<p>American actress and singer Elizabeth Gillies was raised on Nickelodeon, on all accounts, though her musical footprints on the Broadway stage at a young age cannot be overlooked. Young viewers, who have known this actress as Jade West in the series ‘Victorious’, grew up with her and watched her evolve. That was a couple of summers ago. The frames are wider now, the roles more dramatic. <br /><br /></p>.<p> The 22-year-old actress now plays Gigi, the lost daughter of drug-addled 70s rocker (essayed by Denis Leary) in the comedy series ‘Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll’ which is set to be aired on Star World Premiere HD, starting July 22. The actress-singer is admirably grown-up while talking about it. “Being 22 and a woman in this business, I get a lot of scripts that are similar. But this wasn’t the cliched one. It was really different. It had a musical element and it was a surreal experience working in it,” she says.<br /><br />Her musical repertoire had always hit the high notes. For instance, there is ‘Give It Up’, which is a duet with Ariana Grande, and ‘Take a Hint’, with Victoria Justice. Be it ‘Rolling Stones’ or Adele, she has covered them all. No surprises that when Leary, also the creator of the show, saw the demo tapes, he called for the audition. The rest is history.<br /><br />“I picked an Aretha Franklin song for the audition and Denis liked it,” she says. A screen test with him and the role was hers. “It was wonderful to work with Denis. He was open to suggestions and I could do improvs (something I love) and contribute to the dramatic scenes that were off script. Denis is so cool and funny,” she says.<br /><br />So the truth is, when the new series fell into her lap, she couldn’t have asked for more. However this was rock singing. Did she have a tough time? “It thrashed my voice a little bit. It was heavier and more of a dramatic challenge for me. It was very different but I needed it. Everything I wanted, opened up on this project. It has never happened to me before,” she says. <br /><br />For Elizabeth, this seems like a natural progression to grown-up roles. Or was it? “I grew up in Nickelodeon. So people see me in a certain way and relate to it. The role of Gigi would be an eye-opener for kids who grew up with me through Nickelodeon,” she says. <br /><br />Her life so far in her own terms “was wonderful but hard a lot of times. I’ve also been lucky to have had a series of jobs like commercials. But this is nothing like I had done so far.” The musician in her has a deep appreciation for ‘The Beatles’ among other legends. But who would she like to sing with? “Ed Helms,” she says. By all means, she looks all set to continue on her musical ride long after everyone else has left. “My dream? To win an Emmy, Tony and Oscar,” she chuckles. <br /><br /></p>
<p>American actress and singer Elizabeth Gillies was raised on Nickelodeon, on all accounts, though her musical footprints on the Broadway stage at a young age cannot be overlooked. Young viewers, who have known this actress as Jade West in the series ‘Victorious’, grew up with her and watched her evolve. That was a couple of summers ago. The frames are wider now, the roles more dramatic. <br /><br /></p>.<p> The 22-year-old actress now plays Gigi, the lost daughter of drug-addled 70s rocker (essayed by Denis Leary) in the comedy series ‘Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll’ which is set to be aired on Star World Premiere HD, starting July 22. The actress-singer is admirably grown-up while talking about it. “Being 22 and a woman in this business, I get a lot of scripts that are similar. But this wasn’t the cliched one. It was really different. It had a musical element and it was a surreal experience working in it,” she says.<br /><br />Her musical repertoire had always hit the high notes. For instance, there is ‘Give It Up’, which is a duet with Ariana Grande, and ‘Take a Hint’, with Victoria Justice. Be it ‘Rolling Stones’ or Adele, she has covered them all. No surprises that when Leary, also the creator of the show, saw the demo tapes, he called for the audition. The rest is history.<br /><br />“I picked an Aretha Franklin song for the audition and Denis liked it,” she says. A screen test with him and the role was hers. “It was wonderful to work with Denis. He was open to suggestions and I could do improvs (something I love) and contribute to the dramatic scenes that were off script. Denis is so cool and funny,” she says.<br /><br />So the truth is, when the new series fell into her lap, she couldn’t have asked for more. However this was rock singing. Did she have a tough time? “It thrashed my voice a little bit. It was heavier and more of a dramatic challenge for me. It was very different but I needed it. Everything I wanted, opened up on this project. It has never happened to me before,” she says. <br /><br />For Elizabeth, this seems like a natural progression to grown-up roles. Or was it? “I grew up in Nickelodeon. So people see me in a certain way and relate to it. The role of Gigi would be an eye-opener for kids who grew up with me through Nickelodeon,” she says. <br /><br />Her life so far in her own terms “was wonderful but hard a lot of times. I’ve also been lucky to have had a series of jobs like commercials. But this is nothing like I had done so far.” The musician in her has a deep appreciation for ‘The Beatles’ among other legends. But who would she like to sing with? “Ed Helms,” she says. By all means, she looks all set to continue on her musical ride long after everyone else has left. “My dream? To win an Emmy, Tony and Oscar,” she chuckles. <br /><br /></p>
