Queen Latifah (born as Dana Owens) is a Grammy Award winning rapper, producer, Oscar nominated actress and entrepreneur. She started out with her first single “Wrath of My Madness” in 1988 that led her on to a journey of success. The following year Latifah released her very first album, “All Hail to the Queen”. The album went on to sell over 1 million copies. She not only does music and acts, but Latifah is also a very successful businesswoman. Latifah and her business partner Shakim Compere both own Flavor Unit Entertainment, which is a production company that works as a television and film production firm, a record label and artist management company. The two were executive producers of films such as Bringing Down the House, Beauty Shop, and The Cookout. (QueenLatifah.com) According to CNN Money, Latifah’s company became a partial owner of New York Spring Water in 2010. (CNN Money, 2011) Queen Latifah also has her own cosmetic line through CoverGirl cosmetics called The Queen Collection.

If I were given the opportunity to interview Queen Latifah, I would first ask her about her experience in the entertainment industry and how she was able to balance music, acting and all of her other business ventures. My next question would be related to her experience negotiating in those different sides of the industry and what negotiating tips she might have for anyone trying to make it in the entertainment industry. My final question I would ask her is what advice she may have for someone that wants to succeed in more than one area of the industry. I decided to write this highlight about Queen Latifah because she played an important role in hip-hop when I was growing up. I was able to see how she was able to not only rap, but sing, act and run a successful business. I found it amazing to know that someone was capable of doing so much in the industry and pave the way for others to become successful.