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  • ♪♪♪ >> Stephen: HEY, EVERYBODY,

  • WELCOME BACK TO "A LATE SHOW."

  • SHE IS A GRAMMY AND EMMY AWARD-WINNING HIP-HOP ICON AND

  • ACTRESS.

  • HER NEW DRAMA SERIES, "THE EQUALIZER," PREMIERED LAST NIGHT

  • ON CBS.

  • PLEASE WELCOME BACK TO "A LATE SHOW," QUEEN LATIFAH!

  • OH, AND SHE'S STILL GETTING DRESSED UP.

  • YOU LOOK BEAUTIFUL, FANTASTIC.

  • YOU'RE GLOWING.

  • >> THANK YOU.

  • OF COURSE, OF COURSE, THANK YOU.

  • >> Stephen: NICE TO SEE YOU.

  • ALSO, I LOVE YOUR BACKGROUND.

  • I LOVE THAT BACKGROUND.

  • I LOVE THAT PAINTING BEHIND YOU.

  • IT GIVES YOU A NIMBUS MIND YOUR HEAD.

  • >> I LOVE THAT, YOU KNOW.

  • >> Stephen: A LITTLE GLOW.

  • THAT GLOW, THAT'S MY SOUL SISTER BACK THERE SUPPORT MEG,

  • YOU KNOW.

  • I GOT THE LITTLE FLOWERS, I'VE GOT SOME BOOKS SET UP HERE.

  • >> Stephen: DON'T GET TOO USED TO COVID BECAUSE WE'RE GOING TO

  • COME OUT OF IT SOME DAY, I JUST KNOW IT.

  • HOW HAVE YOU BEEN PASSING THE TIME?

  • HOW HAVE YOU BEEN HANDLING IT?

  • >> LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE, YOU KNOW, UPS AND DOWNS.

  • BUT, I MEAN, I'VE FOUND THE PAIN IN IT, HAVING TO TURN INTO A --

  • THE CHEF, THE HANDYMAN, THE YOU GOT TO FIX EVERYTHING, YOU'VE

  • GOT TO FIGURE EVERYTHING OUT, COOK EVERYTHING, CLEAN

  • EVERYTHING, YOU KNOW, YOU JUST HAVE TO TURN INTO EVERY WOMAN OR

  • EVERY MAN OR, YOU KNOW, YOUR ROLES HAVE CHANGED.

  • WHATEVER YOU DO IN THE HOUSE, YOU KNOW, YOU HAD TO, LIKE, TAKE

  • OVER AND JUST DO EVERYTHING.

  • BUT, AT THE SAME TIME, IT WAS, LIKE, ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL

  • SPRINGS I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE.

  • >> Stephen: CRAZY.

  • IN L.A., THE SKY WAS CLEAR, THE FLOWERS BLOOMED, THERE WERE

  • HUNDREDS OF BUTTERFLIES AROUND MY HOUSE FLYING IN FROM MEXICO,

  • YOU KNOW.

  • IT WAS A VERY BIZARRE TIME.

  • YOU KNOW, IT WAS BEAUTIFUL AT THE SAME TIME.

  • THE COYOTES WERE COMING OUT EARLY.

  • ( LAUGHTER ) WE GOOD?

  • I'M, LIKE, NO, YOU'RE NOT GOOD, AND DON'T THINK I WON'T SPRAY

  • YOU WITH THIS COYOTE SPRAY, YOU KNOW.

  • BUT THEY STILL -- IT WAS, LIKE, SO NATURAL, THERE WERE NO

  • PEOPLE, THERE WERE NO CARS, THERE WERE NO PLANES AND NOISE

  • AND IT WAS JUST VERY STRANGE, YOU KNOW.

  • IT WAS JUST SO MUCH LOSS GOING ON AT THE SAME TIME AS THIS

  • WEIRD NATURE'S BUTTE GOING ON, YOU KNOW.

  • SO -- BUT IT WAS, YOU KNOW, IT IS WHAT IT IS.

  • WE'VE JUST GOT TO STAY STRONG.

  • KEKEEP OUR HEADS UP.

  • >> Stephen: WELL, WE'RE TIPTOEING BACK TO CERTAIN

  • ASPECTS OF NORMALITY NOW.

  • LAST NIGHT, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, THERE WAS THE, YOU KNOW, LAST

  • NIGHT OF THE EPIC TV EVENT, LOT OF DRAMA, MILLIONS OF PEOPLE

  • TUNED IN, AND THAT'S JUST THE EQUALIZER, YOUR NEW SHOW ON CBS,

  • 8:00 P.M. SUNDAY NIGHTS.

  • BUT BEFORE THAT, BEFORE THE WORLD PREMIERE OF THAT, WHICH

  • WE'LL GET TO IN JUST A MOMENT, THERE WAS THE SUPER BOWL.

  • YOU HAVE AN EXPENSE I'VE NEVER HAD.

  • YOU'VE PERFORMED AT THREE SUPER BOWLs, INCLUDING IN ONE OF THE

  • HALFTIME SHOWS IN 1998.

  • >> YES.

  • >> Stephen: WHAT DOES THAT ROOM FEEL LIKE?

  • OBVIOUSLY THE WEEKEND HAD A ROOM TO PLAY, BUT WHAT DOES THAT FEEL

  • LIKE TO BE THERE AT THE SUPER BOWL?

  • >> HONESTLY, IT IS LIKE NO OTHER FEELING IN THE WORLD.

  • I MEAN, I THINK MOST HIP-HOP ARTISTS WOULD LIKEN IT TO

  • PLAYING MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, YOU KNOW, BUT, OTHER THAN THAT,

  • THERE'S NOTHING THAT CAN COMPARE TO IT.

  • THERE IS JUST THIS ENERGY THAT IS PALPABLE.

  • THERE ARE USUALLY THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE EVERYWHERE.

  • YOU KNOW, THE TEAM, YOU COULD SEE THE TEAM OUT THERE, AND THEY

  • LOOK NERVOUS, THEY LOOK EXCITED, THEY LOOK LIKE THEY WANT TO,

  • LIKE, GO TO THE BATHROOM ONE MORE TIME BEFORE THE GAME

  • STARTS, AND SOME LOOK LIKE THEY CAN'T WAIT, THEY'RE ITCHING,

  • CAN'T STAND STILL.

  • >> Stephen: WHAT ABOUT YOU RIGHT BEFORE YOU START TO

  • PERFORM, WHAT IS THAT FEELING LIKE?

  • A LITTLE PRESSURE.

  • >> I CAN'T STAND STILL, I FEEL LIKE I WANT TO GO TO THE

  • BATHROOM ONE MORE TIME.

  • YOU KNOW, IT FEELS LIKE -- YOU FEEL ALMOST THIS SORT OF

  • REVERENCE, IN A WAY, BECAUSE YOU NOT ONLY WANT TO ROCK THIS SONG

  • OR WHATEVER PERFORMANCE YOU'RE GOING TO DO, BUT YOU FEEL LIKE

  • AN AMERICAN AND YOU FEEL LIKE YOU'RE DOING IT IN FRONT OF THE

  • WORLD, AND, SO, YOU JUST WANT TO DO THE BEST YOU CAN DO, AND YOU

  • KNOW THAT THESE TWO TEAMS HAVE COMPETED AND GONE THROUGH SO

  • MUCH TO GET TO THIS POINT.

  • THIS IS A CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, A WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GAME, AND YOU

  • ARE PLAYING ON A WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STAGE.

  • SO IT'S LIKE MILLIONS AND MILLIONS OF PEOPLE ARE STARING

  • AT YU, SO YOU'VE GOT TO KIND OF LIKE -- YOU'VE GOT TO GET IN THE

  • GAME YOURSELF.

  • YOU'VE GOT TO STEP UP AND SHOW UP, AND I GOT TO TELL YOU, THE

  • PERFORMANCES WERE UNBELIEVABLE.

  • I WAS SO BLOWN AWAY, AND I WAS SO EXCITED.

  • MY FAVORITE PART IS ALWAYS THE FLYOVER, THOUGH.

  • >> Stephen: SURE.

  • YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU SING YOUR SONG, AND THEN EVERYONE'S

  • STANDING THERE AND ALL OF A SUDDEN THESE PLANES JUST FLY

  • OVER AND YOU CAN FEEL THE RATTLE.

  • YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?

  • YOU ALWAYS SEE THIS STUFF ON TV, YOU NEVER USUALLY GET TO SEE THE

  • PLANES WE'RE ACTUALLY PAYING FOR, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?

  • SO TO SEE THEM FLY OVER YOU SO CLOSE, AND DEPENDING ON THE

  • YEAR, MAYBE THE BLUE ANGELS.

  • IT WAS, LIKE, THREE DIFFERENT KINDS OF PLANES AT THIS SUPER

  • BOWL.

  • SO IT WAS REALLY INTERESTING.

  • IT'S REALLY REALLY JUST SO MUCH FUN.

  • >> Stephen: BUT AS INTERESTING AS IT WAS, OBVIOUSLY IT WAS JUST

  • THE OPENING ACT FOR "THE EQUALIZER" LAST NIGHT.

  • I THINK IT GAME ON AT 10:30 LAST NIGHT.

  • NOW, THIS IS THE NEW CBS SERIES, YOUR FRIEND DENZEL WASHINGTON

  • MOST RECENTLY PLAYED THIS PART IN THE MOVIES.

  • >> RIGHT.

  • >> Stephen: HAS HE GIVEN YOU ANY ADVICE ON HOW TO PLAY "THE

  • EQUALIZER" OR IS HE PREPARED TO BE THE SECOND BEST EQUALIZER?

  • >> I DON'T THINK DENZEL WILL BE THE SECOND BEST ANYTHING

  • ANYWHERE, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, AND IF HE DOES, I WOULD BE HIGHLY

  • DISAPPOINTED.

  • >> Stephen: THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE MADE HIS SON SUCH A GOOD

  • ACTOR BECAUSE HIS SON IS A REALLY OOD ACTOR.

  • >> YEAH, THAT'S HOW IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE.

  • YOU SUPPOSED -- THE LITTLE ONE IS SUPPOSED TO KNOCK YOU OFF

  • THAT THRONE.

  • YEAH, HE'S CLIPPING AT THOSE HEELS, BUT HE'S STILL GOT A

  • LITTLE WAYS TO GO.

  • YOU KNOW, DENZEL IS BY FAR ONE TO HAVE THE BEST ACTORS EVER ON

  • THE PLANET, AND, YOU KNOW, I JUST -- THIS IS A DIFFERENT

  • EQUALIZER.

  • I MEAN, WHAT HE GETS TO DO IN THE MOVIES IS WAY DIFFERENT THAN

  • WHAT I GET TO DO ON NETWORK TELEVISION EVERY WEEK.

  • HE DEFINITELY SET THE BAR FOR ME, SO THANKS A LOT, BRO, YOU

  • KNOW, I REALLY APPRECIATE THAT.

  • >> Stephen: FOR THE PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW, YOU'RE EX C.I.A.,

  • RIGHT?

  • >> YES, A FORMER C.I.A.

  • OPERATIVE WHO DECIDES THEY NO LONGER -- THEY HAVE BEEN BURNED

  • AND THEIR TEAM HAS BEEN KILLED AND THEY NO LONGER WANT TO WORK

  • FOR THE C.I.A., THEY DON'T WANT TO DO THINGS FOR POWERFUL PEOPLE

  • WITH MONEY WHO TREAT -- YOU KNOW, WHO SHE FEELS NOW TREATS

  • REGULAR PEOPLE LIKE PAWNS AND, YOU KNOW, THAT THEY'RE LIVES

  • DON'T MATTER, AND SHE'S TIRED OF USING HER SKILLS TO SERVICE

  • THESE MISSIONS THAT SOMEBODY, YOU KNOW, JUST WRITES AWAY

  • SOMEONE'S LIFE WITH A STROKE OF A PEN.

  • SO SHE DECIDES SHE'S GOING TO USE HER EXPERTISE TO HELP THE

  • "EVERY MAN," YOU KNOW, THE EVERYDAY PERSON.

  • >> Stephen: DO YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON IN THIS CLIP WE HAVE

  • HERE?

  • >> YES, I THINK, IN THIS CLIP -- NOW THERE IS A FRIEND OF HEARSE

  • PLAYED BY CHRIS NOTHE WHO IS KIND OF IN AND OUT, AND THEY'RE

  • GOOD FRIENDS AND SHE KIND OF EXPLAINS TO HIM WHERE SHE'S

  • COMING FROM AND WHY SHE CAN'T SLEEP AT NIGHT.

  • >> Stephen: JIM.

  • WELL, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO NOW?

  • >> GET A JOB AT STARBUCKS.

  • GET THE FREE COFFEE, JOIN THE P.T.A.

  • >> BECAUSE YOU'RE SUCH A PEOPLE PERSON, RIGHT?

  • OR YOU COULD COME WORK FOR ME.

  • >> BABY SITTING BILLIONAIRES AND OIL COMPANIES.

  • >> PRIVATE SECURITY IS JUST LIKE WORKING FOR THE C.I.A. EXCEPT IT

  • PAYS A LOT BETTER.

  • OH, HELL, IT'S ALL THE SAME CHESS BOARD, YOU KNOW THAT.

  • >> WELL, SEE, THAT'S THE PROBLEM RIGHT THERE -- EVERYBODY'S

  • PLAYING CHESS.

  • NOBODY'S THINKING ABOUT THE LIVING, BREATHING PIECES THAT WE