Lena Waithe
Somebody could look at me and go, 'She's dressed black,' or 'She's behaving in the stereotypical way of a black lesbian.' But this is how I feel most comfortable. This is my authentic self. I want the freedom to be that regardless of how someone interprets it.Collection: Freedom
To be yourself is truly a revolutionary act, and I think more and more people should try it, because it's gotten me a pretty cool life.Collection: Cool
Talk to any black person in my age group, and they'll say 'A Different World' is why they went to college. The show literally changed my life, and it boggles my mind that it doesn't get the kind of love it deserves.Collection: Age
The things that make us different, those are our superpowers.
I'm writing my story so that others might see fragments of themselves.
Always maintain your composure.
Being a black lesbian myself, I roll my eyes a little bit when I see black lesbian characters on shows where it's purely there for decoration. You can just hear it in the writers room... 'What if we make her a lesbian?'
I think that for the most part, black people specifically have sort of been used as props in TV shows as a way to move story along or as a way to make things more entertaining.
It was a symbolic moment when 'Moonlight' literally took the Oscar out of 'La La Land's' hand.
I'm not asking for there to be all black writer's rooms or all Asian writer's rooms, or all white - I want them all to be diverse. When it's diverse, you're going to have a completely different dynamic. Everybody feels othered. Nobody feels like they've got the upper hand.
Things meant to appeal to the masses usually end up appealing to no one.
Like 'Sex and the City' - if you're a New Yorker, you knew half the places they were going to. I want 'The Chi' to feel that way as well.
Being born gay, black, and female is not a revolutionary act. Being proud to be a gay black female is.
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.
I loved 'The Wizard Of Oz.' It was, like, you know how some kids, they're crying, and they put on - people put on 'Frozen' to get them to chill and just be quiet? For my family, it was 'The Wizard Of Oz.' They would literally tell babysitters, if she gets - like, if she starts misbehaving or she starts acting crazy, just put 'The Wizard Of Oz' on.
If you think you aren't valid for whatever reason, let my existence and the way the world embraces my existence tell you that you are valid. You deserve to look, live, and walk through the world however you see fit. That's why I find it extremely important to be so out, so black, and so myself.
I don't want to be white. I don't want to be straight. I don't want to blend in.
I'm a black woman, so I'm obviously not going to write something where women aren't at the forefront.
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.
I love basketball! When I'm flying, and I have on sweats, a hat, and sneakers, people always assume that I'm a high school kid going to an away game. And I always say no, I'm a fan of the game.
Even white people are tired of watching white people's shows.
I'm proud to carry that torch and be like, 'I'm gay! I'm black! Hang your dreams on me. Hang your hopes on me. I'll carry them to the best of my ability.'
People always go, 'Damn, how you got all this happening at once?' I tell them it's the Chicago in me.
I wrote 'Twenties' back in 2009. I always wanted to tell a story where a queer black woman was the protagonist, and I'm so grateful to TBS for giving me a platform to tell this story.
Queer black characters have been the sidekick for long enough. It's time for us to finally take the lead.
With 'The Chi,' it's me observing my own city and also pulling some things from themes I've dealt with in my life.
I hope that people will say that 'she told the truth, she told her truth, she wasn't afraid to live her truth, and she wasn't afraid to live her truth out loud.' That's what I want my legacy to look like.
I never had everything I wanted, but I never wanted for anything.
The cool thing about dope black style becoming in style is that the industry has no choice but to try and reduplicate that.
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.
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.
Being on Netflix lets us be experimental. We can do crazy things.
My mother was born into a segregated America. How crazy is that?
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.
I'm a huge fan of television, and the reason I'm a part of the world is because I'm a fan of it.
I'm a big fan of Nora Ephron, who believed everything is copy, and I agree.
I never thought I would write about Chicago, and I definitely never thought I would write a drama.
Maybe some young girl seeing me on the Emmy stage may have meant something for them.
I think, to me, I always want to tell the truth. I never want to sugarcoat things. I've never been accused of pulling punches.
I've known I was gay since I was young, I think. And I mean young - like, young - like 5 or 6. I think most gay people or queer people know there's something different about them very early, but I didn't know what to call it.
I was such a fan of Aziz. I watched 'Parks and Rec' like every other self-respecting hipster and loved his character so much and just thought he was so interesting.
I've never been a person that has had fear of, like, 'Oh, I don't want to be the poster child for all black lesbian women.' I don't know. I want to be someone in the public eye that they can be proud of.
I just really want be proud of the work I'm doing, whether it's something I've written, produced, or am starring in. I just want to be proud of it.
I love Sarah Jessica Parker. What's not to like?
It took me forever to leave Chicago. I went to Columbia College because I wasn't ready to leave! My professors had to kick me in the pants to move to Los Angeles.
Every black man in Chicago walks through the world differently, and I think what young black boys do is observe, and that's what gives them their road map.
I actually don't like saying 'lead character,' which is an interesting thing. If you say there's a lead, then there has to be someone to follow.
I think it's so trite to say you have lead characters. It's like someone saying I'm the lead in my life.
I got into the business because I love writing. When it came down to finding my voice, which every writer has to take time to do, I think I realized I write black people very well. I write us in a very honest way, and I want to hear the way we really talk.
I feel like I wanna have a series of moments. It's scary when they say you're having a moment, because moments are momentary.