Lena Waithe

“It was a symbolic moment when 'Moonlight' literally took the Oscar out of 'La La Land's' hand.”

“With 'The Chi,' it's me observing my own city and also pulling some things from themes I've dealt with in my life.”

“I never thought I would write about Chicago, and I definitely never thought I would write a drama.”

“People can say what they want about a person, but if you're successful and you make them money, then people don't care.”

“I'm queen of mentorship.”

“I wrote 'Twenties' back in 2009. I always wanted to tell a story where a queer black woman was the protagonist, and I'm so grateful to TBS for giving me a platform to tell this story.”

“To be a black person is to come from a long bloodline of survivors and storytellers, with a resilience that people can't even comprehend.”

“I watched a ton of TV because I was raised by a single mom and spent a lot of time with my grandmother. Like most grandparents do, she would spend hours and hours in front of the TV box.”

“I remember going to 'The Wood' and leaving my friend and my mom, who I came with, to go sit in the front row because I was so excited.”

“When you're not as accessible, you get in a tent and get in your own head, and you start doing things that are a little out of touch. I think we've seen it happen with certain artists... people can't touch them; they're not touching people. They're only touching people in their circle.”

“Somebody could look at me and go, 'She's dressed black,' or 'She's behaving in the stereotypical way of a black lesbian.' But this is how I feel most comfortable. This is my authentic self. I want the freedom to be that regardless of how someone interprets it.”

“When people think of the South Side of Chicago, they don't think about where I'm from. It was sort of a pocket: this idyllic community of black people who took care of each other, knew each other, spent time with each other.”

“I just really want be proud of the work I'm doing, whether it's something I've written, produced, or am starring in. I just want to be proud of it.”

“I don't want to be white. I don't want to be straight. I don't want to blend in.”

“Even white people are tired of watching white people's shows.”

“I think, to me, I always want to tell the truth. I never want to sugarcoat things. I've never been accused of pulling punches.”

“I hope that people will say that 'she told the truth, she told her truth, she wasn't afraid to live her truth, and she wasn't afraid to live her truth out loud.' That's what I want my legacy to look like.”

“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?'”

“One of my favorites is 'Parks and Recreation.' Great show; awesome writing; beautiful, diverse cast. They also have a very diverse writer's room, which I love.”

“I think the stakes are always high when you're an artist of color - to get things right, to get things perfect and make everybody happy.”