I certainly came up in an era where women were really making strides and making a point to beat down doors and find their place and crash through the glass ceiling.

Really feminism is about being all that you are and not having to trade one thing for another on your way up.

I grew up watching old musicals and seeing Ginger Rogers wearing a beautiful fitted bodice that had ostrich feathers. I love how it moved when she danced. Theatrical pieces like that stayed with me. I wanted to grow up to wear those kinds of things.

I would love to take off the stilettos and put the boots back on. Strap something to my hip, and let's go!

There aren't very many women of color in positions of power, period. Much less on television.

It’s wonderful, it’s expressive. It’s a way of using a part of my instrument that I’m comfortable and familiar with. The voice is such a vital part of crafting a character. I’m so pleased that I have the kind of voice that prints well and that people want to hear. I’ve had friends actually say, ‘You know, I was in the kitchen, and the television was on and I heard you.’ I love hearing that there’s something familiar about my sound, and that to some people it’s soothing.

I certainly came up in an era where women were really making strides and making a point to beat down doors and find their place and crash through the glass ceiling.