Keke Palmer isn’t shy when it comes to getting real abut her skincare. Whether she’s sharing her tips on how to combat dryness or bravely opening about about her struggles with acne and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, the actress/singer has become our go-to girl for skin advice in Hollywood.

Now, as a Olay Ambassador, Palmer is introducing a brand new collection which is intended to elevate the standard nighttime regimen. The Olay Body Cleansing and Renewing Body Wash and Nighttime Rinse-Off Body Conditioner were created to moisturise and renew the body’s surface and reveal vibrant, radiant skin. Both products are infused with the high-end skincare ingredient, retinol, often reserved for facial care products.

We caught up with the fabulous 27-year-old and chatted about Olay’s new collection, her nighttime routine and what new self-care practices she picked up during quarantine. Check out the full interview below.

Grazia: Tell us how you got involved with Olay and this new collection?

Keke Palmer: I got involved with them last year when I go to walked the runway in Christian Cowan’s show for Fashion Week and they were introducing the concept of upgrading your nighttime routine by giving you a body wash and a conditioner. With this one, it was all about hyaluronic acid and how it can help moisturise you over time and adding ingredients that are usually for the face and the skin that we are always thinking about to the body. So now they are doubling down on that concept by adding retinol, which is something we always see in face products but we don’t see it in the body washes and definitely not in the body wash conditioner combo. I love it because it upgrades the nighttime routine. I know I don’t have perfect skin on my body more thanI  have perfect skin on my face. I want to know the products that I’m using are contributing to a healthy vibe and give my body just as much attention as I do my face.

G: Take us through the new Olay products in the collection.

KP: It’s simply two products. Sometimes I think we can over do it. It’s the Olay Cleansing Body Wash with Retinol and the Conditioner with Retinol. Basically you wash with the body wash and you use the conditioner, rinse it off and you pat dry and voila! And with the retinol, it’s rejuvenating for the skin. It can help to lightly exfoliate and get rid of those dead cells. Your skin is already purging dead skin cells in the middle of the night anyway. Including this in your nighttime routine just supports what is already happening.

G: With celebs, there is so much focus on the face. Why do you think it’s important to shift focus to the skin you don’t always see?

KP: That’s the only smart evolution if you think about it. For so long, we’ve been so hyper focussed on the face. The reality is, is there is a lot of trouble people have with their skin. I’m living in New York, it gets cold, I get dried out quicker, especially with all that melanin, you can get ashy quick and it’s going to be visible. So that’s why I started using the products. Also, budget wise, it’s affordable. And that’s why I’ve always loved Olay, even before they came out with this collection. The reality is, in that in my home, it was one of the main things we could afford and it was good, it smelled good, it lasted long. Now, it is the perfect evolution for them to go into this skin conscious collection.

G: Take us through your nighttime routine.

KP: It changes over time I’ll say. There used to be a time where I had such a long nighttime routine when it came to my skin on my face because I had so much trouble with acne and now that’s gotten really simplified. Now, I just use one simple cleaner, moisturise, done. And when it comes to my body, the only thing that changes up is sometimes I use a loofa and sometimes I don’t. Sometimes I want to scrub and other times I don’t think it’s necessary. I’m using the Olay Cleansing & Nourishing Body Wash Vitamin B3 with hyaluronic acid and now i’m just going to incorporate these new ones and I’m really excited about that. And that’s really all it, I keep it quite simple.

G: What are some of the benefits so are seeing with these products?

KP: With the body, the main thing I’m seeing is that I’m not as dry. And then overall positive tone. I think a lot of that comes from my specific responsibility with my diet. My diet, in conjunction with a good product. You can’t think about a product being the end all, be all and boom, all your problems are solved. A lot of times, that’s how we see products but it’s important to know what you are using and why you are using it. That’s also a big part of why I want to make sure people understand what ‘s in these products, like retinol and what it’s supposed to do. It’s supposed to assist your body with what it already does. Our body is already shedding at night. So these are just products that assist that, everything else is on you.

We are all spending more time at home this year with the pandemic and the lockdowns. Do you think that made you more conscious of your skin or made people pause and be more in tune with themselves ?

KP: I think that’s exactly it, without a doubt. I almost feel like when this is all said and done, we probably need to have a month out of every year where we all just stop and represent quarantine. In remembrance of COVID, all the lives we lost, all the stuff we did that pushed us to the point that we all had to shut our world down. I feel that we should always remember that. The fact is that we needed a break. It was so needed, like all of us decided to realise “oh racism is ridiculous.” Everything came to a boiling head and many of us were too busy before to look around and see it.

G: Did you adopt any new self-care routines during lockdown?

KP: Definitely cooking for myself, which I think is such a kind thing you can do for yourself. We forget because it also takes work but the process I go through of deciding what to eat and make for myself, especially now i’m trying to do a different tying to help with my PCOS. Doing that and having that time, it really shows me that I care about myself. It really makes me feel good to keep trying to understand the thing that I’m dealing with. It gives me the confidence to keep on trying everyday. Also working out. I always liked working out just fine but now it’s something that is really helping me deal with my anxiety. I’m realising the relationship between the two and it makes me feel really good and healthy and happy to have that.

G: You are so real on your social media, something that really resonates with your fans. Why is that important to you connect with them like that?

KP: I love the idea that I have this platform and I can share all the cool things that I find out about. Ultimately, that’s what it’s about and that’s how my family is, we want to share everything. But for me, at the end of the day, I know that I’m in a position where I can go to three, four or five specialists and figure out that I have PSOC or I can do this or that. I really just try and use my platform as an opportunity to share those things with the people who may not have access to it. And that’s just who I am. Every celebrity, every entertainer, doesn’t need to do that. I feel like it’s important to do what’s truest to you, and for me, it’s just literally how my family has always been, we’ve always been those kinds of people.

The Olay Body’s new collection featuring the nighttime duo of Cleansing & Renewing Body Wash with Retinol and Rinse-Off Body Conditioner with Retinol will hit stores nationwide in 2021.