But she wasn’t always so sure she was on the right path.
Read on to learn more about the stunning transformation of Issa Rae.
She was chosen to play the role of Demetrius, and Rae’s mother took issue with that.
Playing Demetrius was a new experience, and one she enjoyed.
But when it came time for middle school, she started to look at herself differently.
I was like, ‘Oh, I’m not attractive to other people.
The guys I go after don’t see me that way,'" Rae said.
“They were really funny, though,” she said.
“They were just jerks, but they had a very specific sense of humor.”
Rae credits one of her teachers with introducing her to inspiring new material.
“…it was, ‘This is specifically written for us.’
It was during her college years that Rae really began mining her own experiences for her creative projects.
“Nobody’s you,” she toldThe Hollywood Reporter.
“How you exploit that as a creative means so much.”
The show was presented as a mockumentary and starred Rae’s friends and fellow students.
“The plays at the time didn’t resonate with Black kids.”
The series was a hit, showcasing Rae’s talent as both a writer and an actor.
But it also served a more important purpose for the star.
“‘Awkward Black Girl’ is the early twenties version of me kind of getting comfortable in my skin.
‘Insecure’ feels like the late twenties, early thirties version of myself,” Rae explained.
“What the [expletive] was that video?”
“It was intimidating,” Rae admitted in conversation with Robin Thede forShowmax.
“But it was so much fun.”
“After ‘Insecure’ was done, I willingly let myself go,” Rae toldThe Guardian.
“And then instantly, when I found out I got Barbie, I was like: ‘Oh no!
I gotta look like one!'”
The one issue Rae had with the Barbie experience?
The ubiquitous pink that dominated both the movie and its press tour.
“Ihatethe color pink,” Rae admitted.
“But I’ve been taking one for the team!”
she told The Guardian.
For Rae, the foray into voice acting was interesting and presented somewhat of a challenge.
But in the end it was all worth it.
“It’s so much fun… to see it all come together,” she said.
But she pulled the plug on the event, announcing the cancellation via her Instagram Stories.
