I just knew that was what I wanted to do. I was going to perform as a singer; I was going to perform as a dancer, and I was, you know, going to do movies and be an actress. I was going to do it or die trying. That's what my life was
I just knew that was what I wanted to do. I was going to perform as a singer; I was going to perform as a dancer, and I was, you know, going to do movies and be an actress. I was going to do it or die trying. That's what my life was.
If I know I have to memorize lines, I'm really gonna try to memorize lines. It's hard for me sometimes, because somebody wrote these words and you're trying really hard to get them the way they said it.
I was trying to pay the bills with poems, and it was easy to memorize my poems, because I'd be riding my bike in California trying to memorize them before going on stage at a poetry lounge.
I think initially it's terrifying because going into a show where, you know, "Oh, I'm going to be on stage for two hours, I have no lines to memorize, I have nothing really prepared," and actually I say that, the show is not all improvising.
With migration [in Europe] you look at the lines and you look at the tremendous amount of young strong men in these lines and you wonder what is going on?
I'm always trying to memorize lines, whether I understand them or not.
I woke up one day and wanted to change my look. And I was like, 'Okay, what are you going to do about it?' I said, 'I'm going lose 30 pounds, I'm going to get a little lipo, and I'm going to get a Monroe piercing, and I'm going to cut my hair. I'm going to get totally wild.'
It's weird, I was such a survivor and so wanted to be a part of life while I was trying to snuff out the life that was inside of me. I had this duality of trying to kill myself with drugs, then eating really good food and exercising and going swimming and trying to be a part of life. I was always going back and forth on some level.
Nobody uses skits at all anymore, so it seems like I use a lot. That's how I grew up on tapes. Biggie tapes, Biggie albums would have skits. The Lox would have skits. Mase would have skits. All the dudes I grew up on in Nineties rap would have skits on their projects, just to make you feel like you were right there with them.
I'm going to be happy. I'm going to skip. I'm going to be glad. I'm going to be easy. I'm going to count my blessings. I'm going to look for reasons to feel good. I'm going to dig up positive things from the past. I'm going to look for positive things where I stand. I'm going to look for positive things in the future. It is my natural state to be a happy person. It's natural for me to love and to laugh. This is what is most natural for me. I am a happy person.
I think, as an actress, whether you want to or not, whether you're ready for it or not, people are going to look at what you're doing, and they are going to look up to you, and it's not even really about you; it's who you portray on the screen.
In Hollywood, I'm obese. I'm considered a fat actress. I eat like a caveman. I'll be the only actress that doesn't have anorexia rumors! I'm never going to starve myself for a part. I'm invincible. I don't want little girls to be like "Oh, I want to look like Katniss, so I'm going to skip dinner!"
Acting is something I've always wanted to get into - you memorize lines when you write your rhymes.
That was my heart and that was my passion. All I ever wanted to do is wrestle. I never wanted to pitch in Game Seven of the World Series, I never wanted to throw the touchdown in the Superbowl, I wanted to wrestle...Be a professional wrestler.
Even when I'm not onstage singing, there's always music going on in my head. It's a curse and a blessing in a way - it's sitting in bed at night, trying to go to sleep, while the music keeps playing in your head - especially when you're trying to learn something new and you're trying to memorize it and get everything.