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" Around me, there's always music playing. It just calms me down; it soothes me. It helps me write. It helps me with my mood. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Always
Playing
Music
Related Quotes:
" Comedians are on the road so much that when they're just getting to act and sit in one place, they're really grateful and just ready. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Sit
Grateful
Road
" 'Power' would never have gotten on the air if the folks at Starz weren't saying to themselves, 'This is an underserved audience.' It was a financial decision, not a benevolent decision based on a need to change the industry. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Saying
Change
Decision
" I am tired of people using 'diverse' to mean 'of color.' That's not what that word means. 'Diversity' means people of all different races, all together - like a New York City subway. "
Courtney A. Kemp
I Am
Diversity
Together
" When you pretend to be an authority on everything, it forces your subordinates to defer to your opinion - which may not be the most informed in the room. If you have humility concerning the gaps in your experience or ability, it allows others to shine. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Experience
Opinion
Humility
" It was not something that ever occurred to me, to be able to be in TV. I was very lucky. "
Courtney A. Kemp
TV
Lucky
Me
" I think women judge other women more harshly, always, which is a shame. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Judge
Shame
More
" When it comes to power as it functions between humans, it all comes down to desire. If you know what someone wants, you can control them. It is as simple as that. And the reverse is also true: If you have control over your own desires, no one will ever own you. As humans, we are plagued with desire - it consumes us, it fuels us, it destroys us. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Power
True
You
" My parents were 30 years older than I was, and my parents had my brother and I ten years apart. My parents grew up in segregation, and they both lived in all-black neighborhoods and grew up with large black families. I didn't have any of that, and I didn't understand feeling so differently and being treated so differently. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Black
Parents
Lived
" If you wanna be your own boss, you gotta work your way up - have the skills. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Work
Boss
Way
" 50 Cent is a brilliant marketer. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Brilliant
50 Cent
Cent
" It... does... not... have... to... be... pointed out all the time. Like, 'Isn't it great that you're black, and you're a woman?' Isn't it great that the show's good? I would just love for it not to be a thing - for it just to be, like, super norm. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Black
Good
Great
" The only black folks in town when I was growing up were me and my cousins and one other family. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Me
Family
Black
" I don't want to be seen in a way where all I can do is what people expect of me. "
Courtney A. Kemp
People
I Can
Want
" When I was pitching 'Power,' I had an executive say, 'Well, I already have a black show.' He said that right to my face. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Said
Say
Black
" When human beings say they have power, it always makes me laugh a little bit. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Me
Power
Always
" I really do love male characters, in some ways, for the fact that they get surprised when they're vulnerable. Women are more surprised by their strength. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Strength
Love
Some
" I always like to write myself into a corner. I think the best stuff comes from only having a few ways out. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Always
Write
Think
" When I watch television, I want to be surprised. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Television
Want
Surprised
" New York is the center of the world. I grew up in Connecticut, outside of the city, and my father commuted to the city for work. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Father
New York
World
" Being a showrunner is doing a bit of everything. It's not just writing. It's also management: managing actors, managing producers, managing a crew, being kind to people, being a good boss, observing deadlines. "
Courtney A. Kemp
People
Management
Good
" I love Pusha T and The Clipse. "
Courtney A. Kemp
T
Love
I Love
" I really try to plot in a fearless fashion. I try not to care about not knowing the answer before I get there; I just jump in first and see what happens. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Not Knowing
Fearless
Fashion
" If you look at the back pages of 'New York Times Magazine,' and they talk about these 6.5-million-dollar condos with a great view, like you're going to pay for a great view. Well, the top floor of the projects have a great view, too. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Back
Great
Look
" When we started on 'Power,' I was committed to respecting the differences among Spanish dialects: Dominican, Nuyorican, Mexican, etc. I wanted the language our characters spoke to be as specific as possible, to reflect New York as it is. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Power
New York
Language
" As a writer of fiction, you don't ever want to limit the characters you create to the life you've lived. That's insanity to me. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Life
Limit
Me
" Writers are, for the most part, crazy people. We're like Hephaestus of the forge. We're gnarled. We're curled over. We walk with a limp. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Crazy
People
Over
" My dad was born with no money. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Born
Money
Dad
" The revolution is that we can be anything. We don't have to be one thing or the other. The idea that it is my responsibility to represent only good black people... I mean, what are you talking about? That's not a character - that's a polemic. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Responsibility
Character
Good
" When you write a show, every character is you to some extent. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Write
Some
You
" My dad was very, very invested in image. He felt that as a black person, the thing you could control was how did you look, how did you dress, how did you sound, how did you smell, how did you act. All of that stuff that you could control would absolutely have a strong impact on your access. "
Courtney A. Kemp
Impact
Black
Control