I play piano, so when I'm learning a new or difficult piece, at some point I have to enjoy the music of the piece itself, and have confidence that my fingers know where to go. It's the same with acting, there is a point where I have to enjoy the play.

Hollywood loves to pat itself on the back and espouse their rhetorically liberal points of view while they continue to be the 1 percent and point the finger at the other guy.

I think that Hollywood is content with condescending to Black people, patronizing them, feeling sorry for us, and I think we're happy to take the pat on the head as a people and take whatever awards.

I'm one of those persons who think that watching black people suffer is not an idea of entertainment. I know a lot about African American history, which is just American history, it's always been very fascinating to me. The premise of the play is remembering and honoring those persons whose stories would never be taken into account.

The truth is more important to me than anything - my personal wealth or health or any of these things. I think that it's not so difficult for me to say what I'm saying.

People learn who they are by the images of themselves, the representations that they seek.

The images that people see in the media of black people - whether journalistic or narrative - remain horrible. And those images, combined with the lack of respect among black people in the poorer neighborhoods for themselves, and the part the police and other people coming into those neighborhoods play, it creates no value for life.