Hey guys, I'm Brandy Chang, hanging out in the Young Hollywood studio with Mr. Shamar Moore.

Hi. Hey, hey, hey. How are you?

I'm good. You've always been the ladies man, would you say?

Oh, no. I mean, no. I mean, I'm a I've always been kind of a cheese ball and a ham, but but actually as a kid, um, growing up, um, it's part of why I got into acting. I was really shy.

Really?

I was I was I was really shy. I mean, I was once I knew I was in the mix or once I once, you know, meeting a girl? Oh, no, no, no, no, no. I didn't I didn't know what to do. I was at the other heights. So, I mean, I'm the guy who took a girl in college, took her to a Prince concert, all went great, came back, get her to the door, that moment of, can I come in? Or can I are we gonna kiss? Or what are we gonna do? And so we're standing there looking she's like, so? And I my dumb butt is like, I lean in and I'm right there, all I got to do is kiss her. And I'm like, is it okay if I kiss you? And she opened the door and said, good night, Shamaran, and shut the door. No. And it took everything in me not to go. No, let me try again. Let me try again. And I I walked across campus, kicking rocks, cans, just you just talking to myself, you dummy, you dope. So, I was I was the like awkward, shy kid for a long time. My my out was sports.

So, what brought you out of your shell? Was it acting then, would you say?

I think acting act well, sports sports started it and then, uh, but I was always curious about acting, but nobody in my family or friends had ever acted. You know, I used to sneak around because when you're a jock in high school, it's not cool to hang out with theater kids. They're they're kind of those people over there. But I would sneak into the little theater and just sit back and watch them do plays and things like that and rehearse. And they'd kind of turn into somebody else. And I just thought it was fascinating to kind of put on wardrobe and learn dialogue and then get to be another person. And so I was like, well, maybe if I do that, it'll give me permission to to kind of come out of my shell and and do and say things that I wouldn't normally let myself do. So, I don't know. I was just really curious about but I do think acting helped me bring myself out.

You've been playing one character for about eleven seasons. Eleven. Oh my gosh, in Criminal Minds. Yes. Is that so amazing to be a part of a show for that long?

It is amazing. And you kind of have to we all still pinch ourselves, like, you know, it's like, wow, are we really doing this? And it's it's really because of the fans. The fans. We we always I say that we're the little train that could. Because when the show first started, I was like, all right, there's 101 cop shows, why do they need 102? And we didn't know what we were going to be. And we're just actors auditioning and rolling the dice and hoping the things you think are hot, never make it. The things that you think are like not, was like, all of a sudden on television for eleven years. So, um, no, it's it's been such an amazing run and and I'll never say that we're the best show on television of its kind, but I I will say I think that we're a very unique show.

Why is that?

Um, just I just think we we kind of set ourselves apart. We're it's it's a dark, twisted, weird world that we're exploiting and showing, but it's also got so much compassion and it's a very educational show. Um, we're looking at these creepy, creepy bad guys. And and this type of stuff does happen around the world, which is kind of freaky. Um, thankfully the percentages are low, but uh, we kind of thrill you, scare you. You got CSI one, two, and three. You got NCIS one, two, and three. You got one criminal minds. Yeah. So, always imitated, never duplicated. That's that's pretty crazy.

And you're up right now for a People's Choice Award as well, which is pretty pretty cool, right? And that means not your first award that you've been nominated for or even won, but it's it's cool that after, you know,

It never gets old. And no, I haven't won a lot of them. I mean, I've I've won a couple of things here and there. I've never won a People's Choice Award. So, hey, vote for your boy. Um, but uh, no, it's cool and and, you know, it's it's not an Oscar. It's not a it's not a Golden Globe. I mean, all those things are cool, but I've been in the game long enough that I'd be lying if I say it wouldn't be nice to win these things. But when you get nominated or recognized for me, um, it really just feels good to know that you're relevant and that you're making you're making some noise and I'm sure actors say this all the time, but it's just really true. Without the fans screaming and yelling and hooting and hollering, we we don't get to do what we do. So, this particular award is is voted on by the fans and and that's just that's a cool feeling.

Well, something tells me your baby girls will get you there. Tell tell everybody at home who the baby girls are because it's it's kind of a little bit of a fan action going on.

Yeah, it's a little it's a little cult following. But if you don't know about the baby girls, then I don't know, you're sleeping. You're missing it. I mean, you're late to the party. But baby girl is something I've said my whole life. I mean, I call them shamarisms, so I mean, I've I've said little pet names my whole life just goofing off. And uh, I just happened to be goofing around in a scene on uh, early in season one. There was a phone call between me and Penelope and it was said something like, uh, you know, Garcia, I need some information on a white guy in a minivan, age 25 to 35. That was scripted. And then I was in a goofy mood and I was like, look here, baby girl, I need you to work your magic, all right? I'm looking for a white guy in a minivan, 25 to 35. Make it do what it do. Boo. Something like that. And I mean, I just was talking mess and the next thing you know, it was on television and then the letters and the blogging started and then it just kind of evolved. And

So, they started putting it in the script after that or were you just kind of rolling with it?

Yeah. But they did it all wrong. They did it all they did it all in the wrong places. They did it too many times and so I I they they do they try. They try. And then I think a couple episodes ago they wrote. They're like, yo, baby G. And I was like, I was like, look. I said, we're skating by with baby girl. Now you want me to go, yo, baby G. I was like, I can't pull that off. No way. And uh, so no, that didn't that didn't fly. And I just switched it back. But I only say I say it one to two times in episode. Okay. I won't say it more cuz I don't want to overkill it and, you know, um, I'm selling t-shirts. So, I got to sell t-shirts.

And you are selling that. Yeah. So, tell me a little bit more about the t-shirts that you're selling then because it's going towards a great cause.

Well, it started out just this catchphrase. And then, you know, through the decade. And then once I once I got into social media, I kind of understood, you know, how you can kind of self-promote and market and I decided my mother has multiple sclerosis. And uh, she's been surviving and battling and beating this thing for a little over fifteen years. And so I thought, okay, well, I've been riding a bicycle and doing these walks to support my mom. Now I can talk about it on social media. I was playing around with making some t-shirts and clothes just for fun, but didn't really know where I was going to go with it. And then all of a sudden, I had a lightbulb moment and I was like, wait a minute, I can kind of make some cute, sexy, silly, fun clothes, interact with my fans, and none of the money goes in my pocket, which I'm really proud of. Um, but I'm like, oh, here's a way to kind of have instead of asking people for money, to say help me and my mom and other people, I was like, here, buy buy some clothes that make you feel kind of good about yourself. And in doing so, you're helping other people have a voice and have a chance. And so and it just kind of evolved into this really cool, cool charity and movement. And we've raised and donated something like close to a million dollars. Just off of the

Just off of.

It's it's t-shirts, nighties, booty shorts,

Right.

The apparel, the sweat suits, uh, yoga clothes. I mean, it's it's really fun, comfortable, comfy type stuff that I just, you know, driving back and forth downtown, learning about stitching, learning about cuts. I'd be in a Starbucks and some little hottie would be wearing some clothes and I and then so she think I'm trying to get her number. I'm like, no, what's that made out of? Like what what did you buy that? What did it look like? Oh, I like her shirt.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

I wish I didn't take so long to say no when I mean no, say yes when I mean yes, and not worry so much about what other people thought of me because that gets in the way of your vision, of your plan. You can get derailed if you're trying to please everybody all the time. And the thing about trying to be successful is it's admirable on one side. But you don't know how people are going to perceive you. And when you strive for something, you have to realize you're going to have to stand alone at times. And that's a lonely feeling. And a lot of people can't weather that storm of loneliness or wanting validation from people you care about and not necessarily getting it. Because when you strive for something, people are going to people will support you until you get there. And then there's envy, then there's jealousy. And then there's, you know, then there's accusations that you forgot where you came from or now you're feeling yourself. Oh, you've changed. And somehow you got to block all that stuff out and you got to look yourself in the mirror and know that you're you're keeping it real for yourself. You remember where you came from. If you remember where you came from, you know what it took to get there. You didn't cut any corners. You didn't cheat. You didn't step on anybody to get there, then you own it. You don't apologize for your success. You don't apologize for your vision. But you're going to learn that you don't you don't need to talk about it. You just need to be about it. Because the more you talk about it, people are going to try to knock you down. I'm the type of person you might knock me down, but you're not going to stop me. And if you want to stop me, you got to knock me out. And all haters do is they remind me that I'm obviously doing something because I got their attention and all they're doing is motivating me to do more of it and be better. So, please keep hating.

No, but we don't want to hate you.

No, but I'm saying to anybody out there who wants to look for a reason.

But but the rest of you just keep it. It keeps him going, then keep hating. Cuz we want to keep you around. So.

You can't you can't enjoy the good without the bad. You know, if everybody's loving on you, then how do you know it's real? And so you need a little balance. Right.

Well, thank you for sitting down with us.

Yeah. My pleasure. My pleasure.