Intro

[Monologue] I says, listen, darling. I'm one hell of a woman, I am. I come from the ghetto. The slums. Sure, it's beautiful, but it's rough. And it can get 'ya. I lost every guardian I had before the age of 9 and I did not live with my parents, I was in foster care. I was beaten and I was not loved. I was a runaway and I did not finish school. But believe you me, darling, I'm strong God damn it. I have the eloquence and speech of an aristocrat, and in comparison to the social and economic standard of where I am from, I am a marvel. And that come as no surprise to me, because I'm a liberated woman, my dear. My mind is free! I ain't never needed no one to tell me what to do or how to get it. See, I done spent the last year, half of my life touring, performing, making love to the world. Making many of my dreams come true. I am an accomplished person. I am a woman in Vogue and I am a woman of my people. I was invited to speak at Harvard University. My life had changed. I was no longer a little girl, I was a grown woman. I am a smart woman. And that's really all I have to say