The cool thing about dope black style becoming in style is that the industry has no choice but to try and reduplicate that.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the impact of black culture on mainstream fashion and entertainment.
Lena Waithe emphasizes the significance of black style gaining recognition in the industry, suggesting that once it is embraced, businesses must adapt and incorporate it into their offerings. This not only validates the creativity and influence of black culture but also pushes the industry to evolve and reflect a broader spectrum of style and identity.
In practice
During a fashion panel discussion about diversity in design, this quote could emphasize the importance of recognizing black creativity.
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.
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.
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.
Anxious, inexperienced writers obey rules. Rebellious, unschooled writers break rules. Artists master the form.
When she listened to songs that she loved on the radio, something stirred inside her. A liquid ache spread under her skin, and she walked out of the world like a witch.
Every time I lock my people in a spacecraft or land them on an asteroid, the blood wells up again, and I'm writing horror. Horror's my default setting. It's also where I prefer to write.
Music is for people. The word 'pop' is simply short for popular. It means that people like it. I'm just a normal jerk who happens to make music. As long as my brain and fingers work, I'm cool.
White, older showrunners told me, 'Why do you want to hire an all-Latinx writers room? Hire who's best for the show - don't get caught up in that.' And I was like, 'No.' For such an intimate show about the details of a culture? You can't fake that. The room needs to reflect the makeup of the show.
When we don't have all the details about our characters, we have to make it up to fill in all the details. So, for me, writing and acting go hand in hand.
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