Angelica Ross on Trans Activism, Leaving Hollywood, Keys to Success & Running for Office

so the first thing I have to ask you is what's it like to be an [Music] icon what's it like to be an icon you know what you know what I think it's like it's like when you turn 18 or 21 or even 25 or 30 and you and you wake up the next day and you're like did something change did did I feel the same did anything change like did somebody alert the bank do I have icon status at the bank no no okay you know so so it's not you know it's great to be receiving that sort of uh acknowledgement or stamp y

ou know uh especially when you're a girl in her 40s you know I've been around and I've been doing you know some work and so I appreciate hearing that but it's definitely uh not uh it's just it's nice to hear because it just makes me feel like people recognize that I just wasn't born yesterday and didn't just start this work yesterday no you are iconic and listen I'm so excited today because I want to hear all about I want to ask you I want to hear your whole journey I want to hear everything and

the first thing I guess I want to tell you is the first time I seen you I have a friend at ke my my dog at ke Kei had me watching POS right ke comes to my house I watch POS when I tell you I was in love with candy like soon as I was like oh this is my gal like immediately I'm a fan of you forever and then I go find you I go like oh let me go look all in the social media I'm like oh even better like my gal is active you are activist you do a million things and we going to get into all the ways t

hat you are like factually iconic like it's just actually true so I guess wanted to hear how did your how did your career start how did you get here today wow uh that's interesting um I would say and I I I honestly I will say this I always tell people that success starts with service so and what I mean by that is it really is in these ways that you sometimes especially early on you just don't recognize but it was literally the service of me saying hi my name is Angelica how can I help you like a

t Applebee's waiting tables for like six years or you know working at uh Hardies or you know and saying you know good afternoon welcome to Hardies how can I help you you know but to be honest it is that fact that I always saw each day and every place that I was at as like the stage and opportunity for me to shine and it I didn't have to be on TV or on a set or whatever I was going to be the best wherever I was at and so I think years of cultivating that kind of spirit and showing up to even the

most mediocre of opportuni unities and having them begging me not to leave not to quit because I am such a star you know in that space or whatever so I really do think and I try to share that as much as possible for folks to recognize their own Journeys and the moment that they're in right now are you showing up as the star that you are or do you or do you need a certain type of light or a certain camera zone for people to see it and recognize it are you a star when those cameras are off and so

like that is where I truly believe it starts is actually being invested in what you're doing and not just doing it to pass the time and waiting for the clock to be done so you can clock out and get ready to go home I can't wait for this to be over and not really like soaking up what is the opportunity here for me so again so that success part like a lot of people talk about this like when you see oh how do I get a lot of times you just see that tip the ice tip of the iceberg or the different sto

ries the EM the you know whatever the things that happen on the surface but and then that's people all think oh that person is so lucky you so lucky you did this no baby I have been working for decades on being ready and so that's that's how I got here is by staying ready I think that's important that that that really that's beautiful to hear because I think especially now where in a time of everybody feels especially the internet makes people feel not only like they should be trying to achieve

overnight success but thinking that the people that they're seeing be successful did it overnight and it really is not overnight at all people think that when they find you is when you begun and so yeah that that is incredible I think that I think what you're really speaking to is a fearlessness I think that I like comes across from you all the time whenever I see you and everything that you do like you'll be in the middle like even when I just look at your your online commentary or speaking out

um about the Hollywood industry like you're already like you're a black Trans woman and that already comes with so much and you and and lesser opportunity and all these different things and you've been able to be you were the first black Trans woman to be a series regular of two shows to be uh openly on on leading and a leading role on Broadway and yet I still see you speak out when you think the industry is is is is being abusive other things how did you how did you come to that place and what

's that been like for you doing that well let me let me just put it very plain and simple I'm an old school hoe okay and so listen uh there's a lot of a lot of lot of cliches I could throw out around like don't hate the player hate the game and la la la la la but it's it you know there's a book by an author Carolyn Miss and it's called called uh energy of anatomy or anatomy of the spirit or something in that in that realm and you know she talks about how a lot of times as uh human beings we just

have these like sort of social archetypes these um so like there's the child archetype there's the victim archetype there's also the prostitute archetype and it's something that all of us have at some point have to have a conversation or relationship with that archetype in us that says I am willing to sell my perspective my Creative Energy my 9 to5 depending on what the price is how much you pay in and so there's such a hard harsh commentary so many times for prostitutes and sex workers um when

sometimes those are the folks who are the most clear and not lying to themselves about the exchange that's happening they know exactly exactly what it is and how much it costs and so you learning these lessons very very early on you get really I just got very clear from the beginning before I was F Well way before I was famous there's lots there's many aspects of me that just can't be bought um sure this is capitalism and we all living in under the same sort of system so I'm going find a way to

turn a dollar that makes me feel good about myself and my the contributions that I'm giving but one thing that is never for sale for me is my Integrity one thing that is never for sale for me is my authenticity so that's why you will never see me laid up like even like dating and stuff like that like I've gotten so queer where I wasn't before like as que I was I don't know what I was before but I was mostly I think I considered myself to be straight yeah but the more I realized I don't want to

fake for nobody the more I was like no I'm not going to act stupid for this man no I'm not going to act weak no I'm not going to act like I don't know the directions of where we going and that you taking us in the wrong direction like I'm not playing these games for position and for favor and I think that so many folks are looking from the outside in and looking at what they think is stability what they think is being set for life or different things or whatever and saying to themselves H I shut

my mouth and go ahead and do that or I would do if I had the opportunity so many people that's what they're saying that's what they're saying to to me for speaking up with Ryan Murphy that's what they're saying to taji P Henson for speaking up that's what they're saying to any person that you know speaks up about any of this Injustice it's like well didn't you know that's what kind of comes with the territory or wasn't you prep didn't you read the fine print and blah blah blah and it's like wai

t I thought we were working for a liberated experience so that where whatever we choose to do with our time that we don't have to deal with oppression and deal with Shenanigans yeah and you know you know that's right because so often we talk about we we we we say we have we're having these systemic conversations and then we're working towards something as a collective but when there are individual people who are who get these opportunities we for some reason ourselves don't expect them to to sti

ll have a sistic a holistic and systemic approach we expect them to be like I have an opportunity let me just be quiet and and somehow we we know how we know it's a double-edged sword though because even when they are quiet then they are also uh on them because they got in there and just being quiet and shut the door and became a gatekeeper well yeah a lot of people are doing that and that's not like something that that's not my path that's not what I would do but so many folks know in order to

stay in the room in order to stay on the roster in order to stay booked and busy yeah you can't be saying free Palestine you can't be doing certain things right so they they got to be willing that's the it's a trade-off everything has a cause to it yeah how do you feel like Hollywood's responded to you by being so open and so authentic and so uncompromising about who you are uh I you know it's hard to say you're not paying attention you know what I mean like in in a in a real way of like I'm wor

king I'm working on the things that I'm working on I think that most of Hollywood I'll tell you this I'm get I have a double experience I have one experience where I have some of the most you know experienced directors writers actors whatever emailing dming me texting me or whatever and so much support you know you told the truth and I had my own experience you know I did I had dealt with this or I dealt with that you know thank you for being so courageous and the reality is is that like I want

to break this down in a way that will be sometimes when you're you you have to teach or give information or say things you know everything it's not going to feel great you know what I mean but but with love you know what I'm saying like with love I just want to put the information you know here and the information you know it's a it's a lot I could do a whole sermon on it but this the long short of it is that we all know now by now what the term pick me is yes to be in Hollywood is to be a profe

ssional Pik me that makes a lot of sense you have to be yeah cuz you're saying pick me yeah so a lot of that comes with you trying to be a pck me you ain't talking about the patriarchy like that girl girl put on some makeup right you understand what I'm saying yeah so so I think there just has to be a certain ownership and honesty about the exchange in the prostitution that's happening you understand because it's okay because we're all under a system that is violently coming for us all yeah and

so those some folks are seeking safety behind gated communities behind Hollywood Gates behind corporate jobs behind uh you know just things that they feel will keep them safer now um when it's all up for grabs you know in in America anyway is that was I know I had seen I had read your post um I read your interview um is that what's motivating you wanting to leave Hollywood is that something you still are planning to do so I mean and think about it this way you know because I just recently talked

to Amanda to Amanda seals and um you know we were talking about this she was like why thought you said you you know you left Hollywood and I was like okay so let me let me let me just really break this down yes like let's like fully open our eyes real big right now to to the timeline maybe just in the past week but let's include the past couple months yeah okay so we're realizing that Hollywood has a problem that's the Beyonce remix yes that's the remix Hollywood has a problem and it's it's it'

s what it's a mixture of Hollywood and the let's say the music industry is is also in that when I'm I'm talking about about that and so when we talk about that and we talk about a movie like FL The Flash or whatever that was uh and we talk about also like Jonathan Majors where you got one person who has their whole career and things taken from them from the situation and then you have another situation with Ezra where they go all the way through premere and through to the place where people are

saying we not spending our money on this abuser and we're not spending our money to watch this and fund this and they waited till they lost their money and tanked it to be to be they didn't drop him ahead of time people were saying for years for years on Twitter people were saying that to them about the Ezra situation and they weren't trying to they weren't even trying to acknowledge it so what I'm saying is I think we have diagnosed that Hollywood is sick Cassie has receipts they have it's been

mum's the word ever since cuz when I tell you when you got money and like that kind of money baby that that's that news cycle switches up real quick immediately fast fast fast fast because the internet Crazy Fast m mindblowing mind-blowing and sis this wasn't know allegedly CIS came with documents right right enough documents to get a settlement in a day in less than a day less than 24 hours settled and so what I'm saying is I please you everybody that's listening to hear me Hollywood that has

taken from us Whitney Houston that is taken from us uh and that has kept us from actually even seeing and experiencing the Spectrum of black and brown art and diverse stories this is Hollywood we know there are rules we know there are constraints we know there are playbooks we know there are clicks we know there are all kind of things with Hollywood so why why why do I have to subscribe to that right why so that is what I'm saying is my house that I'm talking to you from right now right now I am

in my bedroom which is also my podcast set cuz I have a a podcast that's just launching it's launching February 5th called now no opportunity wasted with Angelica Ross um but I'm in my bedroom looking at my four poost canopy bed a little area over here do I have a little office over there and then like you know my my my bed my my my my bed my bathroom with the walk-in closet you know there's another bedroom over there we're on the top level and then on the main level there's another level and t

hen on the bottom level is my recording studio in another you know area three levels 3500 ft and it is less than what I pay for my apartment in downtown Los Angeles what I'm saying is when you know better you you do better and I am telling you I had all of this going and building my production company I'm working on a executive producing of film I have an animated series that we're going into the um film festival with with uh Captain zero I have I actually have your character on my wall in the l

iving room free oh my goodness thank you oh my goodness thank you so much and thank you for you know supporting again because when we talk about the ills of Hollywood and how what is the cure the Cure is supporting those who have the talent and experience who are who also are holding on to their integrity and authenticity who are not going to then get all the things because they're not willing to go along to get along so they need the support of the people uh to be to be backing those things so

am I I'm I'm leaving Hollywood as a uh sick concept I'm leaving them behind but in my future I am going to be showing people what it means to live a creative life and that that is on and off camera you are and you you are involved in so many projects and I'm so glad you brought it up cuz I wanted to ask you about about uh the the character you're going to be voicing cuz I am so excited you need to see I'm going to in the video I'm going to actually put up the picture when I post this video of my

living room I love it tell me all about how you got involved in that project you know again I'm someone who keeps my ear to the ground um about you know who just who's doing what you know and I support I'm constantly you'll see people know I'm that girl I don't know how I can't I try listen I can't support everybody I can't do everything but my Instagram stories when I'm not calling for a ceasefire and doing all the things you know talking about the and all the different things that are going o

n that are really taking up my feet a lot of what you'll see is me sharing a lot of work that other people are doing I'm watching and because I know as someone who's grown as an artist what it means to grow as an artist to understand when it's time for editing and when something needs a little bit more work and when it's time to Showcase and ex and be an ex you know an exhibitionist and things like that so I I got I got uh sidetracked um how you got involved with this this project and so I was I

was on Twitter and I saw um a young black man talking about this uh his his project and I think he had taged me in it as well and I looked at it and I was immediately sold and and I was just like this is absolutely something that I want to do and so I contacted him and I was just like hey I'm very interested in doing this uh but I don't just want to like play this character I'd love to Executive produce this as well as um you know I I'm voicing a couple characters I'm voicing both the therapist

and I'm voicing uh one of his greatest nemeses uh that you know really beats him up and so we have this really great scene together fight scene and I love just love the writing because it's so poignant um when it truly reflects because this is dealing with a black superhero I think so many of us as black people feel like we're living under this black Excellence moniker um that is really a scam as ebony K Williams would say and point out you know it's a it's a scam but we still feel the burden o

f being excellent and being perfect and not being depressed and not having struggles and and this is a story that breaks all of that down in a way that is you know digestible in ways that I see some of my favorite animation stories like avatar the Last air bender and Kora the legend of Kora I love these shows because not only obviously there great animation or what have you but the Deep lessons that you learn with it and it comes from such a different you know sort of culture from some like a so

metimes a Buddhist concept as well as like a Japanese you know sort of but I think that to have something for us by us that deals with our struggles and our perspective um I just had to get behind it and I'm so thankful to be a part of it I'm so thankful we got Keith David playing the uh the the depression demons you know we just have such a stellar cast um I see Gary getting involved now I'm so excited it's going to be great uh and this is just the beginning and this is what it looks like and t

hat's why I want to hopefully get continue to get people excited about it because this is what it looks like to be in the beginning part of a dream building imagine this black series having it own like big following as big as a Marvel having a movie I mean you know I'm just saying this off the top of my head I know that right now we're looking at uh just we're not looking at liveaction we're just in the animation realm but even it being a full series that your kids can watch that adults can watc

h that we can all enjoy that we all can get behind um it it starts with people seeing that and believing it before these big Outlets get their hands on it and it's genuinely such a dope project cuz funny enough I think he tagged me he he's one of my he followed me and he sent it to me and I was like um I love this like this is exactly what I'm I have a lot of Art in my living room I have nothing but black art in my apartment he was like I would love you to see somewh out for while see I was like

you a't got to sell me on this I want this I'm so interested like I love it yeah so I'm so excited to see that develop I'm so glad that you're involved in that project can't wait amazing and I love and I and I think that's important the point that you're making is like you can step away from and and divorce yourself from what this industry is is and what people think that they have to be a part of and still continue to create and and and um give us entertainment and be authentic and be you and

also show people that they can do that too one thing you know one thing I thought about you know when I you know I do understand that there is a whole machine behind Su a certain level of success and so there is a trade-off with that but you know when I look at artists like India Arie um who I know continuously does not get the love that I feel like she truly deserves as an artist like yes she don't get me wrong sis has her very solid following I'm a part of it you know what I mean I show I show

up but um but I've always thought and I've always prayed that her Brandy especially like even a brandy like you don't even know how FY like me and Brandy are about the same age like so we came up you know I came up that was like I I saw myself this is how as I'm transitioning Brandy Kelly Roland like these were the girls that helped me see myself but what just drove me up the wall was seeing the pressure that they were honored to be compared to anybody else like anybody else and who you compari

ng Brandy to no seriously who you comparing Brandy to no seriously who because I I'm telling you nobody number one secondly I just remember this time cuz Britney Spears was up at that time too and it was just this connotation around pop and R&B and there was this force of like trying to get the Britney to sound more R&B so that they could take up space or whatever and then you also saw like this pressure on the R&B girls to be more popped so that they can be more crossover and Main you know and

I just always hated uh that pressure and comparison cuz I'm like but she's Brandy she don't got compete with nobody she don't got she don't got comparison and what I know now after it all is that the dream that you have and the dream that God is building for you it's something that's why you don't that's why sometimes I think that God the universe whatever you believe is doesn't fully always show you the full picture right away because you want it and you want it now and sometimes we're willing

to do a lot of things to have that speed up and come right now when it comes with building your audience and building your skill and building those things because I'm going to tell you one thing Brandy has built a fan base that will go to bat we call her the vocal Bible cuz she is that and so like you know just like the Beehive has a beehive or whatever the case is you know I'm a member of The Beehive too but like just saying that like that kind of time that they put in with their fan base I app

reciate sure the relationships that they've had with capitalism and the big labels and the different things or whatever but technology has gotten to a place where it's so much in our hands where most of us have recording studios in our homes especially those who have could afford a coin or two to put you know to put it to put the St put a studio on one of the rooms you know what I'm saying so now you don't got to spend like there's things have changed in so many ways that now I want the ndes and

the brandies to be able to tap into US whenever they want to and say I'm coming here I'm about to do a show y ready or hey I'm releasing some music y'all want it and and not have to worry about selling it to people who you got to sell it to yes you got to sell me on Brandy I think about this a lot actually because I think it's something I think a lot of us especially of the content creation age and on the media whatever and stuff still grew up in the world of wanting to be on TV and wanting to

be signed to this and wed to be this and I I analyze this so often I like to like there's so of these shows even just like mainstream cable and tv and all these different things that people covet so much and they want to be a part of these things are so limiting in so many beyond the fact that you you no longer have any freedom and they expect you to like like walk in orders like the benefits aren't really there I'm like the views isn't what you think it is the the engagement and the reach there

are so many people that are on television shows that I know that don't do the views that FD signifier view video will will get when it drops I'm like you could build your own platform you can still be in these industries you can literally carve your own spot out on this industry from your home like I even think to my own self I wasn't a person in me didn't choose me I've never worked officially for anybody's Network you know but you can you can build and build your own audience and when you bui

ld that audience people eventually they're forced to take note of you right like and you see it across and see I think I think it's even it's yes well I you know I think it's less of this like okay you know now people are forced to recognize because I've been here forever whatever and because there because there's some people who may need to have a more honest and transparent conversation with themselves when it's time to move on to something else and do something different because they're not l

eveling up because they're not taking up the kind of space that they should in order to be successful in the lane that they are trying to create for themselves so I think what it more comes down to is what happens is you become an authority like you have become an authority in so many ways and spaces and your voice has become trusted and and clear on various things so again sometimes that happens sometimes it don't this is true no this you know what that is so you don't just get points for stick

ing in there yeah this is this is also listen if you're sticking in there for the kids that ain't a good enough reason this is 100% true how do you think how do you think people realize it what do you think um what do you think should be the moment when people realize maybe they should they should pivot they s should switch to a different Lane how do you think you realize when when trying and sticking in is is enough I think that I think that when people are trying to figure out like do I keep g

oing with this thing or should I pbit and do something else um it's it's a very interesting balance of process time and output results and so you know there is this thing of understanding that a a perm has to take or that you know there's a certain process that does have to happen and if you are not willing to stick in for the process uh then go ahead and pivot right away like if you need this to pan out yesterday then go ahead and get that two second third and fourth job because that's going to

give you what you need quicker than trying to force a situation to be something that it's not ready to be yet and so that's the one thing is like can you sign up for the process are you in for the process then once okay once now you've been in the process a while okay let's start to compare it a little bit now now comparison can be the uh thief of Joy but it also can be an accurate like kind of barometer of am I at least in the ballpark and so like looking at how much time it takes for other pe

ople to do certain things or whatever again when you are someone with different abilities and different like medical conditions all kind of things you already know off jump okay I'm adding in this much time because I know for me I have to read things twice cuz I'm dyslexic or because I you know I have to do this or whatever all of that is fine to figure that into the thing into your equation but if you are a journalist or something let's say and you've been a journalist for five years and you ar

e no long you're not hitting mainstream you know sort of things um then it's a question of one is that the brand that I want to not be and to am I great where I'm at I got to follow and I'm good or am I trying to reach a level I'm not reaching it yet and a lot of times what I know is I don't care what the situation is this is something for everybody is that every moment of your life every challenge every pivot every fork in the road is a moment to look squarely in the mirror and Center yourself

in a way to find Direction you don't even need to look left or right you don't need all these other things what you need to do is to be able to look at yourself in a moment and say okay this is what's going on right now is this telling me that like I don't have the communication skills that I need and that I need to up I need to either up those skills or maybe just do something different that doesn't requires me to communicate in a different way um what is it ain't my mama it ain't the followers

ain't following me and sharing my mama not sharing my content it ain't that my best friends ain't following or doing this thing it ain't none of that yeah cuz all of that is external and if you want to truly be in a place to always feel and know you are right where you want to be then you have to constantly be reflective yeah and and understanding that is this a moment for me right now or is this something that I've outgrown and I need to move on to something else and that is something it's a i

t's a skill that you develop over time I and I I have a a m class that I'm going to be launching uh probably later this month is called the personal PhD um because I don't have a a bachelor's degree I you know I don't but I tell people all the time I have a I used to say I have a master's degree in Miss Ross but that that has since been upgraded to a doctorate you know so I know myself so well that I I am able to administer the type of care the type of rest or the type of reading or information

or fertilization or the things that I need in order for me to to show up and grow and develop into the best that I possibly can I live a life that reflects the value I hold about myself I'm a black transwoman who started out on the streets on the internet doing sex work for 250 you know what I'm saying so like how do I go from that to saying I'm not leaving my house for less than 10,000 and we love to see it you know what I'm saying like it's it's it's a thing because I got to add up a lot of th

ings hair makeup I got to add up a whole bunch of people I got to pay and stuff that got to do and what whatever the case is so it's like when you get to a place where you are so comfortable and you say somay chicken and Som days feathers and you're not attached to all that kind of situation then you can Center yourself to really just focus on what's most important to me and for me in this moment not perception not perceived opportunity or position or titles or whatever what's the best decision

for me to make right now yeah how do you think that experience starting out as as a black transom working in sex work how do you think that's informed how you you look at the work that you do because I know you're very um outspoken and not just even how you take on the industry but in terms of just activism and speaking on on politics and making people aware how'd that inform it um you know I I I went from a place of accepting and reserving myself to sort of the back pages of the internet and yo

u know and and the back pages of you know websites or newspapers you know local rags and stuff like that and just you know seeing I remember seeing the girls in the ads you know and thinking I wonder if any of their mothers see this or if you know somebody you know who people who know them see this you know whatever and then you realize that when you were on the ads and you're at that place you know you it don't matter at that point you kind of it is what it is you know and I think I had to get

there to a place where I wasn't trying to hide what it was and what my circumstance es was than what I was dealing with and and when I started from there you don't even know there was one dude I was dating and something was going on we got into some argument I was going off on this dude and I'm just like and he's like well would you tell people that you did this and you were struggling with this and blah blah blah and I said yes cuz that's what yes why would I not you know but I I realize that s

o many people even now their livelihood depends on a front on a on a filter you know and and and don't know how to be that kind of authentic and what have you and it starts at a it starts at bottom it don't start when you get something cuz that's when you willing to compromise a whole bunch of stuff to hold on to what you got right so if you don't exercise that muscle ahead of time I'll let my sorry my watch is over there beeping can you hear that barely barely okay good you know I'mma Let It Go

off it's about to stop it kind of watches it it's a it's a watch that Judith uh liberman had sent me um that's like stoned with all the pride colors or whatever it's it's really beautiful yes um sorry uh what were we saying um we we were at um starting it starts at the bottom because you need exercise muscle you have to you have to exercise the muscle to say that I'm worth more than this or this is this is my line um I'm not willing to do these things or what have you and so you know being a bl

ack Trans woman I I came up with a lot of amazing strong activists who were did not mince words uh who taught me to loosen my grip on respectability politics and the way that I feel I need to have to present myself in order to be heard and seen you know um and so I'm hoping to in this next chapter of my life with both my podcast with me preparing to run for off office in Georgia with my relationship my authentic relationship to community and with Community I have often said and continue to say P

eter block uh I quote him in saying that the admission price for Community is accountability and I am constantly offering myself and offering accountability to the communities that I belong to and you know I'm I'm hoping to show folks that you don't have to sell yourselves you don't have to sell your souls for opportunities to have stability and Health Care like it all comes it's a muscle and so many people are so out of practice or just so right now used to waiting at the trough for the food to

be served you know and not willing to shake the table and have a meal or two fall off the table in the process yeah I think it's speak of something you said earlier when you said um a lot of people are not willing to be authentic um to be their authentic selves and Liv in their truth because because they they perceive it as compromising their stability they could have a more stable life and I think what you're showing more is when you are not authentic and when you when you compromise that's wh

en you don't have stability you don't have the stability within yourself um and I that's when the things can be taken from you at any moment that's what Cat Williams said when he said but they all understand the agreement is this away at any moment and so what I'm trying to tell you is that in my whole being said I'll be damned if you think that you're going to treat my life and my career like an on andof switch that you control you have got me all the way messed up right how could I how how cou

ld I possibly live and let that be the case listen And It's amazing to see you do it because the reality is when people people don't think about it but when other people do something they make it so much more possible for others to do it because just seeing whether whether or not your experience what comes people don't see the they don't see the strength it takes or the journey it takes to do something and they don't even really get to see all the consequences that come around that but when you

see somebody stand up in their truth so confidently and it looks easy it makes you feel like it's easy like oh why should we all do that well well let me let me put it like this how many people do you know how or let me let's just guesstimate how many people do you think have a job percentage wise how many people do you think have a job they don't like the everybody most people nine out of 10 nine out of 10 so 24 hours you got a day you can go right and deal with the challenges and not liking th

is and not liking the drama and the things that come along with that or you can go left and it's still going to be drama it's still going to be challenges but guess what you get to turn it on and off you get to decide when to rest you get to decide when to skip a meal when to save a coin when to spend a dollar when to go out when to not go out and and and when you get good at that and realize I don't need Netflix I don't need Disney plus cuz I'm definitely not paying for it while you wait for me

to starve and lose my home right byebye girl so again position yourself this is like almost business 101 when we talk about minimal viable product and when you create a business and create a situation what you're trying to do is make sure that your overhead is low and manageable and so all you need to do is create a situation around you and sometimes that looks like two three F roommates sometimes that look like hey Mom hey Dad I've been there I had to move back in with my parents a couple time

s along this route when I was in my 30s that's what my story included do you understand what I'm saying so it's like constantly being in a space where if you can put yourself in a position and understand that can't nobody take nothing from you that you're not willingly a willing to give give up you know and that and that a conscious person cannot be taken advantage of no matter what the situation is cuz I'm conscious I understand what's going on it's just I'm going to let the situation play out

because it needs to play out out listen how did you when did you decide that you were going to run for office in Georgia and and tell me I want you to get all the opportunity to talk about your platform and the issues that matter to you because listen you you are such a voice I know that you're such a voice on so many like real issues that are happening and so I want to I want my audience to hear all about this run yeah I mean listen I did not want to run I did not want to ever have to be actual

ly this smart I wanted to just play in makeup and be on screen acting too you understand what I'm saying and shut the hell up too I just wanted to be doing you know whatever but like to whom much is given much is expected and I know that I am someone who has been given many gifts and um one of those gifts is is my heart and my heart and where I choose to put it and and placing it um in not only just communities but like you know I have a heart to serve I don't you know there's many privileges th

at I've had myself being a trans person who has had struggles but I'm a CIS assumed trans person so I can go to any airport and any bathroom and they just saying ma'am ain't nobody trying to check me for no IDs not no more not no more you know what I'm saying so like that's not really my struggle um but I understand to who much is given much is expected and so you know it's been over a decade of me working alongside not only Community organizations from Reproductive Rights organizations like P f

lag or like you know uh the task force HRC movement for black lives like the black feminist Futures like all these different like organizations over decades working alongside them amplifying messages getting in the streets and protesting you know always as a black Trans woman whether Banna Taylor or Sandra Bland or whoever like we were you know always in the thick of things always willing to raise my voice and use my platform um and what I want to model for folks is regardless of title position

elected or not this is the work and so I want to show you what I'm about whether it's through my podcast and through all these different things to show you exactly who I am and exactly where I stand on these issues so that you know what you getting into when you vote for me because I'm not going I I'm not going to be pulling there's so many things that I I'm going to be sharing with with folks that are not going to be easy conversations but they will be real and I know that people will draw to t

hat authenticity especially when we can't get a politician to give us a real answer to give us a straight answer on things and so um I've never as a black Trans person you know I used to be so afraid of being homeless was one of my biggest fears and also feeling like I just will never belong anywhere you know um and that has changed I belong so many places but but but also choosing to belong to Georgia choosing to belong to a space that has held so much promise for black people um but I want to

push us to not settle for broken promises broken promises of a 40 acres in the mule broken promises of Freedom Liberation and bodily autonomy that we don't have due to the uh strict abortion laws due to the Crackdown on trans rights and and us not having autonomy over our bodies that's not the promise this is not I don't we can't call this black Hollywood I don't even want again like I said before I don't even want to associate with that toxicity but what I know is that in Hol in that white Holl

ywood they got dispensaries that look like Apple Stores and folks are rolling in the dough and what I know is that that's a financial case that needs not be ignored by uh the people in Georgia because it's a real Financial the numbers are there number one second we have such a huge population of black stars who have been able to get some semblance of 40 acres in a mule but who are not fully using their power and privilege and platform we know this let's we don't even have to call everybody out w

e just know this but there are ways in which I know that I can help to provide a bridge and a spectrum of Engagement especially for those who haven't been engaged feel embarrassed they haven't been engaged and want to find a way to be engaged well one of those ways is as you see Snoop Dogg and all these other rappers and people having we brand and strands and things like that out in California why not attach that with a bill here in C in excuse me here in Georgia that would help with not only de

criminalizing and legalizing marijuana but create restorative justice opportunities for those who were incarcerated and help them to build businesses from being the kind of sewers that we know them to be Hey listen that is that is excellent Angelica that's really excellent because I I think about that right especially when you with everything that's happening with cop City the fact that Atlanta like it's not a coincidence that cop city is happening in ATA it's happening there because it's the la

rgest and also poorest population of black people you know in America and so you have that alongside with people talking about black Hollywood and so you think about the disparity on this wealth right like there there's all these black people that are that are doing well and have all that and then at the same time what's being what's happening and what's being done to bridge that gap between them and everybody else who's who make up the overwhelming majority CU it's it's easy for us to remember

forget sometimes that all even with all the ways that we even as black people oper like operate in and in our own marginalized groups whether it be as a black Trans Woman as a woman as an immigrant whatever have you we still are privileged in so many other ways above maybe our contemporaries and there is I would hope that a lot more of us start to feel this this obligation this moral obligation you feel to community I I listen I would hope and and and honestly I think that I I have a lot of purp

ose in my life and I'm I'm really strongly vowed to it and so I really do believe that I am one of the Flames that is going to Kindle that in people and Kindle that in our society and folks taking responsibility because I've been able to learn a new definition for responsibility as the ability to respond the ability to have a response and I know that we are living in a culture right now that is struggling to respond folks are scared they're silenced they're there all kind of things and so I want

to teach folks to build their ability to respond to what's going on and I you know and I I I I honestly I feel like it's not even just about the position cuz yes I'm going to be running for office but again like I said it's it's it is is something that we have to cuz even with Joe Biden and all this kind of stuff whatever them running for office so I've been able to see through so much of this circus Tre you know this the circus of it all because it's kind of like okay okay so if you lose Biden

like because right now you don't you're not looking like the most I'm looking good it's not looking good let's just say it's not looking good but what I'll say is this is like do you really love a America that much like if you really love us like you say you do are you what are you going to do when the election is over are you just going to retire back into you and Joe Biden's mansion and start a f like like are you not going to be fighting right and no and no and no and and we know the answer

to that so again I'm trying to show people whether I was before I was famous and working with HRC and the organizations and what have you to the time I did got famous and people was like you might not want to say all that you're not going to be here long girl and I'm still doing that and then to being here and having position being invited to the White House being invited to all these different rooms and still standing on business and standing on Integrity regardless of what title I hold even if

ain't nobody gave me one I don't need like I'm like Tina Turner in this mug I don't need nothing but my name and you're amazing like truly truly phenomenal like I begin to express to you just how phenomenal you really are like you I feel rejuvenated like the batter is in my back for today Angelica thank you good thank you thank you so much honestly it means the day you first ever followed me I was like I'm in here like screaming like running to my friends like I I love brilliant black people es

pecially brilliant black women and when I see it you once you recognize it you know and so many people out here are just haters and what I I mean by that is like you know people just Elevate such foolishness yes but will not give the respect and time and energy to the things that we need to and again so what I decided was no listen everybody's not I'm listen I'm about to call some folks out listen everybody ain't Beyonce yeah so I know it might look cute and seem great to only be following one p

erson you ain't got it like that sis you ain't got it like that you need Community if if you really want that kind of support and love you ain't Beyonce so the thing is is that and again me me I you know I'm not saying I don't I listen I only follow maybe almost 3,000 almost only like 3,000 people that's not a lot of people yeah I have a I have 485,000 followers on Instagram and I follow maybe 3,000 people I'm trying to get better at following more folks but it's literally because in the beginni

ng I didn't know who to trust yeah and that's real you start following folks and realizing their politics are off right or that their politics can switch depending on what the what the agenda is or what the money where the money coming in like their politics start writing switch up abruptly so I said let me protect my myself and not get my feelings hurt having these thoughts about somebody who can play an activist on a in a movie on the TV but ain't about that life in real life you understand wh

at I'm saying so it's like I had to I had to separate and acknowledge that with the people I'm on following on Instagram and the people that I even have that kind of networking relationship with we are like a a gang almost a team where it's like you know the fact like I follow you I follow Manda seals so what y'all talking about what y'all talking about I'm talking about yeah cuz we all got to be ready to uh crack the bottle when it's time to crack the bottle and know what's going on so it's lik

e the with the people who have the right perspective and eye on the issues and whatever those are the people I want to follow those are the people that are leading us somewhere if you just lead me from your bed to your K to your get ready with me or whatever I can get that from somebody else who know how to do both you I'm saying like so at this moment I like I'm was about I'm about to start doing some get ready with me makeup things and doing my makeup while I'm talking about a ceasefire yeah y

eah no and that's real and it it listen there is a real way to find to finding out a way how to uh express your Real views and give people what they feel is you know their entertainment and still teach them like I'mma give people Raheem but you GNA hear about Rikers you gonna see my cat but you're going to hear about this like so we G to figure out how to do both and I love AB we got to figure out how to do both these things because I'm telling you the amount of things that I have learned from o

ther black women just alone yes there are a lot of people out on Tik Tok doing all the things or whatever feminist or Jones you know what I'm saying like just so many uh Kimberly uh kinshaw like you know like there's so many folks who I've you know um uh Toronto Burke you know like there are just there's no reason in 2024 to be willfully ignorant yeah there's no excuse for it yeah there's no fact like that is super facts like it's out there there you could find networks and communities and all t

he people to speak to the issues and teach you everything and and break it down it'll change your life it'll change your life like oh shoot I you know and it happens to everybody no matter how smart you think you are like I have Deshawn Harrison they have a book called the belly of the Beast and I remember the first time I opened that I was like oh my God I am a fat phobic son of a I like I realized like I really realize it I'm like you realize it but if you've never been exposed to that and you

're not willing to expose yourself to that and and to hear those view points you're never you're never going to you're never going to change and learn more and realize the point is the point is don't you want to be a better human being yeah don't you want to let go of this is just how I am don't you want to be better like so I just want to encourage folks that you know everything right I mean everything is a reflection and so if you want your world to be better baby you got to be better and this

ain't about no victim blaming and whatever this is literally about you you want to have spiritual power you want to have power in your life then I'm the magic is in the reflection the magic is in how you use that magic mirror and say I see you obstacle and I raise you one you've dropped so many gems this it's wild today Angelica like so many gems I'm like I I didn't know I needed this like I was like I knew I wanted this I'm like oh I really want to talk to Angelica I know my audience will love

this it's going to be amazing but I'm like wow I needed this thank you thank you so muchel sharing your space oh of course thank you for blessing [Music] it he