Disney fans, get ready to dive back into the enchanting world of Ariel and her underwater Caribbean adventures! The excitement is building as Disney Juniors Ariel is set to make its big debut on Thursday, June 27.
In an exclusive chat with BCKOnline.com, the talented Mykal-Michelle Harris, who brings Ariel to life, shared some behind-the-scenes secrets, dished on the catchy songs, and so much more. Check out the scoop from Mykal-Michelle below, and don’t forget to mark your calendars for the magical premiere of Disney Junior’s Ariel!
BCKONLINE.COM: Mykal-Michelle, can you share some fun or interesting behind-the-scenes moments during the production of this amazing show?
MYKAL-MICHELLE HARRIS: Of course! I’d say some of the most funny bloopers and things that you can get are definitely when I forget my lines or something like that. There have been so many times where I’ll, stumble up on a line and it’ll just come out as complete gibberish. Ariel can get really excited. And when she does get really excited, she talks super fast. [Ariel talks fast] either when she gets excited or when she’s explaining something wrong that she’s done and taking ownership for. She talks super duper fast to explain what’s going on. And so, when she does talk super fast, that’s when my words just stumble into a bunch of mashed up garbage. Those are definitely some of the craziest moments.
Also when I’m singing as well, there have been a lot of times where I will, accidentally forget to memorize this riff that I heard or I didn’t hear it while I was learning the song beforehand. And so I’ll do like a super flat note and I’ll be like, ‘whoa, I didn’t mean it to come out like that. Wait a second.’ There have been so many crazy times.
BCKONLINE.COM: Speaking of music, the show also introduces a lot of new music and, as you mentioned, you’re actually singing as well. So do you have a favorite song? And if you do have a favorite song which one is it and why?
MYKAL-MICHELLE HARRIS: There are a lot of incredible songs that are being played on the show, and there are brand new songs. There are songs that we’ve never heard before. and we’re getting introduced to them for the first time.
I think that one of my absolute favorite songs is a super upbeat song that plays during the outro of our series. It is such a great song because first of all, it’s such a head bob. It’s such an incredible beat, but at the same time, the lyrics are so incredible. It’s basically like Ariel saying, ‘I’m stomping at my own pace. I am, I am Ariel, I got this, I can do, I can do anything. I’m like, I’m a princess.’
I think that that is a really great song because it basically embodies what Ariel is doing throughout this entire series. She’s holding her ground, stating who she is, marching at the beat of her own drum. And, I feel like that. The song really embodies that.
BCKONLINE.COM: This show is super diverse. How important do you think it is for children to see such diverse representation in your portraying of a young Black Ariel on screen? How do you think this representation is important?
MYKAL-MICHELLE HARRIS: I think it is insanely important, um, for young kids to see this diversity. Because a lot of times we watch television to kind of pretend like we are in this magical world or, you know, get away from from life as it is right now. And so, I feel like it is so important for children, especially at a very young age, to able to see themselves on screen and be able to relate to a character, because that lets them know that if this person did it, then you can do it too. They can become an actor, they can become a marine biologist, they can become all the different things that they show in Ariel. And I think that is very important.
If you weren’t already counting down the days to the debut of Disney Juniors Ariel, we have a feeling that you are now! We cannot wait to see how Mykal-Michelle brings her truly amazing energy and talents to the wonderful world of Disney!
Tune on Thursday, June 27!
Photo: Mykal-Michelle Harris Instagram
