Jordan Coleman is making her mark in a way that feels both intentional and undeniable.
With a starring role on the 10th season of BET‘s hit series Sistas, Coleman steps into the spotlight as the scene-stealing Cheyenne Barnes, Andi’s little sister. It’s a character layered with emotional complexity as she commits to a relationship with her sister while still carrying the weight of her complicated past.
Coleman’s portrayal adds a new dimension to the long-running show, bringing in fresh tension and a deeper layer to the established dynamic.
Coleman has begun carving her path with roles in All American: Homecoming and Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, and with Sistas, she’s cementing her place as a rising star to watch.
The highly-rated drama, known for its exploration of relationships, identity, and the nuances of life in the Black community, continues to be a hit with audiences. The series gets to the heart of many stories within the community, giving them the care they deserve.
The addition of Cheyenne has been sensational, with Andi’s younger sister bringing a new voice to the series, and helping to drive forward one of the most beautiful and, at times, complex relationships of all: sisterhood.
In our conversation with Coleman, the star opens up about joining the cast of Sistas, the significance of bringing these stories to life, and much more, including her dream role and what shows she currently has queued up to watch.
Coleman’s candid and insightful dialogue allows you to understand what drives her passionate performance on screen, as well as the person behind it.
I love all BET shows like The Oval and Sistas, so I was excited when the opportunity came up to talk to you about your character in this season, especially because Season 10 is a milestone season.
What has your experience been like stepping into the series now that it’s established, being the new kid on the block?
There were so many different feelings. One, I was super nervous and scared because even though I was coming into a super well-oiled machine and already established show, normally you’re like, “Oh, this is easy. I just need to show up, do my lines, and everything’s going to be great.”
But when you start realizing how impactful something like 10 seasons is for a show like this, and when you start realizing that people are leaving, people are coming, there’s legacies being left, and that means literally the role that I’m stepping into is I’m also going to be leaving a legacy.
And so, I had to fully understand that a new responsibility had been placed on my shoulders to ensure the show continues to grow as it has been. So, it’s like a combination of both. I was very nervous, but I was also very, very excited.
I think Cheyenne’s a great addition to the show, and I like that we’re getting into even more of Andi’s past and her family. Talk to me a little bit about their dynamic, what we’ve seen thus far, and how we’ll continue to see it evolve.
So when KJ Smith and I talk about it in between scenes or just while we’re running lines, the one common thing that we always say is, “Cheyenne and Andi are the exact same person. Neither of them wants to admit it.”
They’re just in two different stages of our lives. So, KJ always says, “Cheyenne is coming in holding a mirror to Andi’s past self.” And if we’re being honest, some of the same things that Andi is doing as an adult woman are also what we can call childish, or she’s not making the best decisions.
Cheyenne is there, calling her out a little bit. There’s a sisterhood that still needs to be brought back together, but there’s a lot of resentment and hate. And they don’t know each other, but they’re realizing that they’re actually a lot more alike than they think.
That’s such an interesting comparison. Now that you said it, I’m like, “Okay, I can see that.” I can definitely see that, because they seem so opposite now, but if you look at where Andi’s been and where she’s going, I can see that.
Yeah. And then you add in the 10-year age difference.
Absolutely.
Then we have Cheyenne and Hayden, which is certainly an interesting pairing. I don’t know if I saw that coming. What can you tease for us about that dynamic? What are we going to see from it? Is she going into it with good intentions, or maybe not-so-good ones?
Oh God, I can’t wait for the rest of season 10 to roll out. But it’s weird. People think it’s weird, but then when you sit back, you’re like, “You know what? They’re actually perfect for each other at this time of the show.”
Because we’re both opportunists, first and foremost, and we do it in different ways. But Hayden, if he can have a pretty girl on his arm, he’s a man. He’s going to do it.
Now, you add in the fact that he doesn’t like Andi, and now he gets to rub that into Andi’s face. Then I’m doing the exact same thing. I know that Andi doesn’t like Hayden, and I get to use him and rub it in my sister’s face. It’s like an easy get-back.
It’s that little sister, like, “Hey, hey, look what I’m doing,” type of thing. When it comes down to it, do I actually like Hayden? I think that I find him maybe adorable, but I think he’s a little bit of a cornball, and I’m using him for his money.
And I think it’s going to ride out for as long as Cheyenne needs it to ride out. And Hayden’s not going to put a stop to it.
I was like, maybe she finds Hayden a little bit intriguing. But then I was like, I don’t know. I don’t know if that’s really her type.
When I think about Cheyenne, I actually don’t think Cheyenne has a type. I think if the man has a credit card, I think that’s her type, as of right now. Because Cheyenne is very independent, she does things on her own.
The one thing she’s really missing is just someone sitting there paying for the dinners, taking care of her, and giving her that kind of admiration, and that’s what Hayden is doing. And Hayden knows nothing about her past or anything. So, it’s a win-win on both sides.
You’ve talked about this a lot with Cheyenne so far. And we’re learning something new about her each week. What are we going to continue to see from her and learn about Cheyenne as the season progresses?
Season 10 still really leaves you hanging on Cheyenne, which I love because I love the slow feeling out the layers. Her actions suggest she’s hiding something a little more vulnerable, and she’s acting out because she’s running from certain things, but she won’t tell anyone what she’s running from.
And it’s the same thing that she’s doing with Andi. Instead of just asking her sister for love, help, or compassion, she’s treating her like crap.
I mentioned this to KJ one day in another interview. I was like, “You know when you’re in elementary school, and the one way that the kid tries to show you that he likes you is he pushes you down.” That’s literally what I’m doing.
I’m coming in, and I’m poking the bear because I want her attention, and just doing it in the wrong way because I’m just childish at the end of the day. I’m a young girl who’s trying to figure out her life.
That’s so relatable.
You’re going to see it happen in season 10 for sure. You’re like, “Why is she making these decisions?” It’s like, “Because she’s not mature yet.” She doesn’t have a sister to look up to or anyone to talk to. And it’s immaturity at its finest.
That is so relatable, as you’re learning about yourself.
When you got the role of Cheyenne, what drew you to her? Was there something specific about her that you were like, “Oh, I love this. I really want to play this about her.”
As I was reading the scripts, I was like, “Oh, thank goodness she’s not boring.” It’s the role that you get when it’s like, “Oh,” and the breakdown is, she’s beautiful, she’s promiscuous, she gets the guys or whatever. And it’s like, “Okay, cool, that’s great.”
It’s super surface-level. But then, when we start digging into the fact that she’s running from something, she hasn’t seen her sister in X amount of years, and the mom is going through something. Why is she here?
Then I was like, “Oh, I get to play with this character.” And the writer, Courtney Glaudé, is allowing me to play with this character because he’s only giving us so much at a time. I’m in this world where I can build a story.
Instead of coming at Cheyenne with judgment like, “Oh, she’s just another pretty face who likes men.” It’s like, “No, no, no, no. Why does she put on this mask? Why does she look so perfect every time she goes out?” Her face is slayed, her outfits are slayed, her hair is slayed, but inside is very broken.
And that, as an actor, I get to play with that part, and I get to let hair, makeup, and wardrobe do the rest.
One of the things I love most about Sistas is that it explores a wide range of themes. You’ve got sisterhood, as we’ve talked about, family, trauma. So many different things.
From your perspective, what makes storytelling like this so important to put out there for audiences to see today?
Oh man, I think highlighting awkward conversations in an entertaining way can bring levity to the topics.
And especially when some people are watching them with their husbands, sisters, brothers, or family members, you start to realize we’re all human, we’re all on the same earth, and we’re all experiencing the same things. We just don’t talk about them, especially in the Black community.
It’s been a great thing to see therapy becoming more of a topic, pregnancy, and how Black women are affected with high mortality rates with pregnancy, but still, you’ve never seen it translated on a TV show.
It’s almost like it’s our TV show’s whole identity, having, I don’t want to say always an issue, but there’s always a topic of something that Black men or Black women are going through. And we get to show people in a relatable way. And there are jokes in there to help it not be so sad.
But it all is true at the end of the day; nothing that’s being shown or said in this show is like, “Oh, that could never happen.” No, it has happened, it is happening, and it’ll continue to happen if more people don’t become aware of these issues.
It shows the full circle of the Black community and our stories, which I love.
What does it mean to you, and in that vein, what does it mean to you to just be a part of an ensemble series that really does center around Black women and Black stories?
It’s so cool to be part of this storytelling. And it goes back to the first question I had answered, you think you’re stepping into a role of, “Oh, I just need to memorize my lines and be an actor, and if I do a good job, and maybe cry on camera every once in a while.”
But now, back to the question you’re asking me now, how does it feel to tell these Black stories? I really was like, “Oh my goodness, I need to take my time.”
There’s research that I’ve done, and I’m like, “I need to be delicate with this and I need to truly understand what I’m doing and how I’m portraying these situations,” because there are people on the opposite side of the screen watching me every Wednesday and they’re looking for answers sometimes or they’re trying to find a way to relate.
And obviously, we’re 10 seasons in, we’re relating to people. It’s happening. But I just want to continue that.
I want to make sure that I’m bringing justice to these stories. And it is entertainment, but it can’t just be entertainment; it has to be a great combination of both. And I feel so honored to be able to do that because this isn’t the first thing that Cheyenne’s going to be dealing with.
If God allows us to go to Season 30, there will be so many more stories that Cheyenne will be able to help tell. I’m very excited.
Switching a little bit, when I was reading your bio, the one thing that stuck out to me was that you really wanted to be in an action film.
What is it about action that you’re drawn to specifically?
I think, from an early age, I just really, really loved moving my body and using it. I’ve always been athletic. And throughout my entire 20s, they’ve been two separate things. I have my acting, and I go to improv, and I go to acting class, and all that’s great.
Then I have Muay Thai and surfing, and then I go to the gym. I’m in the gym every day, sometimes two times a day. And in my head, at some point, I’m like, “I really want these two things to merge.” And they do.
When you watch Marvel films, when you watch Charlize Theron, when you watch Halle Berry, it’s like they are literally acting with their bodies. And I love it so much, and I think it helps tell a story even more. My thing is if I’m able and capable of doing stuff with my body, then let’s do it. Let’s rock out.
I don’t want to be thrown through a glass window. I will totally leave that up to the stunt woman. But when it comes to fighting on camera and getting physical, that’s what I trained for. I’ve been training Muay Thai for the past few years, and I’m so ready for that leading lady moment.
I hope that happens for you.
If you could craft that perfect role for yourself, would it be an action role? Would it be something like Lara Croft, something like that? What does that look like for you?
Absolutely. A movie like Kill Bill or Salt with Angelina Jolie, where there’s great storytelling. They’re not just robots, like, “Oh, I’m strong, let me just fight.” It’s vulnerability constantly. There’s a reason why they’re fighting.
In acting, there’s a reason for everything. Someone is not just doing something for the sake of doing it. And when it comes to being able to explore different martial arts and different ways to move your body, I just think it’s a very beautiful thing.
There was a show I always talk about called Killing Eve, starring Sandra Oh from Grey’s Anatomy, and I don’t know what it was that stuck out to me about it, but these two women hated each other the entire time. One woman is trying to kill the other woman the entire time.
It’s action-packed. But they love each other the entire time. It’s insane what you can do with love and fighting, with using your words or never using them, and with just using punches, and seeing that come together into a beautiful story. There are so many ways to do it, and I want to do it all.
Our site is all about TV, so I always want to know what people are watching. What shows are you currently watching, and then what is your all-time comfort show?
Ooh, what show am I currently watching? I literally haven’t watched a show in three weeks, I think, because I’ve been working.
I’m about to start Paradise. I’m very excited because Sterling K. Brown is one of those actors that if I get the chance to act across from them, I’m like, “Okay, I think I’m good. I’m good to go.”
I’m actually watching Grey’s Anatomy with my roommate. So every time we can, we will watch one to two episodes. We’re only on Season 8, so I guess we’ll finish 20 years from now. There are 20 seasons. But my all-time favorite show is The Office.
Oh, that’s so good. Can’t go wrong with The Office.
It’s the best. How they use humor to get them through the most ordinary situations. The acting’s incredible. The writing is incredible. My friends laugh at me because I give the camera a look during a normal conversation while we’re at a dinner table.
My identity is somewhat of The Office. I love it so much. It’s my comfort.
You’re going to love Paradise. It’s so good. So, enjoy that.
Oh my gosh. I can’t wait. Literally, I’m going to start it this weekend!
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Sistas is currently airing its 10th season on BET.
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