Issa Rae continues to be boss with a capital “B.” Everything she does is a self-help book waiting to be written on how to follow your passion – from creating and crowdfunding her web series, The Misadventures of an Awkward Black Girl to producing and starring in her critically acclaimed TV show, Insecure to blessing magazine covers, CoverGirl and red carpets with her melanin kissed skin. She is walking billboard for Black Girl Magic who never seems to miss a beat.
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So, it’s not hard to find life lessons for success in Issa Rae’s every day, real moments and she had one the other day that truly stood out in its hilarity and relatability.
While at the airport – which is where I believe home base is for people living their best life – Rae overheard a paparazzi say, “that’s Issa Rae.” Then she watched as he proceeded to take a photo of a Black actress who wasn’t her. Which is pretty damn funny and thought-provoking on multiple levels.
Obviously, the photographer was aware on some level of Issa Rae and at least vaguely familiar with her accomplishments, since he knew her name. So, either he (very wrongly) decided that with everything he knew about her, she wasn’t worth his time to photograph or really didn’t know what she looked like and mistook the other actress for her.
To put it another way, this fool actually looked talent dead in the face and totally ignored it or didn’t actually know true talent when saw it!
Listen, I mean no disrespect to the other actress who I’m sure is stellar in her own right, but what hard working woman hasn’t been in this position? Who among us hasn’t had a moment in which your accomplishments were overlooked by someone in a position of power – even fleeting one?
It’s frustrating and infuriating and then you find yourself infuriated by the fact that you’re frustrated. And, after a while of being frustrated and infuriated – ok, maybe a few days or weeks – you realize the person who thinks they hold the power will never be able to quantify your greatness. And, then you decide the moves you need to make from there and simply move on.
Everything about Issa Rae leads me to believe that in her airport moment, she simply smiled brightly at the paparazzi and thought to herself, “boy, bye” as she walked by and handed her luggage to her driver and then slipped into her waiting black car, where she put the finishing touches on an award speech.
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I’m sure Issa’s response to being shaded was to simply keep it moving and we ladies should rejoice in every moment where we are secure in our self-value and get to do that too. #CareerGoals
-Charell Star | Not Just A Girl In A Dress