Tracee Ellis Ross on What Her Golden Globe Win Means for the Industry

Tracee Ellis Ross, winner of Best Performance in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy for 'Black-ish,' kisses her award at the 74th Annual Golden Globe Awards
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BEVERLY HILLS, CA - JANUARY 08: Actress Tracee Ellis Ross, winner of Best Performance in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy for 'Black-ish,' poses in the press room during the 74th Annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 8, 2017 in Beverly Hills, California.

Tracee Ellis Ross is adding a Golden Globe statue to her collection of awards after winning Sunday night in the Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy category for her role as Rainbow Johnson on ABC’s hit comedy black-ish. Ross, who was also nominated for the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy category last fall, shared her thoughts on winning backstage.

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“I feel really proud of the show in general,” Ross said of black-ish. “I think that our writers are exceptional and every week I feel surprised by our scripts and the way that they very courageously tackle very heavy subjects and yet somehow the show is so funny and the way they write for my character is really interesting…Often as the wife character, your storyline is through your husband and that’s not really the case on our show.”

The actress said one of the things she likes about award shows is “you actually get to thank the people who make it possible…there are so many pieces [to making the show], and so winning and being able to stand on that stage and say those names and say those things and then also have a platform to say things that are important to me in a larger way is what makes this special.”

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Remarking that her win is the first time an African-American actress has won in this category since Debbie Allen won for Fame in 1983, Ross said, “I think that this nomination was really exciting to me, as was my Emmy nomination, to see the industry look outside of where they usually look is very special to me and very important. I think it’s something we need to continue to do more of.” She added, “the stories that we tell and how we celebrate those stories actually represents the humanity that we all bring. I hope that young women continue to be encouraged to be themselves and not just young women but young men, all of us.”

black-ish, Wednesdays, 9:30/8:30c, ABC