Nicole Scherzinger Interview: Voicing Sina In MOANA and Why This Role Means SO Much

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Disclosure: This event and trip to LA was an all expense paid journey sponsored by Disney. All thoughts, opinions and experiences are 100% my own!

Today I am sharing with you my interview with Nicole Scherzinger (you might know her from the Pussycat Dolls or possibly from her season winning Dancing with the Stars!?) who voices Moana’s mother Sina in Disney’s new movie MOANA.

Nicole was just as lovely in person as you might imagine, and one that that really stood out to me was her passion for this film and the importance of the story telling and cultural education in this movie:

I didn’t want to be a part of the project.  I felt I had to be a part of the project, and that’s because I’m from Hawaiian descent, so I knew that the movie was going to be about the Polynesian people. Plus I didn’t wanna go back home and hear from family and hear, how come you’re not in Moana?

It was clear that this film meant so much more to her than just another movie. She was deeply vested in the outcome, and what it might mean to hear family, and even her ancestry.

I’m just so proud that Disney did right by us, by the Polynesian people, and stayed true to our culture, where we come from, our motto, our power, our people, our lifeline. They just told a beautiful story about a young girl.

She seemed to really connect with and understand the importance of the family models in this film and just as Moana was deeply connected to her grandmother, Nicole expressed the same feelings of respect for her Tutu (grandmother).

It wasn’t a love story, it was a heroine story about a young girl’s journey, which we can all relate to. It’s about discovering who we really are and what we’re meant for. What our purpose and our destiny is. And that’s a beautiful story, and then I have the honor of playing Moana’s mother, Sina.  

I lived this. I lived with my mother and my tutu, which means grandmother in Hawaiian. In our culture, the men are the head of the household, but the women are the backbone. They are everything. They are the strength. They keep it together. My tutu already has like seventy-five grandchildren and great grandchildren combined. So we have a really, really big family at home, so I just felt like I have to be a part of this.

It was very moving when Nicole shared with us her favorite moments from the film,

Sina says, “Moana, sometimes who you are or who you want to be, it’s just not meant to be.” So I drew from that experience and I drew from my mother. I know that my mom and my tutu and all the women in my family have sacrificed everything for their children. They are just selfless. That’s just who the women in my family are. When I thought of that line I really thought of my mother and my tutu and how sometimes who you are or who you wish you could be…. you know, I’m sure they had their own dreams. And their own aspirations. 

I know that my mom and my tutu and all the women in my family have sacrificed everything for their children.

So thankful for this opportunity to chat with Nicole and if you haven’t yet seen MOANA, take the family. It is such a beautiful film for all of the reasons that she mentioned above and more!

A few weeks ago I was in LA for the red (blue) carpet world premiere of Disney’s MOANA. I shared with my my review of MOANA here, and in the next few days I will be sharing many more behind the scenes interviews from both cast and filmmakers. I have already shared my interview with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and also my interview with Lin-Manuel Miranda and of course, make sure to check out my interview with Auli’i Cravalho, the young actress who voices Moana.

Yay!! MOANA is in theaters NOW!! 

Just in case you are wondering what MOANA is all about, here’s a peek at the trailer:

Moana Merchandise!!