Queen Latifah, Mo’Nique & Tika Sumpter Applaud HBO’s ‘Bessie’ At N.Y.C Red Carpet Premiere [Watch]

Queen Latifah, Mo'Nique, Tika Sumpter, Tory Kittles, Bryan Greenberg and the entire cast ofHBO's Bessie set the New York City skyline ablaze for the red carpet premiere of the highly anticipated forthcoming biopic. Also in the mix was Bessie Smith's granddaughter Beverly Ann Smith who stated that she wanted the film to remind viewers that "There is hope." Latifah, who stars in the title role as the legendary blues singer Bessie Smith, revealed the reason the film was 22 years in the making.

"It was something that came quite a while ago," stated the Oscar-nominated actress earlier this week at The Museum of Modern Art. "They stuck with me as the star of this vehicle all these years as well as me wanting to do it all these years. We just never let go of this project. Through many transitions and scripts and writers we finally got the right one in Dees Rees and the right director. So we were able to make it happen with HBO."

According to HBO, "the film focuses on Smith's transformation from a struggling young singer into 'The Empress of the Blues,' who became one of the most successful recording artists of the 1920s and is an enduring icon today.

Bessie also stars Michael Kenneth Williams as Bessie's husband, Jack Gee; Khandi Alexander as Bessie's older sister, Viola; Tory Kittles as Bessie's older brother, Clarence; Mike Epps as Richard, a bootlegger and romantic interest; Sumpter as Lucille, a performer and romantic interest; Oliver Platt as famed photographer and writer Carl Van Vechten; Bryan Greenberg as renowned record producer and music critic John Hammond; with Charles S. Dutton as Ma Rainey's husband, William "Pa" Rainey; and Oscar winner Mo'Nique as blues legend Ma Rainey."

MStars News correspondent Danica Daniel was on location at the exclusive red carpet premiere to dish with the stars. Watch our exclusive video below. Directed by Rees from a screenplay by Rees and Christopher Cleveland & Bettina Gilois, with a story by Rees and Horton Foote, Bessie is set to debut on Saturday, MAY 16 at 8:00 p.m. (ET/PT) on HBO.