"'Paris Is Burning' was only just a glimpse into what was happening within the ballroom scene. The di..." — Mj Rodriguez

I just want to be a light of hope for anyone who might be in the dark.

A lot of people have forgotten the severity of this disease, of HIV. So I think it's important that we just talk about things like this: how we can prevent it, how we can make sure that people are safe, how they can move forward, too, if they do have HIV.

There's so much you can say about the ballroom scene. But, simply, it's just a way of life. It's a place you can live out a fantasy you never lived before.

It was me that was holding myself back because I felt like I had to fit into this mold of what people want to see.