Actor AJ Carr, who is known for his multiple appearances on the Showtime TV series “The Chi,” often does whatever he can to help teens like himself.
He wants to provide a forum for teens to discuss an issue some of them may feel reluctant to openly discuss: mental health.
At 8 p.m. Thursday night, Carr, 17, plans to launch a “mental health check-in” amid the coronavirus pandemic that has kept so many teens inside their homes. Teens are invited to comment while Carr is live on his Instagram account.
Carr, who plays Stick on “The Chi,” made the announcement earlier this week on “She’s Gotta Show,” an IG Live video interview show hosted by Chicago-based journalist Akisha Lockhart.
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“While we have this time off, I just want to reach as many young people as possible,” said Carr in the interview. “Being that I can’t physically be out like always doing speeches and connecting with people, I want to be able to reach out and see you how you’re doing.
“Give suggestions on what we can do to be occupied at this time to see what’s on people’s minds and just have a healthy, honest conversation about how everybody’s doing, and what everybody can do to be better at this time.”
Carr, a published author and professional speaker, created Building Bosses, a nonprofit organization that teaches young people the ins and outs of entrepreneurship and leadership — an organization he created as a 13-year-old.
He wants to continue to inspire teens to rise above adverse situations that may come up in their lives.
“You got to figure out how to make the best of the situation,” said Carr. “I just try to apply the same attitude to what’s going on right now. Let’s make the best of it, and get out of the storm better than we went into it.”
