Tiffany Haddish
Tiffany Haddish is having the best year ever. Her unforgettable character Deena in Will Packer’s wildly popular comedy Girls Trip made her every Black Girl’s best friend. With a successful film and stand-up comedy special under her belt, the Hollywood “it” girl is still rising the ranks and appreciating each day as it comes.
In an interview with The Creators Of Color, Tiffany opens up about her rise to fame, how her skin color has positively impacted her career and the advice she gives to aspiring comedians.
Photography: Elton Anderson, Jr.
Styling: Bryon Javar
MUA: Rebekah Aladdin
Hair: Alexander Armand
How has being a person of color positively affected your career:
Being a person of color has positively impacted a lot of things in my career. And not just in my career but in other peoples careers. I have booked roles in movies that were meant for white women but because I came through with so much character and personality they ended up making it a black role. That allowed us to be seen in a different light. I feel like every time I get a job another little black girls dreams may come true. I think that being black has definitely created a lot of opportunities for others of my skin tone but also it has made me beautiful. I think it makes all of us beautiful. I know there is a white woman right now in Europe trying to be as black as she can be. She trying to be real black and that is probably because she saw me on something and was like “I want to be black too”. We inspire.
When did you know that you are on the right track and truly doing what you were put on earth to do:
I knew that entertainment was the thing I was suppose to do with my life when I was twenty three years old. I was very depressed, I was doing stand up comedy and working at the airlines and I ended up in therapy. The therapist was like “What makes you happy”. I said “Hearing people laugh makes me happy. Seeing people smile! I love teeth but I don’t wanna hurt anybody. Maybe I should be a dentist but that hurts people so I don’t know what I wanna do. She said “why don’t you get back into stand up comedy, do comedy more.” I wasn’t making any money at it and I started doing it more. My third time doing a open mic after that conversation somebody offered me a gig and they offered me fifty dollars for fifteen minutes of me telling jokes. I was like “What!” I went and did the gig and it was bad. I mean I bombed, it was horrible. The crowd was heckling me and everything and the promoter came over to me afterwards and I just knew the was gonna go off on me and tell me I couldn’t do it anymore but they gave me my fifty dollars. I was like oh this is what I’m going to do the rest of my life. They paid me and I was horrible. And they still paid me. This is my job from now on. I love this. This is what I’m suppose to do. I’m suppose to be an entertainer. Even when you mess up you still get paid, I need that. This is what I’m gonna do forever. And that is when I knew entertainment was the thing for me.
What is the one thing you are most grateful for from yesterday:
I’m so grateful for everything that happened yesterday. Yesterday was like the most magical, most fun day. I got to have lunch with Puff. I met with the executives at TBS . I met with some more executives but the one thing I am very grateful for from yesterday is that I woke up. And I’m grateful for waking up today and I better wake up tomorrow. And I better wake the fuck up tomorrow and next year and the next year after that and the next year after that. I gotta wake up till I’m 70.
