural significance and its reception among fans. “Of course, Black and brown representation is extremely beautiful, but I think a good representation of that is really essential to not seeing the stereotypes but uplifting people that look like you. It encourages the younger generation to reach a little farther. Seeing beautiful, strong, powerful Black people on screen is insane. And then have this be a reboot, which has a long history within itself, which is a beautiful thing to be a part of,” she says.

Martin has also appeared in hit shows like “This Is Us” and “All American: Homecoming” and recently transitioned into music and admits that the acting and music industries are entirely different. “I'm learning, getting frustrated, getting excited. I’m also falling in love with the process, which is hard to do, but I’m also finding the joy in the little hiccups,” she tells BET. “With acting, I get to tell different parts of myself and become these characters, whereas, with music, I feel like I can tell my own story from my own experiences and show the world a little bit more of who Jazlyn is.”

The Los Angeles native grew up in a creative household, which explains her talent. Her mom was a dancer, and her dad was a musician. Following the success of her debut single, “Perfect,” released in June, her follow-up single, “They Say,” further established her as a powerful voice in the industry as she champions individuality and self-empowerment.

On Friday (Aug. 30), she will release her debut EP, Identity Crisis. She stated that since this was her first introduction as an artist to the world, she wanted to put something meaningful. “I wanted to create some relatable ness for the fans to be like, ‘Oh, I like her. I see myself in her,’” she explains. “So, I was brainstorming; I’m very intentional, so I never just wanna put out music and be like, ‘Here's a project.’ I'm a storyteller, so I wanted to tell a story.”

Martin revealed that her struggles dealing with her identity while growing up inspired the creation of the project. “I just thought, ‘What's one thing I've always struggled with?’ It's been my identity. And I think any age, any gender, any ethnicity has had this struggle and has had this conflict in different periods of their life and different ways than me. I grew up being biracial… Black and Mexican,” she says. “I wasn't sure where I belonged or where exactly I fit. And, you know, growing up as a kid, you're trying to figure it out, and you have the world telling you who you are instead of finding out for yourself.”

She continues, “This project was just a journey of introspection, self-love, self-hate, and a conversation with God. It was inspired by revealing how ugly and beautiful an identity crisis is.” 

Martin says that creating this EP was very emotional for someone who doesn’t practice vulnerability as much. “I'm a very strong person, is what we'll say, but it definitely encouraged me and kind of forced me to put down these walls. And, with music, you kinda have to,” she adds.

As Martin’s musical journey unfolds, fans and critics eagerly anticipate what she will create next. She wants to work with Jasmine Sullivan, Lucky Daye, Stevie Wonder, Jill Scott, and Beyoncé, just to name a few. “There’s a whole list, but we're already getting crazy,” she laughs. “My team and I are planning out exactly what I want to do next. After this recent one, I already have pretty much a whole project done, so I’m just trying to figure out if I want to do singles or put out a whole album. But more music will definitely be coming out, and I’m excited because it’s going to be very different from Identity Crisis.”