'Empire' Actress Tasha Smith Details Drug-Ridden Life Before Fame

Source: Guillermo Proano/WENN.com / WENN

Empire‘s Tasha Smith Details Drug-Ridden Life Before Fame

In a recent episode of TV One’s Uncensored, famed actress Tasha Smith says she had a very different life before moving to L.A. Currently playing a recovering addict on the hit series Empire, Tasha revealed she could have very well been a “crackhead” in real life.

A twin sister born to a 15-year-old single mom in Camden, NJ, she says her hometown was a beautiful place but DEFINITELY had its demons.

“As beautiful as Camden was, it was a place where I dealt with sexual, physical abuse, a place where I did all kinds of drugs. I was doing cocaine at the age of 14. I really could have been a crackhead today,” Tasha confessed, adding “it was also a place that gave me a lot of resilience, perseverance and hustle.”

She would go on to move to Los Angeles at just 18 years old, a move that seems to have saved her life. There, she would land roles in some of our favorite films — ATL, Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married, and Why Did I Get Married Too, for example.

“We all have situations to overcome, but you don’t quit. You keep trying,” she said.

Amen to that. Tune into Uncensored Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on TV One.