Unbossed. Unbothered. Unapologetic.
Those are the perfect three words to describe comedian and Academy Award-winning actress Mo’nique on any given day, but they ring especially true in her highly-anticipated Netflix special, My Name is Mo’Nique.
Throughout the nearly one-hour-and-a-half special, viewers get a glimpse inside her intricate upbringing, including her time in special education classes in school, the special connections she had with different members of her family, and her journey of understanding her sexuality as she grew older to name a few. Such topics are incredibly nuanced and often uncomfortable to talk about, but through comedy—and more specifically, through Mo’Nique’s style of comedy—they all blend together in a way that feels more like a comical confessional than a contrived explanation.
It feels, in a sense, freeing. It feels, in another sense, like the peeling back of an onion, where within each layer we find out more and more about this influential and multi-talented Queen of Comedy that we didn’t know before. Perhaps that’s why it’s titled My Name Is Mo’Nique, to serve as a reintroduction of sorts, even though we’ve all been familiar with her for the last few decades through TV and film.
But familiarity doesn’t necessarily equate to actually knowing a person, which is why, after so many years—and so many public feuds with people and a popular streaming network—The Parkers star felt it fitting to let us know exactly who is she is and what she stands for. For starters, her name is Mo’Nique—and she grew up on Real Nigga Boulevard (her words, not mine.) And if there’s one thing you definitely must know about the Mo’Nique who grew up on Real Nigga Boulevard, it’s the fact that if someone or something is out of order, she’s gonna call it to the carpet every time.
It’s part of the reason why she, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, Steve Harvey and others couldn’t see eye-to-eye around the time Precious came out in 2009. (And the reason why she and Winfrey still aren’t cool to this day.) It’s also the reason why she and Netflix entered a tumultuous legal battle for fair compensation, which lead both her fans and peers to pick sides. And it’s ultimately the reason why she ended up seated at the winner’s table after things played out in court.
So who is Mo’Nique now? After all the legal dust has settled, and all the naysayers and doubters are looking funny in the light after now realizing it eventually does pay off to stick to your convictions, no matter how unbelievable they may be to others?
“I’m so proud. Me and my husband are so proud, baby. My family, we so proud,” she explained to The Root ahead of the special’s release. “We sit in pride because our babies was there when the fight was happening. We done been through it as a family, we went through this together. So to be here now, we sit in pride.”
And that pride is well-earned. It’s been an undeniably winding road to get to where she is now, filled with enviable wins and unfathomable lows. But through it all, there was one thing that remained constant: her ability to laugh, roll with the punches, the punchlines, and evolve at every turn.
“She grew up, she matured, she understood how to place her priorities. She became a woman, she became a wife. You know, Mo’nique then and Mo’nique now. Mo’nique then was something,” she said, reflecting on her growth over the years. “What was important for me to talk about then is not important for me to talk about now. Now when you watch this special, it was different from when you watched Queens of Comedy or when you watched different times you’ve seen me on stage. It’s now like, ‘I got something to say.’”
She continued, “What I’ve learned about myself is that you keep opening up. You keep opening up. You keep learning, you keep growing. You don’t close—so many of us are closed down. We already think we know everything we’re supposed to know. So what I’ve learned about me is if I stay open, I can keep receiving what I’m supposed to be receiving in the sense of what I’m supposed to be learning. And what I’m supposed to be being taught. And my husband is a great teacher and a great nurturer. So if I keep myself open, it allows me to keep growing.”
My Name Is Mo’Nique is available to stream now on Netflix.