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Less than 24 hours since the polls closed in the 2020 general election, Tichina Arnold couldn't stop watching news coverage. “I am an avid news watcher, so I was up till 2:30 a.m.,” says the star of CBS comedy The Neighborhood (in which she stars opposite Cedric the Entertainer, Max Greenfield, and Beth Behrs). And even when she falls asleep, the TV stays on. “I cannot sleep in silence. I think that comes from growing up in a loud household,” she says. “I’m an early riser, so I don’t require a lot of sleep.”
She's not kidding. On average, she wakes up at 4:30 or 5:00 a.m. each day. “I think that comes from being in show business,” says Arnold, who is known for sitcoms Martin and Everybody Hates Chris. “I tell my daughter, ‘All the important shit happens in the morning, so you gotta be able to get up!’ I don't know where I got that from. Maybe I'm just afraid of missing something. But even my bulldog is like, ‘What the fuck?’”
That drive, however, is paying off. In addition to The Neighborhood, which has been critically acclaimed for tackling serious subjects like inherent bias and systemic racism (“We don't want to be just another sitcom,” she says. “We want to be a show that encompasses what we're talking about in the world and have conversations with each other other”), Arnold is cohosting the upcoming BET Soul Train Music Awards on November 29 with Tisha Campbell. “I'm really blessed,” she says.
So how does Arnold have so much energy on such little sleep? Not to mention look so refreshed as the mother of a teenage daughter? We asked Arnold to fill us in on her tried-and-true rituals, the creams she swears by (“I love products!” she says.), and the beverage that makes her body happy.
I literally just started buying nice pajamas, because usually I grab the closest thing to me. But I love PJ Salvage. They are the best ever. But it has to be spaghetti straps or a nice, loose, breathing cotton. I’m a wild sleeper. I’m not the easiest person to sleep with!
I start off with Shu Uemura’s Clarifying Cleansing Oil, which is the best thing ever because it literally melts the makeup off your face. I rub that in my hands to warm it up and then rub that on my face. Then I take a warm cloth and wipe it away. If I don’t use the Shu Uemura, I’ll use the Derma E Vitamin C Brightening Glow Micellar Facial Wipes.
I’m addicted to Chanel Gentle Bi-Phase Eye Makeup Remover. There is nothing like it, and whoever created it is brilliant. I’ve had so much shit on my eyes, like the glue from my false eyelashes, and you can put the Chanel eye makeup remover on a cotton ball and that shit is off your eye in seconds! It is the best—I go nowhere without it!
I am in love with Dr. Dennis Gross. He has an alpha beta extra strip daily peel that I am in love with. I’m pretty rough on my face–I’m not a gentle kind of person. I love Dermalogica's Daily Microfoliant Exfoliator, which is a rice-based powder exfoliant. Also, because I'm a scrubber, I love Dr. Brandt’s microdermabrasion exfoliator. I also use Minimo Glow, which is a turmeric face scrub. It has sugar! You can almost lick it!
I use Derma E's dark circle reducing eye cream, because I have really dark circles. I’ve had them since I was a little girl. My other favorite eye cream is the eye balm by Dr. Hauschka. It looks like Carmex for your lips. It's the same consistency and everything, and it’s amazing. Actually, I’m going to put some on now—you got me all hyped up!
I sweat a lot when I’m working out and because I am performing all the time—you gotta wash that shit out of your hair. I love this shampoo called Olaplex, which is really good. I also started getting into It’s a 10. Their Blow Dry Miracle Glossing Shampoo is amazing. It will have your hair feeling like butter!
As a Black woman, I need oils and stuff in my hair. I’m using this hair oil from my hairstylist, Robbi Rogers, which she is releasing soon. She told me to use it on my thinning hair, especially from wearing weaves all my life. So I massage it onto my scalp as I’m watching TV at night.
I am addicted to DoTerra essential oils. I even have an account. The one I use all the time is ylang-ylang.
As long as my sheets are clean, I don’t care who made them, but I did just buy Sheex, because I heard they keep you cool.
I used to have a glass of wine, and my doctor was like, “You gotta stop doing the red wine at night! That’s why you’re gaining weight!” It was not being my friend, especially at 51. So I love Core water. I have bottles of it all around my house and drink it before I go to bed.
I love my UGGs. The Fluff Yeah Slides from UGG are so easy and they have the band that goes around your heel so it doesn't slip off. I have the neon yellow ones with gray. In fact, I’m wearing mine right now!
