Eli Goree might be the poster child for the cliché "when it rains, it pours." He seems to be standing in a positive deluge right now. Currently starring in two television shows – Da Kink in My Hair on Global and Soul on Vision – he's also filmed a guest role on Flashpoint and has his eye set on future feature projects.
"I don't think it would be too hard for me to get a Valentine this year, going to all these premieres and events," he joked during our pre-Valentine's Day interview, though I pointed out it doesn't sound like he'll have time for much of a social life. "Isn't that how it works?" he mock-sighed.
The former Street Cents host moved to Toronto two years ago to try acting full time. Ready to give up, Goree returned from a life-affirming six-month visit to West Africa to find himself up for an audition for Da Kink in My Hair. Even then, the path wasn't easy. After six call-backs he thought, "I don't think this is going to happen," he recalled. But happen it did, and Goree joined the sitcom for its second season.
On set, he met director Stefan Scaini who encouraged him to audition for his upcoming series Soul starring Keshia Chante. "So August 30 we stopped shooting Da Kink in My Hair and September 1 I started Soul, and in that one day I had to travel across the country," Goree said. "It's been a wild ride, and I was really happy and fortunate."
The performer calls his two roles "polar opposites. The way they dress, the way they walk, the way they talk, is so different."
Da Kink in My Hair's Malik, whose grandfather brings him to his aunt Novelette's shop to keep him out of trouble, had gotten involved with a rough crowd. "Nobody wants to give him a shot. But they see after a while that he has a really good heart and just needs a chance," Goree explained, describing the teenager as "very funny. He has a lot of one-liner commentary, always the one to give a zinger or the harsh truth to someone. He's got a lot of life."
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