The 2022 ESSENCE Festival of Culture was filled with endless moments that had attendees smiling from ear to ear as we brought the country’s biggest celebration of global Black culture back to New Orleans in person following a 2-year hiatus fueled by the pandemic.
One of the biggest highlights of ESSENCE Fest weekend took place on the Beauty Carnival stage, where Radio Personality & Entrepreneur Angela Yee was joined by none other than award-winning multi-hyphenate creative Issa Rae.
In the candid one-on-one conversation, Rae opened up some of the specific challenges she faced early on in her career, what legacy she would be most proud to leave and even responded to rumors of an Insecure spin-off. She also spoke briefly about her latest project, Rap Sh*t, her haircare line Sienna Naturals, her management company ColorCreative, her audio company Raedio and her new L.A. coffee shop, Hilltop.
In other words, it was 30 minutes of all-things Issa and we were more than here for it. Keep scrolling to check out six gems she dropped during the must-see segment and then check out the video above to hear the conversation in full.
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01On Investing In Yourself:“Sometimes investing in yourself is like, I’m ok being broke for the next couple of months or years. And, with Awkward Black Girl, it was that. I’d gotten opportunities to take it to television but, it wasn’t what I imagined so, that meant that I was walking away with no money and had to be confident in that but, you know, it paid off.”
Photo by Leslie Henderson 02On The Possibility Of An Insecure Spin-Off:“It’s not what people may think but, yes, I still am exploring an idea and I haven’t written it yet. I have other things that are more of a priority right now but, I really do wanna make it happen.” 
Photo by Leslie Henderson 03On Premiering Rap Sh*t For The First Time At ABFF In Front Of A Predominantly Black Crowd:“[Black audiences] are who I care about at the end of the day. That’s the opinion that counts the most to me and that’s who I’m creating for.” 
Photo by Leslie Henderson 04On Believing In Her Own Power:“When I believe in something, especially now, I’ve just really been confident about my own power. So, yes, people have the power to tell me no but, I also have the power to make my yeses.” 
Photo by Leslie Henderson 05On Welcoming New People Into Her Inner-Circle:“There’s some people that will give you red flags when you meet them right away where it’s like, ‘Oh, you only like talking about yourself’ or ‘Oh, you are really about climbing.’ You can sense that and I’m really good at not ignoring those red flags.” 
Photo by Leslie Henderson 06On What She Hopes Her Legacy Will Be:“I really just want to be know for creating opportunities. I want to be known for loving my city. I want to be know for being rooted in what I believe in and just loving my community. I think about that daily and I think about that in everything that I create so, I think I’d be satisfied if that’s what I was known for.” 
Photo by Leslie Henderson
TOPICS: #BC_1 #BlackJoy2022 #SS
The post Issa Rae: ‘People Have The Power To Tell Me ‘No,’ But I Also Have The Power To Make My Yeses’ appeared first on Essence.
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