Tyrese Gibson is a Grammy Award-nominated, multi-platinum recording artist and celebrated film star from the "Transformers" and "The Fast and the Furious" franchises. But over 25 years into his career, Gibson reveals why he faced great challenges trying to get projects that he's actually passionate about made.

Whether its making "1992," set in his hometown of Watts, Los Angeles, with its heavy topic (the Rodney King riots) or producing his new album "Beautiful Pain," a deeply vulnerable story about this last relationship, the release of these projects are "real miracles," Gibson told me during our "Salon Talks" conversation.

Outsiders who are familiar with Gibson’s hit records like "Nobody Else," "Sweet Lady" and his films like "Baby Boy" may think that movie scripts land on his desk. But that is not his reality.

"1992," directed by Ariel Vromen, is a heist thriller set on April 29, 1992, the first night of the Los Angeles riots following the verdict in the Rodney King trial. Gibson plays Mercer, a former gang member, alongside Lowell, played by Ray Liotta in his final film role. During the riots, Lowell's family attempts a massive heist.

The film struggled during every stage of production, according to Gibson. Initially, there was "no marketing, no budget, no premieres," he said. “I'm just sitting here like, "Man, what the f**k is going on? Why am I this far into my career, and why does it seem like this is so challenging?”

The film, in theaters now, garnered an audience with the release of its trailer, but Gibson explained why Hollywood passed over it initially. "I'm not calling people racist, I'm saying Hollywood doesn't really know what to do..." He continued, "These are uncomfortable topics. These are very hard movies to sell, period."

And when it comes to music, Gibson is clear on the type of R&B he puts out. "Every R&B single out here is feeling insecure, feeling like if I don't put a rap on my song, it ain't going to matter," he said. That's not what he'll be doing, he confirmed, choosing instead to work with greats like David Foster and Kenny G on his latest album.

Watch my "Salon Talks" episode with Tyrese Gibson here, or read our conversation below to hear more about working with Liotta before he passed away, the parts of Hollywood that no one sees, and how he's bringing back real, love making R&B music with his new album, "Beautiful Pain."

This transcript has been edited for clarity and length. This interview was conducted before recent news events surrounding Gibson's detainment.

Congratulations on your new film, “1992.” It's going to keep everyone on the edge of their seats. Can you talk about how the project came about?

You want to know the short version or the long version? This movie was not supposed to see the light of day, man.

Why is that?

Well, because it was a movie that nobody in Hollywood wanted to make. These types of topics are uncomfortable. Imagine showing up with this script that has all the looting, rioting, and racism from the Rodney King verdict and then, instead of making it about riot and looting and police brutality only, let's go ahead and put a heist and Ray Liotta and breaking into a warehouse [in it].

"Black people living in Black skin is the most uncomfortable reality that a lot of people don't want to face."

They pitched it long before I was involved. They pitched it to all the studios, streaming platforms. Everybody passed on it. Then they went and raised the money on their own to get the movie made. Then even after the movie was made, nobody wanted the movie.

They ended up getting confirmation that the film was in its first film festival, TIFF. The director called me and was like, "I’ve got some great news. We just got a confirmation that we're going to be in TIFF." He's like, "Tyrese, this is a big deal for us, brother. This is big, brother. Toronto International Film Festival........

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