​Niecy Nash's unexpected journey to comedy

She's been making you laugh on shows like "Reno 911", "Dancing With The Stars" and her latest comedy, "The Soul Man" on TV Land. But Niecy Nash didn't always want to be a comedic actress. The multi –talented star tells AOL.com she had a different dream in mind.

Niecy Nash is probably known best for her raspy voice and natural comedic delivery. But when she sat down with AOL.com's Brian Balthazar, she revealed the dream she's had since she was a child, and it wasn't comedy.

Nash, who will appear live tonight on the season premiere of TV Land's "The Soul Man" caught us by surprise when she said that drama was her true calling. "When I decided to become an actor, it was written in the canvas of my imagination at the age of five, " says Nash. "In my mind's eye I always wanted to be a dramatic actress. I wanted to do things that were extremely dramatic where I was crying and falling out. But comedy presented itself in a way that was more immediate and I was like 'let's go.'"

Delivering on that promise to become a dramatic actress, Nash's second job is on HBO's "Getting On," a dark comedy unlike any other show she's done before. Thought it seems like Nash has the world at her feet now, she's quick to recognize the struggles of her past that have carved her present and future.

"I slept outside overnight to audition for In Living Color..." says Nash, "dressed up like a taco or whatever I was out there doing. I had to do what I had to do what I had to do! But my point is that, was that easy? Driving across town and having to take all of my children when they were smaller to an audition because I didn't have a babysitter? I don't think any journey is going to be easy because your journey is where you grow, it's where you stretch, it's where you become the better parts of yourself."

What would Nash say to her younger self if she had the chance? "I would just probably say stay on the path, because the best is yet to come."

Three cheers to that, Niecy Nash. The best is here and it's on the live premiere of her show with Cedric The Entertainer called "The Soul Man" and it's on tonight just after the live premiere of "Hot in Cleveland" at 10:30pm.