Kat Graham On “Vampire Diaries” Audition, Justin Bieber Cameo & Why She Loves The Cheesecake Factory

Vampire Diaries star Kat Graham doesn’t take “no” for an answer. In her early years, the singer-actress was running late for a Fanta soda call-back (to be one of the Fantanas), and the casting office told her not to bother. “I started crying, and I said, ‘No!’” Graham tells our own Nick Axelrod in this episode of “I Yahoo’d Myself.” “I said, ‘You guys are making a huge mistake. I’m the girl! I’m the girl, and I’m coming right now!’” She booked the job. (And no, she doesn’t get free Fanta for life, in case you’re wondering.)

She also scored the role of Bonnie Bennett in The Vampire Diaries, despite always turning up in distracting hats to her multiple auditions. “I really thought Bonnie had curly hair and wore a beret,” she recalls. “I never once auditioned for Bonnie Bennett without a beret on, let’s be clear.” (For the record, the CW execs “don’t like hats on the show.”)

As for costar Nina Dobrev’s recently announced exit after this season, Graham says her friend is irreplaceable. “I would never recast [her role]. She made the show what it is.”

Watch the video above to learn some little-known facts about Graham, including why she’s obsessed with The Cheesecake Factory, and how her cameo in Justin Bieber’s “Somebody to Love” video was less than fulfilling.

And for more episodes of “I Yahoo’d Myself, click here, including interviews with Courteney Cox, Shay Mitchell, Eva Mendes, and Kelly Osbourne.