I remember when I was living in London and caught glimpses of the atrocity that is Flavor of Love via the FB status messages of my friends. For some strange reason, I wished “they” would make a better reality show, namely about “us”. Why? I don’t know, namely because I don’t like watching reality t.v., unless its a subsidiary of the Discovery channel. Well, “they” have. “They” is B.E.T. and “it” is called Harlem Heights.
Dubbed as insight to the young, black, and fabulous crowd, the setting is in Harlem, New York and follows real friends through their professional and social ups and downs. Of particular interest is Brooke Crittendon, Kanyé West’s ex-fiancée. Feeling like she needed to lend a voice to her experience as ‘the other half to a famous person’, B.E.T. president Loretha Jones assures us that Harlem Heights is not The Hills.
The cast includes a lifestyle editor for the basketball publication Dime magazine, an aspiring actress, a fashionista, a young man contemplating a career in politics and even a young dad. It’s a group of friends moving out of college and into the working world.
“This show isn’t ‘The Hills,’ ” said BET president Loretha Jones. “The cast was friends before, so their relationships are natural and they allowed us to follow them in such a way that they were unconcerned with the cameras being there, and let us capture the real interactions.”
Jones also said that unlike some other reality shows about twentysomethings, “Harlem Heights” would explore not only emotional drama, but also professional drama and the excitement and celebrations of last year’s historical election night.
So what say you? “They” finally might make a reality show profiling “us”. Are you going to watch?
