Zendaya Explains the Real Reason She Came Back to Disney

Let’s get one thing out of the one: It’s pronounced Zen-DAY-ah. As in yes way, Zen-DAY-ah.

But she’s so used to people saying it incorrectly, she laughs it off. As
 a Disney star, Zendaya Coleman is keenly aware of her role-model status. To wit, she spent her last two birthdays galvanizing her millions of Instagram followers to help provide a year of meals for needy school kids and a home for a trio of South African brothers orphaned by AIDS. But she’s just shy of 20 and not too grown-up to enjoy the occasional act of rebellion. When Cosmo visits her on the set of her hit show K.C. Undercover, she lifts the leg of her sweatpants, revealing a pair of 40s & Shorties socks embroidered with Team Fuck You. “I wear them for rehearsals,” she laughs. “I’m a Disney girl, so my bad words have to be small and hidden. But they’re there.”

Young though she is, Zendaya’s maturity rivals — if not surpasses — most 20somethings’. “I’ve always been an old soul,” she says proudly. “I never really was a kid. I was born 80 years old, like Benjamin Button.” Even at this year’s Met Gala, which she slayed in a single-sleeved gold Michael Kors gown, she took to Snapchat to lament how she was the only one among her peers who actually knew all the words to Jay Z’s “I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)” — the song came out when she was only 4.

But then, a lot has happened. Growing up biracial in Oakland, California — her father is black
 and her mother is white, both were teachers — Zendaya Maree Stoermer Coleman got hooked on acting at the California Shakespeare Theater, where her mom was a house manager. At 13, she was cast in the Disney Channel’s Shake It Up! The show ended in 2013. By 17, she’d released a self-titled album with the platinum single “Replay” and come in second place on Dancing With the Stars. When Disney asked her to return to TV as the star of K.C. Undercover, it was to be on her terms as both star and coproducer.

“The only way I was going to come back to the Disney Channel was if I was in a position of more power,” she says. “One thing that is really important to me is diversity on the channel. It’s hard as a young person of a different ethnicity or background to look at the TV and not see anyone who looks like you. Representation is very important.”

This year is well on its way to being the year of Zendaya.
 She was named the newest face of CoverGirl; Michelle Obama tapped her for the star-studded power anthem “This Is for My Girls,” benefiting FLOTUS’s and the Peace Corps’ Let Girls Learn program; she was cast in the upcoming film reboot of Spider-Man; and her new album is in the works. We’ve come a long way from her being that girl who sparked E!’s Fashion Police implosion. To recap: Cohost Giuliana Rancic said the star’s 2015 Oscar-night dreadlocks likely smelled of “patchouli oil or weed,” putting Zendaya smack-dab at the center of a conversation about stereotypes and prejudice. As awful as that whole thing was, her poised response (“Wearing my hair in locs on an Oscar red carpet was to...remind people of color that our hair is good enough”) and thoughtful acceptance of Giuliana’s apology on Instagram solidified her as a woman of considered grace and dignity. Not unlike — dare we say it? — Beyoncé. Perhaps Queen Bey would agree, seeing as how she cast Zendaya in her visual album tour-de-force Lemonade. The image of Beyoncé seated among young black women, including Amandla Stenberg, Chloe and Halle Bailey, and Zendaya, will forever be an icon of Black Girl Magic.

So while Zendaya didn’t exactly sign up to be a lightning rod for race discussions — the most recent being that her skin appeared lightened on the April cover of W magazine — her firm grasp on her beliefs has made her a go-to voice of reason. For Zendaya unfiltered, read on.

Let’s talk about
 your W magazine cover. Were you surprised by the claims 
of whitewashing?

I didn’t notice it on-set and I don’t believe that was their intention, but it is something that happens often for women
 of color. Our skin tone is changed a little bit more. Do I think somebody sat there and thought, Oh, I’m going to do this? No, but I do think it’s almost a subconscious thing, like that’s just what the cover’s supposed to look like in their head. And that’s the fault of society, but at the same time, I’m glad people had the discussion.

Was race an issue for you growing up?


I was always aware of racism except when I was really young. When you’re little, you don’t
 see it — especially being a mixed girl. I don’t see the difference between my white grandma and my black grandma. They’re just my grandmas. You don’t start seeing and understanding the differences of the world until you experience life.

What were some of those experiences?


In fifth grade, my father was dealing with racial tension at the school where he worked, and I was having some problems as well. There was a Martin Luther King Jr. Oratorical Fest, and I performed ‘Black Statue of Liberty,’ by Jessica Care Moore, in front of people who were not prepared for the words that were going to come out of my mouth. That was my stand, me saying something and doing something about it.

You weren’t afraid to speak out.

Yeah, that’s who I’ve been naturally for a long time. I dealt with a lot of weird stuff, even in elementary school. Like loving my hair. One day, I came to school with my hair straightened, and that was the only day anyone ever complimented me on my hair. That kind of messes with you. And unfortunately, a couple of things have happened to me on-set with people being racially insensitive.


Like what?


I didn’t like my hair and makeup one time on a photo shoot, and my publicist told me, "You should just be happy with it — they haven’t had a black girl on the cover since forever." She’s no longer my publicist.

Do you feel pressure to represent all black women?

I feel a responsibility to be a voice for the beautiful shades my people come in. Unfortunately, 
I have a bit of a privilege compared to my darker sisters and brothers.

What do you mean?


Like people question, Would you listen to Zendaya if she wasn’t the same skin color? And that’s an honest question. Can I honestly say that I’ve had to face the same racism and struggles as a woman with darker skin? No, I cannot. I have not walked in her shoes and that is unfair of me to say. But I’m completely behind that woman. I want to be a part of the movement and growth. And if I get put in a position because of the color of my skin where people will listen to me, then I should use that privilege the right way.

You’ve commented on cultural appropriation, especially the braids trend.


Braids are not new to black culture — we’ve been using them for years as heat-protective styles. It’s part of our culture. But they never became beautiful, popular, interesting, fresh, fun, all these adjectives until they were on somebody who wasn’t black. The second they came off a black woman, they became beautiful and interesting — [the style] became appropriate for the world. It’s the same thing with features. But I’m not going to open that can of worms. [Laughs]

Okay — so your new album. What can we expect?


It’s about being in love for the first time and how love for other people can also translate into a love for yourself. It’s definitely personal, more grown-up.


So you’re more into love than, say, a casual hookup?

I don’t think people are gross 
for having sex with people just for fun. Me, personally? I would much rather be in love and have the full experience with the person I’m doing that with. Everyone deserves to be in love — it’s different from when you’re with someone you don’t really know. But as long as you protect yourself and get tested periodically, then by all means, go ahead and do what you’ve got to do!

What about naked self
ies? Will you ever pull a Kim Kardashian?

I don’t like to do that. But that’s me! Now if my friend likes to
 and that makes her feel cute and beautiful, then okay, girl! As long as you’re protecting yourself and commanding respect, then fine. Live your life like that’s what’s up. My thing is just allowing people, especially in my age-group, to find out who they are. We put everything on social media, and it’s cool, but we allow a lot of opinions about ourselves when we haven’t even fully developed as human beings yet. I change all the time! And it’s hard when people nitpick an incomplete project. Like, how are you going to grade me on my first draft?

Do you ever pick yourself apart in pictures?

I’m not that type of person — I love the way I look. I love my hair, I love my skin, I love my features, my long legs, my buck tooth. I like it all! Of course I have favorite pictures and angles, but overall, I’m pretty happy with myself.

You were in Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood” video — does that make you a member of her squad?

[Laughs] No, I only know her from being on-set. She was a sweetheart, but it’s funny how people are like, Oh, you’re part of her club, you hang out every Sunday, and you guys go out to lunch. I’m like, No, guys, she’s a very busy woman, and I’m sure she has lots of friends already.

This is the first year you are eligible to vote. It’s a pretty 
wild election year!


There’s really crazy stuff happening right now, and it’s disappointing, sad, and scary. My generation, we really have to step up to the plate and vote. Tweeting is great — people say, Oh, I don’t want this
 or that — but at the end of the day, tweeting isn’t a ballot. Just say
ing that you don’t like someone on Twitter is not going to turn a state blue or red. You have to vote.

Will you share your political preferences with fans?


I don’t want to throw my opinions in people’s faces. I have 
a lot of young fans who are just getting into voting, and I don’t want them to be lazy and just choose what I choose. I’d rather tell you to please go out there, 
do your research, look a bit deeper, and make an opinion for yourself. Make your own decisions, not because of what I say or what you saw on Fox News but because you took the time to learn about what’s going on in our government.

What’s next on your to-do
list of life goals? 


Well obviously, I’d have number-one albums, and I’d like to be in multiple movie projects, produce something, start my own charity, maybe create a show. But my calling is not necessarily in front
 of the camera. That’s just like the car that got me there. Now that I’m here, I realize that my purpose in life is to help people and do positive things. That is more important than anything in my career.

For more of Zendaya's exclusive interview and photo shoot with Cosmopolitan, pick up the July 2016 issue on newsstands June 7 or click here to subscribe to the digital edition!