Diamond White who plays Paris Buckingham on The Bold And The Beautiful was the latest guest to join Maurice Benard on his podcast, State Of Mind, this week.
Maurice promoted the podcast in an Instagram post where he wrote: “My interview with @officialdiamondwhite Was like being in the ring with Muhammad Ali.” Adding that he “didn’t know what was coming from one second to the next!!! And I loved it.”
Let’s take a look at the interview and discover what went down…
Maurice Benard’s interview with Diamond White
Benard who plays Sonny Corinthos on General Hospital started off the episode by finding out a bit about Diamond White’s life. The actress then began to open up about her upbringing: “I am from Detroit. Have you seen 8 Mile, the movie? It’s like that. I lived in Southfield, so it was like, cross the street, and you were in Detroit. It wasn’t as tough as it could have been because my mom is a G.” White explained.
She then explained that her father was not in the picture but her grandad stepped in and was like, “hey, I am going to figure it out.” Her grandfather Joe still inspires her today and when he passed away she started seeing hummingbirds which now reminds her of him: “So I got that tattooed on my chest area, my ribs, I guess. I see them almost every day now. So, hey, Joe! Love you! You are great.”
Diamond opens up about her mental health
Benard then spoke about how they are both bipolar and asked about White’s diagnosis: “I definitely know that I have had it my whole life because I have always been the sensitive, emotional kid who, when I got upset.” She then revealed how she would deal with her emotions and being the youngest child of four she would go into her room and make slime and put it in his shoes.
Maurice then shared his story of being in a psych ward for two weeks, before Diamond opened up saying: “I have been to a psych ward twice. It is the same thing.” The actress said that “everybody assumes that I am on something. I’m not. I am just weird.”
White explained that she gets over her dark days by herself as she doesn’t want to be co-dependent on people. Although she says that now she has a new boyfriend she has become a lot more dependent on him.
White expresses her emotions through creativity
White spoke about meeting her mentor Britney Spears whilst she was a contestant on X-Factor where she ended up in 5th place. Maurice then spoke to White about Spears coming out as bipolar which lead them to speak about mental illnesses including anxiety and depression. Which she said was worsened through the Covid lockdown.
When asked if she prefers acting or singing, Diamond was stumped by the question so decides to discuss her love for poetry. She reveals this is the best way for her to get thoughts out and thinks that “poetry lives in me now.” Maurice then says that he would love to do poetry and White encourages him to pick up the pen and do start writing.
Diamond White addresses the podcast
After State Of Mind aired, White took to Twitter after some viewers questioned her behavioral tendencies in the clip. She wrote in a statement, “This was an interview I did when I was prescribed a different medication for bipolar, and it was literally killing me from the inside out.”
The actress continued that “It’s hard being open about mental health and seeing comments assuming I’m ‘on something.’ I was in a silly, goofy mood. Dassit.”
Benard responded to her vulnerable tweet noting: “You are a champion for saying this, Diamond. I completely understand. I am very proud of this interview💎.”