Queen Latifah has spoken out about past body scare that nearly led her to give up on her music and acting career.
The 54-year-old Grammy Award-winning rap sensation has sold millions of records worldwide and received an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe Award for his acting.
But the star admits she was insecure and didn't think she could make it in the creative industries because of her size.
Deadline reported that she was speaking about her early career insecurities while attending a Cannes Lions event in France, in which she said: “I saw this idea that beauty should be a size two and have blue eyes. That was thrust upon me as I was growing up. I thought that was a standard I could never achieve.”
She explained that her body image impacted her mindset, recalling, “Am I going to be able to break into Hollywood the way that I wanted to, be myself and achieve what I wanted in this industry? It was important to me to find someone who understood that that was my vision.”
The Chicago actress faced challenges and revealed, “Of course there was backlash. People are set in their ways. Not just actors, but producers, studio people, people who have been through their own weight loss journeys. They're hearing mixed messages within their own homes, so they pass that on to others and create the media and images that we see.”
She also praised Oprah Winfrey for changing the public discussion about body image as her own weight has fluctuated over the years.
“When I think about her and what she went through along the way, I'm so happy for the idea that someone today won't have to endure that same journey and they can just go into a doctor's office and have a conversation,” Queen Latifah said.