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(gentle music)

2
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- I mean there's no such
thing as like queer identity.

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I just wanna say like,
it's just identity period.

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It's just that the
world has to label that.

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(gentle music)

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Kingsley was a brand that
was unintentionally founded

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during the Black Lives Matter movement.

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It started off as a small project

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to just give back to my community.

10
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Just like the people that I felt were

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generally being attacked.

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(gentle music)

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I was in a really gray time.

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I remember talking to my mom
and my was like, you know,

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you need to go out.

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So I pulled out my favorite
tank, but it was dirty.

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So I just took on a regular Hanes tank

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and I was like I'm gonna make it a crop.

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And then I did that and it was
like, I was like something.

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I was just like, it's not gay enough.

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Honestly, that was like
the first thing in my head.

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I was just like it's not gay enough.

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So I don't feel like the girl, you know.

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So I literally just put it down.

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Just, I promise you

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I didn't think much of it
just started cutting into it.

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I was like ooh, this is cute.

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Ooh this you know, I was like
okay like this feels right.

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My Uber was downstairs,
literally threw the tank on.

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Didn't think much of it.

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Put on my coat, got to the club.

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Like the moment I took
off my jacket the girl

33
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at the door was like oh my
God where'd you get that?

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I was like miss thing I just cut this up.

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Got into the club,

36
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within 15 minutes I got that same reaction

37
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but like times 50.

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(gentle music)

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I've never had that much
attention for something like that.

40
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And I posted it online the next day.

41
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And I was like the girls were
gagging over this little tank.

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And at the time it was my
most liked Instagram photo.

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And I felt so upset because
my face wasn't even in it.

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Society conditioned us to a way that like,

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you have to fit in this lane.

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And I just said, you know, fuck it.

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I'm all of these things
and I embrace that.

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And it's kind of really
like one of the core ethos

49
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of the brand and just
literally come as you are.

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And that is all of me.

51
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Kingsley has no investors.

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I literally say my
investors are the girls.

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Another reason why I hold
community so important

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is because like if they didn't
literally invest in this

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or see something, I wouldn't be here.

56
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Having the likes of like is
Issa Rae, Ziwe, and Lil Nas X,

57
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you know like echo that message
is like one, a gag, a stunt.

58
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And like it's no shade, like
I'm gagging both with y'all.

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When I get those emails it's just like,

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I'm just so happy that
it made sense you know.

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I'm always giving back.

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I'm never not, you know,
it's in everything I do.

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It's in how I move, it's in how I breathe.

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It's in how I operate.

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It's both onscreen and
it's both offscreen.

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It's such a core part of like what I do.

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Mother girl is always here for the girls.

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(gentle music)