During a recent trip to Europe Queen Latifah discussed her prior body image fears that almost prevented her pursuing a career in music and acting.
Now 54-years-old, the Grammy award-winning rapper who’s sold millions of records and won an Oscar nomination and Golden Globe wins for her acting skills, admitted her early fears about not making it in the creative industries due to the size of her body.
While attending the Cannes Lions event in France, the superstar stated “I watched this idea of what beauty was supposed to be – size two, blue-eyed. That was being pushed on everyone as I was growing up. I thought that was a bar I was never going to meet.” And explaining that body image played on her mind, she recalled saying to herself “Can I move into Hollywood in a way I would like to, and accomplish what I would like to in this business, being me? It was about finding people who understood that was the vision.”
The Chicago-born native (born Dana Elaine Owens) encountered struggles, revealing, “Of course there was push back. People are stuck in their mindsets – it’s not just actors, it’s producers, people at studios, people who’ve gone through their own weight loss journeys – who’ve heard different messages within their own homes, so they’re putting that out to other people and they’re creating the media and the imagery we see.”
Praising Oprah Winfrey for changing the public perception and dialogue about body image as her own weight has fluctuated over the years, Latifah added, “When I think of her and what she’s been through on that journey, I love the idea that someone will not have to endure the same journey today, that they will be able to walk into their doctor’s office and just have a conversation.”
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Author: Al Denté
Photo: Sister Circle TV