Culture & Style
How A Diamond Choker Got Kelvin Harrison Jr. A Major Role
By Sam Broekema, June 17, 2025
Photographed by Micaiah Carter
The upcoming star of Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, Kelvin Harrison Jr. is a chameleon on the big screen but it’s his personal style that shines through.
CARTIER HIGH JEWELRY • NILI LOTAN SHIRT
“Shucky ducky quack quack,” croons actor Kelvin Harrison Jr. as our shoot’s stylist, Jermaine Daley, fastens a Cartier High Jewelry yellow diamond brooch to the lapel of a chocolate brown Brunello Cucinelli suit. No shirt necessary, natch. Now, what might this compelling string of words signify? “It means it’s good. You feel good; it looks good. Something good is happening when shucky ducky quack quack happens,” Harrison explains. “My mom and dad used to say it all the time. It means, just like yes.”
Kelvin Harrison Jr. has experienced a string of yes moments in his career, starring alongside legends such as Forest Whitaker, Naomi Watts, and Octavia Spencer and being directed by iconoclasts like Aaron Sorkin and Baz Luhrmann. And the list goes on.
Meet the Expert
- Sam Broekema is Editor-in-Chief of Only Natural Diamonds
- He has held roles including Fashion Editor, Executive Accessories Editor, and Market and Accessories Director at prestigious publications like Vanity Fair, Harper’s Bazaar, and InStyle.
It’s surprising to note that music, not acting, was his first love. Harrison grew up in a New Orleans household filled with classical, gospel, and jazz music. His father, Kelvin Harrison Sr., was a professional saxophone player and met his mother, a classically trained ballerina, when she moved into jazz lyrical dance.
“Their love language was through music: playing Sarah Vaughn, Nat King Cole, or Ella Fitzgerald,” Harrison explains. “They would scat at each other, and that was how we saw them interact in a romantic way. When jazz was playing, it felt like love was in the house.” This inspired Kelvin Harrison Jr. to dream of being the Nat King Cole of his generation. But this didn’t go as planned. “That dream kind of got crushed,” he deadpans. “I tried out for American Idol, wearing cowboy boots and a button-down, going for a western vibe. I love jewelry, so I wore a lot of rings. That was…specific, but it just felt right.”
Alas, it was not meant to be, and no number of burgers or wise parental words made a difference for him. “I was like, ‘it’s not going to be okay.’ I love to relish the disaster.” He jokes but notes that it’s “the mark of a true actor.” However, Harrison hatched a plan to break in the back door, thinking that opportunities at the Disney Channel might lead to an album. Disney didn’t materialize, but a spate of interesting movie roles did – focusing on character studies of iconic men: B.B. King, Fred Hampton, a leader of the Black Panther Party, and Martin Luther King, Jr.
“That’s not something I expected. I look for interesting, flawed, complicated characters, as everyone else,” he says. “Unless you just want to be famous, which I have no interest in. But if it gets me a dinner reservation, then fair enough,” he laughs.
Kelvin Harrison Jr. took the opportunity in each role to learn how he wanted to live as a man through portraying a character. “With Fred Hampton, it was about having a sense of calm amidst a storm. To be so young, he had a real perspective on how to not allow outside circumstances to affect you, how to manage your emotions, and how to be a leader.”
Harrison continues that for his role as B.B. King, “It was his business sense. He said, ‘If you don’t do the business, the business will do you.’ For a long time, I thought that as long as I’m a great actor, nothing else would matter, and that’s not real. We must understand this is a business. I pride myself on being an inspired performer, loving my craft, and being a great business partner so we can continue making movies. I get to do my art if I understand the work that I’m doing.”
Moving forward to his role as Martin Luther King, he says, “Dr. King taught me about family, love, and faith. Joseph in Chevalier taught me about ego death and allowing yourself to get over your idea of who you think you’re supposed to be, no matter how talented or where you’re coming from. No one cares about your talent if you’re not a good person.”
In a turnabout, he played the character Teddy Greene in Godfather of Harlem and recorded six songs for the show. However, the character building, not the music, was Harrison’s passion at this point.
“That’s been a cool journey. I’ve learned so much about myself and who I want to be as a man. I’ve learned a lot about history. I’ve learned a lot about Blackness. I’ve been able to use my knowledge as a musician to help fill the role. So, it feels very full circle, Hakuna Matata.” Coming off an acclaimed run in Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King, Kelvin Harrison Jr. would have the right to the famous mantra.
Harrison’s latest role in Geremy Jasper’s post-apocalyptic O’Dessa, with Sadie Sink and Regina Hall, is a make-good of his American Idol audition in some ways. He shakes the rafters and breaks hearts as the seductive Euri, resplendent in rings and earrings, a fringed mask completing the alluring look. The movie flips the script with Sink portraying the hero as the fabled seventh son and Harrison playing the seductive rescued.
Jewelry has this effect of giving you a little extra. It’s a statement and its status, right? It’s beauty.
“Euri is interesting because he is in distress and a bit of a new-age damsel. It’s performative as it’s a method to be protected. He’s looking for affection. He can’t fight the system, but he enjoys the softness in such an aggressive world. He enjoys being a bit of a dainty doll,” Harrison laughs. “He’s pretty. He’s also a bit of a snake charmer.”
Jewelry and fashion have been outlets for him to explore his character. Harrison pierced his ears for O’Dessa, reinforcing his commitment to ornamentation and character. “I always said I would never get my ears pierced; it freaked me out. But I did it because Geremy said he wanted earrings for the role, and I didn’t want to wear anything fake.” But Kelvin Harrison Jr. found that earrings had a power of their own and now wears earrings along with all those rings on countless red carpets.
“It completes the face. Jewelry has this effect of giving you a little extra. It’s a statement and its status, right? It’s beauty,” he says. “I like the natural aspect of it all, too. That it’s the real thing, and you kind of go, ‘I’m natural, you’re natural, we’re all just natural here.’”
The photoshoot for this issue of Only Natural Diamonds was another place for Kelvin Harrison Jr. to use jewelry to play a part. “The way I can get past my insecurities is to play characters and create a story. Once you put on the suits, I start thinking about Lenny Kravitz. I think about Elizabeth Taylor, Gena Rowlands, Prince, or James Brown,” he says. “What did it feel like to have money in that era? It’s all these different versions of opulence, and how do I find that within my body? We all have these characters inside us. I also used to watch a lot of America’s Next Top Model.”
When it comes to natural diamonds, they lend their own allure. “I didn’t think about the million-dollar necklace on my neck. If I were to own this–if that is the story–I wouldn’t think of it. You need to sit in this chair and act like it’s just any Tuesday, and you wear these diamonds just to play cards. You wear this to walk around your house.” Kelvin Harrison Jr. also jokes that this is how he keeps himself entertained throughout the process. But the connection to the jewelry belies this lightness.
“There’s just something about being one with the jewelry and feeling extraordinary but also ordinary at the same time. People are extraordinary. I like the oneness of wearing jewelry and finding comfort in it,” he explains. “I think that’s why people love diamonds. It’s flashy, it’s showing off, it’s an added piece of what’s already great about yourself.”
For his own part, Kelvin Harrison Jr. isn’t afraid to show off on the red carpet. “Sometimes people get scared that they can’t see the person behind the look. I still remember wearing a pink suit to a Tribeca premiere with a pink diamond snake choker,” he recalls.
“I would never normally wear that, but it felt right for the moment. I’m not interested in playing a consistent character; you’ll get what I give you. It keeps me engaged. I get bored easily, so the diamonds treated me great. But I remember Tracee Ellis Ross said one of the reasons I got The High Note was because of that diamond choker and that pink suit. She said I looked like a star. She was like, ‘This is the guy because of this suit and that jewelry.’” Harrison goes one step further, saying, “It’s knowing that you can carry it. It’s about showing that you belong. Ownership.”
I like the oneness of wearing jewelry and finding comfort in it.
This appreciation for diamonds runs in the family. “My grandfather loved jewelry, and that’s probably where it comes from. He passed away in 2016, but I got all his jewelry.” In his collection is a gold and diamond horseshoe, the same one that Elvis famously wore. This connection to family and jewelry moved him to take his mother as his date to the 2025 NAACP Image Awards, both dressed in Prada and Cartier.
“My Mom has glaucoma, and she’s losing her eyesight. She is legally blind now, but she can still see enough. I want her to see as much as possible; that’s my biggest goal. How much she can experience before she can’t see anything anymore. I’m not a big photo person. I know that she won’t be able to see photos but will be able to have memories. That will be there forever. Being at the NAACP Image Awards and being there for playing Dr. Martin Luther King. She’ll be able to keep the whole experience forever. I posted it, and she read all the comments about people loving her look. She was very famous when she got home.”
There is much excitement for Harrison’s upcoming turn as a young Beetee Latier in the prequel The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, where will see him in another star studded cast including screen legends Glenn Close and Ralph Fiennes along with fan favorites Billy Porter, Elle Fanning, Jesse Plemons, and Kieran Culkin. The film is scheduled to release in November 2026. But first on the docket is playing Jean-Michel Basquiat and reuniting with the director, Julius Onah of Luce. Kelvin Harrison Jr. will also act as the project’s executive producer. Onah started the project with Harrison in mind for the role.
“Julius asked, ‘How hands-on do you want to be?’ And I was like, ‘Very.’ For the last four years, we’ve been in the trenches, traveling the world, meeting all these people: Al Diaz, Bruno Bischofberger, friends of Andy Warhol, Emilio Mazzoli, where Basquiat had his first international showing. I randomly popped into Modena after fashion week. I just wanted to see the gallery. I went to the receptionist, who said they were closed. I was like, ‘Oh, that’s so crazy because I’m playing Jean-Michel Basquiat, and I just wanted to see if Emilio was here.’ I didn’t even know if Emilio was still alive. And she said, ‘Oh, he’s in the back.’”
A few minutes later, Harrison is canoodling with not only Mazzoli but the Michelin-starred chef Massimo Bottura, who recognized him from “That Movie.” With Bottura acting as translator, the trio returned to the chef’s house for dinner and many stories. What Harrison remembers most will also serve as his next character lesson. “Emilio said that Jean-Michel was like a flashlight in a dark room. He said, ‘Remember, always be a light in any room you walk into when you’re playing him.’ There are a lot of misconceptions that he was heavy, dark, and depressed, and not that these things aren’t true, but ultimately, he was always a flashlight in a dark room.” We can certainly attest that Kelvin Harrison Jr. is shining bright himself.
Photographer & Director: Micaiah Carter
Stylist: Jermaine Daley
Creative Director: Lizzy Oppenheimer
Groomer: Amber Burgin
DP & Colorist: Blake Mohr
1st AC: Edgar Plascencia
Video Editor: Justin Chamber
Sound Direction & Design: Shakari
Entertainment Editor At Large: Glynis Costin
Set Design: Gille Mills
Creative Production: Petty Cash Production
Lighting Director: Christian “Bummy” Koepenick
Photo Assistants: Sean O’Neill, Jordie Turner
Digital Tech: Blake Mohr
Styling Assistant: Anna Hermo
Tailor: Jinnah Park
