Coco Jones Is Not Playing It Safe Anymore — And It Scored Her a Grammy Nomination

The name Coco Jones probably sounds familiar. You might have had her debut album playing on repeat recently or recognize her from her days on the Disney Channel years ago.

After finding stardom at a young age, the now 28-year-old singer-actress has worked over the past decade to find her own voice in the much oversaturated music industry. Although it has had its highs and lows, Jones now appreciates that she “got to be a little bit more normal than I would have if I had gotten all the things I wanted back to back to back to back.”

The hard work eventually paid off. She earned her first Grammy in 2024 for best R&B performance for “ICU,” as well as multiple nominations. But it’s her most recent nod for her debut album, Why Not More?that feels even more special. Partly because “an album is way more pressure,” she explains, but also due to the fact that she took some big risks with the project.

“I felt like I had two choices: to play it safe and do what I felt was expected of me and what I’ve done before, just in a similar way. Or I really, really, really had this desire to experiment with the other genres that have made me me,” Jones tells The Hollywood Reporter. “That was my biggest leap and I didn’t want to regret playing it safe.”

Below, Jones opens up about bringing her album Why Not More? to life, her latest Grammy nomination, new music she’s working on, her upcoming performance at the 2026 Super Bowl and how she plans to continue balancing music and acting.

Having found child stardom, what made you want to initially pursue acting and singing at such a young age, and did you ever consider doing something else once you entered adulthood?

As a child, I honestly just did whatever my parents supported and showed me that could be done. I tried all of the different things: gymnastics, soccer, softball. They were all sports actually, but that’s what they knew. And I would sing at home. So one time, my mom’s friend, who was a violinist, came over and she was noticing my voice, and I’m just a little baby at this point, so it stuck with them like, hmm, interesting. Then plays would happen at school and I would be like, “Yes, I want to sing.” I want to do anything during the play or whatever. So I guess they kind of found opportunities because of how passionate I was. It wasn’t really anything that we knew how to get into, but my mom was just like, “I’m going to find a way. She seems to really love this.” As an adult, I didn’t consider anything else, really, except maybe I did think about interning in a music job. I didn’t go to college. I started working, so that was just what I did. But I was like, maybe I could intern and start from the ground up. I mean, I know about music if things got really, really rough.

Having previously won a Grammy and been nominated several times, how does this year’s nomination for your debut album feel different from past ones?

An album is way more pressure. I think the significance of labeling it that is just heavier. So that makes the entire category that I’m in even more special, just because I know what an album means to me and [what] it means to the history of me as an artist. It’s just a lot more significant when you’re putting out an album and you can only do a first album once.

What would it mean to you if you took home the Grammy in February?

Girl, I would have to process that later because I really, really try not to overdo it in my brain about these things. It is just not healthy for me. I like to stay in the moment and be open to whatever happens.

Take me back to how you created Why Not More? and what were you hoping to get out of it, as well as what were you hoping listeners took away from it?

For me, the biggest thing was self-discovery at the time, just figuring out what I even wanted to say. And what I want listeners to get out of it is the confidence to experiment. I just didn’t know everything. I only knew as much as I did at the time, and that had to be OK because the project had to come out. So I hope it inspires other people to have some grace with themselves if they don’t have the complete answer. And it’s not this easy to explain the theme, and that has to be OK sometimes. Just let go of the perfectionism.

When you first got started on the album, how were you looking to differentiate it from your 2022 EP, What I Didn’t Tell Youwhich was also Grammy-nominated?

I felt like I had two choices: to play it safe and do what I felt was expected of me and what I’ve done before, just in a similar way. Or I really, really, really had this desire to experiment with the other genres that have made me me. I mean, my formative years I spent on Disney Channel doing bubblegum pop, but I really am inspired by some pop. And I’m from Nashville and I love country music. I think it’s some of the most amazing songwriting and storytelling. So I was like, do I show these other sides of me? I don’t know if people are going to like them because that’s not what I’ve been known for, or do I just do what has worked before? That was my biggest leap and I didn’t want to regret playing it safe.

Seeing all the love that Why Not More? has received over the past year, what comes to mind? Have you been able to process it all?

I think yes. To me, it’s kind of reassuring that I’m not crazy and that I did something good, so that’s always great to know. And I’m just constantly surprised because I feel like music is subjective and it’s not guaranteed that people are going to like what you like. So I guess that keeps me humble and driven, but it’s also kind of shocking when people like what I like. I’m like, Oh, OK! You just never know. There’s just no formula to it.

You also worked with the iconic Alicia Keys on the track “Other Side of Love” for the deluxe album, so what was that experience like?

I mean, amazing. It’s always such a blessing to be able to see how someone works that you look up to because, like we just said, there is no formula. So any advice is just a ton of weight off your back because you’re really just figuring it out as you go. My parents didn’t do this job and they couldn’t teach me this job. It’s hard. So being able to look up to somebody and then they’re right in front of you and you can ask them questions and they’ll answer and you can watch how they work and their passion and listen to their stories, it’s just so helpful in ways that you don’t even know you need until you’re sitting there in front of them.

Between writing, recording, filming music videos and performing, do you have a favorite part about being an artist?

My favorite part is probably being in the studio. Because there’s just so much room to experiment and correct yourself or change things. Nobody can hear it right then. It’s kind of like your own little secret. Nobody’s opinions of the song are even around yet. So it’s just fun. I feel like a scientist or something.

Can you tease if fans can expect any new music from you this year?

Oh yeah, I’m definitely working on a lot of music. A lot of music has come to me, and I think that’s because my personal life is a little bit more on the internet these days and people know what I wouldn’t be talking about because it wouldn’t make sense at all for where I’m at in life. So I’ve been getting a lot of spot-on songs from writers, which is so helpful to me. If it were up to me, I would do an album a year, but it takes so much time. But I will say these songs that have been sent have been coming together way faster than any other project I’ve ever done. So there will definitely be music this year, and I’m really excited about it, this new era of me.

Next month, you’re also going to be performing “Lift Every Voice and Sing” at the 2026 Super Bowl. What are you looking forward to most about being a part of football’s biggest night?

Just representing my culture well is always something that I’ve strived to do since I was a little girl in this industry. That’s always been something instilled in me in the front of my mind. So to be able to do that on such a huge stage, I’m really looking forward to it and I want it to just represent us well and make my mark in history and do a great job.

Are there added nerves, given that the Super Bowl is such a massive event?

I definitely get nervous before all the things that are super important, but it’s just right before. Not right now, not in a week or so, literally right before it all hits me.

Turning to acting, you concluded your final season of Bel-Air in December. Looking back on your experience with that show for four seasons and playing Hilary Banks, which Karyn Parsons originated on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, what comes to mind?

I think gratitude. I think, like I said, representing us well and being able to be on a show where the Black people have power and influence and money and status, and they also had things that they went through, but they went through them together. It wasn’t about toxicity or struggle. It was an uplifting family that happened to be Black. That to me is so cool and so door-opening and also so mentally expanding to the young kids who would watch it. So grateful that I got to represent in that way with Hilary, and excited for the storylines and the kids that it inspires as they grow up.

Having been working on music and as an actor for some time, do you have a preference between the two? If not, what do you appreciate about each one?

I appreciate the challenge of acting. It definitely is outside of my comfort zone and it forces me not to hold back as a person and not just a voice. I can easily use my voice as a shield. I know that it works and it does what it needs to do. But with acting, it’s pretty vulnerable because I’m like, “Was that even good?” So constantly challenging myself to be better and to be fearless with all these people standing around, and you’re supposed to be in this scene of chaos, and all these cameras are standing around and they’re like on TikTok on the side. It’s just like, Oh, OK, I have to lock into this world. I can’t let the external make my performance suffer. I have to lock into a completely alternate world and normally music takes me to that world. It doesn’t matter what’s happening. So finding my way in acting is more challenging.

Looking ahead, do you see yourself continuing to balance both?

I do like that idea. I do. I also realize that there’s really only so much time in a day and a year, so I would have to be really strategic about that.

As someone who has been in the industry since a young age, how does that impact your view of the entertainment industry as a whole and how you view success?

With my start, my mom was everywhere that I was. I was a minor, and I didn’t have to figure it out fully by myself. And what she taught me and how I was taught to look at the industry is like, this just happens to be my job. This doesn’t make me better than anybody else. This doesn’t make me different than anybody else. I just happened to be doing this job. So I guess the way I look at the industry is even though it’s music and that’s super personal, this is a business and business is not personal, it’s just a job. So I can give my all to my projects and then I can walk away because outside of that, there’s no emotions to it.

What does your perfect day off from work look like?

Oh, my perfect day off — I am we aring no glam. My hair is not done. I’m in the most comfortable outfit. I wake up whenever my body desires. It could be 2 pm, but this eye mask will keep the light out. I’ll wake up. I would probably just be on YouTube for a really long time. I love YouTube. My sister’s like, “You’re one of the only people who watches YouTube.” I’m like, “Girl, what? Y’all missing some things up in here.” I love long-form content. So I’ll watch YouTube and then I’ll Uber Eat some ramen because I’m not getting up. The only time I’m getting up is to get it from the door. I eat it, go back to bed. Then later on that night, I might be like, dang, I’ve been in bed all day. Then I’ll get up, go to the living room, do the same thing, order my next Uber Eats, go to the door, get it, go to sleep at 9 pm

What’s one of the biggest challenges you’ve been able to overcome to get you where you are today?

I think the challenge in your mind, like I truly believe what you think you can have is what you’ll get. And so keeping my mind steadfast on believing that I’m worthy of these opportunities, even if I don’t see that anywhere in my world right now, believing that I’m worthy of it is the biggest obstacle in my mind. And just keeping the confidence when you walk into these rooms and when you audition back to back to back to back, when you put out a song and it doesn’t react the way you wanted it to, keeping the confidence in your mind is the biggest obstacle.

If you had to describe what makes Coco Jones, Coco Jones, what would you say?

My authenticity. I also think my relatability in a way, because I went through high success as a kid and then extreme lows from my early 20s, [and] I feel like I got to be regular in a way. People would look at me like, I feel like she’s that girl from Disney, but they wouldn’t say anything. And I’d be like, OK, great, because I wasn’t going to say anything, but I got to be a little bit more normal than I would have if I had gotten all the things I wanted back to back to back to back. So a part of me that I think is this Coco Jones thing is I feel like I’m pretty chill, pretty normal and I just happened to sing (Laughs).