![]() Why did the character of Hilary resonate with you both? To properly look back at the legacy of Hilary Banks, sat down with Karyn Parsons and Coco Jones to talk about what the character means to Black women, why it's important to show imperfection on screen, and why the core story of The Fresh Prince still speaks to us today. Jones is embarking on a music career alongside her acting career - she was recently signed to Def Jam Records, with her debut single set to release next month. ![]() She also funded own non-profit organization, Sweet Blackberry, which publishes children's books that share the stories of overlooked African-American achievements in history. Parsons is now an author, having recently written the novel How High The Moon. Like Banks, Parsons and Jones have multiple talents. Play icon The triangle icon that indicates to play While many aspects of Hilary are the same (she still loves clothes and lives in the backyard pool house), the new show allows longtime fans of the character to see how their favorite Daddy's girl has evolved over the decades. Much like Parsons, Jones has nailed the character, this time introduces as a full-blown chef and influencer, rather than a fumbling weather girl and '90s-style talk show host. The reboot, dubbed Bel-Air, found its new Hilary in Coco Jones. Sure, people wondered who could replace lovable characters like Will and Carlton and Uncle Phil - but for a certain subset of the viewing public, the most important question was this: Who was going to be Hilary? So when the new reboot for the Fresh Prince (backed by the show's original star, Will Smith) was announced, the buzz was deafening. Her character paved the way for the likes of Dionne Davenport in Clueless and Toni Childs in Girlfriends. As the ditzy but determined rich girl with a heart (at least sometimes), she proved that Black Valley girls existed, and that regardless of their signature West Coast intonation, they were complex individuals too. The eldest child of the Banks family in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Hilary, played by Karyn Parsons, is synonymous with bougie Black fabulosity. It's not an exaggeration to say Hilary Banks is one of the defining Black television characters of our time.
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