I Run This is a weekly interview series that highlights Black women and femmes who do dope shit in entertainment and culture while creating visibility, access and empowerment for those who look like them. Read my Danai Gurira interview here .

Chandra Russell agrees that Black women are the funniest people alive. Shes one of them.

The South Side actor got her first jokes off playing the dozens while growing up in Chicago. But she didnt always know her path would lead her to playing Officer Turner, the real-ass, many-wigged cop with a propensity for switching up her hair and clowning her partner, Officer Goodnight.

Initially, comedy wasnt on her mind. She had her sights set on drama. But she said comedy found her.

The third season of South Side premiered on HBO Max on Dec. 8, and Russell said shes especially proud of what the show was able to accomplish this season. And for good reason.

This was the first year where the women in the room and all of our women are Black women but the women writers, we outweighed the men, which is so rare in a writers room, said Russell, who also writes for the show. And to be in a room where people respect our voices, and where we really get to make changes, and be in charge of the women narratives.

Russell said this season delves deeper into the stories of the women of the series. She created Turner and has a routine she follows to get into character.

Before we shoot, I have to eat a Peppermint Pickle, which is a Chicago hood snack, she said. I have to clean my house very thoroughly. I know its very strange, but Officer Turner is a very clean person. So, I have to scrub everything down to just get in the proper spirit.

For Russell, whos also working on the comedy series Black Girl Magic with Gabrielle Union, Turner has been a place to rest her insecurities and find healing through comedy. Her writing is a relatable space for other Black women to see their stories told.

Bashir Salahuddin, the shows executive producer and Russells husband, said it was important this season to follow the lead of the women in the room. He sang Russells praises for the care she puts into not only her character, but all of the characters.

Obviously, she really created her own character. I mean we had some ideas, but ultimately shes the one who really figured out what that character has to be, and thats why I think why its so good and so resonant, said Salahuddin, who plays Officer Goodnight. But shes not saving that passion just for her own character. So whenever shes writing for Diallo [Riddles] character, my character, other peoples character, its that same level of compassion and commitment that she has for her own character.

For I Run This, Russell talks about pouring her experiences insecurities included into South Side, how she picks out the perfect wigs for Officer Turner and the comedic gold Black women can naturally mine.