Y&R's Loren Lott Can't Wait for Ana to Find Love

Performer Loren Lott (Ana, THE YOUNG & THE RESTLESS) believes in approaching life with a smile. “I think it’s important to be nice to everyone,” the beauty told Soaps In Depth. “The entertainment world is small, and the black entertainment world is even smaller, so you never know who you will meet again, or the connections between people!”

Case in point: When the former AMERICAN IDOL contestant was introduced to Gilbert Glenn Brown, who portrays Ana’s dad, Jett Slade, she was shocked to learn that they had one degree of separation. “I was on Broadway in Motown: The Musical, and I had [befriended] a girl [Shahadi Wright Joseph], who was an understudy in School of Rock,” she recounted. “One day, Gilbert came up to me and said, ‘I was hanging out with my niece, and I showed her a picture of you. It turns out that you two know each other.’ I was like, ‘Whaaat?’ I can’t believe that she and I even connected, since we were starring in different musicals, and then it turns out that her uncle is my TV dad? It’s just another reminder to be nice to everybody!”

“I love him,” Lott gushed of her dad’s portrayer. “He’s so nice!” (Photo Credit: Howard Wise/jpistudios.com)

Lott would like to carry those positive vibes over to her Y&R alter ego.“I really want Ana to be the good guy,” she shared. “I’m okay with her making mistakes. But I think a woman can be strong without being bad. So far, the way she’s been written, I think Ana is a good person. They haven’t written anything that doesn’t make me believe that. Even when it looked like she was going behind Devon’s back, it came around full circle and turned out that she was not being malicious, she was only trying to help her dad.”

That’s not to say the San Diego native doesn’t want to see a few complications arising for her character. While Ana appears to have a loving relationship with Jett, Lott confessed that there could be twists to their storyline, given that the father/daughter relationship is very new. “I’m excited to see where that goes, because there could be some juice!” she said with a laugh. “And Bryton James (Devon) wants me to have a love interest so he can tease me about it!”

Speaking of love interests, Lott said that for a brief time she thought that a romance might develop between Ana and Fen or even Nate. “But Nate and Ana might be too close in the family for that, so I don’t know,” she said with a smile. “They can always put me with Shemar Moore [who recently reprised his role of Malcolm to mourn Neil’s passing]. There might be a little age gap, but who cares? He’s gorgeous! I’d wait for that storyline to happen!”

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SWIPE! As many of u May know Shemar Moore is my biggest celebrity crush. So my tv brother @brytonejames told him that I loved him and to mess with me. He didn’t the whole day (mind you we were all crying all day. The saddest day I’ve ever spent on a set) but at the end of the day I asked for a picture lol he picked me up in his arms and took pictures with me, then he put me down and planted one on me. Strictly to mess with me while Bryton took pictures lol. It was hilarious and I totally died. Imagine ur celebrity crush kissing u😂 EVERYONE behind the scenes was watching and they laughed and called me miss Moore for the next like 2 days. Anyway my life was made and Shemar was actually so cool and getting to see him act live and sing for him was great. He’s soooo good. Especially to push through the way he did. I was grateful that even with all the tears we all still found a way to have good time! Good one Bryton! I love u forever 😂😂😂💙💚

A post shared by Loren Lott (@lorensharice) on Apr 28, 2019 at 3:04pm PDT

While Ana’s waiting for Malcolm or someone else, Lott said that she’s just enjoying her daytime gig. “I’m getting more comfortable with my acting choices on the show, like making Ana silly if I want her to be silly, or finding a real moment,” she shared. “I don’t feel as much pressure as when I first started.“I was petrified then, but now I’m feeling comfortable and confident,” she concluded. “I’m having fun!”

For more on your favorite Y&R stars keep reading the CBS edition of Soaps In Depth magazine.