See the Empire State Building glow in purple to celebrate ‘The Color Purple’

Oprah Winfrey is no stranger to being at the top. She sits atop Forbes’ celebrity women’s earnings rankings with a $2.5 billion net worth. However, the media mogul did experience new heights on Dec.12 when Winfrey not only paid a visit to New York City’s iconic Empire State Building for the first time but was there to flip the switch for a special ceremony.

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Winfrey, as one of the producers of the soon-to-be-released movie musical “The Color Purple,” joined some members of the film’s cast to change the building’s exterior lights to a brilliant purple. The film is set for a Dec. 25 release.

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Winfrey made her acting debut in the original film adaptation of “The Color Purple” in 1985. This new re-telling of Alice Walker’s powerful novel, first released in 1982, has been a labor of love for her.

“This is bigger than anything we could dream,” Winfrey said during the lighting ceremony, Oprah Daily reports. “We’re all so excited to be here to celebrate, and to have our movie, the reimagined ‘Color Purple,’ as an offering to the world. We want you to know that it is celebratory, it’s about hope, it’s about rejoicing, it’s about empowerment, it’s about joy.”

The aerial view of the Empire State Building showcased its tower aglow in a royal purple that lit up the night sky, as seen on the Twitter account of director Blitz Bazawule at @BlitzAmbassador:

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Bazawule is a filmmaker with Ghanaian roots who received a Grammy nomination in 2020 for Winfrey’s “Black Is King.” Others on the scene included actors Danielle Brooks, Taraji P. Henson, and Fantasia Barrino-Taylor. All four also had their turns at the podium to explain what the experience meant to them.

Barrino-Taylor also shared images from the memorable day at the Empire State Building on her official Twitter account at @TasiasWord.

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The movie also features Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, H.E.R., Ciara and Halle Bailey.