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It’s been a long if not inevitable road to the Emmy Awards carpet for Taraji P. Henson, as her “Empire” matriarch Cookie Lyon captivated TV viewers for its massive freshman run.
But while Cookie is known for her in-your-face attitude, Henson admitted on the Emmy red carpet that she was apprehensive about auditioning for the now iconic role.
“It was scary but … if you show her pain and her history and where she comes from, you empathize with her,” Henson told Ryan Seacrest. “Cookie represents the American dream. She came from nothing and she built an empire.”
Henson also teased fans about what to expect from the highly-anticipated second season of “Empire” on Fox. “The fashion is to the 10th degree,” the Best Actress in a Drama Series nominee said. “We’re pushing all envelopes, we’re ruffling all feathers.”
The actress previously spoke about Cookie Lyon’s rise to the top of the music industry during a screening of the Season 2 premiere at New York’s famed Carnegie Hall.
“You can say whatever you want about her, about Lucious, about what they did to get where they are, but at the end of the day, their sons are not statistics,” Henson said. “They broke a cycle of poverty. And anybody that’s from the hood knows that is very hard to do.”
See video: 'Empire's' Lyon Family vs. The Sopranos? Cast, Creators Pick Dream TV Rivals for Cookie's Clan
The 67th Emmy Awards air live this Sunday, Sept. 20 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on FOX.
See TheWrap Magazine’s Fall TV Issue complete coverage:
Emmys 2015 Red Carpet Arrivals (Photos)
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"Empire" star Taraji P. Henson
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Emmys host Andy Samberg and wife Joanna Newsom
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"Scream Queens" star Jamie Lee Curtis
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"Game of Thrones" star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Laura Prepon
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Pablo Schreiber
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"Game of Thrones" star Gwendoline Christie
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"Parks and Recreation" star Aubrey Plaza
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"Veep" star Anna Chlumsky
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Laverne Cox
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"Fear the Walking Dead" star Kim Dickens
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"Project Runway" host Heidi Klum
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E! personality Giuliana Rancic
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"Blindspot" star Jaimie Alexander
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"Getting On" star Niecy Nash
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"So You Think You Can Dance" host Cat Deeley
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"Saturday Night Live" and "Ghostbusters" star Kate McKinnon
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"The Last Man on Earth" star Kristen Schaal
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"American Horror Story: Freak Show" star John Carroll Lynch
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"Survivor's Remorse" star Teyonah Parris
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"Olive Kitteridge" star Zoe Kazan
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"Modern Family" star Rico Rodriguez
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"Veep" star Tony Hale
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Danielle Brooks
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"Downton Abbey" star Joanne Froggat
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"Modern Family" star Nolan Gould
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"American Crime" producer John Ridley and wife Gayle Ridley
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"American Crime Star" Penelope Ann Miller
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"Veep" star Gary Cole
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"American Crime" star Regina King
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"Modern Family" star Julie Bowen
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"Brooklyn Nine-Nine" star Chelsea Peretti
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"American Horror Story" star Sarah Paulson
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"Veep" star Julia Louis-Dreyfus
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Taryn Manning
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Uzo Aduba
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Dascha Polanco
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"Orange Is the New Black" star Samira Wiley
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"The Good Wife" star Christine Baranski
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"Game of Thrones" star Sophie Turner
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"Homeland" star Claire Danes and husband Hugh Dancy
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"The Good Wife" star Alan Cumming...in Crocs!
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"Game of Thrones" star Maisie Williams
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"American Horror Story" star Jessica Lange
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"Game of Thrones" star Carice van Houten
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"Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" star Ellie Kemper
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"Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" star Jane Krakowski
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"Orange Is the New Black" stars Natasha Lyonne and Yael Stone
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"American Horror Story: Hotel" star Lady Gaga
See what TV’s biggest stars are wearing as they arrive at the Microsoft Theater in downtown Los Angeles for the 67th annual Primetime Emmy Awards
"Empire" star Taraji P. Henson
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