At the end of the day, it's incredibly important to have a show like 'Atlanta' because if we can't stand up for and celebrate each other, then who will? Who will do it better?

Atlanta, in itself, is its own living, breathing thing.

This is the city that kind of formulated who I am. And, not only that, but to be black in Atlanta is one of the greatest things because you can go anywhere and feel familiar with anyone who's right next to you, from Bankhead to Buckhead.

It's not without its flaws - it's still the South and the Bible Belt - but Atlanta is one of those cities that's really good at uniting people.

I have been the hugest HBO fan since I was 3, watching programming that I had no business watching as a child.

I used to draw and do a lot of calligraphy and typography. I'm a big sketcher, too.

The great thing about James Baldwin and his writing is that it's still fresh every time you pick it up. That's also the sad thing about his writing sometimes, too.

I really love Instagram for the artwork.

Atlanta's the hub of black culture, and it's OK to be you there - it's the city that really shaped me to be who I am.

I am the product of those who believed in me.

I dare somebody to go to Atlanta and not have a good time.

I couldn't believe there was going to be a show called 'Atlanta,' because that's my favorite city in the country. It's where I went to college. I have so many great friends that live there. It's where I discovered that I wanted to be an artist.

TV can be a thread between all of us, and it can be a powerful tool to examine life and love and what we all have in common as humans.

Every time you get in front of the lights and the cameras and you think, 'Okay, well, we've done this before, but we have to do it again? Oh, we're doing it again? We're doing it again?' It's so gratifying, but I don't think I'll ever get used to it. I hope I won't.

Really trying to find the people who really ride for you and are down for you, that's hard.

I hope that there's a little black boy somewhere in Montana that never thought that he would see a reflection of himself, and he turns on the television, like, 'Oh my God, thank you.'

What does it serve any studio to not reflect the lives of people who are giving you money, who are crying out to you, 'Hey, please tell our stories.'

The most important thing I feel in the acting profession is to create a community that reflects you back to you.

Yale was one of the best moments in my life - also one of the hardest. I learned about community.

My mom loved road trips, and sometimes we'd drive down to North Carolina. Though my parents were separated, she wanted me to stay connected with my dad.

After my mother and father separated when I was 5, my mother moved to Washington, D.C., and my father remained in North Carolina. Later, I moved to New York and would often drive down to D.C. to see her. We'd ride around together talking and listening to music.

My mother had a gorgeous singing voice, and she'd play these amazing vinyls. My favorite was 'But Not for Me,' on the 1954 album 'Chet Baker Sings.'

In my household growing up in Fayetteville, N.C., music was the great communicator between my parents and me.

Theater's literally where I started.