Drama Queen

"She even came to set with baby powder on her chest. When I saw it on her, I said, 'You're brilliant.' " Baby powder was a technique the girls down home used to keep the heat at bay. Little details that make a character breathe.

Now, the work is coming at her fast and furious. Later this summer, she's in Singleton's "The Four Brothers" opposite Andre 3000, Mark Wahlberg and Howard. Next year, she'll appear in the romantic comedy "Something New" and the indie film "Animal" with Ving Rhames.

But for now, she's treasuring the role of sweet-natured Shug. She doesn't mind playing a prostitute.

"People say, 'How do you think people are going to feel about you playing a whore?' I really don't care. I don't care what people think about me. All I know is this girl is out there somewhere and she needs a voice," says Henson. "And you talk about wanting to change society, you don't want to see these images anymore, get up off your lazy ass and do something about it. Don't ridicule me for doing my job, you know?"

She has auditioned for Hollywood projects like "The Honeymooners," starring Cedric the Entertainer, films that she says are made strictly for the ka-ching factor. "Hustle & Flow," she says, defies conventional Hollywood exec wisdom about box office draws: No one's a "name." Just a film about folks you normally ignore.

"I'm so proud of it, I'm getting goose bumps just talking about it," she says.

"In an industry where you're never enough -- you're not pretty enough, you're not tall enough, you're not thin enough, you're too black, you're not black enough -- finally , we were more than enough. Thank God."

She raises her fist in a little impromptu gesture of solidarity.

"Finally. Everything we believed in was more than enough. Thank you ."