Sheryl Lee Ralph's reflection on upsetting departure from Moesha

The Emmy winner is now on top

Everybody's talking about Sheryl Lee Ralph, as the actress' decades-long prolific Hollywood career has finally culminated in the recognition many thought she should've received much sooner.

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The actress was rewarded with an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her turn as god-fearing Barbara Howard on .

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However, several prominent roles and harder turns brought her to this point, including , the beloved late 90s sitcom that starred Brandy.

Sheryl played Dee Mitchell, the lead character's step-mom, and while she became a fan favorite, she ultimately left the show after a major plot twist in season five.

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It was revealed that her on-screen husband Frank had a son through a previous extramarital affair, a heartbreaking turn of events that prompted the star to reevaluate her place on the show.

The actress spoke to back in February about her time on the show and delved more into her heartbreaking decision.

Sheryl won her first Emmy award for playing Barbara Howard

"[Moesha] was another incredible working environment until it wasn't any longer. I was free to be an artist. It was a great learning experience for me, and an incredibly human one, as well. 

"One of the greatest lessons I ever learned from it was knowing when it's time to leave the room. I believe in the power of a warm and wonderful Black family, because it is something we do not get to see enough."

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She continued: "And for them to take that family and literally just ruin the family by calling the father a liar [by revealing past infidelity]… why do this? Why destroy this family? 

"There were people within the group that said, 'Oh no, we've got to destroy it because these people are just too goody-goody. We don't have Black people like that.' 

"They had drank the Kool-Aid. But oh my, when it was good, it was ."

The star decided to leave after an upsetting plot decision

She did speak as well about the influence of the show and her work with , saying: "I put in the time, I did the work, and I didn't just do the work for myself, I did the work for others."

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