I N S I D E R

KAT GRAHAM

ALL EYES ON...

CREEPING INTO OUR CONSCIOUSNESS: Shes everywhere,

earning her stripes on TV, in film, and in music. The 21-year-old sang on two tracks for will.i.am, danced backup for Missy Elliott and Pharrell, did her fair share of commercials, and even released a single, I Want It All, last fall. More recently she starred in The Roommate. PLAYING WITH BLOOD: Kat (born Katerina) auditioned for a role in the 1994 film Interview with the Vampire but was passed over for a young Kirsten Dunst. Seventeen years later, she now has an ongoing role on CWs The Vampire Diaries. My mom always raised me to be self-sufficient and to never rely on anyone. I ended up going much further than I thought I could. INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR: Born in Geneva, Kat also speaks Hebrew, Spanish, and French. Her mother is Jewish-American and her father is Joe Graham, a Liberian journalist (and godfather of two of Quincy Jones kids). Kats grandfather was Liberias U.N. ambassador and served in Sweden, Romania, and Kenya. GIVING BACK: Kat lends a hand to The Water Project, the UNICEF Tap Project, and Invisible Children, which seeks to stop the abduction of children for use as soldiers in Uganda. Find out who Kat is dating and the next city on her to-do list at Uptownmagazine.com.
BY DEENA CAMPBELL PHOTOGRAPHY BY MiCHAEL CHEvAs

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