Cheddar News is kicking off its new series, Celebrity Lemonade Stand, where we dive into the humble beginnings of some of your favorite actors, athletes, musicians, and entrepreneurs. Shannon LaNier did the digging to get the stories about their first jobs while also giving us a peek behind the curtain to show how celebs continue making a living for themselves today.

For actor Kel Mitchell, the inaugural guest in the series, he told Cheddar News that his very first gig was working at an in-home candy store with his sister. 

"[My grandmother] lived right next to a park so all the kids would come over [and they would say] let me get some candy. We got you," he said. He noted that one of the most important lessons he learned during that time in his life was to be a consistent, hard worker.

His time running the candy store, however, was short-lived, after getting his start in television very early-on. In 1994, at just 15, he snagged his first acting gig on Nickelodeon's sketch comedy series, All That. 

"It almost didn't happen, y'all. Nickelodeon had never done a show like that before so they wanted to try it and just see. They never did a show that was so diverse, a show that had so much hip hop in it, and things like that," Mitchell said. "And they tried it out, and their rating went through the roof."

Only two years later, he would begin starring in another Nickelodeon show, Kenan and Kel, and fast forward to today, he's added author to his list of career accomplishments. Mitchell's second book, Prank Day, hit stores earlier this month. It's a novel for kids, but with some very real life lessons, he noted. 

Mitchell also mentioned how prior to writing this book, it was initially meant to be a screenplay, but some unforeseen circumstances forced him to pivot to creating something entirely different. 

"To have that happen was devastating but I was like 'It's still going to happen.' You just have to find gratitude in everything," he said. "At that moment, when it hurts, find gratitude in it. You've got to have tough skin within this business and just within life, and have that faith that it's still going to workout."