"Lupita Nyong'o Reveals Why She Embraced Her Kenyan Accent Again After Concealing It for Years at the Start of Her Career"

Early in her profession, Lupita Nyong'o simply wished to mix into Hollywood, however she quickly realized standing out was a hidden reward.

Lupita Nyong'o poses in a sleeveless, fitted dress with a serene bird-themed background — Alexander Tamargo / Getty Images

For the first episode of her new podcast Mind Your Own, Lupita opened up about her intimate journey to completely accepting her identification and battling the “complicated relationship with the way I speak” for years.

Lupita Nyong’o smiles while holding a microphone. She wears a sleeveless dress and glasses, with her hair styled in an updo — Alexander Tamargo / Getty Images

The Oscar winner was born in Mexico City, Mexico to Kenyan parents, but was raised in Kenya from the age of three. She identifies as a Kenyan-Mexican and can speak Spanish fluently. Despite currently living in the United States for two decades now, Lupita revealed on her podcast that “in order to create this podcast, I had to get very comfortable with my voice.”

Lupita Nyong'o poses on the red carpet at the Toronto International Film Festival, wearing a stylish, floor-length gown with cut-out details — Emma Mcintyre / WireImage / Getty Images

Although she embraced her East African accent while enrolled at Massachusetts' Hampshire College, Lupita recalled the shift happening when she joined the Yale School of Drama to pursue acting.

Lupita Nyong'o on the red carpet at TIFF, wearing a sleeveless, floor-length black sequin dress — Rodin Eckenroth / Getty Images

“I made this pact with myself that I would learn how to sound American in a way that would guarantee me a career in acting,” the Wild Robot star stated. “Because obviously, I didn't know very many people in movies and television with Kenyan accents. There was just no market for that.”

Lupita Nyong'o stands in front of a patterned background, wearing a light-patterned blouse and smiling slightly — Deadline / Deadline via Getty Images

To ensure she mastered talking like an American, Lupita dedicated several days out of her week to voice lessons. But a compliment from a casting director about her accent only left her feeling bittersweet: “She said, ‘Oh my goodness, you don't have an accent.’ And I was at once so elated and also so crushed. I had ridden myself of myself, kind of.”

Lupita Nyong'o poses in front of a poster for the film "The Wild Robot," wearing a stylish striped jumpsuit with braids — Craig Barritt / Getty Images for DreamWorks Animation

So, in 2014, before starting the press tour for 12 Years a Slave (the feature film she booked right after graduating from Yale and eventually won an Oscar for), Lupita decided to make a change. She called her publicist and said, “I've determined that from tomorrow, I'm going to return to my unique accent. I wish to ship a message that being an African is sufficient. They had by no means heard me communicate in a Kenyan accent.”

Lupita Nyong'o and Alfre Woodard in historical costumes, wearing bonnets, sit at a table with tea and flowers in an outdoor setting — Jaap Buitendijk/TM and Copyright ©Fox Searchlight Pictures

Lupita's mom supported her choice, which gave the actor consolation. “She said, ‘Your accent is representative of your life experience.’ That gave me solace, that an accent comes to being from your life… and just like skin and hair, it can change and it's okay.”

Lupita Nyong'o in a deep v-neck dress decorated with shells and accompanied by Dorothy Nyong'o in a golden dress at a GO Campaign event — Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images

Lupita's voice has change into one which followers know and love. Now, she's seeking to shine a light-weight on different stunning voices from Africa together with her podcast.

“I created MIND YOUR OWN because I was homesick and I wanted to hear stories from other Africans navigating more than one world that they consider home like me,” Lupita wrote on Instagram. “It’s also for anybody who has ever felt alien in one way or another; for everyone considering what it really means to belong.”