#genuinely funny to me as the child of a music teacher whos been taking professional music lessons since i was 12

[anotherpapercut]

disregarding what a bad take this is, did this person think I'd just like be fine with this reply to my post lmfao. I have been posting about this band since I joined Tumblr 11 years ago. what about me says "please come into my notes and insult my favorite band. I'll be amused by this" lmfao????

[justkimberley]

HSMTMTS Thoughts Episode 8

Episode 1   Episode 2  Episode 3  Episode 4   Episode 5  Episode 6  Episode 7  

(~1300 words)

“And Benjamin Mazarra said run, so I ran,”

Ricky’s first thought is to tell Gina

Aww Big red is so sad about his props being dead

“Lucky Ducky Puppet Pavillion?” Something about hearing this come from EJ makes it funnier (also… should I write about baby Ashlyn and EJ going to the puppet theater as kids??)

Carlos speaking spanish!

“Yes I am that feeling,”

“On your right, heads up! Sorry!” “Don’t apologize this is like… a weird adventure,” Seb and Ashlyn, I love them!

If Carlos hadn’t said anything to EJ, and just let him carry it, EJ literally wouldn’t have looked into it.

“You were gonna spend senior year without me?” I’m starting to feel like Kourtney doesn’t know who she is when she doesn’t have Nini to take care of. Kourtney’s been all about Nini finding herself without boys, but who is Kourtney without Nini? And I don’t mean that her and Nini need to stop being friends, but I’d like to see Kourtney go for something for herself with Nini supporting her instead of the other way around. I don’t know, I just hope we get some growth

“I don’t need to apologize for who I am,” Ok this could be good advice, but the context it’s coming from is not what we need. EJ needs to know that the things he’s done are wrong, and that he should work to improve himself so that he doesn’t keep making those same mistakes, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t love himself.

Along with the “lacks emotional connection to the material” he often puts up this wall and we never really get to see him be vulnerable. Even when he’s emoting, it’s not genuine (as Carlos so aptly points out later)

How did Natalie Bagley get stage manager? She’s never there??

“I know how to hang out,” I love Big Red

“I have baking club tonight,” I love Ashlyn

“You walk into a room,” “Oh..:)”

Cuties!!

The speed Big Red pulls that lever at after Ashlyn walks away is hilarious

“Look about the other night at Ashlyn’s party,” “Oh no, it’s totally fine I get it,” “You do?” “Yeah, I said something nice you acted like a punk, what is there to discuss?”

Ok so here’s the thing, Ricky tends to be bad at communicating his emotions and what he needs, but he actually did communicate them at Ashlyn’s party. Nini said something to try to comfort him and he said “Please don’t do that,” he communicated his boundary and what he needed from her was space. She pushed it, which is why he reacted so harshly. Should he have said what he said? No. But we need to keep in mind that he communicated his headspace, he asked her to leave him alone, and she didn’t.

“For the record your the one who called me your buddy, and I’ve been Iced out for weeks so that’s that on that,” 

So here’s the thing, Ricky called Nini his buddy when he left that voicemail (which… did she even end up getting?) but he did that as more of a cover-up because he was going to say boyfriend

Ricky’s been consistently telling himself and Big Red that him and Nini are just friends now, he’s been trying to convince himself, the problem is it didn’t seem real to his brain because Nini hadn’t even been talking to him other than for rehearsals and need-to-know stuff (I believe, we don’t actually know, but this is my guess)

Nini called him “buddy” in a really condescending sounding voice if I remember correctly and so it’s no wonder that hearing that he was officially a “buddy” along with the voice used would set him off a bit.

Not to mention that he was just coming off of finding out about his mom’s boyfriend so he really wasn’t in the best place mentally to begin with anyway

That shriek when the lights go blue and the mannequins are there, is great

Carlos’ face when EJ is emoting is great

“That was excellent, and a little weird,”

Also Troy doesn’t cry at this part? EJ… buddy, that is not the emotion you’re supposed to be feeling

“Are you sick?” amazing

“Big Red did you do that?” “No.” He just pops up right beside her so unexpectedly, it’s so funny

Thank god her name’s actually Nina, I was seriously questioning her moms’ choice on naming their child Nini.

Also most kids don’t have trouble with A’s it’s like the first sound they make usually (mama, dada)

It’s kind of cute how they gave each other nicknames

“Was it the name or the fact that I microwaved your barbie that year?” You know, as you do.

“And then I couldn’t even say “I love you,” when you wrote me that song,”

I was going to say too soon, but to be fair it’s been about 9 months since that happened and if she had truly moved on, like she’s led Ricky to believe, it wouldn’t have been too soon

Also that was hella awkward

Courtney has a fantastic voice, but this song is really not made to be sung like this.

Ughh microphone feedback, my worst enemy

Ok I know that a lot of people have talked about this already, but like… how old is that popcorn? The last time the theater was used was 4 years ago so…

Yes, it is possible that the kids could have popped some new popcorn but considering how busy they were, I find it highly unlikely. So… gross

“Cause apparently I don’t have emotions,”

The whole, “Is that the last apple?” part is so pitiful… like, if you latch that hard onto something that it stays with you for over ten years afterward? You should talk to a professional about that.

Of course Ashlyn would have lucky crystals

“Mememememememememe,” “Youyouyouyouyouyouyouyouyou,”/ “Ninininininininini,” hilarious.

Ricky is like Nini’s biggest fan he has so much belief in her and her talents.

“Minnie Mouse, your first crush,” “actually she was my second,” *lean in and … BIG RED* I’m a sucker for that kind of interruption

“I heard you singing earlier, you’re not gonna quit makeup crew are you? … I mean the Sharpay makeup, you made me look the way I feel”

I think this was a bit of sharpayness, and by that I mean, I think Seb felt threatened by Kourtney’s singing. It was beautiful singing, and she sang a Sharpay song. One way of keeping people where you want them is to make sure they stay where they are

Also the whole “You made me look the way I feel,” part. So here’s my take on this. I know a lot of people are headcanoning that this means that Seb is trans/nb/genderfluid and that’s great! Continue headcanoning what you want to headcanon. Personally I think that it’s more of a man wanting to present femininely. There’s not a lot of examples of feminine presenting men in youth media so it would still be important representation. It’s also important to remember that gender expression and gender identity are two very different things.

“I don’t want to freak her out more with my lifeless eyes,” “Don’t make me start emoting,” EJ is so funny sometimes

Did she pass out from fear? Or was it the crystals working?

“This is your contractually obligated dream sequence,”

The beginning of “Role of a lifetime” reminds me of the Lightning Thief Musical

Lucas Grabeel, it’s nice to hear him singing something genuine

Miss Jen finally having some actual good singing time.

They’re all so cute doing that group dance at the end of the song

“I’m the teacher,” “Yeahhh?” “I know where we have to go,” “Broadway?” “Back to East High,” “Oh my god how hard did I hit you?”

“Dude,” “Talk about it in the car,”

I would love to see this car scene

Courtney shouldn’t have called the YAC without asking Nini first. That’s not a fun surprise to get.

[cherry-valentine]

Spring 2019 Anime Season

Here’s what I’m watching: Gunjou no Magmel is definitely my favorite new show of the season. It has a fun setup that lends itself well to lots of different stories: a mysterious new continent suddenly appears one day, full of new animal and plant life and inspiring people across the globe to explore it. Of course, the place is incredibly dangerous, which is why many people work as professional “rescuers” hired to go and retrieve those who have been lost or trapped in the new continent. The protagonists of the series are a pair of rescuers: the highly skilled and unflappable Inyou and his tech genius sidekick Zero (who doesn’t physically go to the continent but instead controls a drone). Right away the series provokes a feeling of adventure that reminded me somewhat of One Piece. The new continent, known as Magmel, is beautiful and teeming with life. The series wisely presents it in a neutral light. There are dangerous creatures there, definitely, with some seriously horrific body horror imagery (much of it veering into nightmare fuel territory), but the series is quite clear about the fact that these creatures are just behaving naturally. There’s no malice there. In fact, the only truly malicious and cruel actions are performed by the humans who go to Magmel to take advantage of the creatures there for their own profit. Inyou understands this, and is generally sympathetic to the animal and plant life, while still prioritizing the preservation of human life. It’s an interesting balance. It’s also interesting that a show with the above mentioned body horror and nightmare fuel is presented with bright, cheerful, cartoony art and peppy, upbeat music. This is an adventure series, not horror, and sometimes there’s even a degree of beauty in the terrors seen in the mostly standalone episodes. The two leads, Inyou and Zero, are entertaining and have a fun dynamic between them. They act more like family than anything else, with no romantic tension at all so far (and I hope it stays that way). Currently sitting at the top of my watch list.

Ace of the Diamond Act 2 is the sequel series I’ve been looking forward to. The original series was a favorite of mine, with a fairly realistic portrayal of baseball and a team of fun, quirky characters, including Miyuki, the only character that springs to mind when I think of the term, “husbando”. He’s a fan-favorite and incredibly popular for a reason. He’s sharp-witted, the most skilled player on the team, and also has a rather twisted sense of humor (he’s the kind of guy who, upon realizing a new member of the team doesn’t like him, is totally delighted and thinks of how fun that’s going to be). Miyuki gushing aside, the show has great art that rarely goes off-model and somewhat smooth animation. The music so far is okay, nothing special (the opening and ending themes were hit and miss in the original series as well). Main character Sawamura is still annoying (like Asta in Black Clover, he tends to scream rather than speak) but his underdog status and genuine love of the sport and his team make him endearing enough to overlook his negative traits. My only real gripe with the show is its tendency to recap that last several minutes of the previous episode in each new episode, making you wait quite a while to get to the new content. This would be a much bigger deal in marathon viewing, but on a weekly basis, I can deal with it.

Hitoribocchi no Marumaruseikatsu is a cute series about cute girls doing cute things. This is a genre I’m generally not fond of, mainly because the girls in these types of shows tend to be sexualized in a creepy way and their “cute antics” tend to be banal and annoying. In this show, however, neither of those two problems are present. In fact, if the show had a male love interest, it would feel very shoujo to me. The focus of the story is on a shy girl with severe social anxiety trying to make friends in her new school. She’s a bit awkward but cute and earnest, so watching her attempt to talk to strangers is funny but also heartwarming. The small circle of friends that begins to form around her is made up of equally cute and funny girls, each of whom have distinct personalities and character designs. Surprisingly, considering this is based on a manga aimed at male readers, none of the girls seem specifically designed to appeal to a male audience. They come across as genuine, well developed characters. The art and music are cute, but not very notable. My only complaint is the subplot involving a young teacher who takes one look at the blonde, tanned Nako and immediately judges her as a juvenile delinquent and is thus afraid of her. It’s meant to be funny, I suppose, but I find it annoying that a teacher would be so judgmental, especially considering Nako is a quiet, well-behaved student who gives absolutely no indication that she’s a delinquent. Ah well, it’s a relatively minor subplot so I can overlook it.

Bungo Stray Dogs Season 3 was hotly anticipated after a strong season two and the amazing Dead Apple movie. Following a group of supernaturally “gifted” members of a detective agency and their conflicts with other “gifted” groups (including the ruthless Port Mafia), this show is one of the best series of the past several years. It has a bit of Durarara!!’s cool vibe and style, but with a more straightforward story. This is a series that handles all of its various story elements very well, from the action scenes to the heartfelt moments to the comedy, and looks great doing it. I still prefer the comedy and characterization of season one, but only because they were done SO well. The more serious, plot-driven arcs of late are still fantastic. The music is great too, with my favorite opening theme of the season (and there were some outstanding ones this season, so that’s saying something). 

Kimetsu no Yaiba might just be my second favorite new series. Every season has a new show that gets a lot of hype, and in my experience around half of those shows actually live up to that hype. This show is definitely in that good half. With fluid animation, excellent music, and an interesting setup (a young boy’s family is slaughtered by demons, leaving only one sister behind who has become a demon herself, so he trains to become a demon slayer and find a way to turn her back into a human), this series seems primed to become a hit. The protagonist, Tanjirou, is a fairly standard kind-hearted hero training to join a group and accomplish his goal. The series doesn’t tread a lot of new ground in that respect, but it does everything so well that it’s easy to forgive it for not being the most original story. The most interesting aspect is the sister, Nezuko, who instead of being a delicate young flower for him to constantly protect is a demon herself who, in an early scene, literally kicks another demon’s head clean off. She’s a powerful ally in battle, which is refreshing. The other characters haven’t had much screen time yet, but seem fun so far. Overall, it’s a very well-done, if somewhat unoriginal, show. Highly entertaining and high on my watch list.

Midnight Occult Civil Servants is much better than it seems at first glance. Protagonist Arata joins a particular group of civil servants that deal with mythological creatures called “Anothers”. They range from fairies to gods to Japanese-based creatures like Tengu (this mishmash of mythology actually reminds me of Shin Megami Tensei). Arata quickly realizes that he’s the only member of the team who can understand the languages used by the Anothers, and so he becomes a valuable tool when dealing with them. The show presents a variety of creatures with a variety of behaviors. Some Anothers are friendly to humans and mean no harm, while others are outright malicious. Others still are just indifferent. At first, it seems like the show is going to be about Arata clearing up misunderstandings that his fellow team members have about the Anothers, but then the show lets us know that not all Anothers are friendly, and being able to understand their words doesn’t mean Arata can understand their motivations or can do much to stop them from doing bad things. The episodes are often inspired by real life urban legends, and overall has an air of mystery. The art is fine, with interesting, varied character designs but animation that’s just okay. The music is above average though, with my favorite ending theme of the season. It’s not my favorite new show, but it has a secure spot on my watch list.

Attack on Titan Season 3 Part 2 really doesn’t need much of a write-up, since it’s just a continuation of a season that was delayed (and that I already wrote about). I’ll just keep it brief and say it’s still great, is finally getting into one of my favorite arcs from the manga, and has a gorgeous opening theme.

Mobile Suit Gundam Origin is the tv series version of an OVA that details the origins of one of the Gundam franchise’s most popular characters (and one of my all-time favorites): Char Aznable. I never watched the OVA (despite intending to for the longest time) so this is all new content for me. What I find most interesting is the visual style, which looks very much like the classic Gundam art style of the original late 70‘s tv series but with more modern, smooth animation and some CGI mixed in. There’s a strange awkwardness to the art style that feels oddly natural. It was present in the old tv series and it’s present here. It’s kind of hard to explain if you haven’t seen it yourself though. Art aside, the story is definitely interesting. While Char’s basic history had already been revealed years ago, we didn’t really know the details. Char is a complicated character, which explains his popularity several decades after his debut. He was ruthless, cold, and calculating even as a child, but he loved his family very deeply and was surprisingly emotional. There are also badass lady characters to enjoy (who also appeared in the original series - I’ve always found it interesting that a show made in 1979 had more complex, strong, and generally well-written female characters than more modern Gundam series like Wing, Seed/Seed Destiny, and Iron Blooded Orphans). The music is fantastic here, and it’s overall a very solid show. Now I wish they’d remake the original series with this kind of animation (and cut out some of the filler).

Shoumetsu Toshi is, honestly, at the bottom of my list. The animation quality is just okay, with questionable character design choices (for the first few episodes, there were two unrelated female characters with such strikingly similar designs that it was very confusing). The story is a bit of a muddled mess. It mostly follows a young girl who survived a bizarre event where a whole city full of people suddenly vanished (later dubbed “The Lost”), and the young man who has been hired to help her return after she receives a message from her father, who was one of the people that vanished, telling her to come back. The setup is actually very interesting and mysterious. The problem is that the series throws too many concepts and ideas at us way too quickly, and explains none of it. It might be because the show is based on a video game, and the writers assumed people watching the anime would be familiar with the game and its various elements. Already in the show we have time travel, undefined magical powers, totally different powers that allow people to summon the souls of the vanished victims to fight for them like Persona, shadowy organizations doing human experiments, fancy artifacts that grant even more abilities, phantom thieves, idol groups, hackers, detective agencies, and double agents that have infiltrated the police. There’s just way too much going on, and as a result, the core plot that was actually interesting gets crowded out and choked. I’m still watching because the show is still entertaining in a strange way, but it’s a shame that it wasted a lot of its potential.

Carry Over Shows From Previous Seasons: Black Clover

Best of Season: Best New Show: Gunjou no Magmel Best Opening Theme: Bungo Stray Dogs Season 3 Best Ending Theme: Midnight Occult Civil Servants Best New Male Character: Inyou (Gunjou no Magmel) Best New Female Character: Nako (Hitoribocchi no Marumaruseikatsu)

[i-am-very-very-tired]

One of the first times I met Zendaya was at the 2015 Radio Disney Music Awards, which she was hosting. Though my show Black-ish had only aired for one season—we didn’t even know if we’d be renewed—I will never forget when she bounded up to me and said, excitedly, “Man, I really appreciate the work that you’re doing.”

Zendaya was just 18 at the time, the same age I will turn in a few months. And she was already a bona fide superstar, having appeared in nearly a dozen films and shorts, released an album of hits, and ridden the success of the Disney Channel sitcom Shake It Up into producing and starring in K.C. Undercover, about a black family of spies. Zendaya has always been clear about the importance of speaking one’s mind. When executives originally suggested the show be called Super Awesome Katy, she told them the title was “wack.” She asked, “Do I look like a Katy to you?” (They made her character’s name K.C. instead.) And she knows her value. Zendaya is one of the youngest Disney Channel producers ever. She is a young woman on a mission!

Zendaya is like a big sister to me. And we have a lot in common. On season two of Black-ish, she guest starred as Resheida, the poster girl for a made-up holiday. Being thought of as a poster girl, in any situation, is a double-edged sword. Personally, as a young black actress, I’m happy when people see themselves reflected in my professional work, and that I’m able to tell those narratives. But it has never been—and will never be—my or Zendaya’s intention to be the only versions of “blackness” in the world of entertainment.

Dior dress, hat, choker, bronze necklace with pendant, belt. Vionnet T-shirt. Natalie Dancewear leggings. Maison Fabre gloves. Free People armbands. Tomas Maier enamel heart necklace. Cleopatra’s Bling gold necklaces. Louis Vuitton boots.

What I love about my friend Zendaya is that you cannot categorize her. She is a true creative. Within her acting world, no two characters are the same. As an entrepreneur, a talented musician, and a ridiculously fierce dancer, she is focused and driven. I have literally watched her Lip Sync Battle rendition of Bruno Mars’ “24K Magic” on multiple occasions. That was not Bruno! That was Zendaya! And then there’s the fact that she tackled trapeze artistry for her new movie The Greatest Showman, a reimagining of the life of P.T. Barnum that also stars Hugh Jackman and Zac Efron. She told me her thought was, “Trapeze? Yeah, I’m gonna do that.”

There's a misconception in this industry that everybody who looks like you, or may, at first, seem like you, must be your competition. What I so deeply respect about Zendaya is that she’s actively helping to dismantle that myth. She is showing young women how to speak our minds, stand up for our peers, and give love to the global community of women. Because, at the most basic level, we need to see a variety of characters whose likenesses reflect the society we live in. But we also need diversity in representation, roles that show the true range of our experiences as women. Zendaya is doing that. She makes it known that she is dedicated to showing young people that they are meant to be seen and counted. And that they are never, ever just one thing. That's no small feat. I'm honored to know her, and excited for you all to get to know her better.

YARA SHAHIDI: Let’s take it all the way back. How did you end up moving to Los Angeles from Oakland as a middle-schooler to act?

ZENDAYA: I was basically like, “I want to do this,” and my dad quit his job as a teacher to make it happen. My mom stayed in Oakland because she had two jobs: teaching, and working at the California Shakespeare Theater at night. Those two jobs paid for all of our car trips back and forth for the year I was auditioning. Luckily I had parents who were like, “You know what? We believe in you.” I got my first job on the Disney Channel when I was 13, and it was just me and my dad in an apartment in downtown L.A. It was very difficult because I was dealing with all the pivotal girl moments. I remember getting my period and him not knowing what to do. It was a weird transitional phase.

YARA: I feel like everybody in our industry goes through that moment of transition. When Black-ish started, I tried to do the first season while going to high school full-time.

ZENDAYA: So difficult.

YARA: Yeah, but my mom got her master’s in education. I think coming from a background in which education is so valued provided me with a sense of grounding. In this industry there are always opportunities for someone to say that education is peripheral. There have been times when a lawyer has said, “All that’s required is that you’re provided with four walls and a human.” And it was like, “Wait, but I actually want to excel in school.”

Gucci dress, T-shirt, headband, statement necklace, hand accessory. Dior choker. Cleopatra’s Bling necklaces. Maison Fabre glove.

David Koma dress. American Apparel tights. Zana Bayne harness. Left hand, on index finger: Me&Ro chain ring. Annelise Michelson ring. All other rings: Kendall Conrad. Louis Vuitton boots.

ZENDAYA: See, that’s always the thing. I remember some kids I knew would cheat their way through an online school program. They’d just look up the answers and type them in. That’s insane to me. It’s funny that you talk about lawyers, because my mom had to write letters to Disney lawyers to say, “Listen, my daughter needs this teacher,” because I’d finally found someone who would work with me when I had press tours. In the car. On the plane. On the train. In the hotel room. She’d be like, “Are you tired? I don’t care.” I remember doing Dancing With the Stars and literally falling asleep reading a book. I’d never been so tired in my life—there’s no off time. But she stuck with me and made sure I got what I needed.

YARA: You mentioned how your mama had to move between two jobs to help you achieve your dreams. What does this powered-by-women issue [produced by female contributors] mean to you?

ZENDAYA: What I’ve learned most from my mom is selflessness. She taught in underprivileged communities for 20 years, and she worked her ass off to get her students to have experiences like outdoor science camp. There are students who will tell you, “Without Ms. Stoermer, I don’t know where I’d be.”

YARA: Our generation has a lot going on right now: from North Korea to Charlottesville—

ZENDAYA: It’s insane.

YARA: It’s slightly insane.

ZENDAYA: Here’s the thing—I can genuinely say that I’m not the same person I was a year ago. As my social platforms grew, I realized that my voice was so much more important than I had originally thought. I think if every young person understood the power of their voice, things would be a lot different. And it’s becoming more popular to be outspoken.

"If people know your name, they should know it for a reason."

YARA: I know. It no longer feels like an option whether or not to be active. We can’t ignore what’s happening. It’s also forced us to segue into something a little more hopeful. You and I have had the chance to meet some cool people. Like Representative Maxine Waters—

ZENDAYA: “Reclaiming my time. Reclaiming my time.”

YARA: Her saying that [during a Congressional hearing when she felt Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin was dodging questions] was my favorite thing. What other women inspire you?

ZENDAYA: There’s definitely a long list. I am inspired right now by people who use their platforms: If people know your name, they should know it for a reason. I’m obviously inspired by my mother, and I have an obsession with Oprah. She’s someone who, even with everything stacked against her, has soared to unbelievable heights. If she wants to create a network, she can do it. She wants to produce a movie? She can do it. But then also there’s this level of realness to her. You feel like she’s your auntie.

YARA: You’ve described yourself as the love child of Oprah, Shonda Rhimes, and Beyoncé. Let’s go into Shonda…

ZENDAYA: I mean, Shonda—she saw something nobody else was doing and said, “I’m going to create it myself. I’m going to put strong, powerful women of color in lead roles and create narratives for different types of people.” And she owns a day. She owns Thursdays.

YARA: It’s hers. Don’t even come for her.

Louis Vuitton dress, top, pants, boots. Chanel headband. Tomas Maier choker. Cleopatra’s Bling necklaces. Free People arm bands. Me&Ro bangles. Jacquie Aiche finger bracelets.

ZENDAYA: And then, Beyoncé. She took it to the next level with Lemonade. She’s got twins, and she’s banging. She’s killing it. And, of course, Michelle Obama, because that is an intelligent woman.

YARA: She’s the forty-sixth president that I recognize.

ZENDAYA: She’s my president. Who is going to convince her to run?

YARA: It’s really powerful to see a woman of color [in such a promi­nent position]. Even without a political message, seeing ourselves onscreen is so important. What you did with K.C. Undercover, the fact that you came from a position of power, was huge for me. I’m now in a place where I’m talking to creatives and saying, “Hey, this is what needs to happen with this show, with this character.” Not for my own ego, but because there’s a lot of people watching, and we have an opportunity. What gave you that confidence?

ZENDAYA: I didn’t feel like there was any other choice. I was like, “If I’m going to do this, this is how it has to be.” There needs to be a black family on the Disney Channel. A lot of people who aren’t people of color can’t quite understand what it’s like to grow up and not see yourself in mainstream media. And you know, there is so much work left to be done. I’ve talked about this before, but can I honestly say I would be in the position I’m in if I weren’t a lighter-skinned black woman? No.

Rodarte blouse, pants, belts, boots. Jennifer Behr crown. Me&Ro chain ring. Kendall Conrad stacked rings.

YARA: One thing that I constantly say is that my goal is not to be the face of black girls. The goal is to open the door so widely that I am drowning in a sea of—

ZENDAYA: In a sea of black girls. Absolutely.

YARA: I shouldn’t be the “accessible” version of a black girl. That doesn’t allow people to fully appreciate their heritage. I’m half black, half Iranian, and I’ve never seen a half-black, half-Iranian description of a character in a script ever. There’s more to do.

ZENDAYA: Boom! Let’s kick these doors open.

YARA: I wanted to ask you about your clothing line, Daya by Zendaya. I love that not only are you an entrepreneur, you’ve created a brand that doesn’t say, “This is for a girl; this is for a boy.”

ZENDAYA: That’s the future of fashion, right? I was lucky to have parents who let me wear what I wanted to wear and let me shop where I wanted to shop. Nine times out of 10 I was shopping in the boys section. I wore cargo shorts and hoodies. That was my uniform. And it’s different being a girl. We can wear guys’ clothes, but the second a guy wears girls’ clothes, it’s like—

YARA: What is he doing?

ZENDAYA: That’s not fair. I think, for me, it’s all about the experience of a shopper. For example, my sister is a thicker woman. She just had a baby; she’s got hips, a booty popping in these streets. Why should she have to go to a different section to get clothes?

YARA: It’s interesting what a statement it is to be like, “Everything is available to you, all of you.” Has that influenced how you approach your red-carpet fashion?

ZENDAYA: I think it’s the same thing. A huge part of my gaining confidence is because of fashion. What I love about someone like Rihanna is her fearlessness. It’s almost a sense of, pardon my language, I don’t give a fuck. When she wears a dress, it’s for herself, and you can see that. There’s something to be said for the fact that literally everybody can hate my outfit, but if I feel good in it, I’m the only one that should matter.

YARA: OK, so what’s next for you?

ZENDAYA: There’s a lot I want to do in the movie world. Having a Disney past sometimes makes it difficult for people to take you seriously, so I have to pick the right projects, make sure I do the right things, take my time. And then I want to produce and create shows and movies, whether or not I’m starring in them. You know when you watch a show and you’re like, “That’s so good. I wish I’d made it?” Why not? Why not make it? Wild idea, I know.