KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Most Kansas Citians don't recognize Petey McGee, but thousands of locals love his character, Salim Ashe Freeman, in "Power Book II: Ghost."
The show is one of the most popular on Starz, a streaming platform.
McGee returned this week to Kansas City and visited his old neighborhood.
"We are on 37th and Wayne," McGee said. "This is where I grew up."
The Ivanhoe neighborhood is home for McGee.
But he doesn't get back as much since he became a star on the show. His success did not happen overnight.
"That's what I tell a lot of people" McGee said. "'Power' didn't just happen. I probably did 100 auditions before I booked 'Power.' Anything that had a Black man on it or in it, I probably auditioned for it."
He showed KSHB 41 the audition tape that helped him land the role as Diana Tejada's love interest on the show. His agent gave him the good news over the the phone.
"Remember when you auditioned for 'Power?' She said, 'You got it,'" McGee said. "I'm at the airport like, 'What? Yo!"
He doesn't watch all of the episodes, but there is a scene he deems as his one of his favorites.
"The scene with me and Cane when he was like, 'That sound made up,'" McGee said.
A Shakespearean actor at heart and UMKC grad, McGee's big break wasn't even planned.
"I had no intentions on being an actor," McGee said. "Now, I have my masters in acting. But when I started, my mom passed away and I was going through dark times. I wanted to do something to make her proud. Her favorite thing to do was brag on me, so I needed to give her something to brag about."
McGee is making a name for himself, but it all took a minute to sink in.
"When I first got on the show, I had imposter syndrome real bad," he said. "How did I get here? I don't belong here. That's Mary J. Blige, that's Larenz Tate, that's 50, that's Method Man. That's crazy coming where I came from. I grew up in the hood."
While making a way for himself, he's trying to lift up other filmmakers with him.
"I owe it to my mom," he said. "I have her now watching over me. I was watching something that said, 'When someone dies you've got to be thankful, because you got someone who can fight for you on the other side.'"
"Power Book II: Ghost" just finished filming its fourth season.
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