If you search Lisa Nicole Carson’s name in Google the questions “Where is she now?” and “Dead or Alive” appear in the front of the page.

We all fell in love with the big-haired sexpot following her roles in films like “Love Jones,” “Eve’s Bayou” and “Life.” However, when “Ally McBeal” hit television in 1997, mainstream audiences got a dose of what we already knew – Lisa Nicole Carson was a gifted actress with a powerful presence on screen.

Although Calista Flockhart earned acclaim as the mini-skirt wearing neurotic Ally McBeal, Lisa Nicole Carson often stole the show as the sultry, down-to-Earth, pull no punches roomie Renée Raddick.

Yet, Carson disappeared from the scene after being abruptly dismissed from both “Ally McBeal” and “ER.” Rumors of erratic behavior gained headlines, and shortly following Carson’s break from the spotlight came the revelation that she was battling schizophrenia.

Now that FOX has settled problems with music rights that prevented season one of “Ally McBeal” from being sold sooner, they’ve enlisted the actress's services to promote the beloved show’s entrance into the DVD market.

Initially, BET.com was told that we would be able to ask Carson about her reported mental illness. However, literally seconds before our phone interview began it was stressed that her personal life was off limits -- the main question that everyone wanted to know could not be asked. Ignoring the obvious, Carson, who now resides in Brooklyn, New York, reflects on her acting career, her plans for the future and more.

You already had an acting career with movies like “Eve’s Bayou” and “Love Jones,” but how did the role of Renée on “Ally McBeal” come to you?
Well, I was up for a couple of movies at the time I was up for that role of Renée Raddick. and my head was in a movie career, but I did go in for the audition because I had an immense respect for David E. Kelly. As it turned out, I didn’t get any of the movie roles but I got the role on “Ally McBeal” so that’s how that started.

“Ally McBeal” was such a different show than anything else on-air at the time. What are some of your fondest memories?
I think my favorite moment was when Taye Diggs and I got to perform an Aretha Franklin classic together. It was just really cool. I still have a recording of the music that we did together and it was just really special.

“Ally McBeal” played around with a lot of different themes that separated itself from other series on-air. How do you think the show influenced television?
I think that “Ally McBeal” was just a really cool show. It offered a multi-cultural cast, a lot of music – just a lot of different elements went into the show and they went very smoothly. I think a lot of people attempted but failed at trying to do what David E. Kelly did.

There have been rumors about why you left "Ally McBeal" and with you being an integral part of the show a lot of fans felt differently about the show once you left the cast. Did you want to address the real reason why were cut from the show?
You know there was an amalgamation of reasons. I mean, it was a crazy time, so crazy there are like…no words [Laughs]. Everything just came to a head at some point and it was time for us to part company. It was just time and I think the show went on for another season or two afterwards. I didn’t really watch it that much after that so I don’t really know about the direction it went to. I think the show just had its time. It’s like a relationship. It’s really, really great in the beginning and then it kind of sours out.

About your film roles: “Love Jones” was smart and really funny, while “Eve’s Bayou” was very different edgy. You don’t really see either as much now. What was it like working on those films and what do you think of Black cinema now?                                                                                                      I definitely have a very soft spot for those films that I did. I have to give all props to the directors – in “Eve’s Bayou,” Kasi Lemmons and in “Love Jones,” Ted Witcher – and even Carl Franklin (“Devil In A Blue Dress”) and Doug McHenry and George Jackson (“Jason’s Lyric”). I think they all had passion, they had talent, and I think everything just came together for them. They knew what they wanted, they knew how to cast, they knew how to write in certain circumstances and it was just a beautiful time for Black cinema.

As far as I know, I think there’s a lot of wonderful stuff going on. I think that what Tyler Perry is doing is amazing and people are still representing. I mean Spike Lee always represents, you can count on that. Of course there’s room for improvement, but there’s always been room for improvement. I think we’ve had times where we have really shined and I think they we have them again.

Do you still keep in touch with any of your film’s co-stars like Nia Long or maybe even from “Ally McBeal” like Calista Flockhart?
No, I’ve been kind of MIA for a while, on the down low doing my own thing. But it’s all love, I have love for all of those people. It’s all good.

Since your break from acting most of your fans have not seen or heard from you. What have you been doing since you stopped acting?
Well I did take a break from acting although I have been seeing everything on Broadway and most of the stuff on off Broadway. And I’ve been reading scripts from time to time and keeping my acting chops as fluid as I can possibly keep them, but mostly I’ve been working on my singing and my songwriting. I write songs so it’s something that I want to get out there and share with the world and let them see that part of me that’s deeply personal but extremely valid.

So we can expect a comeback from you in both singing and acting?
Let’s hope. You know this business is crazy but I’m going to give it all I got.

You’ve been gone for a while now. You’re not out there married with a secret family, are you?
No, no, no…no secret family [Laughs].

Do you have anything to say to "Ally McBeal" fans that have been waiting for the show to be released on DVD all this time?
I’m just glad that you were out there supporting and being fans while we were on television and hopefully you feel those same feelings with the DVD. I mean, I definitely agree with you that it was a great show, a really great groundbreaking show. It worked it in so many ways. I think everything just came together at that time. It’s really hard for television to come off like that nowadays, but it [“Ally McBeal”] came off and it was really solid.

"Ally McBeal": Season One on DVD will be released everywhere on October 6.

Michael Arceneaux is a blogger for BET.com's Stay Tuned. You can read more of his work at http://thecynicalones.com.