I think it's huge that I'm wearing my natural hair texture on ABC in prime time. As Dr. Rainbow Johnson on 'Black-ish,' I think my hair is part of the reality of this woman's life. She has four children and is an anesthesiologist and a wife. She doesn't have a lot of time to fuss with beauty, so her look is pretty simple.
I have started using the expression 'compassionate activism': It's about keeping my heart open so that I can understand the point of view of the other person.
I don't really talk about my personal life. It's a strange and funny and weird thing. Sometimes you have a conversation with someone and the paparazzi snaps a picture of you and people decide you're dating. If I try to answer everything people say, I would be up all night.
Clothing started as an armor for me. It was one of the ways that I protected myself from the world. It evolved into a form of creative expression.
Red carpet is a little bit scary. It's not about expression. It's about taking a pretty picture in a really weird, awkward way, with so many people watching. It's a glamorous part of the job, but it requires its own kind of courage.
My natural disposition is pretty joyful, but you know, I have bad days and sad moments like anybody else.
I'm baffled by the people who say, 'I'm just not going to vote.'
Everyone's always like, 'Be your best self!' And that drives me bananas, because when you're not, it makes you feel really bad.
Putting all your eggs in one basket has never worked for me. Personally, I find if I decide too quickly that someone is my match, I start to get a little nutty.
My mom had beautiful clothes. My mom is elegant; my mom is glamorous. But my mom is also really real, and I grew up with a mother who had babies crawling on her head and spitting up on her when she was wearing gorgeous, expensive things, and it was never an issue.
For so many years, I was trying to beat my hair into submission, trying to get it to look like someone else's hair, and I didn't know how. I remember going through a phase where I even put beer in my hair, because I was told that would make it smooth and curly.
I don't always feel fierce and fearless, but I do feel like I'm a rock star at being human.
I'm attracted to bold women - I collect them. I met one of my best friends when we both were about 22 and working at 'Mirabella' magazine. I was wearing this blue dress I had borrowed from my mom, and I didn't know I had deodorant lines all over it until my friend signaled to me.
In this day and age, I ask anyone I date right away: 'Are you married? Are you in a relationship with anyone? Does anyone think they're in a relationship with you?' And by the way, if someone says, 'Yes, I am dating other people,' that's not necessarily a deal breaker. But you have to communicate it, not hide it.
'Blackish' is set in current times. So, doing a police brutality episode in current times when kids are watching our show, it gives them an access point to have these kinds of conversations as family.
It is important for me to feel like myself on a red carpet - not the way somebody else thinks I should look.
I feel like I'm on the inside for the first time. Inside the castle. I have an Emmy nomination!
What I think is exciting is that, to a certain extent, there is a revolution happening where black women are owning their own beauty, despite the standard of beauty that in the past has not had space for it.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is like a hero, to have played different comedic roles. She gets sexier, funnier, and better with time.
Even if politicians spew confusing, convoluted jargon, these people are still meant to represent me, and the only way that happens is if I stay informed and vote.
