00:00 Hey everyone, I'm Michelle Buteau and you're watching Billboard News.
00:03 But you knew that already, 'cause you clicked.
00:05 [music]
00:08 Meaty on top, nubby on the bottom.
00:10 Very delicious.
00:12 My new show on Netflix, Survival of the Thickest, is a show that has been inspired by my book,
00:18 Survival of the Thickest, plus size essays in a small minded world.
00:21 Ayo.
00:22 And so, the themes are so important to me.
00:25 We explore body positivity, sex positivity, inclusion, black/brown queerness, what it's
00:31 like to live in the city, New York City, the best city in the world.
00:34 Ow, I said it.
00:35 That girl's having a moment.
00:37 It's moment.
00:38 That girl's having a moment.
00:40 And follow your dreams and hustle and what it looks like to be in a toxic relationship
00:44 in your mid-30s and you gotta make a choice, girl, what it gonna be?
00:48 What's it gonna be?
00:49 [music]
00:50 I can't pretend no.
00:54 What is this show gonna be?
00:55 You know what I mean?
00:56 Like, I have stories, I have the book, but I have this platform in 190 countries with
01:02 Netflix.
01:03 You know, I could be funny all the time, obviously, and I'm a woman.
01:06 How's she doing?
01:07 I'm like, I am gonna use this platform for good, you know?
01:10 I'm gonna say something important.
01:12 I'm gonna be authentic to my New York.
01:15 And that is everybody, literally everybody, every shape, size, and shade.
01:21 And so I'm so proud of not only diversity in the cast, but also the crew.
01:25 Listen, my cast was amazing.
01:27 We had Peppermint, Michelle Visage, Garcelle Bouvet, Tone Bell, Nicole Byer.
01:33 And let me tell you something, she nailed it.
01:36 Welcome to Nailed It.
01:38 Doing this show, writing in it, starring in it, casting in it, it's really everything.
01:44 It's the chance that I always thought I would never get because I never saw people like
01:48 me growing up, and every time I wanted to do something, executives and writer, just
01:54 a bunch of people would say, I don't know, I think you might be too big, maybe if you
01:58 lost some weight, you know, we don't really do double chins, that was a thing.
02:02 Like I have been through so many toxic horror stories.
02:07 So by the time I got here, you know, emotionally, to love myself and also be proud of myself,
02:14 I'm like, I'm only going to uplift people who need it.
02:18 What in the brown titty TED talk is going on?
02:21 I just wanted to be the change, you know, I wanted to be the change I wanted to see.
02:26 I can't believe I'm sweating, but I did.
02:28 Now we all got our periods.
02:29 Honestly, I've been doing all this stuff for free anyways.
02:33 The little sketches you do with your friends or writing stuff or helping someone write
02:37 something.
02:38 So your brain as an artist, you're working all the time and seeing what you could do.
02:42 What I really did appreciate was now being on the other side of like a slow burn, you
02:47 know, a nice good old simmer, because in my forties I can go into a room and say, this
02:54 is what I want and this is how I see it.
02:56 And I don't know that I could have done that at 25 or even 35.
02:59 So if you are feeling like, when is it going to happen for me?
03:03 I need to make money.
03:04 I need to make a move.
03:05 I want the needle to move.
03:06 Like the fact that you wake up every day and you still want to do it, the needle's moving.
03:10 So just keep going.
03:11 You got this.
03:12 And get off Instagram.
03:13 Unless you are on my page and like all my stuff.
03:17 I know everything about JLo.
03:19 For example, I know that we have the same birthday.
03:22 Yes.
03:23 July 24th.
03:24 I said, Jen, we should have a joint birthday party.
03:28 Oh my God!
03:30 Never had my joint birthday party with JLo.
03:32 I'm still waiting for tonight!
03:35 When you would be here in my arms, waiting for tonight.
03:41 I really hope it happens, but I will say every year I will make a little story post about
03:47 her birthday.
03:48 And she'll share it.
03:49 I mean, she doesn't say it back, but that's okay because you don't give money all the
03:52 time to get it back.
03:53 You know, you just send it out and just know that she knows that, well, her social media
04:00 manager knows that I am thinking of her.
04:04 BX.
04:05 Because, yep.
04:06 That was a trigger.
04:08 (upbeat music)
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