Watching the Lauryn Hill tribute didn't just remind me how great she is. It reminded me the importance of being BLACK & why we create.
"Legacy starts the day you stop asking permission to be yourself."
Watching the love she received, hearing the message to Black creatives, & sitting w/ the weight of that Ex-Factor performance made me realize how easy it is to let your current circumstances convince you to shrink your gift. To question your purpose. To wonder if what you're making/doing even matters. The truth is, most of us are trying to be understood by the people closest to us, forgetting there's an entire world outside of our little bubble that we created.
Maybe your work isn't meant for everyone around you.
Maybe it's meant for someone you'll never meet in this lifetime
As Black creatives, our gifts aren't accidents. They're responsibilities. A firm reminder that our stories deserve to be told in our own voices, w/o watering ourselves down to make anyone else feel comfortable. Hearing that speech reminded me that I'm more than enough. That My job isn't to predict who will understand the work. My job is simply to honor the gift God gave me & keep creating.
The rest will happen when & as it's supposed to.
