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Speaker 1: Hey fam, Hello Sunshine.

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Speaker 2: Today on the bright Side, we're joined by Emmy nominated actor,

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Speaker 2: writer and producer Natasha Rothwell. Her new Hulu series How

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Speaker 2: to Dialan is out now.

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Speaker 3: I wanted to give people someone to root for because

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Speaker 3: that's how I got to where I am. You know,

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Speaker 3: It's being able to cheer myself on and having my

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Speaker 3: friends cheer me on as I'm fuck up and make

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Speaker 3: mistakes as I'm growing.

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Speaker 4: All of that.

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Speaker 2: Natasha is telling us how she's ready to take center

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Speaker 2: stage and revealing the Steve Martin quote that guides her

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Speaker 2: every single day. It's Thursday, September twenty sixth I'm Danielle Robe.

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Speaker 5: And I'm Simone Boyce and this is the bright Side

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Speaker 5: from Hello Sunshine, a daily show where we come together

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Speaker 5: to share women's stories, laugh, learn, and brighten your day.

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Speaker 2: Okay, before we get into today's episode, we want to

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Speaker 2: take a second to welcome all you new listeners that

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Speaker 2: found us via Apple Podcasts monthly Spotlight Pick. We're so

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Speaker 2: thrilled to be on Apple's list of the most exciting

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Speaker 2: vital voices and personalities in podcasting today and super humbled.

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Speaker 2: So if you're new here, dive into our feed and

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Speaker 2: take a listen to our conversations that aim to inspire, educate,

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Speaker 2: and empower women as we tackle life each and every day.

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Speaker 5: Ay. Welcome to the party, y'all, and today's guest is

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Speaker 5: the true embodiment of inspiration and empowerment. As we mentioned,

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Speaker 5: Joining us today is actor, writer and director Natasha Rothwell.

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Speaker 5: You all know her as Kelly Prenny in the Ray

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Speaker 5: created series Insecure. Insecure did something so revolutionary. It created

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Speaker 5: a cast of characters that felt so incredibly viscerally real,

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Speaker 5: Like we all felt like, I know these people.

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Speaker 1: I've got a Kelly in my life. Oh my god,

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Speaker 1: that's so well said.

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Speaker 2: Natasha was actually hired on Insecure as a writer and

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Speaker 2: so she didn't come to be on the cast until

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Speaker 2: later in the show, and she became a fan favorite

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Speaker 2: so quickly. She was known for like her clever comebacks,

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Speaker 2: her one liners.

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Speaker 1: A lot of people say Kelly was the funniest character.

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Speaker 2: We also can't forget Natasha's Emmy nominated performance as Belinda

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Speaker 2: in The White Lotus because she's set to reprise that

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Speaker 2: role in the upcoming third season of the series, which

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Speaker 2: makes her one of the only actors with a recurring

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Speaker 2: role on the show, so she's also a favorite of

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Speaker 2: that show.

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Speaker 5: It's so funny because she was one of the most

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Speaker 5: colorful characters on Insecure, and then on The White Lotus

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Speaker 5: she plays the straight man, which is a term in

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Speaker 5: comedy to describe the person who is behaving normally when

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Speaker 5: everyone else around them is chaotic.

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Speaker 1: So I think that just speaks to her range.

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Speaker 5: I mean, she's had some truly iconic roles throughout her career,

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Speaker 5: always in a supporting role until now, because she's taking

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Speaker 5: center stage.

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Speaker 1: In a big way.

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Speaker 2: Her new series is called How To Die Alone, and

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Speaker 2: it is out now. She created it, she executive produced it,

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Speaker 2: she starred in the show, and it follows her character Melissa,

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Speaker 2: which is quote a broke, fat JFK airport employee who's

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Speaker 2: never been in love and forgotten how to dream. But

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Speaker 2: then she has an accidental brush with death and it

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Speaker 2: leads her to finally taking charge of her own life.

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Speaker 2: So now Natasha's here to talk to us about it all. Natasha,

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Speaker 2: welcome to the bright Side.

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Speaker 4: Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be here.

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Speaker 2: Well, we're so excited, and a huge congratulations is in

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Speaker 2: order because your new show just came out. Simone and

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Speaker 2: I both loved it, were excited to finish the season.

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Speaker 2: And you've really been a part of shows that have

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Speaker 2: shaped culture in the last few years, shows that everybody's

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Speaker 2: talking about. And now you're stepping into this major creative role.

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Speaker 2: And Simona and I were like, she's literally the main

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Speaker 2: character now, it's so exciting. And speaking of cheering you on,

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Speaker 2: Gail King, she picked your show as a must watch

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Speaker 2: for this fall, which I.

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Speaker 1: Do not know this. No, Oh my god, we're breaking

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Speaker 1: news right now.

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Speaker 4: Are you serious?

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Speaker 1: Yes?

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Speaker 4: This is and you're not pulling my leg? Is it serious?

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Speaker 2: Yes?

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Speaker 5: Girl, it's an Oprah Daily. Wow, I did that. I

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Speaker 5: did an interview with her and she was so kind,

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Speaker 5: but I didn't know it was a I'm gonna need

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Speaker 5: the vapors in a minute.

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Speaker 2: What I think we have to put your Google alerts

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Speaker 2: on so that you catch.

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Speaker 3: I've been so this is the busiest I've been in

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Speaker 3: my life in a way where I'm just like, because

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Speaker 3: I don't have main character energy in real life, truly,

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Speaker 3: I don't, and so having to do all of the

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Speaker 3: press for all of it, and like I just haven't

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Speaker 3: been on my phone, like I usually.

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Speaker 4: Am, and so I love that you broke this news.

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Speaker 3: I'm very excited. That means she probably told Oprah about it.

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Speaker 4: Am. I this is one step closer.

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Speaker 5: To you are literally one degree away, half a degree.

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Speaker 1: They talk every day.

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Speaker 4: Have you met Opri yet? Oh no, no I haven't.

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Speaker 4: My soul would leave my body.

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Speaker 5: Okay, So your soul is going to leave your body.

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Speaker 5: I give I give it literally six months, you're gonna.

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Speaker 4: Meet your mouth from your mouth to God's ears. Okay.

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Speaker 5: Just because you haven't seen this article yet, I feel

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Speaker 5: like we need to read it to her, Danielle. The

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Speaker 5: headline is Gail King found the perfect solve for your

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Speaker 5: end of summer scaries. Natasha Rothwell's new series How to

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Speaker 5: Die Alone is part of Gail's September lineup.

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Speaker 3: Wow wow wow wow wow wow. Yeah that is I Yeah,

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Speaker 3: it's so funny to me being in this moment and

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Speaker 3: having empathy in hindsight for Taylor Swift. Hear me out

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Speaker 3: there are Okay, So you know, okay, you know she

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Speaker 3: was kind of you know, lampooned for her shucks you know,

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Speaker 3: all shucks campaign every time she won an award, and

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Speaker 3: everyone's like, you should be used to it by now,

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Speaker 3: there is no version of my existence where I will

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Speaker 3: get used to people consuming things that make seeing me,

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Speaker 3: supporting me in mass, having people who.

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Speaker 4: I look up to see my work and validate what

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Speaker 4: I do.

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Speaker 3: Each one of those instances doesn't play on my heart

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Speaker 3: and soul in a small way. They're like these mighty explosions.

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Speaker 3: And so I feel like since this press tour has started,

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Speaker 3: it's been like every day I'm like Jesus crazy, and

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Speaker 3: my publicist, you know, she's just been on this ride

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Speaker 3: with me. But it's purely authentic, and I really I

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Speaker 3: understand now in hindsight how you might win the same

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Speaker 3: award every single year, but it feels brand new because

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Speaker 3: it's it's that little girl that didn't think that she

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Speaker 3: was going to get seen. It's that little girl that

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Speaker 3: didn't know that anyone cared what she had to say.

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Speaker 3: And she's still around and I'm treating her a lot

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Speaker 3: better now, But I think it comes from that, you know.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, thanks for your honesty, Natasha.

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Speaker 5: We talk about representation a lot on this show show,

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Speaker 5: but we try to do it in a way that

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Speaker 5: is rooted in data and science, right, and we have

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Speaker 5: seen so much progress. I know that I have so

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Speaker 5: many more women in TV and film that I can

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Speaker 5: look to and feel represented by, and yet in twenty

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Speaker 5: twenty four, it still feels unique to have a show

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Speaker 5: like this one with a lead who is a black

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Speaker 5: woman who isn't a size.

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Speaker 1: Zero or double zero or two.

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Speaker 5: So how did you approach writing her identity as a

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Speaker 5: plus sized black woman into the story without making that

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Speaker 5: the story? Because I think that's the goal, right, It's

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Speaker 5: like this balance of being honest about identity while also

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Speaker 5: exploring the full breath of who these characters are. Absolutely,

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Speaker 5: I mean the cornerstone of Big Hattie Productions is that

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Speaker 5: the humanity of our character begins on page one. We

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Speaker 5: refuse to do projects, produce projects, be in projects where

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Speaker 5: you're wasting page real estate to explain away my otherness,

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Speaker 5: so then my story can start.

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Speaker 4: And for me, I wanted to have a show in

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Speaker 4: which it's not.

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Speaker 3: About, you know, a plus sized girlie who gets bonked

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Speaker 3: in the head and figures out that the right man

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Speaker 3: was under her nose the whole time, you know what

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Speaker 3: I mean? Like, I think we're smarter than that, and

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Speaker 3: it was important for me to allow someone who looks

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Speaker 3: like me to exist and not have to make her

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Speaker 3: existence a radical act of defiance.

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Speaker 4: She could just be.

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Speaker 3: And I think we talk a lot about self love,

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Speaker 3: but there's not There's starting to be more talk about

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Speaker 3: body neutrality and the privilege it is to have body neutrality.

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Speaker 3: It is a burden to have to walk around and

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Speaker 3: feel like you have to cheerlead the way you look.

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Speaker 3: It's false positivity that is really, I think, detrimental to

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Speaker 3: one's health. And we don't want the negativity. We want

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Speaker 3: to be able to exist in the world where we

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Speaker 3: can just exist and we can be more than how

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Speaker 3: you perceived me. And so the show, to me was

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Speaker 3: that putting into practice the mission of my production company

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Speaker 3: and really allowing the protagonist to exist without an astisk

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Speaker 3: by her identity.

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Speaker 2: Have you found spaces in your personal life where you

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Speaker 2: feel like you exist without the astris.

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Speaker 4: Depends on the day.

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Speaker 3: I think that it's not something that you can solve,

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Speaker 3: and because so much of it is external, but a

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Speaker 3: lot of it is internal. I mean, the truth of

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Speaker 3: the matter is is that I grew up plus size

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Speaker 3: and black and a woman, and for me, those were

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Speaker 3: things I spent a great deal of time apologizing for

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Speaker 3: and so it's a hard thing when you have a

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Speaker 3: kind of a knee jerk reaction to triggers.

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Speaker 4: And you know, thank fuck for therapy. My therapist is

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Speaker 4: well paid.

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Speaker 3: And one of the things that I learned is that

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Speaker 3: you know so much of this it sticks with you.

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Speaker 3: And it's about having agency in those moments, not to

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Speaker 3: stay in them and not to give them power. And

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Speaker 3: so even though I do recognize that I'm Natasha Rothwell

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Speaker 3: no asterisk, if everyone creeps up, I can easily acknowledge

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Speaker 3: it and erase it and stand tintes down in who

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Speaker 3: I am. But it's not easy. It's a process. It's hard,

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Speaker 3: especially when you have media and external opinions about your

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Speaker 3: otherness that can kind of force the narrative. But I'm

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Speaker 3: proud of the work that I've done, and this show

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Speaker 3: is a consequence of that, for sure.

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Speaker 2: I've been thinking a lot lately about the difference between

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Speaker 2: self love and self worth. I used to think they

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Speaker 2: were the same thing. And a good friend of mine

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Speaker 2: called me out.

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Speaker 1: She really saw me, which sucks, don't it.

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Speaker 5: It hurts like I like to be seen, but not

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Speaker 5: that scene you know yet exactly.

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Speaker 2: She said to me, You've always been so confident, but

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Speaker 2: I think you have a self worth issue.

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Speaker 3: Whoo, it's a real friend, that's a real ass friend

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Speaker 3: who will.

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Speaker 2: Say that it really is. I started digging on what

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Speaker 2: the hell the difference was. But I'm wondering if you've

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Speaker 2: explored that personally or within the show.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, personally, for sure. I think that you're worth and

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Speaker 3: worthiness it's inextricably linked. And I think feeling worthy of

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Speaker 3: love and feeling worthy of being the star of a

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Speaker 3: show that shit creeps up, you know, and it's real.

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Speaker 3: Imposture syndrome is real, and loving something and valuing something

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Speaker 3: it's very different. I can really really love my you know,

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Speaker 3: favorite pair of earrings, but if I'm really value it,

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Speaker 3: I'm taking care of it, I'm looking after it, I'm

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Speaker 3: thinking about it, making and considering it, and making sure

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Speaker 3: that everything that I do is in an effort to

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Speaker 3: protect that item, that things, that person's that their wholeness.

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Speaker 3: And I think that so much of what we were

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Speaker 3: taught and sometimes still being taught, is just like, oh,

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Speaker 3: just love yourself. But what does it mean when you

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Speaker 3: really think about your worth and your value? And how

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Speaker 3: much more am I to value myself more than the

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Speaker 3: opinions of other people, and that has been a real

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Speaker 3: journey for me of triaging that priority list, you know,

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Speaker 3: not caring about what other people think and putting my

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Speaker 3: needs first and considering what my needs are. And I

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Speaker 3: think that's the beauty of having a character like Melissa

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Speaker 3: to explore, because she's really kind of the for the

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Speaker 3: unhealed version of myself, and I really wanted to write

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Speaker 3: a character that was going through that process of trying

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Speaker 3: to heal. And it's not a straight line, you know,

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Speaker 3: it's up back, and sometimes you start at square one,

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Speaker 3: you're all over the place, but ultimately the momentum leads

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Speaker 3: you forward. And I wanted to give people someone to

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Speaker 3: root for because that's how I got to where I am,

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Speaker 3: you know, It's being able to cheer myself on and

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Speaker 3: having my friends cheer me on as I'm fuck up

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Speaker 3: and make mistakes as I'm growing all of that.

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Speaker 2: We have to take a quick break, but we'll be

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Speaker 2: right back with more from actor and creator of the

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Speaker 2: show How to Die Alone, Natasha Rothwell. And we're back

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Speaker 2: with Natasha Rothwell. Okay, Natasha, you started on Insecure as

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Speaker 2: a writer and then you transition to a role in

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Speaker 2: front of the camera Kelly, who, honestly, if you read

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Speaker 2: any Reddit thread, everyone says Kelly's the funniest character on

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Speaker 2: the entire show. So you were straddling both lanes, which

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Speaker 2: I think is really rare. When you watched Asa do

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Speaker 2: her thing, What did you think about her? What did

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Speaker 2: you learn from her that you implemented now in your

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Speaker 2: show How To Die Alone?

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Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean starting on the show as a writer,

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Speaker 3: I had blinders on. I wanted to be the best

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Speaker 3: writer possible. I wanted to prove to myself and regrettably

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Speaker 3: including others in that that I belonged in the room

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Speaker 3: because I hadn't written for television before outside of sketch,

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Speaker 3: you know, coming from SNL. And when Lisa tapped me

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Speaker 3: to play Kelly, she in that moment saw.

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Speaker 4: Me as a creator. She didn't limit her vision of.

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Speaker 3: Me to my vision of me in that time because

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Speaker 3: I didn't even aspire to act on the show.

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Speaker 4: I was that in it.

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Speaker 3: And so one of the ways that I've chosen to

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Speaker 3: replicate that is CP Powell, who's on the show.

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Speaker 4: Of that Sean and DeShawn Duo on the tarmac.

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Speaker 3: He's a writer in the room, and so being able

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Speaker 3: to pass the baton to someone who is so funny,

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Speaker 3: so like side splitting funny and such a just a

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Speaker 3: powerful contribution to the room and an amazing writer. I

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Speaker 3: knew that I wanted to see him as a whole

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Speaker 3: creator and not limit him just to being on screen.

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Speaker 3: And so that's something definitely I took from Issa, is

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Speaker 3: to use the gifts that are in front of you

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Speaker 3: and not allowing other.

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Speaker 4: People to get in their own way.

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Speaker 3: And I think that was just very generous of her

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Speaker 3: to not allow me to get my own way and

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Speaker 3: really saw me and wanted to use me. And of

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Speaker 3: course when she did, I activated, because of course I

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Speaker 3: love to do both. You know, That's what I'm doing

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Speaker 3: with the show now, and so I'm just really grateful

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Speaker 3: for her ability to see through my bullshit and allow

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Speaker 3: me to flourish as a creator and not just you know,

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Speaker 3: staying in one lane.

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Speaker 2: Okay, So I heard you have a frame Steve Martin

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Speaker 2: quote and it says, be so good they can't ignore you.

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Speaker 4: Yeah.

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Speaker 1: Why did you frame that quote?

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Speaker 3: I think primarily for me again, walking through the world

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Speaker 3: as a plus size black woman being overlooked was something

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Speaker 3: that was par for the course of having people fully

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Speaker 3: walk into me on the street because they're not looking

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Speaker 3: or not seeing myself represented on TV, and feeling like

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Speaker 3: I had no power in this situation, that I was powerless.

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Speaker 4: And I remember coming across that quote very early on

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Speaker 4: in my time at.

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Speaker 3: University of Maryland, and it sparked in me this agency

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Speaker 3: that I didn't know I had. Where it's just like,

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Speaker 3: I can't control other people's willingness to see me, willingness

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Speaker 3: to support me, and I don't want to exhaust myself

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Speaker 3: in trying to appease their idea of who I should

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Speaker 3: be or live within those limitations. But I know what

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Speaker 3: I love to do, and I'm just going to do

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Speaker 3: it the best fucking way I know how, and I'm

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Speaker 3: going to invest in myself and I'm going to read

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Speaker 3: the books and take the classes. And it wasn't about

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Speaker 3: proving other people wrong. It was proving me right, being like, oh, I'm.

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Speaker 4: Good at this. I'm really fucking good at this.

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Speaker 3: So even though my existence might be something that you're

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Speaker 3: wanting to ignore or are predisposed to ignore, my talent

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Speaker 3: is going to make you sit up and take notice.

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Speaker 4: And that's it.

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Speaker 5: That is a word that is I'm going to frame

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Speaker 5: that quote. Wait, give it to me one more time, Natasha,

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Speaker 5: be so good.

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Speaker 3: They can't ignore you, And yeah, that's the quote, and

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Speaker 3: that's that's the one you gotta frame. But you just

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Speaker 3: got to tap into the fact that you're going to

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Speaker 3: be a bad bitch by yourself for yourself, and people

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Speaker 3: will take notice.

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Speaker 2: I have a question about that voice, the proving yourself right.

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Speaker 2: I interviewed Kevin Hart a few years ago and I

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Speaker 2: asked him, like, you know, he was finding this incredible

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Speaker 2: success that other comedians hadn't found monetarily financially, and I

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Speaker 2: was like, did you always know when you were in

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Speaker 2: Philly selling shoes?

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Speaker 1: Did you have that voice?

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Speaker 2: And he looked at me and he was like, no,

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Speaker 2: I had no idea my life was going to turn

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Speaker 2: out like this. And I didn't freaking believe him. And

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Speaker 2: I want to know if you had that voice and

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Speaker 2: have that voice still.

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Speaker 3: Here's what I've always known. I've always known I've been

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Speaker 3: called to do this work. I've always known that my

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Speaker 3: purpose is to put myself in a position of visibility

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Speaker 3: so other feel seen.

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Speaker 4: Those two I know to be true.

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Speaker 3: This life that I currently have, I didn't know that

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Speaker 3: it would happen, and I think that's just true. But

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Speaker 3: and I understand why he said that. But I'll tell

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Speaker 3: you what I did do. When I was in New York,

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Speaker 3: broke as can be, I wrote a check to myself

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Speaker 3: in the total amount of my college debt that I

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Speaker 3: could never cash less go to jail, and I kept

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Speaker 3: it in my wallet.

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Speaker 4: That's how big my dreams were. My dreams were.

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Speaker 3: I just want to be able to pay off my

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Speaker 3: college debt and do what I do for a living,

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Speaker 3: and to me, that really was success. I wanted to

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Speaker 3: be able to pay my rent and do my art

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Speaker 3: and not be in debt. That was the trifecta of

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Speaker 3: my goals at the time. And so to be in

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Speaker 3: a position where I have a production company, I'm starring

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Speaker 3: in my own show, at the distinct privilege of being

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Speaker 3: a part of some of the most iconic shows that

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Speaker 3: have been around in the last ten years, it is

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Speaker 3: so unfathomable to me that this is my life. And

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Speaker 3: I think this is where I the Taylor Swift all

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Speaker 3: Shucks sort of analogy comes in, because it just's I

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Speaker 3: feel so lucky, I feel so blessed, and.

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Speaker 4: It's overwhelming to wake up every day to this life.

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Speaker 3: And yes, it's a life that I worked for and

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Speaker 3: that I've prayed for and did vision boards for and

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Speaker 3: got crystals for. But even still, it's a humbling thing.

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Speaker 3: It's a humbling thing to have a dream come true

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Speaker 3: in front of people.

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Speaker 4: It's a humbling thing.

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Speaker 2: It's amazing how dreams will make you so well because

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Speaker 2: you need to believe in something larger. It's like otherwise

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Speaker 2: it's crazy making.

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Speaker 4: It is crazy making, it really really is.

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Speaker 3: And like before I moved to La, I didn't know

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Speaker 3: any like I knew my birth sign, I didn't know anything.

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Speaker 4: Now a bitch got crystals.

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Speaker 3: I'm invested in the mystery of life because I can't

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Speaker 3: explain my good fortune. And I'm not gonna cry. But

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Speaker 3: I just had my premiere last night, and I took

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Speaker 3: a moment just to stare at the audience, and I

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Speaker 3: asked them for permission, just to be weird, because and

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Speaker 3: I didn't plan on doing it, but I was just

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Speaker 3: standing there and I was about to get into the

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Speaker 3: thank yous, and I looked out and I saw the

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Speaker 3: faces of all these people that I love and have

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Speaker 3: supported me showing up for my own show, and I

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Speaker 3: was in a bit of disbelief, so I needed to

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Speaker 3: pause and take a look at it. And yeah, it's

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Speaker 3: crazy making to think that life led me to that

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Speaker 3: moment when I just I have all of these acute

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Speaker 3: memories of the struggle and being in New York and

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Speaker 3: leaving an improv show and not having enough money on

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Speaker 3: my Metro card and picking up cards on the subway

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Speaker 3: floor just so I could get home because I had

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Speaker 3: no money in my account because I've overdrawn it because

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00:22:09,000 --> 00:22:10,800
Speaker 3: I needed a prop for a sketch, you know what

404
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Speaker 3: I mean. And to go from that to last night,

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Speaker 3: it could be crazy making if you don't acknowledge that

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Speaker 3: there's something else going on.

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Speaker 1: De Lulu is the Sululu.

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Speaker 4: Lululu is the Sululu. I'm trying to look. I have

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Speaker 4: this beautiful beat.

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Speaker 3: I'm trying not to waste the face, and I'm holding

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Speaker 3: back tears, but I'm just trying to enjoy the ride.

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Speaker 4: But yeah, I think De Lulu is the Sululu.

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Speaker 1: We need to take another short break. We'll be right back.

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Speaker 2: We're back with Natasha Rothwell, Natasha, we saw that you're

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Speaker 2: going to be developing an adaptation of a very wild

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Speaker 2: TikTok series that went viral earlier this year. Simone and

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Speaker 2: I watched many many clips from it. It's called Who

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Speaker 2: Who the F? Did I Marry? It's a fifty two

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Speaker 2: part series from Reesa Tisa all about her ex husband

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Speaker 2: who was a compulsive liar or pathological liar. What did

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Speaker 2: you see in it? Why did you want to bring

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Speaker 2: this to life?

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Speaker 4: A couple of things.

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Speaker 3: One in February when she dropped the series, I was

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Speaker 3: in Thailand.

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Speaker 4: I was working, and I was being tagged.

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Speaker 3: On her story like constantly on social media, and I

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Speaker 3: didn't have the time because I was working to explore

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Speaker 3: what it was. But then it popped up on my cousins,

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Speaker 3: like all the cousins in my family we have a

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Speaker 3: chat in on our phone, and I was just and

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Speaker 3: it was someone mocked up the cover of what an

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Speaker 3: adaptation would look like and had cast me in the

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Speaker 3: part of her. And I was like, Okay, I'll go

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Speaker 3: check it out. And I watched all eight hours and

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Speaker 3: I was blown away by this act of radical vulnerability.

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Speaker 3: She did not know that this was going to turn

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Speaker 3: into what it was. She just knew that she had

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Speaker 3: to tell her story for herself. Uninterrupted with the details

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Speaker 3: as a way to cleanse it and to get it

441
00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:15,879
Speaker 3: out of her. And when I saw that, I was

442
00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:19,359
Speaker 3: just genuinely moved. I understood why it had four hundred

443
00:24:19,359 --> 00:24:22,480
Speaker 3: and fifty million impressions and how she gained three million

444
00:24:22,480 --> 00:24:24,399
Speaker 3: TikTok followers in the span.

445
00:24:24,200 --> 00:24:25,000
Speaker 4: Of three weeks.

446
00:24:25,760 --> 00:24:31,440
Speaker 3: People are attracted and become addicted to that vulnerability, that honesty,

447
00:24:32,119 --> 00:24:34,920
Speaker 3: and not only that, she's an amazing storyteller, and that's

448
00:24:34,960 --> 00:24:38,359
Speaker 3: a hallmark of what Big Hattie Productions like, what we

449
00:24:38,480 --> 00:24:42,240
Speaker 3: look for is centering a marginalized voice and telling a

450
00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:45,840
Speaker 3: story that we haven't heard from that specific pov.

451
00:24:46,160 --> 00:24:51,480
Speaker 4: And it was a very intense battle to.

452
00:24:51,480 --> 00:24:53,600
Speaker 3: Get the rights because a lot of people through their

453
00:24:53,640 --> 00:24:57,000
Speaker 3: hat in the Ring, and this was a really trust

454
00:24:57,000 --> 00:24:59,600
Speaker 3: the universe moment because there are a lot of bigger.

455
00:24:59,359 --> 00:25:01,640
Speaker 4: Names than mine that tossed their hat in the ring.

456
00:25:02,600 --> 00:25:04,280
Speaker 3: But when I sat down with her to do our

457
00:25:04,359 --> 00:25:06,760
Speaker 3: pitch of like what I was thinking about for the series,

458
00:25:07,720 --> 00:25:11,720
Speaker 3: we just connected and I let her know that as

459
00:25:11,880 --> 00:25:14,720
Speaker 3: moved as I was by her act of vulnerability and

460
00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:20,040
Speaker 3: how compelling the story was, I was more interested in

461
00:25:20,080 --> 00:25:24,679
Speaker 3: the woman telling the story, and I wanted to approach

462
00:25:24,760 --> 00:25:28,040
Speaker 3: it from that pov of not just what happened to

463
00:25:28,080 --> 00:25:31,760
Speaker 3: you as a result of having married a pathological liar,

464
00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:36,920
Speaker 3: but what has happened to you after viral fame and

465
00:25:37,240 --> 00:25:42,679
Speaker 3: people are eating up your trauma like capital t trauma

466
00:25:43,440 --> 00:25:44,480
Speaker 3: for sport.

467
00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:45,880
Speaker 4: And how does that affect you as a person?

468
00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:49,240
Speaker 3: And I think we just connected on that really wanting

469
00:25:49,280 --> 00:25:53,119
Speaker 3: to not just capitalize on a hot moment, but to

470
00:25:53,320 --> 00:25:57,960
Speaker 3: really use this as an opportunity to do what I

471
00:25:58,000 --> 00:26:00,720
Speaker 3: did with how to die alone and really work out

472
00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:03,280
Speaker 3: some shit and get real with some shit and have

473
00:26:03,320 --> 00:26:04,720
Speaker 3: fun with it at the same time.

474
00:26:04,840 --> 00:26:08,119
Speaker 4: And so yeah, I'm just really grateful for the opportunity.

475
00:26:08,520 --> 00:26:13,879
Speaker 2: You seem so clear on what your production company wants

476
00:26:13,880 --> 00:26:17,399
Speaker 2: to be a part of. To me, that signals like

477
00:26:17,440 --> 00:26:22,400
Speaker 2: a very strong value system. Personally, I'm wondering what your

478
00:26:22,480 --> 00:26:26,200
Speaker 2: most deeply held belief is that guides your life's work

479
00:26:26,920 --> 00:26:28,320
Speaker 2: or guid's your life and your work.

480
00:26:28,359 --> 00:26:29,280
Speaker 1: Let me put it that way.

481
00:26:29,880 --> 00:26:34,440
Speaker 3: Yeah, I operate from a place of kindness and being

482
00:26:34,560 --> 00:26:36,280
Speaker 3: nice and kind or vastly different.

483
00:26:37,000 --> 00:26:39,200
Speaker 4: One is hollow and one is you know, substantive.

484
00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:43,880
Speaker 3: And it's not because I want something from someone. It's

485
00:26:43,920 --> 00:26:48,040
Speaker 3: because I'm operating from that place of empathy and understanding

486
00:26:48,080 --> 00:26:48,959
Speaker 3: first and grace.

487
00:26:49,640 --> 00:26:50,800
Speaker 4: It's how I was raised.

488
00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:52,919
Speaker 3: But outside of that, it makes the most sense of

489
00:26:52,960 --> 00:26:59,160
Speaker 3: me as a person. And so I think that kindness

490
00:26:59,359 --> 00:27:03,160
Speaker 3: can sometime and be looked at as weakness, and.

491
00:27:04,480 --> 00:27:06,880
Speaker 4: I can say fuck you in a very kind.

492
00:27:06,680 --> 00:27:09,720
Speaker 3: Way, do you know what I'm saying. So don't mistaken

493
00:27:09,760 --> 00:27:14,280
Speaker 3: for weakness, but for me seeing people, meeting them where

494
00:27:14,280 --> 00:27:18,320
Speaker 3: they are, looking at them in the eye, auditing what

495
00:27:18,400 --> 00:27:22,080
Speaker 3: it is that I have and how it might be

496
00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:25,240
Speaker 3: of service to someone else, Not because I want something back,

497
00:27:25,320 --> 00:27:27,040
Speaker 3: but because it.

498
00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:28,879
Speaker 4: Feels good to do. I just.

499
00:27:30,600 --> 00:27:33,960
Speaker 3: It's literally it's who I am, and I think the

500
00:27:34,000 --> 00:27:36,200
Speaker 3: world could use a little more of it. But yeah,

501
00:27:36,400 --> 00:27:40,960
Speaker 3: I think it's kindness can be sometimes an underrated sort

502
00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:43,159
Speaker 3: of guiding principle.

503
00:27:42,720 --> 00:27:44,080
Speaker 4: But I think it's very important.

504
00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:45,399
Speaker 1: Natasha.

505
00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:48,080
Speaker 5: It's been such a pleasure getting to know you a

506
00:27:48,080 --> 00:27:50,320
Speaker 5: little bit better over the course of this interview, because

507
00:27:50,520 --> 00:27:52,560
Speaker 5: of course I've only gotten to see your work on

508
00:27:52,640 --> 00:27:55,240
Speaker 5: TV and you've had me in stitches. There are three

509
00:27:55,359 --> 00:27:59,280
Speaker 5: words that come to mind when I think of you

510
00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:06,040
Speaker 5: now that we've had this conversation. Kindness, for sure, expansiveness,

511
00:28:08,119 --> 00:28:11,240
Speaker 5: that act of taking up space. And then finally it's

512
00:28:11,280 --> 00:28:15,000
Speaker 5: this phrase that you disdropped, radical vulnerability, And I feel

513
00:28:15,040 --> 00:28:16,760
Speaker 5: like that's the title of this episode, Danielle.

514
00:28:16,760 --> 00:28:17,720
Speaker 4: I don't know, let me know.

515
00:28:17,640 --> 00:28:21,160
Speaker 5: What a radical vulnerability because I see that in your characters,

516
00:28:21,440 --> 00:28:23,480
Speaker 5: the kind of work you want to do, what you

517
00:28:23,520 --> 00:28:24,520
Speaker 5: want to be known for.

518
00:28:25,320 --> 00:28:26,560
Speaker 1: That seems to be the through line.

519
00:28:26,880 --> 00:28:28,120
Speaker 4: Thank you. That means a lot.

520
00:28:28,160 --> 00:28:30,480
Speaker 3: I feel very seen by you two, and I'm just

521
00:28:30,480 --> 00:28:34,359
Speaker 3: so appreciative for this conversation. I love to chinwag about

522
00:28:34,400 --> 00:28:37,200
Speaker 3: deep things and this has been just such a treat.

523
00:28:37,320 --> 00:28:39,760
Speaker 3: And yeah, just thank you for your support for this

524
00:28:39,840 --> 00:28:43,040
Speaker 3: show and for always. It's lovely to hear and it

525
00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:43,720
Speaker 3: means everything.

526
00:28:43,800 --> 00:28:46,840
Speaker 1: Thanks for your heart, Natasha, thank you, Thank you.

527
00:28:48,920 --> 00:28:52,080
Speaker 2: Natasha Rothwell is an Emmy nominated actor and the creator

528
00:28:52,120 --> 00:28:54,560
Speaker 2: and star of Hulu's new show How to Die Alone.

529
00:28:55,000 --> 00:28:57,320
Speaker 2: She'll be reprising her role on The White Lotus in

530
00:28:57,360 --> 00:28:59,000
Speaker 2: its upcoming third season.

531
00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:06,840
Speaker 5: That's it for today's show. Tomorrow, we're popping off with

532
00:29:06,920 --> 00:29:09,080
Speaker 5: the co host of the Talk Amanda Klutes.

533
00:29:10,280 --> 00:29:13,240
Speaker 2: Listen and follow the bright Side on the iHeartRadio app,

534
00:29:13,280 --> 00:29:16,720
Speaker 2: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Join the

535
00:29:16,720 --> 00:29:20,080
Speaker 2: conversation using hashtag the bright Side and connect with us

536
00:29:20,120 --> 00:29:23,560
Speaker 2: on social media at Hello Sunshine on Instagram and at

537
00:29:23,560 --> 00:29:26,320
Speaker 2: the bright Side Pod on TikTok, and feel free to

538
00:29:26,360 --> 00:29:29,320
Speaker 2: tag us Simone Boys and Danielle Robe See

539
00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:34,120
Speaker 5: You tomorrow, folks, Keep looking on the bright side,