Last week actor Sheryl Lee Ralph took home her first Emmy after winning for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her role in Abbott Elementary.
During her acceptance speech, Ralph spoke of perseverance:
“Anyone who has ever, ever had a dream and thought your dream ... couldn’t come true, I am here to tell you that this is what believing looks like."
"This is what striving looks like."
"And don’t you ever, ever give up on you.”
You can see the epic Emmy moment here:
A completely different dream came true for Ralph—the original actress who played Dreamgirls' Deena Jones on Broadway in 1981.
On Sunday Ralph shared a video on Instagram of her opening a card attached to a bouquet of flowers from none other than Beyoncé. The singer and actor played Deena Jones in the 2006 movie version of Dreamgirls.
Beyoncé's voice can be heard in the video singing the titular song from the musical.
Here is Ralph performing the same song live in 1983.
The card with her flowers read:
"To the original Dreamgirl, sending you a beautiful congratulations."
“All my love, Beyoncé.”
Ralph responded excitedly with a fatigued voice:
“Wonderful. I don’t have a voice but it’s wonderful.”
Ralph captioned her post with a variation on the lyrics from the song "Dreamgirls."
“Everyone has their own special dream and all your dreams can come true."
"Just look in the mirror and love what’s in front of you.”
“Thank you [Beyoncé]."
"Don’t forget to dream girls!”
The original lyrics are:
"Every man has his own special dream, and your dream's just about to come true."
"Life's not as bad as it may seem, if you open your eyes to what's in front of you."
"We're your Dreamgirls, boys!"
You can see her post here:
Ralph's fans were absolutely delighted by the video.
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Ralph also posted another flower delivery video to her Instagram, a massive bouquet from Oprah Winfrey.
The card read:
"Dear Sheryl, Congratulations on the best acceptance speech of all time."
"I'm still celebrating you! Blessings, Oprah"
Her friends and fans all agree, she is truly deserving of the long overdue accolades.
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David Cohen