What sets Viola Davis apart from her peers in Hollywood are a few things. First, obviously the color of her skin. Then, the mastery of her craft, and last but not least, her willingness to be transparent and vulnerable when bringing topics to the forefront that aren't the easiest to confront. She sat with InStyle Magazine to share her experiences during an uncertain time, along with dropping gems about motherhood and her career:
"I will say that I think my greatest source of strength is my authenticity. If I try to channel some other being, I get lost. That's when my anxiety level goes up. Growing up in Central Falls [R.I.] as the only kinky-haired chocolate-brown girl, I always was trying to channel the girls who had the Farrah Fawcett look. It had disastrous results. So the only thing I can do is channel my authenticity."
One of the topics that Viola is letting us in on that seems to be echoed by so many other Black women is that she loves to use her talent but she doesn't like working so damn hard! There just seems to be something about the experience of being forced to slow down that is requiring all people, but especially Black women to dig deep within and pull out what they find purposeful and pleasurable. That's because we are told from a very young age we have to work twice as hard just to get one step ahead. Breaking this paradigm is very hard work to do as it requires someone to confront the fact that the way they built their life up to a certain point no longer serves them and it is time for major reconstruction. Viola shared her struggles:
"I didn't do well at first. I know a lot of people felt great with it. I did feel great, in terms of I don't like working so much. Nowadays, being a woman is juggling motherhood, being a wife, cooking, and then being the CEO and knowing how to optimize your business. I don't like working like that. It drives me completely insane. So the time off was wonderful, but I'm an empath. I don't know how to channel the pain and suffering that other people are going through and say, 'But I feel great!' It was very difficult for me to process what was happening."
It sounds like Viola is just like many of us, ready to tap into a different type of energy where tasks that we are happy to tend to like ones that come with motherhood and/or being a spouse, are counted as being just as productive as being a CEO. Where emotional labor is just as taxable as their main source of income. This requires having the audacity to tap out of situations that do not serve us personally.
Keep scrolling for a few celebrities that are prioritizing their peace, preservation, and sanity over their careers.
Beyonce
The artists and mogul expressed that she is giving herself permission to focus on her joy by slowing down the production of her music and focusing more on herself along with family life. In a past interview with Elle, she revealed:
"The more I mature, the more I understand my value. I realized I had to take control of my work and my legacy because I wanted to be able to speak directly to my fans in an honest way. I wanted my words and my art to come directly from me. There were things in my career that I did because I didn't understand that I could say no. We all have more power than we realize."
Eve
Recently, Eve announced that she is leaving her co-star position on The Talk to focus on expanding her family. We love to see it!
Rihanna
Rihanna is being Rihanna...got us out here waiting forever for an album but it's perfectly fine to take a break. We just hope she doesn't keep us waiting too long. Although she slayed the runway with her Savage X Fenty Vol. 2 show this year and the release of her new brand Fenty Skin, Rihanna has been vocal in the past about her desire for "balance". In a tweet, she wrote:
"To all my friends/family/coworkers who I have yet to get back to in the past months...please forgive me. This year has been quite an overwhelming one, and I'm working on that ish called Balance. brb."
Featured image by DFree / Shutterstock.com