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Jada Pinkett Smith–actress, activist, mother to Willow and Jaden Smith, and wife to Will Smith–has been in this game for decades now.

Over the years, the Baltimore native has made a name for herself not only because of her talent on-screen and in her band, but also because of her boldness in calling it like she sees it.

Just yesterday, in the wake of all the hoopla surrounding Hillary Clinton’s decision to run for president in 2016, Jada took to her Facebook page and asked some vital questions about the fact that women of color have been left on the back burner in the fight for women’s rights and how Hillary aimed to bridge that gap.

In honor of this fierce woman, here are some dope gems of wisdom she’s dropped on us over the years.

Her Speech At Black Girls Rock

She could have started her speech by saying anything, but she opened with, “We are the women that marched from cotton fields into fields of medicine, politics, law, education, entertainment. We even found a way to march ourselves into the White House, as the first lady of the United States of America,” and it was nothing but slayage from then on.

On Being A Queen

Simply put, “You want people to treat you like a queen, you gotta act like a queen.”

On Being Nude For The Cover Of Essence

“At first we had shorts, and I was like ‘Why are we playing with this?'” I kept thinking about Willow…It wasn’t meant for the cover, it was meant for myself and Will’s private collection. We took the picture and I took it home to Willow and she was like, ‘Mommy you look so elegant.’ That was the message that she got from that image. So I called Angela [Burt-Murray] and I said ‘Why do we have so much shame about our bodies? We got to put this on the cover.'”

Taking Off Your Clothes Doesn’t Equal Independence

After a long day of filming a documentary, Mrs. Smith was awestruck by the fact that young women today equate stripping with being independent. She states:

“Young women are perceiving stripping as a way of being independent and ballin’. I think that it has something to do with my age…When we were coming up, stripping was the bottom. The stripping culture was not glorified when I was growing up. If you were stripping, there was a problem. You were on drugs [or] something was wrong. Were as today, that’s not it. Girls look at strippers like ‘Yo, I want that.'”

In an era where almost every episode of Love & Hip-Hop references stripping culture, Jada’s realization could not be more relevant.

This Entire Segment On The Queen Latifah Show

Jada answered fans’ questions about relationships, friendships, and life experiences while kicking it with Queen Latifah.

On The Importance of Taking Care of You

In a table talk with her mother and daughter, Jada candidly spoke to the then 11-year-old Willow about the importance of taking care of yourself.

“The reason why you always have to be in communication, especially with me, you grandmother, your father, your brothers, your friends [is because] communication creates partnerships and we are here to assist you. We can’t make your life for you and we can’t help you with things that we don’t know.”

On Seeing The Power In Everything

Jada, who had a rough relationship with her mother while growing up, decided to put all that strife behind her, stating:

“All of that is a given. Was there pain? Of course. Was there disappointment? Of course. If you ask me if I want to harbor on that versus finding the power in that, I don’t. What I look for is the power in all things and I look for the beauty in all things.”

On Her Alleged Open Marriage

“I have always told Will, ‘You can do whatever you want as long as you can look at yourself in the mirror.’ At the end of the day, Will is his own man and I’m here as his partner, but he is his own man. He has to decide who he wants to be. That’s not for me to do for him, or vice versa.”

Enough said.

This Entire Interview With Oprah

Jada spoke about keeping her marriage together, working with Will and her kids, as well as the importance of being selfless when your spouse has a kid from a previous relationship:

“We had to let go of our own craziness, all the baggage that comes with it. We had to talk about ‘What does Trey need?’ We have to let go of our own selfish desires, our own selfish needs and think about, what we can do to facilitate the group.”

On Aging

This hot mama wowed us when she took to Facebook and let us know that us thunder kittens have nothing on these hot mamas.

She also spoke openly about aging when she graced the cover of Health Magazine back in November, stating:

Because it is what it is! I’m getting older! I’ve never looked at myself as, like, a beauty. I’m not sore on the eye, but I know there’s always going to be somebody more beautiful—always. My grandmother used to say to me, “It’s not about what you look like on the outside. It’s what you look like on the inside.” So she helped me learn at an early age to be well-rounded, to be spiritual, to be compassionate. And my mom said, “You can do whatever you want with your hair and your clothes.” I went to art school, and I could make my hair lime green if I wanted. So there was a certain internal power that grew within me because I didn’t have a problem being who I was, no matter what room I was in.”

Point well made. We are taking notes, Mrs. Smith.

SOURCE: Health Magazine | PHOTO CREDIT: Getty, Facebook, Splash

Like Fine Wine: 22 Red Hot Pictures Of Jada Pinkett Smith
2017 BET Awards - Red Carpet
12 photos