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I'm just a girl from Harlem who ended up in the right place at the right time.

My parents grew up during the Harlem renaissance.

I came from the Bronx and a certain background. I worked really hard. I kept my focus on the right things.

I went to a segregated school; I was born a Negro, not a black man.

I had no real education because I was in and out of schools so I decided that I would completely change my look, change my image, change my name and move to New York.

I grew up on 135th Street. I grew up on the poor side of New York. I grew up in Harlem.

I grew up in Brooklyn.

I was raised in a Bronx public housing project, but studied at two of the nation's finest universities. I did work as an assistant district attorney, prosecuting violent crimes that devastate our communities.

I wanted to be a tough kid, so I thought, 'I'm going to move to New York, and I'm going to be a thug when I come out of there.'