Coco Jones Says the Entertainment Industry Has 'Gotten Better' for 'Dark-Skinned Black Women' (Exclusive)

The 'Bel-Air' star and Grammy nominee opens up about her whirlwind year in music and seeing an increase in representation in the entertainment industry

Coco Jones' head was in the clouds when she found out she received her first-ever Grammy Award nominations. 

“I was asleep on a plane, and you have your wifi on, so iMessages still work. I kept feeling like this vibration, and I was like, ‘Geez, this plane is going through some turbulence,'" the musician and Bel-Air star tells PEOPLE. “Then I look at my phone, and I had all these notifications saying, ‘Congratulations!’ Of course, I was geeking.” 

Jones, 25, who released her EP What I Didn’t Tell You in late 2022, is currently nominated in five categories at the upcoming 2024 awards ceremony: best R&B album for the project, best R&B performance and best R&B song for her hit single “ICU,” best traditional R&B performance for her Babyface collaboration "Simple" as well as best new artist.

Related: Coco Jones Isn't Afraid to Meet Her Heroes — Especially After Beyonce Told Her to 'Keep Going' (Exclusive)

Since “ICU” took radio and fans by storm, Jones' schedule has been nonstop. She embarked on her first solo tour this year and celebrated “ICU” going platinum in October with an intimate dinner in Los Angeles, hosted by Grey Goose and her record label, High Standardz/Def Jam Recordings. She initially had no clue the smoky breakup-to-makeup tune, which received a Justin Timberlake remix, would resonate like it has.

“When I made ‘ICU’, I didn't know if it would work in this time, in this generation. I didn't know if it was too slow or too soulful. I didn't know how the world would respond. I was just creatively experimenting,” Jones explains. “But I’m really grateful when I perform 'ICU' because the audience is screaming the lyrics at the top of their lungs. The last time that I had that type of reaction was when I was 14 or 15, and I was doing Disney Channel stuff.” 

Related: Coco Jones Details Her Journey from 'Defeated' Disney Star to Janet Jackson-Approved R&B Singer

Back in her Disney days, when she starred in the film Let It Shine and shows like So Random! and Good Luck Charlie, “Everything was kind of like fairytale vibes,” she recalls. “As a young kid, I definitely was sheltered and a little naive to the entertainment business. To me, everything felt magical and like it was always going to stay that way.”

Then came years of rejection as Jones tried to advance her music career and find good roles. Now, Jones feels her ongoing success comes amid a positive shift in representation in the entertainment industry.

“I definitely feel like the industry for dark-skinned Black women has gotten better and better, especially since I was a young girl,” says Jones. “And I think the more storylines and the more positions of power that are told from a woman of color's perspective, the more opportunities [there are] for women to play those roles and to hire women that would understand those storylines.”

With all Jones has accomplished this year, she says one person's stamp of approval reigns supreme: Beyoncé.

Upon meeting the "Break My Soul" superstar for the first time earlier this year at Roc Nation's Pre-Grammy Brunch, “I was very ready to give my elevator pitch, convince her of my worthiness,” jokes Jones. “But she already knew of me, and I will never be the same."

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