Episode 58: Getting To Know Black Women In Toys and Entertainment with Tanya Wright
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In celebration of Black History Month, The Toy Coach presents a mini-series: Getting To Know Black Women In Toys and Entertainment. In this mini-series, The Toy Coach asks four interviewees the same 10 questions, in an effort to celebrate their career achievements in toys and entertainment, connect on a personal level, reminisce about toys from their childhood, and share their valuable life lessons. The women highlighted in this series include a SAG award winner, a Golden Globe nominee, a well-known industry veteran, and a history-making inventor. Throughout this mini-series, you’ll notice similar themes of persistence, resilience, and patience as these incredible black women share their achievements and what it took to get there.
For today’s bonus episode, our guest is Tanya Wright. If you’re a fan of Orange is the New Black, you may remember Tanya for her portrayal of Crystal Burset or as Deputy Kenya Jones on HBO’s True Blood, a role she held for 7 seasons! Tanya joins The Toy Coach on the podcast today to answer 10 questions and shares inspirational insight into how she keeps active and positive in an industry known for rejection.
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Learn more about what Tanya is working on by visiting Zero Four Seven by clicking here.
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Azhelle
You are listening to Making It in The Toy Industry, Episode Number 58.
Intro/Outro + Jingle
Welcome to Making It in The Toy Industry, a podcast for inventors and entrepreneurs like you. And now your host Azhelle Wade
Azhelle
Azhelle Wade here and welcome to a bonus episode of Making It in The Toy Industry. This podcast is brought to you by thetoycoach.com. Right now you might be wondering why there's an extra episode waiting for you when you know a week hasn't passed yet since the last MIDI episode. Well, here's why. In celebration of Black History Month, I decided to put together a bonus miniseries featuring four incredible black women in toys and entertainment. In this miniseries, I asked each interviewee the same 10 questions and received answers that made me laugh, brought tears to my eyes and at times even gave me goosebumps. Throughout this last week of Black History Month, I'll be releasing four new bonus episodes highlighting these incredible black women in our industry. Now I was really selective with my 10 interview questions, because the goal for me is twofold to share the career achievements of these incredible women and also to share a bit of their personal life and perspectives with you the listeners of this podcast, all very 20 people it's time to meet some SAG Award winning Golden Globe nominated history making powerhouses in the toy and entertainment industries. Right now. Let's dive in. Our guest today is Tanya Wright. Tanya is a two time SAG Award winning actress for Best Ensemble for her portrayal of Crystal Burset. On Orange is the New Black and she spent seven seasons as deputy Kenya Jones on HBO his True Blood. Tanya was inspired to create the children's franchise Harriet of Harlem from her lifelong, cantankerous relationship with her curly hair. The project became more urgent after COVID-19 and she saw the need for an engaging and diverse female led story that fostered an environment of learning for kids. Tanya is the recipient of sobros most innovative business Award, a semifinalist in the prestigious Nicole screenwriting competition and a two time author and native New Yorker who currently lives in Los Angeles. Tanya is a graduate of Vassar College, let's get to know Tanya toy people. Well, hey there. Tanya, thank you so much for joining us on the show today.
Tanya
Hey, how are you? Thanks for having me.
Azhelle
Of course, of course. So let's kick this off. Let's get to know you a little bit. First to start. Can you tell us how long you've been in the toy and entertainment industry?
Tanya
Well, two sections one is toy. And one is entertainment. I am not new to entertainment. I am an actor. I've been acting probably for the last got 30 years. Started my career on The Cosby Show many years ago is Tonya Simpson. And I played deputy Kenya Jones on HBO True Blood for six seasons. And after that Crystal Burset on Orange is the New Black for seven seasons. So
Azhelle
that's great. You have an amazing career and then toy?
Tanya
So I yes, I'm new to the toy industry. I am in the process of creating a brand called Harriet of Harlem. It's a story of a six year old girl named Harriet was gifted a magic comb named Charlie with her friends and they live in Harlem. And it's really an educationally based children's franchise that focuses really on education. And I was really inspired to pivot my hair care company that have a haircare company called HAIRiette spelled, you have to get the spelling right, H-A-I-R-I-E-T-T-E like HAIRiette really to focus on kids. I was really concerned about kids and education and, and black and brown kids specifically during COVID. So I was really inspired to pivot my hair care company and focus on what I know how to do best and most which is content creation. So I am now creating an educational system where kids from, you know, Compton to Cairo will be fortified and their education when the next pandemic hits.
Azhelle
My second question, which is going to be where do you work right now and what do you do?
Tanya
So yeah, I create things. I create all kinds of things. I have a company called 047 zrofrsevn.com. And I create content for women and girls, multicultural content. Like I said, I've been telling you no matter for many, many years But writing was actually my first love. And so I've been really fortunate to have worked with some of the most prolific and creative and successful content creators in the history of the medium. So I've learned a lot over the years, and I've been able to amass quite a stockpile of content. So I'm creating a company where I do just that
Azhelle
Nice, kind of do what you love. Okay, so what do you love most about your job? Question number three,
Tanya
I love that I wake up every day and I create things, I have a level of freedom. And when you create a creative life, I think there are pluses and minuses to that, you know, if I'm not on set, I'm making something always.
Azhelle
And who in your family is most surprised or entertained by what you do for a living?
Tanya
I don't know if that anyone is surprised. I'm a creative person, I would say entertain, I would say my nephew, my nephew, Christopher, who's I think, a burgeoning entrepreneur. Also, we have lots of talks about things late at night that only he and I talk about with my family. And so I think that he is he's the one who's most entertained by my entertainment career, he has questions about it. And so it's, it's fun to engage him in that way.
Azhelle
It's cute. What do you view as your biggest achievement in the toy and entertainment industry, this is gonna be a hard one for you might have to separate.
Tanya
Yeah. Entertainment. Just, you know, my sort of longevity, and resilience and longevity, it's a very difficult industry to sustain. But I have been able to do that I've been able to thrive, I've been able to learn and grow and, and service, the characters that come my way. And so I would say that and with resilience, but I think that I'm creating something a little bit different and unique in the toy space. So I've given you the overview, but I can't get too specific. Now, I don't want to want to give it all away. But I'm really working on some things that I think are going to be really important to education and black and brown children that I'm very excited about.
Azhelle
It's wonderful. So what because you talked about it being really challenging to be in, in media? What did it take for you to have the success that you had?
Tanya
I'm going to say the word that comes to mind is resilience. You know, I look at people who get discouraged by one or two or three or five rejections, I get I get, yeah, you know, for every Orange is the New Black or every True Blood, they're like, hundreds of auditions that I go to get, um, but I just, you know, it's it's really just, it's really resilience, and you can't be you just gotta, like, you gotta move on. That's it. You just gotta move on. And, and sometimes, you know, it's not easy for everyone to move on quickly. And some of us are, I think more skilled than, than others. And sometimes, when you've been, you know, I get rejected for something more times in a month than people most people do in a lifetime. Right? And so I could let that get me down. Or, you know, I could say, okay, whoo, that one hurt, I was a punch in the gut. Let me take a minute. And now let me dust myself off and go back, get up and go to the next. And so I've really built my life around, like, you know, I'm, I've become very skilled at not being, you know, I don't take anything personally in terms of getting a job or not getting a job or even figuring out why I didn't get it. I didn't get it. And we move on to the next one. Because there's always the next one.
Azhelle
How do you have so that's a great attitude. How do you maintain that because anybody loves to hear? You know, you did a good job. So hearing rejection that much has to take a toll. So how do you deal with it? Like how do you move past it? What would be advice that you would say, for someone who is in entertainment and adhering that, a lot? Like what do you have like practices you do that keep you positive? Like what do you do?
Tanya
I keep creative, okay, creative. I don't look to anyone to, um, I don't look to anyone for my validation, or even my money. Okay. And so and so that keeps me You know, I'm in control over my life, I don't put my control over my life in other people's people's hands. So it's so my so I've set up my life where I'm not dependent on, you know, me walking into a room, do I get another? Like not, you know, listen, rent, mortgage, car, this all these things need to be paid and I need to sustain. And so I've created a life where again, I'm always creating, right i don't i don't spend too much time being down. It's like, okay, fine, what's the next thing? And I also don't spend a lot of time. And, you know, this is one of your questions. I know that, you know, I don't spend a lot of time on telling people what they should be doing. When I can be creating it myself. You know, no, I just don't spend my time that way. I just do not. It doesn't serve me, it doesn't make me feel good. It doesn't make me feel like I, I have control over my life, I have control over my life, we all have control over our lives. And, you know, it may not always seem that way. But do and you need to remind yourself of that you need to check in you need to meditate, you need to, you know, spend time alone and you need to just be constantly creating, constantly creating, I'm creating every day all day.
Azhelle
So what are you creating?
Tanya
What do you think? I mean, I have like 13 screenplays, I have, you know, one of many children's properties that I'm creating. So you know, so I don't get, you know, I don't have time to make some more things.
Azhelle
I like that I like okay, I like that. All right. When when you were growing up? Did you feel represented by the toys you played with?
Tanya
Um, I was really a storyteller. And so all the toys. You know, and I'm also a very simple person, right? I'm not I'm not I've never really been a child who needed a lot of things in order to entertain yourself. Cuz
Azhelle
you're like, I'll just create them myself.
Tanya
out of my mind, you know, but the whole idea is creating something that you haven't seen or that you want to play with, or do he? Um, so yeah, I you know, what I loved? Like I said, I didn't have a lot of toys. We also didn't have a lot of funds for a lot of toys when I was growing up. So but my I had this one favorite toy, and I did Barbie Dreamhouse. Love. The Barbie dream house. Interesting. Okay. That was like the ultimate concern.
Azhelle
Why? What do you think was about it that you love so much?
Tanya
Well, I am a homebody. I like the idea of home. I like the idea of space. You know, home is sanctuary home, his space where I create home is the space where I eat and pray and, and live and feel safe. And so that that's that's probably a reverberating theme in my life. And so maybe it started with the Barbie Barbie dream house. I don't know.
Azhelle
Oh, this is so warm and touching. Lovely. Okay. Okay. Um, do you feel that it's important that toys and entertainment represent the faces and culture of black people?
Tanya
Yes, sure. Of course.
Azhelle
Why is that? Why is it so important? Because some people think it's not that important. Why is it so important?
Tanya
Because art should reflect the world that we live in. Right? So the world we live in is not all white. Mm hmm. Asian or Latin? All Black? So, you know, it should it should be representative of the world we live in art artists. Art is culture, its life. Its Yeah. So. Yeah. Yeah. So that's, you know, that's what I'm obviously committed to, to creating to with those 047.
Azhelle
And my last question for you. If you could travel back in time to when you first began your career In, let's see entertainment. What would you tell yourself?
Tanya
I would tell myself, not to worry. I would tell myself, to trust myself. trusting yourself I think is very, very important, particularly in a creative career.
Azhelle
Mm hmm.
Tanya
And I would tell myself to be patient. It's all happening. It's probably not Well, it's definitely not going to happen as quickly as you'd like. But know that it is all happening and, and in the end, all the dots will connect. So just just keep, just keep putting those dots on the page, and know that they will connect and have patience.
Azhelle
I got goosebumps. Great, great quote to end on.
Tanya
Yeah.
Azhelle
Well, thank you, Tanya. It's a pleasure having you today. But please, would you like to share anything with the listeners? anything you're working on? Where can we find you and what you're working on right now?
Tanya
Yes. So you could find me on on Instagram. Tanya is hair T-A-N-Y-A-I-S-H-A-I-R on Twitter, Tanya? TT Wright. T isn't Tom T is and Tom Wright. And Tanya right on Facebook. And what I'm working on right now again, is studio for all the stuff that I've written over the years content for multicultural women and girls. It's called 04 seven.com 04 seven.com, four seven.com. And it's films, television, it's books, it's all kinds of things. So I'm really excited about that.
Azhelle
Thank you so much for coming on the show today. I really appreciate you being here.
Tanya
Thank you. Thanks for having me.
Azhelle
Well, toy people. There you have it. I hope you enjoyed today's bonus episode and that you learn something from our guests, you can head over to thetoycoach.com forward slash podcast for more on today's episode. There you can read the show notes grab all of the links mentioned in the episode today, as well as learn more about today's guest. I know there are a ton of podcasts out there so it means the world to me that you tune into this one. Until next time. I'll see you later toy people.
Intro/Outro + Jingle
Thanks for listening to Making It in The Toy Industry podcast with Azhelle Wade, head over to thetoycoach.com for more information, tips and advice
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