Tiffany Haddish will be the first to tell you she’s not perfect.
On Sunday, April 21, during an appearance at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books held at the University of Southern California, the “After Party” star opened up about her imperfect journey as she promoted her upcoming book, “I Curse You With Joy.”
“I feel like I’ve always made mistakes,” the bestselling author said during a panel discussion with the L.A. Times’ Angel Jennings, per People.
Haddish continued, “I haven’t had one year that was the perfect year. I’ve had years that have some really amazing moments in them, but I have stumbled and fallen ever since. I’ve learned how to walk. I’ve tripped up. I’m not perfect.”
In “I Curse You With Joy,” she opens up about the toll the limelight has sometimes taken on her life and the lessons she’s learned along the way through a series of humorous essays.
Haddish told Jennings that her new book doesn’t shy away from the mistakes she’s made because they “give you the knowledge of how not to do it again, but also how to see it coming again and how to move out of the way; how to make adjustments.”
After multiple DUIs, including one in January 2022 in Georgia and another on Nov. 24, 2023, in Beverly Hills, Calif., when the actress allegedly fell asleep at the wheel, Haddish vowed to get help. Earlier this month, as previously reported by theGrio, the “Haunted Mansion” actress reflected on her sobriety journey thus far.
Among the insights she’s gained, Haddish said she realized she had “been too damn nice” over the years. According to her, drinking caused her to have a filter and keep a lot of her honest thoughts and reactions to herself. Since entering sobriety, she said, “there’s no filter.”
More of this unfiltered honesty can reportedly be expected in “I Curse You With Joy.”
Speaking to Jennings on Sunday, Haddish said her own has helped her identify the toxic patterns of others. She said, “You can see it happening to your friends, and you can say, ‘Hey, look, I know where you are right now. I’ve been through that. I can just give you this advice. You could take it, or you could leave it. But I’ve learned from my experience that this is what’s going to end up happening to you, and you can make the changes if you want or not.'”
During the event, Haddish also read from her children’s book, “Layla, the Last Black Unicorn,” and signed copies of her previous works, including her bestselling 2017 memoir “The Last Black Unicorn.”
“I Curse You With Joy” is slated for release on May 7, 2024.