Raven is so like that! The hottest teen show and a new CD in stores … that's what it's like to be Raven. She's so cool

Girls' Life, Oct-Nov, 2004 by Jodi Bryson

there are excellent reasons Raven-Symone is an attack of cuteness. It starts with a two-mile smile that's totally genuine. Then there's her big, bold laugh as she throws her head back and juts her arms up and out in front of her like she's rejoicing to the Goddess of Funny. Meet her, and those details are enough to make you wanna be her bud. But there's much more to admire about teen TV's most-watched actress.

Cheerful and stylish are not the best words to describe her. Adorable and cool aren't quite accurate either, even though she's a blast to talk to and clearly knows what's hot in fashion and music. With Raven, it's really the stuff you can't see that makes you feel comfortable around her. You don't have to be famous--or able to further her career--to get her attention. You just have to be honest and fun.

Raven, we decided, is like a water balloon of good vibes, bursting with giggles and down-with-you statements like, "Girl, fo' sho!" And she likes to talk about anything--lip gloss, George Bush, cooking, even God--and contributes her own colorful stories and intelligent opinions without ever forgetting to listen to your point of view.

She arrived for her GL photo shoot in pink sweats and flip-flops, with no makeup and no eye-rolling diva demands about a restricted diet or off-limit topics of discussion. She's just Raven. And, wow, she is so funny! "I'm very open with people," she says with her feet propped up, totally relaxed. "I'm like, 'Look, I got problems, OK? I have pimples. I fart! It's natural--everyone does it.'"

Arms all over the place, hands as visual aid, Raven is a total nut! She went into a total let's-not-be-cheesy comedy routine. She was keeping the energy of the room--and herself--down to earth. It worked. A ripple of gross-out stories from everyone followed ... only a grody 9-year-old boy could have topped the "ew" factor. The entertaining yuck-fest finally topped off when Raven high-fived GL editor-in-chief Karen on the subject of how much fun it is to squeeze zits. (Picking can scar. Bad!)

But Raven is not all jokes and chick-chat. She mellows out and talks about things that are important to her, specifically why you should never front. No posing, no faking. Be yourself with her, and watch the good stuff roll on up.

"Fake annoys the crap outta me," she says while her stylist glues blonde strands into her naturally short, chocolate-honey hair. "Now don't misunderstand. Fake is not highlights and acrylic nails. Fake is like you trying to front like you're something you're not. I will tell anyone: 'I have a weave in, OK?' Fake is lying about it."

Keeping things real is a regular topic in Ravens life. We blame it on a combo of being from Atlanta and growing up in front of cameras. Her status as a child star rivals the Olsen twins, beginning with her debut on The Cosby Show at age 3. There were many more TV appearances, and the big-time role of Charisse in both Dr. Dolittle movies. And Raven is the voice of Monique on the animated Kim Possible.

But it wasn't until That's So Raven that Raven became a member of Tinseltown's teen elite. Since Raven started competing with Hilary Duff's Lizzie McGuire for viewers (millions and millions of you), she's solidified her spot as a teenage commodity. Fans want more Raven, and more Raven you'll get.

Raven's small but significant role in The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement is not to be missed. Raven's character helps Princess Mia in her ever-clumsy search for a royal husband. "I got to sing with Mary Poppins [Julie Andrews], and lemme tell you it was the best day!" Raven hollers this like Raven Baxter might if she heard about a boot sale at the mall. "I watched Mary Poppins so much my mom would have to buy me new tapes, so meeting her was a dream! This from the girl who doesn't get why her fans don't understand that she is not Raven Baxter and doesn't really have visions. "I love my fans--love you, love you, love you!--but I have to tell some of the younger girls who get worked up when they see me, 'Oh, sweetheart, thank you for watching, but I'm Raven, not Raven Baxter.'"

Usually when she meets other Hollywood folks she deeply admires, she becomes incredibly nervous: "I met Janet Jackson, and she probably thinks I'm a mute. I just stared and blinked, going 'uh, um ...' So sad. But it was Janet, people! I'm just a girl like you!"

Playing an ordinary girl who ends up in an extraordinary circumstance is next up for Raven in All-American Girl, the movie that should push Raven into the big-screen league with Hilary Duff and Lindsay Lohan. The minute this news hit the Internet, tons of debates heated up on related sites from fans of the book. In the novel, the lead character is a white girl.

"Being beautiful is not being like everybody else," Raven says about the pressures girls have to fit a certain mold, particularly thin and blond when plenty of people are naturally round and not blond. "I think it's messed up that little girls only see one type of person. It gives them a false image of who we all really are. Girls come up to me and say, 'I'm not like everyone on TV, and finally we can look up to someone who's larger than a size 2.' I am not a pinkie-thin blond thing, and I never will be. I'm me."