00:00Yes, I'm a sex symbol.
00:01I'm tired of being a sex symbol.
00:03You know, I'm tired.
00:11So I mix wine and Diet Coke or Coke Zero.
00:15It is delicious.
00:20I didn't get into a performing arts school,
00:22and all these kids that I knew did,
00:25and I was heartbroken to not make it into that school,
00:30but it also made me very determined.
00:33So some no's are meant to shape you
00:36and to be formative out into the real world.
00:40So being rejected and not getting something
00:43that you absolutely want is a good thing
00:45because it makes you work that much harder
00:48to achieve your goals.
00:49If I hadn't had that first no,
00:51then I don't know that I would have fought harder
00:53to receive all the yeses that have come subsequently.
00:59I think it's important to show Black women in every facet
01:03because we are involved across all spectrums,
01:07and it's important for young Black people
01:11to see Black women and Black men in every possible light,
01:16especially those that have nothing to deal with Black trauma.
01:19So it's been great to play maids,
01:22it's been great to play scientists,
01:24and I think it's important to expand
01:26what people think they know about us.
01:31The role that I played that changed me,
01:35that changed my trajectory, is the role of producer.
01:39Producing allows me to eat for a lifetime,
01:41and it allows me to feed other families,
01:44to create opportunities, not just for myself,
01:47but for people who are marginalized and don't have access.
01:52As a Black woman, it is very hard to lead anything,
01:56because everyone tells you,
01:57well, Black doesn't sell overseas.
01:59So every time I do something,
02:02every time I see women leading projects, I'm supportive.
02:07Every time I see Black women leading projects,
02:10I'm supportive, because I know how difficult it is.
02:14Staying Power doesn't necessarily mean
02:17that you're in hit project after hit project.
02:20It's that you are continually working.
02:23You might do things that no one sees,
02:25but you're continually working, honing your craft,
02:29building your network of people
02:30that you want to do business with,
02:32and who continually want to do business with you.
02:35I don't want to be the person that's only relevant
02:38for whatever it is I'm doing now.
02:40I want to make decisions that will outlast me.
02:47Joy is just the normal flow of life.
02:51The most important thing are your relationships.
02:55I lost my dad when I was 13.
02:58I lost my mom when I was 17.
03:00I say, spend as much time as you can
03:04and get all the information that you can.
03:08And sometimes getting all the information
03:09is making dinner, making breakfast,
03:12just sitting with grandma and granddad,
03:14doing things that they love,
03:16and learning everything you can about them.
03:18Because memories are experiences that you get to cherish.
03:25I would say the biggest piece of wisdom
03:28that I would give you is to spend quality time
03:31with people that make you the happiest.
03:35And that will sustain you each and every day.
Comments