In this episode of In the Waiting Room, Rashad sits down with Andy Ingalls for a wide-ranging, deeply reflective conversation about the long arc of an artistic life. Andy traces his journey from growing up in Houston within a strict Southern Baptist environment to building a creative career in New York City over the past thirteen years.

They explore how judgment—religious, cultural, and professional—can shape (and distort) an artist’s relationship to their work, their community, and themselves. Andy speaks candidly about unlearning inherited frameworks of moral absolutism, learning to see people and experiences as they are, and how that shift has informed both his artistry and his personal life.

The conversation moves into the realities of the acting business: the myth of “it’s just who you know,” the slow accumulation of trust and creative alignment, and why relationships are not shortcuts but the work itself. Andy reframes success away from institutions, awards, and visibility toward agency, presence, and making work he’s proud of with people he respects.

They also discuss privilege, financial stability, time, and risk—what it actually costs to sustain a creative life—and why making your own work isn’t a trend, but the job. The episode closes with a grounded, philosophical reflection on what it means to “make it,” ending on a powerful Marcus Aurelius quote about wisdom, agency, and finding fulfillment in one’s own actions rather than external validation.