American - Actress | May 17, 1984 -
Queer black characters have been the sidekick for long enough. It's time for us to finally take the lead.
Lena Waithe
TimeBlackEnoughLongLeadTake
I'm writing my story so that others might see fragments of themselves.
WritingStoryOthersSeeFragments
With 'The Chi,' it's me observing my own city and also pulling some things from themes I've dealt with in my life.
LifeCityMeMy LifeMy OwnOwn
I never had everything I wanted, but I never wanted for anything.
NeverEverythingAnythingWantedHad
I love a web series. But to me, it does the girl in Detroit a disservice who just watches television. It does a disservice to the girl on the south side of Chicago who doesn't go online.
LoveGirlMeWatchesTelevisionGo
I think once 'Empire' hit, there was a lot of bad black TV that followed, because we work in the business of hit-seekers and copycats, so they're like, 'Oh this is a show about black people; this is about music, OK let's do a version of that.' And, of course, it doesn't work because it's not organic.
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Being on Netflix lets us be experimental. We can do crazy things.
CrazyNetflixThingsBeingUsLets
Things meant to appeal to the masses usually end up appealing to no one.
EndUpThingsMassesMeantAppeal
For me, it's about making art that's not good but phenomenal. James Baldwin didn't want to just stay above the fray. Prince didn't think, 'I wonder what the industry is gonna think about 'Purple Rain.'' It's just, is this honest? Is this real? Does this move me? The rest is icing.
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My mother was born into a segregated America. How crazy is that?
MotherCrazyAmericaBornHow
I had a lot of great bosses - I worked for Gina Prince-Bythewood for two years, I worked for Ava Duvernay as a PA on her first narrative film, and I worked with Mara Brock Akil, so a lot of wonderful role models.
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As a black woman in the industry, you really do have to hold your head higher, stick your chest out, be kind and polite and generous even when you don't want to be sometimes. I learned that and, also, just to never take no for an answer.
Be KindWomanBlackYouSometimes
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