Issa Rae: ‘It’s astounding that our talent hasn’t been recognised’

The woman behind cult HBO comedy Insecure has been making and starring in her own series for years. What took Hollywood so long to notice?

Issa Rae, one of the first black women to create and star in a premium cable series and potentially the hardest-working person in Hollywood, is putting in overtime with the aim of having it all. She is Emmy-nominated. She is Golden Globe-nominated. She is a writer, an actor and an executive producer, often all at once. Her hit HBO show, Insecure, which just aired its fourth season, has transformed her into the patron saint of black millennial creatives. She is the black Madonna, adorning endless mood-boards.

Fans, black fans specifically, don't simply watch Insecure, we live-tweet it, we argue about it, we create petitions for it to be extended to one hour, much to the chagrin of its creator. We sold a half-hour comedy," Rae tells me when I press her on fan demands for longer episodes, and I literally have no desire to make an hour show!" A bad Zoom connection means I can't see her, but I can hear the smile. She is warm, witty, and a total potty-mouth. Even hearing people say: This is how you can make it an hour, you can do this, you can do that...' OK, well we don't want to!"