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.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of creating art that is genuine and impactful rather than conforming to industry standards.
Lena Waithe's quote reflects a commitment to authenticity in the arts, stressing that true art should evoke genuine emotion and honesty. By referencing the works of James Baldwin and Prince, she illustrates that great artists often disregard outside opinions and focus on their personal truth and the emotional connection their work brings. The idea is that once you've created something that resonates deeply, any external validation becomes secondary.
In practice
In a motivational speech on creativity, one could say, 'As Lena Waithe quoted, it's about making art that's honest and real.'
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.
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?'
It's weird because I see black gay characters on television all the time, but do I relate to them? Not always, because they're set pieces.
The cool thing about dope black style becoming in style is that the industry has no choice but to try and reduplicate that.
Being born gay, black, and female is not a revolutionary act. Being proud to be a gay black female is.
I don't want to be white. I don't want to be straight. I don't want to blend in.
Actors are always afraid of ending up like overcooked old soup over time. What's risky is that you don't realize this has happened, and you just get thick and boring. Going abroad was like getting a new pot to cook everything again. I was a rookie, a new self. And they were asking me, 'Who are you?'
You know you've achieved perfection in design, not when you have nothing more to add, but when you have nothing more to take away.
It's populated by people who, by and large, have terrific communication skills. Every day is an extraordinary day. For me, it was just a great area for storytelling.
Sorrowful and great is the artist's destiny.
Sometimes I feel as if I am read before I write. When I write a poem about my mother, Palestinians think my mother is a symbol for Palestine. But I write as a poet, and my mother is my mother. She's not a symbol.
Beauty never slumbers; All is in her name; But the rose remembers The dust from which it came.
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