Host Dascha Polanco invites Selenis Leyva (Orange is the New Black) and Julissa Calderon (Gentefied) into her living room to discuss navigating Hollywood as Afro-Latinas and Dominican-Americans in an industry that struggles to recognize all the ways of being Latino. Through laughter and tears they cover topics ranging from the importance of inclusivity and their experiences with colorism in the Latino community, to what’s new in Dominican slang.
Host Dascha Polanco invites Selenis Leyva (Orange is the New Black) and Julissa Calderon (Gentefied) into her living room to discuss navigating Hollywood as Afro-Latinas and Dominican-Americans in an industry that struggles to recognize all the ways of being Latino. Through laughter and tears they cover topics ranging from the importance of inclusivity and their experiences with colorism in the Latino community, to what’s new in Dominican slang.
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Clips from “Orange is the New Black” and “Gentefied” courtesy of Netflix.
Selenis and Marizol Leyva’s new book “My Sister: How One Sibling's Transition Changed Us Both” comes out on March 24 on Bold Type Books.
In collaboration with @ConTodoNetflix, a social community for Latino creators and fans alike to come together and celebrate their #LatinXcellence.
“Brown Love” is produced for Netflix by Futuro Studios.
Dascha Polanco: Welcome to Brown Love, the show where we get real about all the topics Latinx communities are talking about on your timeline, brought to you by Netflix and Con Todo! Each week, we’ll be talking to Latinos in Hollywood who are making space for our communities to see ourselves. I’m your host, Dascha Polanco.
Hollywood struggles to understand Afro-Latinos. For years I would go to auditions and I’d get asked: “So What are you - Black or Latina?” Umm… You mean where I’m from? I’m Dominican. They just didn’t get it. But now, we’re finally seeing the industry start to acknowledge all the different ways you can be Latinx.
And so today — for our first episode of the podcast — we’re going to get deep into Afro-Latino identity, confronting anti-blackness in our own communities, and how to carve our space yourself when you don’t fit the “norm”.
I’m lucky to be joined by two of my favorite Caribbean mamis killing in Hollywood right now. Selenis Leyva from Orange is the New Black and Julissa Calderon, who landed her first role on Netflix’s new Latinx show, “Gentefied.” We started off our convo giving Julissa a big congratulations.
Julissa: Gracias!
Dascha: Congratulations!
Julissa: Thank you!
Dascha: How does that feel?
Julissa: Wow. I can't even put it into words. I'm still like, it happened, right yeah we already shot it. It happened Julissa? You're fine. You're fine. But no it was like. It was definitely an "I've arrived moment." Like okay I’ve been here. I’ve been trying. I’ve been doing it. And yeah it feels amazing. Can I curse? No?
Dascha: You can curse on this.
Julissa: oh okay a mi siempre me sale una, so I’m like…
Dascha: Oh, don't worry girl. Pero mira today we're gonna talk about Afro Latinidad -- what it means to be Latin X and black, when so many people still think Latinidad is just about like looking a certain way, right? About light skin, straight hair.
Selenis: Yeah. Well I think it's kind of ironic that the three of us that are sitting here are like the representation of everything that supposedly is not or has not been considered to be Latino or Latin X up until this point. Like this is very rare, let's be real.
Julissa: Mm hmm.
Selenis: You know, like we're three Afro Latinas, Caribbean, Dominican, Dominican-Cuban myself. But, you know, I'm saying?
Dascha: Where are you from? Let's let's tell the audience, where are you from, Selenis?
Selenis: I am born in the Bronx
Julissa: BX BX
Selenis: and I have the Dominican...
Dascha: For those that don't know, BX the Bronx. It's in New York City.
Selenis: It's in New York, guys. It's part of...New York. It's an outer borough, but it is part of New York. So, yes, I was born in the Bronx, raised in the Bronx. And my father is Cuban. And my mother is Dominican.
Dascha: So you're the first, you're this first generation born here, right? From your family?
Selenis: Yes. Yes. Immigrants. We do it right.
Dascha We do it right. Right. It doesn’t have to be white to be right.
[Laughter]
Dascha: And for you, Julissa. Let me tell you something about Julissa. I know Julissa for a long time. Where are you from?
Julissa: I was born in New York in the Heights. Parents lo__ Dominicano, but raised in Miami. Yeah. Carol City, to be exact.
Dascha: Yeah! Yes, we went to the same high school. I know her brothers. She's younger than me. And I saw her from a little girl. She's my sister's age. Yeah.
Julissa: No, I think I'm I think I'm younger than Jessica.
Dascha: You're younger than Jessica
Julissa: Yeahh.
Dascha But we went to the same high school and now I see her here. And it's just it's funny.
Selenis:That's lovely.
Dascha: I mean we, the beginning of my career.
Selenis: Yeah, yeah.
Dascha: You and I. You know. Yeah. You know, we've been part of the beginning of Netflix and beginning of My Miami life with you. So seeing this for me it's kind of like, wow.
Selenis: Wow that's so cool.
Dascha: This is fucking amazing.
Julissa and Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: That's where we're at right now.
Julissa and Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: So we got to take a moment.
Selenis: Let's take a moment ladies. Let’s take a moment.
Overlapping talking.
Julissa: It's so real. It’s so realI told Mommy I was like what I was doing today. And she was like y Dascha __ también? It's so weird because it's like my mom knows Dascha as like just Dascha that used to be around the house. That used to come with with my brothers like so to see this is definitely a full circle moment.
Dascha: You know what I mean? That’s a moment. It feels good. You got the chills
Selenis: It feels good. It feels good. We did it.
Dascha: To speak about this at different stages in our lives and careers. What does Afro Latino mean? Because for me, I never had to use that term.
Julissa: No, never.
Dascha: And we will speak about how different it is from New York to Miami. Right? Because in New York, I think when they ask you, where are you from? We usually like-
Julissa: It's a burrough like- For me is like where you're from? I'm like the Bronx, you know what I mean? It was never like where are you from?
Dascha: and what's your nationality?
Selenis: It's like I'm like, I'm Spanish. Like, it was never like a question. I feel like now we're so, you know, we're living in different times, obviously. And people are very, very stuck on labeling things, which, you know, in many ways it's good to acknowledge people perhaps that have been ignored. Right? Not given like a place. But, you know, for me as an Afro Latina and I know we can all understand this.
Dascha: What does that mean to you though?
Selenis: For me, it's like Afro Latina is not denying the blackness. Not denying that- y tu abuela es de que? You know what I mean? Like, where's where are you from? Like, what's your ancestry? African, you know, Jamaican. Like, it's not just the Spaniard because we love to, Latinos love to be like no porque mi abuelo es de español.
Dascha: Ooohhh German.
Julissa: The parents, That's the older generation. They do that.
Selenis Nobody wants to talk about-.
Dascha: Are they at fault? Right. Because it was learned behavior from colonialism.
Julissa: Absolutely.
Dascha: Because people don't understand.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: I think in order for us to evolve, we have to understand that we've had to, within our countries, yes, we've had these colorism issues, right?
Selenis: Yes.
Dascha: But we have to understand that it was learned from the moments of colonialism -
Selenis: Absolutely.
Dascha: Where people came in and told us how we have to look, what has to be done to the people that were already there because people existed there. It's not like it was discovered that people were generated. No. and then to come to here and having to fight. Where do I fit?
Julissa: Yeah.
Dascha: Where do I fit?
Julissa: Yeah.
Dascha: Because I've never had to do that previously, right?
Selenis: Yeah.
Julissa: Um um, I feel like growing up in Miami I never had to do that. I think it's like when I got to L.A. was when I even learned about Afro. Even people saying Afro Latina. You didn't say that in Miami.
Dascha: It’s like wierd.
Julissa: It's interesting. Right? And it's crazy because I feel like we're in the. Where I'm from, the neighborhood that I'm from. It was like you were Latino or you were black.
Selenis: yeah.
Julissa:There was no like, oh, oh, you look like this oh but you speak Spanish huh?
Dascha:a Chico.
Julissa: Exactly
Dascha: you a chico.
Julissa: Oh you speak Spanish? Oh, you're not black!
Selenis: It’s within our own community that we’re cool with that. It's the outsiders that made it necessary. They they they needed to give us another title.
Julissa: Absolutely.
Dascha: Exactly.
Selenis: You know for it to make sense, because when they look at you, they like. But you're not Mexican.
Julissa: But why you look like that?
Selenis: You know. Yeah, I didn't say I was Mexican and I said I was Latina! You know, that's what I got all the time in L.A. specifically. Before "Orange is the New Black," I could not get an audition as a Latina to save my life. Do you know what I'm saying? Because then there would be like, yes, she's really good.
Dascha: Exotic.
Selenis: But she's so exotic. You know what I mean?
Dascha: What does that mean?
Selenis: What does that mean. It means you're confused.
Dascha: I never heard a man being called exotic.
Selenis: No.
Dascha: I never like it's so interesting.
Julissa: I never thought of that.
Selenis: No, but it's true. Like women are considered. But women like us.. el colorcito.. the hair...And everything is like Is very sexualized.
Dascha: Yeah.
Selenis: And it's like la mulatta like growing up for me it was like la mulatta. I was la mulatta. And when you think about it, la mulatta always symbolized, you know, that that the sexy who'll steal your man, you know, and you're like, what? You know what I mean? From a young age. They were calling you a mira la mulattica. She's so cute, la mulattica, and you were like, wow, you're sexualizing a child from a very young age.
Dascha: At that point you don’t even realize it.
Julissa: You don't even realize it. You just grow up, being like La mulatta. Calling yourself that and shit. Your first myspace name is that.
Selenis: Yeah exactly. La negrita.
Julissa: La negrita 257 (laughter).
Dascha: But when it comes to the acting right. In the industry that we're in. How how has that AfroLatina affected your experience? I mean, for Selenis, you've had a long career at the beginning of your career versus now, how has that affected the roles you've gotten
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: and you yourself like what you've encountered and what you've had to confront?
Selenis: Right. I think that having the title now AFROLatina. Right? Like really be part of our narrative. Right. The culture. People are talking about it more. I suddenly feel like, OK, I have a place. I belong somewhere at least because before, you know, growing up, it was like I didn't see people who look like me. When I saw Lauren Velez for the first time on TV, when I saw Rosie Perez for the first time on TV as a young girl. I was like, they could be my sisters. They could be my cousins. Oh, my gosh. You know, there's hope from people who look like me. I've seen the industry in the last 20 years of being a part of it somehow evolve. But there's still things that -.
Dascha: Catching up.
Selenis: Yeah, they're.
Dascha: We're behind.
Selenis: We’re still behind. We're very behind. You know, “Orange is the New Black” gave me a platform to be Latina. Like finally I was able to say, yeah, I'm Latina. You're Latina. All of us were lucky enough. Diane Guerrero, all of us were different but we were all Latinas. And it was the first time, I think, that the industry kind of went, oh, how interesting. They're all Latinx and they all look different. You know what I mean? And you're like, yeah, that's who we are.
But I think that that's the beauty of a show like ours. You know what I mean? Taking place also in New York. New York is a very specific place where it's like a melting pot really is, where L.A. is still very, very one very specific look and very specific thing, which is great, but not so great for people like me or you or you.
Dascha: I mean. Again, part of "Orange is the New Black" was like a phenomenon.
Right? It was like the stereotypes.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: And then there was like the diversity. And then there was the point from our perspective, right? Cause that's what people saw, diversity. But then what we saw was a group of Latinas and then staying true to what Latina meant for us. And like saying, well, yeah, we are incarcerated. For the storyline. But how are we going to portray this as authentic as we can? Because this is the first opportunity that we're able to do this.
OITNB clip
And now it's like people have totally redirected what they thought right?
Selenis: People aren’t questioning that I'm Latina any more.
Dascha: Exactly.
Julissa: Yes.
Selenis: That’s the difference. Where before, you know, literally there was a casting director who called my agent and was like, you know, your client, the one that looks black, but speaks Spanish. And I was like, no, you mean the Latina, you know what I mean? And her thing was like, we really love her, but it doesn't make sense to put her in the Latino family, you know, because we already have the family. And I was like, I don't understand what is the family... like made me feel like I'm zebra you know?
Dascha: Cause they don’t know. My family looks like.
Selenis: But that's because we haven't seen it. We still haven't seen it. And we still need to see more of that.
Julissa: Yeah.
Dascha: And it's. And it has to be done behind the scenes. Right? For you Julissa, right because you're playing Jessica on "Gentified." And it's a Dominican girl living in Boyle Heights and in a Mexican-American community.
Selenis: Which is amazing
Gentefied Clip
Dascha: That’s amazing. I'm so excited I can't wait to see it.
Selenis: I’m excited about that too.
Dascha: Could you talk a little about how you started and to this point?
Julissa: Well, I first started in Miami, I did like a couple off Broadway shows, and then I was like, I'm going to Hollywood. And I came here and, yeah, same thing that I was going. I was getting called in for, like African-American girl next door. Things like that. And then as soon as I open my mouth, they'll be like, oh, where are you from? And I'm like, oh, I'm from Miami, because I knew the question. Right. But I'm gonna let you you ask me the correct question.
Selenis: I’m going to make you real uncomfortable and make you say it.
Julissa: So where, where? Oh, it was like that. You're like: CO MON, get it out! (laughter)
And it was. Oh, well, where your background.
I'd be like, oh, my parents are Dominican. Ooh, so you speak Spanish. Yes. Oh, OK. Thank you so much. And it was like, well, damn, should I have not said that? Would I have gotten in? If you felt you know what I mean. It was it was that. And I felt like when I did go in for Latina roles, nobody in the room looked like me.
Dascha: Oh girl!
Selenis: They still don't.
Julissa You right!
Dascha: Girl.
Julissa: There'll be one kind little brown girl you like, You're like OK, bueno. I guess.
Julissa: But that was my thing. It was either I go in for these African-American roles, but my accent was a problem or I went in for these Latina roles and I'm the only real brown girl with some kink in my hair. And that's a problem, too. But when I went in for "Gentified" they weren't looking for an Afro Latino. They were looking for a Mexican girl, specifically a black skin from East L.A.. And clearly, I'm not a Mexican girl. And they wanted her to be real east LA and so my accent was too New York and I was like, well, I'm from Miami, actually. So how you get that, but, you know, Hollywood and yeah, actually, they passed on me twice because they were like, she's real Dominican. It doesn't make sense. And in the end, I got the role and they rewrote it to be a girl fr- Yup!
Dascha: Come on. Can we. Drink some water. Nosotros estamos tomando!
Selenis: Ok, let's take a moment.
Julissa: We deserve it
Dascha: Cause we in L.A. honey tu me entiendes.
Overtalking… seca ….
Hydration because we in L.A, honey. Spanish. I'm on the air.
Selenis: Pero you see that's beautiful.
Julissa: Yeah, they did it. They said I was the perfect person for the role. And that's I think they're setting the bar for what needs for what needs to happen likeLike if someone fits that role, do what you gotta do to get that person in there if they're the best person for the role.
Selenis: You do it all the time for like Caucasian men.
Julissa and Dascha: Yeah!
Selenis: You know what I'm saying? Let's be real. I mean, I've lost roles to Caucasian.
Laughing.
Selenis: I was like there's something I can't do. I could do a lot of things, but I can't play a Caucasian man or maybe I can.
Dascha: I've lost roles to a dog. LAUGHTER. Like they just cut the part out.
Selenis: They just cut the part out. We decided to go with a lab.
Dascha: I can bark.
Selenis: We decided a cocker spaniel was a lot more believable in this role than a Latina.
Dascha: Oh, my God.
So, Julissa, I wanted to ask you a question about the role of Jessica on Gentefied and what is her arc and what are the struggles that she's facing throughout?
Julissa: So first, Jessica is a Dominican girl in this Mexican community. And she is a queer girl and her girlfriend is Mexican.
So there's all these like arrows pointing at her of her being like, well, I don't fit into this Mexican community, really the family, because the community, she's embraced it and they've embraced her. But this family is bueno una muchacha negra? and then she's also queer. She's dating our daughter or our granddaughter.
GENTIFIED CLIP.
It's that struggle, right.
Dascha: So it's it's also the anti-blackness and also the sexuality.
Julissa: Yep.Yep. She's dealing with both of those things and she knew when she was young, she knew from the beginning that she was a queer girl and that she loved women like that. Jessica is proud of who she is. She doesn't hold back. I would find me in her similar and so many different ways.
She's strong and she embraces everything about it. Whether she has backlash from her girlfriends family or not. She stands on her own two feet and is proud of it.
MUSIC
Dascha: Let's talk about within our community, though, within our Dominican community, the anti-blackness.
Julissa: Listen I go home and I'm like, what up black people? And everybody's like, Julissa, and I'm like que fue? And they like you always come in with some shit and I'm like with some real shit? because that's all I'm saying. Yeah, but it's that it's the whole. And it stems down from like our parents parents and our parents, parents, parents. It's just like that. But we're I feel like we're the generation that are kind of breaking that which is great at least trying to break it.
Dascha: And having a platform to do it.
Julissa: Yeah and having the platform to do it --.
Selenis: For me with the Cuban side and the Dominican side, it's always been a battle, you know, because I'm one of the darker ones in the family. You know, there's a lot of different colors and shades. But, you know, growing up, I was like going pelo, mano with the wide nose with this, and made to feel as if everything about me was wrong. Like everything about me was wrong. You know what I'm saying? Where the cousins had the lighter hair or the, you know, pelo bueno like all these things, you just. And you grow up believing it. You grow up believing that... there was very powerful.
Dascha: I don't think it's malicious.
Julissa: It's not.
Dascha: It's something that you hear like mira te…arregla la raza..
Selenis: Arregla la raza…
Julissa: Arregla la raza.
Dascha: It was everything like fixthe race, fix the face. Mira que lindo la blancita con ojos azules
Selenis: It don’t matter he’s a crackhead it’s okay.
Julissa: He’s like the bum in the corner.
Dascha: He could play you a thousand times, girls. He could beat you it don’t matter.
Selenis: It's ok because he got blue eyes.
Dascha: He got blue eyes. He’s gonna make cute ass babies.
Julissa; It's crazy, it crazy how it is, how it was like that. And even like my grandma's sisters would always be like Julissa, you're not going to go to the salon? And I'd like why what's wrong.
Selenis: Yes. Yes.
Julissa: Like what's what's the problem? But they always have. It's always been like that.
Dascha: Because it's part of the culture.
Julissa: And then I think too You'll are always are claiming the Spaniard part of it. I'm like I don't want to be like an in conquistador. Like that's what you want to be? Why are we? Why do we repping that?
Dascha: Meanwhile we shaking our ass to them African beat, to them drums. We're doing balo.
Selenis: la santeria and all that stuff
Julissa: All of it.
Selenis: Where does that come from?
Julissa: It comes from Africa and it's sad, but I feel like if we keep talking about it and keep instilling that into the generations to come. Well, the older people, they dying out. I know that's bad to say that, but it's true. I say it all the time. Listen.
Dascha: Ustedes van a morir.
Julissa: Ustedes van a morir. And then we're gonna be alright. We're going to start we learning. Like die grandma. No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding.
like luckily my grandma was the Blanca and she married the moreno.
Selenis: OK.
Julissa: That was that. But her sisters were all dark. She was the only white one. And she had, her mentality was different. Her mentality was like, wow, look at all my sisters. And I'm the only one that looks like this. And she’d call them la morenitas in our family.
Dascha: And it's funny because your brother has green eyes.
Julissa: My brothers are the complete opposite.
Dascha Yes. One of them has green eyes.
Julissa: La blancito.
Dascha: And the other morenito, Ralphie is like dark skin,
Selenis: Yeah and that’s how it is.
Julissa: yeah. 10 months apart.
Selenis: That’s normal. That's normal though. But that's normal in our culture. In our homes.
Julissa: Yeah. But people still, my mom. They're only 10 months apart, right.
Selenis: Yeah. My brothers are too.
Julissa: Same mom and dad.
Dascha: There is one thing about em Carribeans and Dominicans. They know how to get down..
Selenis: He's like you got the clearance from the doctor, let's go.
Dascha: Come se dice?? no había televisión.
Julissa: There was no TV.
Selenis: There was no Netflix. There was no netflix and chill. We just chilling.
Julissa: But my mom would have both of them and they would always ask my mom if she was the nanny to the white one.
Selenis: Oh, that's. I get that with my daughter when I first...
Dascha: You're like, yeah, I got that.
Selenis: Girl. I get that. Like when my daughter was born, everybody it was like the Lion King moment, like, oh. Like because she was white. Like she came out like what their version of beauty is. Which is fair, beautiful, flowing hair like her features are just right. Everything is small and petite and cute and the porcelain… la niña de porcelana is what they call my my child.
Julissa: Oh wow.
Selenis: So my family was like, oh, you know, it was a big deal. And I was like, OK, I'm glad she. You know, she's like, up to your liking. And then when I would take her to school, they were like none of the parents would talk to me. It was just the nannies and the nannies would talk to me in Spanish. They were like oh lala how long have you been taking care of her? I was like..
Julissa: That’s my daughter
Selenis: ...at this point, about five years. She came out of me and they were like
Dascha: Since her daddy put her little sperm in me I’ve been taken care of her.
Selenis: Literally, like like que que, tu es la mamma? I was like yeah.
Julissa: That’s so insane.
Selenis: And kids would ask my daughter, were you adopted? I was like, listen.
Dascha: And it goes to show how much this affects our insecurities, our confidence, how much we love ourselves you know, how much we feel not part of stuff-
Selenis: Did you grow up loving yourself?
Dascha: Hell fucking no.
Selenis: No. Neither did I.
Julissa: Definitely not my hair. I used to hate my hair.
Selenis: My hair, my nose, my lips, my butt everything.
Dascha: My hair was cur...girl come on. que si ------que si
Julissa: todos sábados I was in the salon.
Dascha: You had to be in the salon rollo...
Selenis: You had to.
Dascha: Like they say wash and set. I was at Los rollos, the blower.
Selenis: It was a mission like Saturday mornings was about cleaning and getting your hair on point. Do you what I'm saying? The whole day.
Dascha: About food too. Like food was another thing. Like mira te como mucho, te como And it's something like it was just culturally like, oh, man.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: You know what I mean?
Julissa: You didn't think about it until you got older and you realized, oh, that's not OK
Dascha: That shit affected me.
Selenis: But It affects you. It really does. And for a long time for me, even when I went to high school, I went to high school of performing arts and, you know, walking around feeling less than because of everything that I had been conditioned to believe of myself. And then going to a school where I didn't see anyone who looked like me. No one looked like me. And my butt was big. And they were like, oh, my God, your butt is so big.
Julissa: And now everybody want a booty. They’re like squats? Can I squat it out?
Selenis: For real, you go back to the high school reunion everybody's got a butt. I was like oh girl.And I'm not everybody would go to the high school reunion. Everybody got a butt. I was like oh girl.
Dascha: They used to call me bubble butt. Loser lips and I used to fucking wear baggy pants and put a long shirt.
Julissa: I used to get called DSLs.
Dascha: Oh, yeah, all the time. I mean I do have them DSLs tho. Yeah. Well when I'm ready, I'm ready. I know how to embrace a year. What I'm ready.
Julissa: When I was a kid I didn't know how to embrace it so now I'm like yeah.
Selenis: But again over sexualizing us like even from a young age which was really messed up.
Julissa: I was in 7th grade. I remember that. Que yo sabía de esa vaina? I WAS NOT doing that. But I'm not doing that. And so to say that and to think that and me be ashamed, I remember I would be I was like, oh, my God, why she said that I have those like, you know, they're big like that. And this probably she got that from her house. IN her household.
Dascha: Yeah, yeah. Big booty big lips, whatever it is. But it's a beautiful thing to be able to talk about this and realize how much we need to embrace this and how much it's important, how not only yourself, but embracing where you're from. Like I know we talk a lot about and I wanted this to be positive, like looking at the glass half full.
Selenis: Yes.
Dascha: Right. Going into a new decade saying, you know what?
Selenis: Because it is.
Dascha: This is a movement. But we've come a long way from a little country, from islands in the Caribbean to a huge country. To fighting against so many different things against us. Right? And to being here and having like a voice and being able to embrace it and being proud of being Dominican, because now being Dominican is a thing.
I mean, we've seen the crossover in music, we see the terms. We've seen them stop people going over there to get ideas. Yes. We were born with our bodies, you know. So it's like there's there's like this surge of there's something shifting about that, about being yo - It's cool to be Dominican.
Our country, the Dominican Republic, we have that swag, all right. We have that essence we bring something that I don't know,
Julissa: You can't touch it.
Dascha: And let's take a moment to speak about that pride of where we're from. Right? We're all Dominican. Whether born, whether not here, whether first generation, whether second. What makes you Dominican?
Julissa: I would say for me is. It's my. It's it's my it's my charisma. It's my funny.
I think that the reason I have the humor that I have in the way that I spit and I'm witty, it comes from, it comes from being Dominican. Like you go over there and ___le dicen tres cosas, And you’re like wait, what? how you know that? At the age of like four. Right.
Selenis: Very smart. Very alert.
Julissa: And so I think, you know, my parents passed that on to me. And going over there and going their summers and all of those things like it gravitates to you. But more like how we were seeing all of the things that our parents instilled in us, that our grandparents instilled in us. My mom and my grandma instilled in me that being Dominican was amazing. They were so proud of it. And so because they were proud. I was like, I'm Dominican. Always. I never negated it. I was always so excited. I was always so excited about saying that, even even when people didn't know what it was, I was like, oh, let me show you and let me teach you you what it is.
Selenis: Because people didn't always know.
Julissa: No, they didn't.
Selenis: They didn't. They really didn't.
Julissa: In Miami they were like ...or in New York, too.
Selenis: But for New York, it was more like, you know, it was made fun of because, you know, I grew up at a time where we didn't have a lot of Dominicans. We had more Puerto Ricans. I grew up with Puerto Ricans in the Bronx. We had like a couple of Mexicans here and there. But the majority were Puerto Ricans and their whole thing was. Well, at least we're here legally. You know, we're citizens. You need a passport. I was like, no, I was born here. So come again.
So, you know, you don't wear socks? Yes, I do.
Dascha: Exactly.
Selenis: You know what I'm saying?
Dascha: Or you’re “dumb in a can” I was like that’s corny. That don’t make no damn sense.
Selenis: But so now I think it's it's different. Now there is a swag. Now our music is being heard. Our music is being celebrated. Santa Domingo, La Republica Dominicana has has a huge, huge film industry. Huge.
Julissa: Yes.
Selenis: Do you know what I'm saying? That's exciting. There's so many things that I feel that our culture has. Our people have like, you know what it is, to know that you have a hustle in you. There is something about Dominicans that we will make with what you give us.
And we want make it
Dascha: Whether it's selling potlito, empanada, pesa en la esquina…..con dulce
Julissa: Don’t matter what it is
Selenis: I think it’s part of being latino period. Like latinx people hustle, you know, how many times do you go, you know, on the train? You're like walking past a train and there's a woman there. I don't know what time, crack of dawn, whether she's Mexican, whether she's from Guatemala, whatever it is lo que sea they're just living there. They’re gonna do what they have to do.
Dascha: Baloons, water bottles at the lights.
Julissa: Yeah whatever they have to do. They do what they have to do.
Dascha: Whatever. It's about coming here... because we coming here as Latinos, as immigrants, to get that dollar.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: We come in here to work. You can generalize as much as you want. But when the facts speak, when the facts speak, we're very profitable. And we're about our money.
Julissa: Yes.
Dascha: We're about our hustle. And you know what? Yes, we've had differences within our own world.
Selenis: That's right.
Dascha: It's a time right now where what the experience that we have is allowing us to say, yeah, we here and we standing up and we're not going nowhere.
Selenis: Yeah
Dascha: We're going to make the same money. We're making money.
Selenis: And our stories are going to be told. You're going to hear our stories because you know what? It's about time that people, that the Latino, the Latinx community understands that there's not it's just not one Latinx story narrative. And for the most part, and this is, again, not to about division, but for a long time, especially in Hollywood, it was very, you know, Mexican oriented like or Mexican-American or, you know, which is fantastic. I'm not, the thing when you start talking about wanting a piece of the pie. People start thinking that you want to take away their pie.
Dascha: For real.
Selenis: I'm like, no, it's not about that is just about can we make room at this table?
Dascha: Can we make a pie of blueberries, apples and pears?
Selenis: Could we make a little bit of room at the table? You know, that's all we're asking for. Your story is just as valuable as our story.
Dascha: And holding the door open for somebody is not going to close the door for you.
Julissa: I always say that-. We won't be able to
Nosotros..unidos… dominicana.
We could all go for the same role. It doesn't matter if we all study the same lines together and we're like, no, let me help you. Let me help you. Let's do this. When we go in that room, we're going to kill.
Dascha: There's been a sense of fear when it comes to that. Like, there's only enough for one. Well let me tell you something.
Selenis: Yes, ma'am. In the latino community we fear that so much. It’s like, well, if she comes upm, damn then I'm going to lose my spot. And it's not that. Think about it. The more of us that are working, the more stories that are being told our stories. It's like, well, the more they're going to have to produce more stuff.
Julissa: Right.
Selenis: Supply and demand. They're going to want more of it.
Dascha: We've had different trajectories as everybody else, but in our careers, right, as Dominican people, as Dominican women, we're taught always to worry about the next and the future. And oh, my God. And oh, my God, hay muchacha algo seguro, we need security here? lo cuarto, el dinero, the money? What's coming? What's the next move?
Selenis: Because we know what it's like, not to have.
Julissa: Yeah.
Dascha: So the one moment that we're here that we're actually actresses where that we have a career, we're like girl, I know I have this, but I'm worried about the next.
Selenis: We would have these conversations all the time on set.
Julissa: I feel like that sometimes, I'm like Julissa, embrace it. Be in the moment, you know, absorb it, But it's it is it's hard. It's it's coming from the place that we know of that we're like, uh uh, we ain't going back. Let's keep going.
Dascha: Yeah, yeah.
Selenis: But how do we keep going? We keep going by making sure that our stories continue to be produced. We we have to write. We have to direct. We have to have. We can't just be like, oh, OK. I'm so happy they wrote for me this time. Because guess what? They may not write for you for another 10 years. So what do you do in this position? In this position of power? Use your platform. Figure out a way to make sure that you continue to be relevant. That's what we Latinos have to continue to do. That's what us Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, whatever you want, we have to continue to evolve. You know, nowadays you can't just be like, well, I'm an actor, no. You better be more than just an actor.
Julissa: I’m a producer. I’m a writer. I’m a director.
Dascha: honey. hay todo. If you. Si tube cocine el carne… tambien la ensalada You got to cook the whole thing. And then the next day.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: And give it to your neighbor.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: All right? y tocale a la bodega. You know it’s like You have to be involved. You have to put your hands in. And we are able to do that. We are able, capable and talented enough to do that. And it is important that people hear that.
Julissa: And for us to also put each other in our project.
Selenis: Yes.
Julissa: That’s another thing. I can't make some of them be like, bueno. Let me put all of these people. Was I. Well, then what the hell am I doing?
Selenis: Yes.
Dascha: Exactly.
Julissa: Because then I'm going to reverse and doing exactly what Hollywood has already been doing, instead of opening up a new lane.
Dascha: Exactly. You know, who does a great job at that? And I experienced from the perspective of my career? Ava did that. You know, it's like I'm putting all my people will continue to pull my people.
Julissa: Absolutely
Dascha: But at the end of the day, it's just a learning lesson for me that I have to be present, that I have to get educated enough to know that I have the capacity of being able to direct, to produce, to write, to use you, to use you. Come on, let's work. Let's team up. Let's see. Oh you Mexican. Let's do a story about Dominicans and Mexicans, Puerto Ricans come on. We love each that the unification is very important.
Julissa: Absolutely.
MUSIC BUMP
Dascha: There's one thing about Dominican Republic that we all can connect in is our music. Right? Now, we have for those that don't know, we have two genres that we've created. OK. And that's bachata.
It was like, ohh
Julissa: You couldn’t dance it back in the day.
Selenis: Dios mio that’s la musica.
Dascha: Which is for those that don't know bachata is like what Romeo Santos fused what he used inspiration. But there’s Antonio Santos, luis bardo. the real from the caberalles. y merengue.
Julissa: Yeah.
Dascha: What is one of your favorite songs? From DR Or from Cuba too, you know, somebody that represents the Afro Latino, that you feel like, that music.
Julissa: Anthony Santos, like every day like [sings]
Dascha: I wanted to dance dammit!
Julissa: Listen that, you can I can always hear that I don't care where I'm at. And I'm like, wow. who’s playing that? what’s going on?
Dascha: There's something about our music. I mean, we've had moments where we just feel it in our blood. Right? So what's a song that?
Selenis: I mean, I just think of like growing up with (Fernando Vilallona???), hearing like, you know, that and being of a really like I was a little girl and we were in the in the Dominican Republic and he was performing. And I remember just watching him and being like, you know, like mesmerized at the sound, at the the energy. You know, there's something beautiful about our people when they preform
[Singing]
YOu know what I"m saying?
[singing]
Julissa: It does something to you, right? It makes you even prouder. It makes you smile. Look at when you said I already was like was like, oh, excited to talk about it. It gives you that ummf.
Dascha: It's good stuff.
Julissa: It's like, oh, I can't even explain it. It's like something about the music that makes you feel alive.
Selenis: And when I think about my Cuban side, I think about like La Lupe
Julissa: That's my lady. I love her. I love her so much.
Dascha: Oh she was… wou know, I was watching videos because I love salsa.
Selenis and Julissa: love salsa.
Dascha: I love some salsa so much.
Selenis: Pongo le música.
Dascha: Tu me entiendes.. pero mira. Okay Let me tell you something. I saw videos of cuando era .. .ehm cuando preformed in Africa.
Selenis: La fania
Dascha: Yo when she got on stage.
Selenis: She was like vamanos
Dascha: They were rehearsing.
Julissa: Well, she has something to prove, right?
Dascha: Yo, all these men and.
Selenis: Because she was a women, yeah.
Dascha: And the respect. When she got on that stage.
Julissa: She held it.
Selenis: Yeah.
DaschaLike that….el conermiento… el director. It was like vamanos. In Africa. In Africa at that time.
Selenis: Africa. That was a beautiful performance.
Dascha: Well she was dark skinned. A black, Cuban woman.
Julissa: She was ahead of her time. She was ahead of her time. Because she embraced her blackness.
Selenis: Yeah.
Julissa: Like for to hear that in that time. Unheard of.
[Overtalking]
Dascha: And you got to play her.
Julissa: You did?
Selenis: Yes, I did. I got to do an off Broadway show for nine months in New York and then we went to Spanish where she has she broke a world record of most people in attendance. So I got to perform there.
And every night just being like (singing) I was like oh oh it's on! The incense. Yeah.
Julissa: That is amazing.
Selenis: Yeah. So it was like really, you know, just so, so good,
Dascha: We are so blessed and so powerful. And I mean it goes to show when you love, when you embrace what you do, when you take risks, when you move forward and you're like, I'm going to risk it and I'm going to be I don't care what happens. Can’t nobody stop us. That being said I wanted to ask you Selenis on your future projects. I heard that you've been working on a book?
Selenis: Yes.
Dascha: I want to hear a little bit about this Selenis tell me, please, I'm excited.
Selenis: The book is called My Sister and it comes out March.
Julissa: Yes, girl.
Selenis: So I added author to my, to my list.
Julissa: Multifaceted.
Selenis: Yeah, exactly. You gotta get multifaceted. So the book is is it's co-written by myself and my sister Marisol. And Marisol is transgender. She's a transgender woman. And what we wanted to do was share our story in both voices as a CIS woman and a trans woman. And talk about the different experiences that she was going through as she transitioned, and the experiences that I was going through as she transitioned and the family.
Because when we talk about transgender people or people in the LGBT community, we usually don't include the family. You know, we don't share that side.
Dascha: There’s also there's also huge psychological process for the family, and the people around.
Selenis: Yeah. The book is basically shedding light on what it was like for her as she was transitioning and what it was like for us as a family transitioning, supporting her. Do you know what I mean? because it wasn't always perfect. Because we're not claiming to be perfect. I made a lot of mistakes. I use a lot of the wrong pronouns in the beginning. I felt that I was losing a sibling, a sibling that I grew up feeling, this is the person that I know now I'm going to lose that person. Do you know what I mean?
There's a mourning, a real mourning that you go through when someone that you love is transitioning because you don't know. So now. Yeah, hopefully this is a book that will educate people.
Dascha: Wow I just got goosebumps.
Selenis: Show you empathy for people.
Dascha: I'm so excited.
Julissa: I never heard of this, so this is great.
Selenis: Yeah, I know. I'm really excited about it.
Julissa: We hear the stories of the person going through it. We don't hear,
Selenis: But what about the family? Yeah. And what happens in that in the Latino community?
Dascha: And we're just starting to accept it in our Latino communities because in our Latino communities alone. You know, let alone LGBT and going through the process. Yeah. Sexuality. It's like no.
Selenis: But there are a lot of people in our community that take part in that quote...
Julissa: In the activities.
Selenis: In the activities.
Julissa: But won’t say it.
Selenis: But won’t say that they're gay. You know what I mean? Because I know from just talking to other trans people and other just people in the community, in the LGBT community where you're like, oh, you know, not not everybody identifies as queer. But they're certainly willing to partake. You know what I mean? So there's a lot of that we talk about the abuse that trans women
Dascha: yes yes
Selenis:...go through writing this book has been one of the hardest things.
Sorry, I wasn't expecting that, one of the hardest things I think that I had to go through and see my sister go through. But it's a celebration. I'm getting emotional for many reasons, for the reason of it's a celebration and also for the reasons of the heartache and the honesty that we had to put into this book. And feeling really naked.
Dascha: Vulnerable.
Selenis: I feel very vulnerable. The idea that this book is coming out as excited as I am. It's scary, because we are being so transparent and it's scary for me, but my sister Marisol. I can't even begin to tell you how she has motivated me to just be a better person.
I'm just want people to empathize. You don't have to. You don't have to agree.
Dascha: You don't.
Selenis: But you should respect.
Dascha: Always. You have to yo just live your life. Mind your buisness.
Selenis: Live your life and let everybody live theirs.
Dascha: Accept people for who they are. We should not fear speaking our truths.
Julissa and Selenis: Living your truth!
Dascha: What a beautiful opportunity you're bringing to many out there. They need to hear this.
Julissa: That have never heard it.
Dascha: That need to experience this along with you.
Selenis: Yeah.
And I'm hoping to give those families that are going through that the almost like a reference book. And I think it's important to say we are children of immigrants. You know, Latinos in the Bronx like that wasn't. You know, we didn't grow up understanding like trans today is like a thing like people are talking about it more, their shows about it. There's people that are successful winning awards and all this stuff. But let me tell you something. That was not the case, just a decade ago, 10 years ago. That was not a thing. So and especially.
Dascha: I mean, women are fighting for rights still now.
Julissa: Still.
Selenis: Right. Especially in our community.
So I think that there is something to be said. Hmm. So, you know, also I look at my parents and I have to give it to them and be like, you know, my mother's this Catholic woman, you know, Una Dominicana de Catlóica. And she was like, that's my child.
Dascha: Wow.
Selenis: Well, that's my daughter. That's my child.
Julissa: She’s a pioneer.
Selenis: That's a pioneer. Wow. So. So that's what we're really excited about the book.
And we're hoping and praying that through our struggles and everything that we had to go through and everything Marisol had to go through and my parents and my siblings, somebody's life will be saved. Because people in the LGBT community, trans people in general right now.
If they don't have the support. Like a home base.
Where do you turn? Where do you turn? So I'm really hoping that this means that people will read it and feel like that there's there's empathy.
Dascha: And look how your family and yourself saved one life. All ready.
Selenis: Yeah, yeah.
Dascha: Your Sister Marisol, which is beautiful, is a beautiful person.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: To have seen her. Yeah.
Selenis: Evolve.
Dascha: Evolve. Such a beautiful thing. I gotta get my copy.
Selenis:Yeah. You gotta get that advanced copy of My Sister.
Julissa: Mandame uno.
MUSIC CUE - Brown Love...
Dascha: It's a segment, but I like it because it's juicy. It could be fun. It could be serious. You could take it where you want to take it. It's called Brown Love. And Julissa, you might recognize the name Brown Love from Gentefied. For everyone else, it's the name of the relationship podcast and one of the characters on the show listens to. On it is to chicanas from the LA area, talking about life and love and the Latinx community. So we thought we'd ask you a little bit about your lives and how you get down in your love life.
Selenis: Oh, my goodness.
Dascha: Testing one two three.
Julissa: You guys didn't tell me this ahead of time. Who cleared this?
Dascha: You already know youre status.
Selenis: I need a little something extra in those water drinks. So if you want the truth.
Dascha: So first off, what is your relationship status?
Julissa: I'm in a relationship.
Selenis: OK. It's complicated? No.
Dascha: I love complication.
Julissa: Don't we all? de que.. I feel alive like that.
Selenis: That means its fun. What's your relationship status? Fun.
Dascha: F U N it’s a fun house.
Selenis: That's my status, fun.
Dascha: In the era of social media.
Selenis: Oh, dear Lord Jesus-.
Dascha: I want some. Okay. DM slides.
Selenis: They slide into the D M a lot. right?
Dascha: Really? They've been sliding into a lot of things. But what'a crazy DM slide?
Selenis: A pic
Julissa: Oh, you had a pic?
Selenis: Oh, several. I don't know, I don't ask for them.
Julissa: Yeah. Why is it? Is it like unsolicited pics like.
Selenis: Yeah. Just pics of. Body parts
Dascha: That's so nasty to me. That turns me off.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: A dude that thinks like I want want to see his dick?
Selenis: It's like to you think.
Dascha: It's like I don't want to see your penis.
Selenis: It's not OK. Guys, it's not ok. Stop it.
Dascha: Sometimes it's that, Oh OK. Is that yours?
Julissa: I'm going to look at this real quick. But I ain't ask him for it. But you want to look at this real quick?
Dascha: It could be a screen shot.
Julissa: Yeah, I've had one of those. Not a lot. I've had like, you know, these athletes may be sliding in the DM.
Dascha: For real?
Julissa: Yeah I think they always do that. I think that's like that's like their thing. But I've had my fair share with one person that was an athlete and I did that already. So I'm like, oh, we know next.
Selenis: We know what that's about. We know what that's about.
Dascha: Why do athletes have that reputation?
Julissa: Cause they keep doing it.
Selenis: GIRL. Cause gril
Julissa: Oh like why?
Selenis: Cause, girl, come on now. Don't act like you don't know.
[Overtalking]
Dascha: I don't know why, but I like. Of course, it’s instilled, I get more of like hit like rappers. Mm hmm. You know what I mean? I like I want to try something else, like give me a rock n roller or a country guy.
Julissa: Why? like what are they going to do different?
Dascha: I just want to try like a white boy. I don't know.
Julissa: Have you ever tried a white boy?
Dascha: No. White boys don't like me.
Selenis: Yes they do.
Julissa: White boys don't like me neither.
Dascha: They like you Selenis. I know your truth.
Selenis: I embrace everything. Status is fun. My status is fun.
Julissa: I also feel like you know what? I don't like white boys either. So I"m like that's cool because we don't like each other.
Selenis: Oh there you go.
Dascha: Yeah, I haven't.
Selenis:I don't I don't discriminate.
Dasha: I remember one time in high school, an American, I was talking to this boy and my mom made mofongo. So I took some out to him. He was that what is that?
I wsas like that's... you know how good mofongo is?
Selenis: Yeah you were like come on who doesn't like mofongo?
Dascha: Yo he never talked to me again because like-
Julissa: Good! You ain't want to talk to him again. If he can't handle
Dascha: I just really liked his car.
Julissa: If he can't handle mofongo...
Dascha: I just really liked his car!!
Julissa But if he can't handle mofongo, he can't handle no Dascha Polanco, you know what I mean??
Dascha: He can’t handle no queso frito, salami..
Julissa: con platanó ahí, oh my god, no, NEXT
Selenis: For real
Dascha: Come on. I'm I'm down for whatever.
Julissa: Good for you.
Dascha: I want it from every continent.
Julissa: Unless un blanquito dominicana, tu sabes tienes labia. He's gonna talk me out of my panties.
Selenis: Listen, girls.
Julissa: I have a boyfriend, though. What's the next question?
Selenis: It's okay. This is just playing girl. This is just fun.
Dascha: Do you have a fetish story or a story that you've encountered that you're like what in the world was that like? Something.
Selenis: A lot of people online like. Like have foot fetishes.
Julissa: feet.
Selenis: And so I get a lot of foot requests.
Dascha: you don't like feet? Are you one of those?
Julissa: I think that's the weirdest thing in the world. At one time this guy was giving me like a massage and he started sucking my toes. And I kind of like...
Selenis: Did you kick him in the face?
Julissa: A little bit.
Selenis: You did, a little bit.
Julissa: It was like that out of his mouth and he was like what’s up? and I’m like, what are you doing? He's like, you know, you toes and I'm like, first of all, I got ugly toes.
Selenis: You've got to be really into the person to do that. I don’t wanna touch anybody's feet. You can touch mine but I’m not gonna touch yours.
Julissa: That’s disgusting. OH you like it?
Selenis: Yeah I could get into it.
Dascha: I’m gonna tell you that I love… I love a foot massage.
Selenis: I have to like him a lot. You know what I’m saying, there's certain things that you do with people that you really, really...if you're really into somebody, girl, there are no, you know, limits.
Julissa: She’s fuuuunnn.
Dascha: There's no limits when you really into sombody. And there's nothing like hygiene when it comes to it honey
Selenis: Oh, hello.
Dascha: Let's talk about that real quick.
Julissa: Miss Hashtag, I smell good.
Dascha: All the time, baby.
Selenis: We've had conversations about this all the time.
Dascha: Girl.
Julissa: It doesn't even make sense. I always feel like I get compliments on how I smell. Like, shouldn't everybody get compliments?
Selenis: Shouldn't everybody be clean?
Julissa: Like, this is what you should smell like.
Dascha: And first of all, you should floss.
Selenis: And clean that tongue.
Dascha: Exactly, you know how many people I..
Selenis: Scrub that tongue.
Dascha: Let me tell let me tell I must tell the world on social media, because we've had this conversation. Stop taking out your tongue and you have mad tartar on it.
Julissa: ayy está blanco.
Dascha: OK. Use hygiene. Use a brush. A tongue cleaner.
Selenis: A tongue scraper.
Dascha: Come onnn. All this. All the girls. I got you.
Julissa: Yes girl.
Dascha: Do you understand.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: It's like come on! Don't be sliding in my DM and you haven't brushed your teeth, OK?
---
MUSIC BUMP
Dascha: This game that I want to play. It's about being Dominican and the game is called How dio mio are you really okay?
And what we do here is as Dominicans, we're very creative with our language. So I'm going to say a term.
Selenis: Mm hmm.
Dascha: And you're gonna tell me what it means.
Julissa: Oh, OK. Oh, good. OK.
Dascha: Qué lo que.
Julissa and Selenis: what’s up
Dascha: Ehhh qué lo que, qué lo que loca? Zafacón?
Julissa: Trash can.
Selenis: Zafacón is a trash can.
Zafacon.
Julissa: Yeah. What are you supposed to call it?
Selenis: Basurero
Dascha: Basurero, yeah. But can I tell you something about Dominican words that people don't understand? Also, I was looking up Dominican words one time and I'm like, yo, where did this come from? And it comes from our Tainó roots.
Julissa: Yes.
Dascha: The arawak Indians, They also came up with their own language.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: People think it's...You know, there's within our Latin American community, they're like Dominicans? NO. That's not proper Spanish. No, it's it's it's our native language.
Julissa: A'Ching. A'Ching comes from the Taino language.
Dascha: Yeah.
Julissa: Hurukang comes from the Tainó language.
Selenis: But let’s also know that we do invent stuff too.
Dascha: Of course.
Julissa: OH claro.
Julissa: Cause my daughter like literally came back and like, you know, she was in school when she started school, she'd come home pissed off. She'd be like, Mommy, you told me that this meant this. And I was like, cause he does. And she was like, that's not what you know Ms. Hernandez said. And I was like, where's Ms Hernandez from? And she's like De España. I was like, well, you tell her
Dascha: That her people...
Selenis: That in Bronx we say. What was it? Comó el.. the heating thing. El heating.
Dascha: EL heating. Cause el heating comes from where? The steam.
All talking: El heating, el heating...
Selenis: So my daughter is like, yeah, el heating. Then they’re like what?
Julissa: What’s the proper way for that? Casue I...I couldn't tell you.
Selenis: I forgot, but I was so mortified...
Dascha: La calificación.
Julissa: La calificación.
Dascha: hello? I took spanish! I had to take spanish but they wouldn't let me.
Selenis: But there was something else that she's. She was like oh? La china. Oh there was things..
Julissa: OH la naranja.
Dascha: La naranja. Porque el español es el castellano. Castellano.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: What about this? fucoo.
Selenis: desfucoo I don't know what that is.
Julissa: fucoo.
Dascha: Alright I'm gonna tell you.
Julissa: I don’t know that word.
Dascha: I do know what fucoo means. como un fucoo una sal It's like when you have like that evil, like when you have
Selenis: like like a juju
Dascha: tiene un fucoo mi amour.
Selenis: Oh wow. That's from the island island.
Julissa: How come I never heard..yeah I never heard that.
Dascha: Es un fucoo que tiene.
Julissa: … usan ahora...
Dascha: Tu me entiendes.
Julissa: I know a lot of people que tiene fucoo..
Selenis: foh-coo
Dascha: Or you're like, just fuck you.
Julissa: They'll be like excuse me did you say fuck you? I’ll be like no I didn’t say tha
Selenis: No, no, no, no, no, no. I didn't say that.
Dascha: What about a sanckey ponckey?
Julissa: I know what that is.
Dascha: Aren't we proud of that shit?
Selenis So this sanckey ponckey girls? or the sanckey pponkey places?
Julissa: There's boys too now. Let it be known.
Selenis: Yes
Julissa: A sanckey ponckey is someone who, you know, you could go have a little bit of fun with. You've got to have a little bit of pisstains. You know, to give them.
Dascha: Yeah, well, it's it's how a sanckey ponckey. You go to DR
Julissa: Walk the beach.
Dascha: You walk the beach and try to get your visa. That's how you get your visa. You know what I'm saying? With your male or female for you, you marry whoever you can get.
Julissa: You better be careful. We giving yall.. We're giving yall free game right here. Don't think that they really in love with you after two days.
Dascha: For real they just want that visa. They want their papers.
Selenis: I've seen you guys make fools of yourselves. I've seen it. I've been the one judging you, sipping my drink, going mira mira mira mira mira el viejo.. He thinks she really wants him.
Dascha: What's the choppy adora?
Julissa: oh choppy choppie. That's more of a girl’s term.
Selenis: That’s a girl’s term.
Julissa: That's for women.
Dascha: But they're here, too.
Julissa: Choppies are everywhere. Then they're there worldwide.
Selenis: Choppies are not just Domnican. They're like worldwide.
Julissa:They're trying to get that, you know, what can I get out of you?
Dascha: Hello? I need my money
Julissa: I need my bag. I need my rent paid. I need this bill paying. I need this like
Dascha: It's financial. Financial obligations. You're gonna be fulfilling your financial obligations. And I'm I'm. Maybe I'll do a little thing, but we get you your money. Money.
Julissa: Schmoney
Dascha: And for the last one. Y la última es la pampera.
Julissa y Selenis: La pampera.
Selenis: I almost feel like it sounds like something
Julissa: Where you got these words from Dascha?
Dascha: Honey I'm always, like I stay relevant.
Selenis: La pompera.
Julissa: Ya fuera hace dos semans...okay what are the new terms that yall made up yesterday?
Selenis: Ya fuera hace dos semanas la isla.
Dascha: But you know where I live and I'm super involved in like the...
Selenis: What's la pompera?
Dascha: La pompera is like la sactera pompera prendia trabajando con un swag… .the swag…
Julissa: Tiene un flo heavy.
Dascha: Y ahora la nueva term. I'm gonna teach you guys the nueva term. Baje con trenza.
Julissa: OH I heard this.
Selnis: Baje con trenza.
Julissa: Actually, I just heard this
Dascha: You see??
Julissa: When I was in New York a few weeks ago.
Dascha: See what I told you. Baje con trenza.
Julissa: Baje con trenza
Dascha: Tu baje con trenza Julissa?
Julissa: Tu sabes? mira me señore
Dascha: Selenis tu baje con trenza y un [obra?] especial mi amor.
Julissa: Y un flo heavy duty.
Selenis: Qué lo que.
——- MUSIC BUMP
Dascha: I want to take the time to thank you. This was so much fun.
Selenis: Yes
Dascha: I'm so proud of you guys. We have so much to do after we'll keep this going.
Selenis: Yes.
Dascha: Embrace it.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: Be present and just live in the moment.
Selenis: Yes. Be Present.
Dascha: Forget everything that's against us and less embrace everything that's for us.
Julissa: Absolutely. That’s a great way to go out.
Selenis: I like it.
Dascha: You'll like it? Do you love it.
Julissa: What a great time,
Dascha: The outro is…
Julissa: I love you guys, thank you so much.
Dascha: We have to do a brindis.
Selenis: Yeah yeah let’s do it.
---
Dascha: And what I want us to do is that while we do the brindis, I also want us to make an affirmation or wish to our Latin community for the next decade.
Selenis: I like that.
Julissa: Well, good, because I have mira…
Dascha: WOW where’d that come from. You ready.
Selenis. She's ready. She is ready.
Julissa: Stay ready.
I love that
Cuidando.
Julissa: Not the dress.
Selenis: Yes. Not the dress.
Julissa: She did that. She did that, though.
Selenis: She did it
Dascha: Well, that means money.
Julissa: Hold up, let me get a little more. I'm putting it on the other hand too
Dascha: Let me tell you something. You know, if there’s one thing about us. Anything that happens, yo, that means money.
Julissa: That means money.
Dascha: Eso palo muerto. They needed it. It needed it.
Selenis: It needed it.
Julissa: I'm gonna leave a little champagne on my hands because then I'll feel rich all day.
Dascha: Okay.
Selenis: Dab some on the back of your ear.
Julissa: A little pheromones.
Dascha: A little bubbly.
Julissa: A little bubbles.
Dascha: All right *clink*
Selenis: Ahh ladies, this is lovely.
Dascha: Thank you so much girls,.
Julissa: Salud, dinero y amor.
Dascha and Selenis: Salud, dinero y amor.
Selenis: Eye contact señore. Because then the status won't be fun.
Julissa: No, not fun.
Dascha: That's seven years of bad sex.
Selenis: Bad sex.
Dascha: Julissa.
Julissa: Babe..
Dascha: What's your affirmation for the next decade for our community?
Julissa: My affirmation for our community, in this next decade. Is to not be afraid to ever stand in our truth. And to allow all the things that we were once told that weren't good that weren't pretty that weren't anything not who we are on the backburner. We leave it, and take the new spirit and the new energy and manifest that into our future. And just fucking be great and continue being who we are, because ugn we're so amazing.
I want us to embrace that and see it.
Dascha: And you? Selenis.
Selenis: Well, I definitely want to. For us all to remember those that came before us, that that, you know, paved the way and not be not be so scared of paving the way for people behind you? You know what I mean? So what I'm hoping is that we are able to continue to give to one another and to embrace each other's successes. Your success doesn't mean I'm any less successful. And on and on. So I hope that we're able to do that as a community. And living your truth, please. Living your truth goes to like what Julissa was saying. Let us all live in our truth, man.
Dascha: And for our Afro Latinidad and our people, whatever you identify with, whether it's LGBT, whether it's Afro Latin, Latinx. Be proud.
Selenis: Yeah.
Dascha: Whether you want to say Dominican, you want to say... Be proud. Embrace it and accept those around you.
Selenis: Sounds good to me. Salud otra vez.
Julissa: Salud otra vez. To an amazing decade!
Dascha: Y mucho, mucho. Ay amor.
Julissa: Rest in peace.. ayy walter.
Selenis: And I want people to vote. Not for nothing yall better register to vote and vote.
Julissa: Por favor
Selenis: Mi gente por favor.
Julissa: We need it.
Dascha: OK, that's good.
Julissa: That tastes like greatness. That's what we are.
Selenis: That’s what we are. I love you guys.
Dascha: I love you too.
Dascha: This show was produced by Netflix and Con Todo with Partnership with Futuro Studios. If you like what you heard be sure to rate and subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, or where ever you listen to podcasts. And don’t forget to follow @contodonetflix on Instagram and Twitter for all things latinxcellence on netflix. Join me next week for a very honest conversation about machismo. I’ve been your host Dascha Polanco, hasta la próxima mi gente.