“Black-ish” star Tracee Ellis Ross says she has no problem being 45, single and childless, and in fact wonders why people think it’s their business.
In an interview with InStyle magazine, the actress and daughter of legendary singer Diana Ross said it perplexes her that society needs to put labels on people.
“Some of the ability to reflect on what I really want comes from pushing up against a society that shames me for not having the expected trappings,” Ross said. “I’m very pleased with my existence these days. Have I had to learn to make friends with loneliness? Yes. I think if I were in a relationship, it would be the same.”
It has been reported that Ross told the publication that her marital status is among those “very big and personal questions” that “aren’t anyone’s business” but that she finds this stage of her life intriguing.
“It’s sort of fascinating to be 45, single and childless,” Ross said, “Happily single, I should add. Not at home crying about it.”
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Ross described herself to the magazine as a homebody who loses her “social ability” after 9 p.m. And maybe it is just as well because she said one big difference she is noticing between now and her younger years is that she has to work to maintain her beauty.
“The ‘I woke up like this’ thing? Bull—-,” she said. “ ‘Black-ish’ is in HD, darling … At 18, I might have woken up like this. At 45, I f—ing work for it.”
She added, “I love potato chips more than anything in the world, and so I work out hard. I put masks on my face. I take care of myself. And by the way, to me, self care does not mean going to the spa. It’s learning to say no. It’s knowing yourself so you can make choices that are an expression of self care. That’s self care.”
Ross plays Rainbow Johnson, a married mother of five on ABC’s Black-ish.