I really got attracted to the idea of touching so many people and that idea of art transcending entertainment and art and activism being synonymous.

Everyone has a platform, so if we could just use that and combine what we have and know -we talk about it in private - we might as well talk about it [publicly] together.

As much as he's been through, he's so alive and open to change. That's what I wanted to channel and I feel that's the root of who he is. So I was still and listening to God. All of that came together to really birth this human being known as Ralph Angel.

I feel responsible to know what I'm talking about and to actually express myself the way I choose. We have to put those messages on a global platform period. That, to me, is inspiring.

Ralph Angel, for me, was about getting in touch with the similarities between the characters. I felt like he was a human being that I knew and [somebody] that I've been and am currently still exploring.

Working with Ava [ DuVernay] and Oprah [Winfrey], they're just so intimate. I feel like we're really family at this point.

That [Louisiana culture] was all very new to me. I read books and watched documentaries, just trying to immerse myself.