'The Chi' Season 5: How Tyla Abercrumbie's plan to leave Chicago for UCLA fell through

Tyla Abercrumbie realized that she could earn a living doing commercial and print work while she built her professional actor's resume in Chicago
Tyla Abercrumbie stars in 'The Chi' Season 5 (Photo by Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)
Tyla Abercrumbie stars in 'The Chi' Season 5 (Photo by Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images)

Showtime has a knack for bringing emotionally moving and powerful stories to life on screen and ‘The Chi’ is one of their best-loved series. Fans and viewers all around the world have given rave reviews to the remarkable representation of Black lives and the concerns of the community in Chicago's South Side. ‘The Chi’ season 5 premiered in June 2022.

With Emmy award-winning director Lena Waithe at the helm, the cast's mind-blowing performances make the series a treat for fans and audiences who watch it every week. Tyla Abercrumbie essays the character of Nina in 'The Chi'. Her character has gone through a lot of ups and downs and we have seen her evolve from being a married woman to becoming a divorcee to finally embracing her life as a single lesbian mother to both Kevin (Alex Hibbert) and Kiesha (Birgundi Baker). She then falls in love with Dre (Miriam Hyman) and they get married. Their journey as a couple has not been easy. We saw Nina cheat on Dre in the last season, putting their relationship in jeopardy. Since Season 5 focuses on all sorts of ‘Black Love’, in this season we are currently seeing how Nina and Dre are working really hard at rebuilding their relationship.

ALSO READ
 
Foxtail nightclub forced to close after woman does something UNBELIEVABLY LEWD with a bottle

SOFT SWING SWAGGER: Mormon TikToker Taylor Frankie Paul trolled for BIZARRE dance video amid sex scandal

Tyla Abercrumbie’s initial plan of leaving Chicago for UCLA didn’t happen:

According to an interview with the Chicago reader.com dated November 2021, as Tyla Abercrumbie’s path as a playwright and actor became more and more clear to her, she conceptualized a plan — graduate high school, move to the north side, then leave Chicago for UCLA or study as a foreign exchange student in Paris. At first, the plan had more to do with being in a place where she felt less vulnerable, as she was constantly trying to avoid being harrassed and catcalled in her neighborhood. But as she became a working actress, she realized industrial and commercial work was where the money was at when it came to acting gigs in Chicago. Concentrating on her income, these commercial projects became her focus before she started pursuing television and film roles.



 

Tyla Abercrumbie’s passion for acting

While studying at Columbia College, she landed at ETA Creative Arts in Grand Crossing, where she had her first 'taste' of a full-fledged production. Recalling the moment, she said, “That gave me the courage to realize as much as I love ETA, I needed to make more money. I asked myself, ‘How do you make more money at this?’ So I got an agent. That agent allowed me to do commercial work and print work. I realized I could make money and do theater out of passion as I gradually kept building more on my resume. And the more I did, the more I realized, I can do this.”



 

TOP STORIES
 
Who was Matthew Gallagher? Family to raise funds to send space-loving 11-yr-old son's ashes TO MOON

Christopher Meloni goes fully NUDE in Peloton ad, fans say 'makes me want to work out'

Tyla Abercrumbie’s humble beginnings as an actor:

In the year 2000, she took her full-time leap as an actor in the industry. She started off her career with television roles in ‘The Tracy Morgan Show’, ‘Shrink’, ‘Bette’,  ‘The Mob Doctor’, ‘Low Winter Sun’, ‘The Chicago Code’, ‘Detroit 1-8-7’, ‘The Beast’ and so on. But she hit pay dirt with 'The Chi' as she portrayed a character who lived in the same neighborhood she grew up in.


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Tyla Abercrumbie (@tylaabercrumbie)


 

GET THE BIGGEST ENTERTAINMENT STORIES
STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX.

MORE STORIES

Ellen Pompeo returns as ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ Season 23 brings another emergency to Grey Sloan Memorial.
2026-10-15T18:15:35.000Z
Samuel L. Jackson and Sylvester Stallone reunite in the first teaser for Paramount+’s 'Frisco King.'
2026-10-15T16:46:54.000Z
Sylvester Stallone returns as Dwight Manfredi in 'Tulsa King' Season 4, where rival gangs threaten to change his criminal empire.
2026-10-15T16:18:54.000Z
‘Tulsa King’ takes viewers beyond its namesake city as Dwight Manfredi’s empire grows across seasons. Here's a look at the real-life locations.
2026-10-15T16:02:35.000Z
Hal’s final move at the G7 raises questions about his loyalties as Kate confronts Grace, but keeps the viewers waiting for more.
2026-10-15T15:39:21.000Z
Season 6 of ‘Abbott Elementary’ premiered on October 7, and new guest stars are set to appear in upcoming episodes
2026-10-15T09:31:47.000Z
Linda Cardellini's ‘Crystal Lake’ Episode 1 pays tribute to a real snake killed during ‘Friday the 13th’ filming
2026-10-15T07:17:19.000Z
The adult animated series follows a celebrity escape artist who is pulled back into a war between Apokolips and New Genesis
2026-10-15T07:03:30.000Z
‘Chicago Fire’ Season 15 Episode 2 puts Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) and Kelly Severide's marriage to the test after the latter's promotion
2026-10-15T05:26:51.000Z
‘VisionQuest’ introduces a young pickpocket from London whose past traces back to Westview and ties into ‘Agatha All Along’
2026-10-15T05:12:19.000Z