Harlem Is...So Not 'Harlem Heights'

Where does one begin?

As you all know I was quite excited yesterday anticipating the premiere of BET's Harlem Heights. As a Harlem resident, I was eager to see how BET and the creators would use the neighborhood as the backdrop for a program following eight ambitious 20-somethings pursuing their professional dreams.

Now I can be pretty tough on BET sometimes. If you look through some of the BONTV 'BET' archives I'm sure you'd be hard pressed to find one where I am not bashing BET. But even with all the negative reviews, I always give BET the benefit of the doubt and tune in when I think they may be on to something. Unfortunately, this was not one of those times so let the bashing begin.

From the minute the show opened with Bridget's narration and introduction of her 'friends' I realized I had been duped by BET once again. Shame on me for thinking BET was going to create 'anew' with this program. If this was to be a reality show set in Harlem at the very least they could have kept it 'real'. Instead we were force fed overly staged/rehearsed corny scenes, cheesy narrations, one preachy quote after another, boujy restaurant gatherings that made me think this show was set in Buckhead, Atlanta vs. Harlem, New York City.

So in short, Harlem is so not 'Harlem Heights'. Take it from this Harlem-ite.

Harlem Is...

So am I the only one excited about the premiere of BET's Harlem Heights tonight?

If so, can you blame me? In Harlem you can't even make it to your corner bodega without being bombarded by billboards promoting the new reality show which follows eight 20-somethings as they pursue their individual careers in The Big Apple.

At first when I heard of this show, I wondered where the hell was I during the taping? How come I never bared witness to any of it? But then again, there are so many film/tv productions in Harlem as of late it's hard to keep up. Just two weeks ago, NBC's Law & Order SVU filmed down the block from me, blocking off what seemed like 5 blocks.

But anyway, tonight we get to meet Pierre, Brooke, Landon, Bridget, Jason, Ashlie, Christian and Briana. An actress, technical designer, magazine editor, nonprofit developer, a teacher of workshops, a former college basketball star just make up some of these youngin's aspirations.



But while their goals are impressive let's hope their personalities are worth watching from week to week. Tonight's episode will probably be all nice-nice as the roommates meet for the first time. We'll have to wait until we're in at least 3 shows deep before the drama really pops off. Because with eight black 20-somethings under one roof in Harlem, you can guarantee there will be some drama.

So what are your thoughts on this show? Think BET is on to something? Or is this just another Real World set in Harlem?

Harlem Heights airs tonight at 10 PM/9c.

Gossip Friday: 'The Black Carpet' Gets The Axe

If you haven't heard by now, BET's gossip and entertainment news program, The Black Carpet, has been cancelled.


Earlier this month, Viacom announced they would be making significant cut backs and I guess this was one of them.

While there are a lot of shows on BET deserving of the axe, I don't think 'The Black Carpet' was one of them.

Master P Must Be Sick Of BET Too

Seems like hip hop mogul Master P is sick of BET too.

So sick of the network that he is launching his own black network, Better Black TV (BBTV).

According to the New York Post, the network which is scheduled to launch next year, like BET, will be an entertainment channel that (unlike BET) will provide "positive content for a black and brown culture," as noted in a company statement.

"I believe that there is a market in our community for a new diverse network that provides a new brand of superior programming that caters to all aspects of television, from reality to original programming," Master P cites.

The network will feature scripted, unscripted, news programming and (unlike BET again), "responsible hip-hop music and videos."

The advisory board for the network is said to include actor Denzel Washington, NBA player Derek Anderson and hip-hop pioneer DJ Kool Herc.

It sure is good to see other black networks in the making because BET has gotten way to comfortable being the sole black entertainment network on cable.

Why Isn't BET Covering The Olympics?

Am I the only one wondering why BET seemingly is not acknowledging the 2008 Beijing Olympics?


I've been looking at BET's program listings since the Olympics kicked off last week and there are no programs that either covers or highlights the event.

Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Cullen Jones, Venus and Serena Williams, Usain Bolt, and Shelly-Ann Fraser are just a few of the many black athletes that have either qualified and/or won medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Would it hurt for BET to at least send a reporter or two with if nothing else an i-phone to snag a quick interview or get some footage? Or better yet, how about some sort of special to pay tribute to the very same aforementioned athletes that chronicles their journey to the event?

It's nothing for BET to cover any one of the 100 ghetto black awards shows but not one of, if not, the largest world sporting event in existence.

If someone from BET is reading please speak up in the comment section.

BET's 106 & Park Stunts

Normally after a long day of work, I turn on BET's 106 & Park just as a background while I unwind.

Hosts Terrence J and Rocsi are always clowing on one another but I couldn't help but overhear how much Terrence had ragged on Rocsi, last week, for mistankely reading an email address off the teleprompter. An obviosuly annoyed Rocsi walks off the stage during the show leaving Terrence to close the show. Check out the footage below:

Folks are already speculating this beef was a stunt as ratings for the popular video request show seems to be on the decline.

Can we leave the publicity stunts to the music artists looking to sell some cds please? I'm just saying.

Baldwin Hills' New Fresh Faces

BET's Baldwin Hills is back!


And not without some new fresh faces.

Producers must have heard how boring the last season was because the new faces added to the mix this go round has certainly turned up the heat:

Bad boy turned youth pastor, Justin is a young father who has overcome a lot of struggles to get where he is today. With Kirk Franklin as his mentor, he too mentors a group of young men in a prayer group.

High school senior and track star, Aunjel is quite the outspoken one. Known as the go getter of the bunch, Aunjel is college bound as she has been accepted to a top ten college on a track scholarship.

Johnathan is the well-rounded jock who plans to attend one of the most prestigious football programs in the country this fall. He also has dreams of becoming an author and future psychologist.

Lor'Rena is the younger sister of Aunjel and much like her sister she too is quite the talker. Lor'Rena is also a track star and seems to thrive on her popularity as she is also known as 'Queen Sheba'.

Seiko is bi-racial with a Japanese mother and African American father. Strong minded and independent, Seiko made the decision to leave her university to attend culinary school.

With school already out, Baldwin Hill season 2 should fair very well with ratings amongst the youngins.

Baldwin Hills can be seen on Tuesdays at 10 PM EDT.

Is 'Black' Not In Season?

BET's Fashion Blackout tackles one of the growing problems in the fashion industry as of late....


Where are the black models?

In this half-hour special, BET takes an inside look at why are there fewer black models on the catwalk and in fashion print ads. Is the fashion industry racist?

Bethann Hardison, Naomi Campbell, Andre Leon Talley, Tracy Reese Liya Kebede, Iman and others give their thoughts on the issue.

Fashion Blackout can be seen tonight at 8:30 EDT.

MC Lyte Only Lends Voice To 'The Boot'

Last week for BET Week, I judged reviewed the new dating show, The Boot prior to seeing the show. Well, yesterday I caught the premiere and just as I thought, the show was hot garbage.

Obviously, host, MC Lyte shares my sentiments since she only chose to lend her voice and not her image. (Smart girl!) Yes, it seems Lyte is more of a narrator than an actual host.

This seems to be the latest trend for the rap icon turn actor. Her voice is very recognizable as she's been the voice over for a number of awards shows and commercials as of late.

Check out Lyte's 'vocals' in this latest Tide commercial featuring 'Everybody Hates Chris' star, Tequan Richmond.

Last week we polled BONTV readers on whether they felt BET has gotten any better since Hudlin became President of Entertainment. The results are in and it was very close.

38% of voters answered Yes, BET has gotten better.

Yes [ 38% ]
No, The Same [ 30% ]
No, Worse [30%]

The Boot can be watched at 7:30 PM EDT on weekdays.

BET Week & Gossip Friday: The Black Carpet

Keeping with our BET theme of the week and seeing that it is Gossip Friday, I figured we take a look at BET's gossip entertainment show, The Black Carpet.

I like this show. It's a black Entertainment Tonight/Access Hollywood and it works. For the longest time I wanted to see something like this on BET so I for one ain't mad.


But while hosts Danella, Toure and Egypt are all qualified and good at what they do, I don't really enjoy them as much. Maybe I am being too hard but they bore me.

And my only other gripe is that this show only airs once a week. What's up with that? Do we not have enough black entertainment going on this country to make this a nightly program similar to the white entertainment shows I mentioned earlier?

Anyhoo..

Not sure if Hudlin was the mastermind behind bringing this show to the network but if so, he gets points.

The Black Carpet airs on Thursdays at 7:30 PM.

Have a great weekend!

BET WEEK: '106 & Gospel', 'Black Panther' and 'Brutha'

BET is always under attack for their programming. But while the critics always bash, President of Entertainment, Reginald Hudlin feels the critics, simply put, just "don't get it" unlike the network's target audience (ages 18 - 34) who "do".


You may recall the bashing last year shows like 'We Got to Do Better' and 'Take The Cake' received from the critics who felt those shows exploited black instead of uplifting black.


And music video shows such as '106 & Park' and 'Rap City' are always under fire due to the graphic nature of hip hop videos today. To which Hudlin points out that video programs only make up a small portion of BET's overall programming.

Well in an effort to increase family-orentied programming on the network, Hudlin has some new shows in the works:

Not to be confused with '106 & Park', BET plans to introduce '106 & Gospel'. Yes, just what the gospel community has been asking for. (NOT!) A gospel video countdown. I like gospel just as much as the next person but I don't think gospel and music videos make a good mix. I'm just saying. I could be wrong though.

Also to debut is a comic book series entitled, 'Black Panther'. As many know, Hudlin is the creative force behind the popular black animated series, The Boondocks. So it shouldn't come as a shock that he plans to bring his love for animation to BET with this self-written comic. Clearly Hudlin is getting paid hand over fist on this deal.

'Brutha' is also to set to debut. This is a reality show featuring a group of singing siblings trying to break into the music business. This sounds like a snoozer.

I don't know what to make of these new shows. They just seem so simple.

For more details on new shows coming to BET click here.

BET New Show: The Boot

On May 19th, BET is set to premiere it's new dating show entitled, The Boot.


The premise of the show: four guys compete for two girls or vice-versa.

I hate to judge review a show before seeing it but sometimes you can just tell when a show is not a hit. And quite frankly, this don't sound like one.

Turns out rap icon turn actor, MC Lyte plans to host the show which made me immediately hope it wasn't true. I love Lyte but doubt her hosting a dating show will be a good look or watch. Furthermore, I definitely don't think game shows (especially on BET) is the way to go when you are trying to be taken seriously as an actor. Or quite frankly serious PERIOD.

Check out details of the show as it reads on BET.com:

In the first round, our ladies put each one of these studs through a grueling – and highly personal – two-on-one interrogation. Based on their answers, two dudes get the boot while the other two move on.

Next, our ladies split up for one-on-one activities. Each of them takes one guy and puts him through the paces. Then they switch off to see which one measures up. A second elimination follows, and another dude gets booted.

Now, things get really interesting, because it’s time for… the Power Shift! Surprise. Our last man standing is in charge, and the ladies must compete for him. The battle reaches a fever-pitch as they try to manipulate, cajole and seduce their way into the top slot.

In the end, their man must decide… which girl gets to stay… and which one gets… The Boot!

If you ask me, this show already needs to get 'the boot'.

BET Week: Has BET Gotten Any Better?

In 2005, filmmaker, Reginald Hudlin became the President of Entertainment for BET.


In this role, Hudlin became the chief programming executive in charge of BET's music, entertainment, specials, sports, news and public affairs, film and program acquisitions, home entertainment and programming development units.

Back then Hudlin said:

"There is no media property with greater growth potential than BET. I'm grateful for Debra, Bob and Tom's (Freston, Co-President and Co-Chief Operating Officer of Viacom) confidence in my ability to shape the creative future of the network. I look forward to working with them as we guide BET to the next step in its evolution with a wide range of original programming."

This week I plan to take a close look at BET's programming (past, current and future) since Hudlin's tenure and I want folks to weigh in on their thoughts.

Vote on today's poll, Has BET Gotten Any Better?

BET Goes Abroad!

According to Yahoo TV, starting next week black Brits will be able to tune into "106 & Park", "College Hill" and "American Gangster" as Viacom's BET is all set to launch in the UK.

"For the UK version of BET, we will be giving BET's U.S. content a regionalized look and feel that reflects the UK marketplace, and as we grow and develop the channel, we look forward to partnering with the UK creative industry to give BET an even stronger British accent," said BET International General Manager Michael Armstrong.

It's about time! Having just gotten back from Europe, I think their television programming on a whole could definitely use some color.

BET and the BLACK Vote!

I don't know about you all, but in trying to make my decision on who to vote for in the upcoming New York Primaries, I am feeling very much like Letoya Luckett.....

TORN!
BET is helping me to make my decision however with their news profile of both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. I have to admit this is a good look for BET. Black voters need to know the facts and what better place to get them?

Last week, BET premiered 'Barack Obama and The Black Vote' and unfortunately I missed it. Tomorrow, 'Hillary Clinton and The Black Vote' premieres at 10 PM.

But if you are like me, you might want to watch both of these segments back to back which is possible if you tune into BET on Sunday at 12 noon.

But don't let your research stop there. Read more about both candidates here and here.

Good luck!

When Will The 'Real World' Clones End?

BET comes at us again with some new 'college hill' isht.

This is one spin-off I could have done without.
Is it me or are we all getting sick of this same crap being fed to us time and time again? For goodness sakes, how many times can we watch a group of kids from all over the country, meet, laugh, have sex, cuss each other out, fight, shed some tears and then pack their bags to take their asses home? This is nothing different that what we have seen on counteless seasons of MTV's Real World, Road Rules, Real World-Road Rules Challenge, The Inferno, The Guantlet, Battle of The Sexes, etc.

And now late bloomer, BET, is giving us another season of this foolishness as tonight premieres, College Hill Interns. What's the 'unique' take on this one?

10 College students from around the country all take on summer internships in Chicago participating in challenges and various activities all while learning about employment and entrepreneurship. (Yeah...right!) Will the students be able to handle a real job, or will they submit to the social pressures of the Windy City?

Oooooh...how riveting!

BET's College Hill Interns can be seen tonight at 10 PM EDT.

BET's Tuesday Night Teaching

My church, as I am sure many other Baptist churches, offer Bible study classes on Tuesday night's entitled, TNT (Tuesday Night Teaching).

So last night when I turned to BET for some prime time viewing, I wasn't surprised at the new Fall lineup for Tuesday nights.


Since music reality competitions seem to be all the rage right now, 'Sunday Best' comes to no surprise. The show features gospel singers from around the country being scouted who will ultimately compete for the title of 'Sunday Best'.

While competing, contestants will be coached by both gospel and secular greats in the industry. And while there is a panel of judges, similar to 'American Idol', the viewers will have a hand in who wins.


Following 'Sunday Best' is 'Exalted. This new weekly series reminds of VH1's Behind the Music only this should be entitled, Behind the Ministers. The show is a one-hour biography profiling African American ministers.

Tonight's featured minister was Prophetess Juanita Bynum. I have to admit, I caught the first five minutes of this show and was engaged long enough to watch the entire show. I never knew much about Juanita Bynum until this past Spring when all the drama of her suffering a beating at the hands of her husband made front page. The show really delved into this woman's life of ministry, giving you the facts of the story sans the sensationalism.

All in all, I'm not mad at BET's Tuesday night lineup. While the other networks overload on criminal investigation and 'shoot 'em up bang bang' shows, BET offers its viewers a good dose of religion. Which quite frankly, we all could use any night of the week.

29 New Season Premieres This Fall...Are Any Of Them Black?

Monday officially kicks off the Fall new season as the three major networks (CBS, NBC and ABC) will debut their new show line-up.

As reported in today's New York Post, we, the viewers, can expect 29 new shows this Fall. My only questions is...are any of these shows black?

I have to admit I am surprised at these networks. What happened to NBC which used to air shows like, 'The Cosby Show' and 'A Different World'?

I remember back in the 80's black people coined the term 'Negro Broadcasting Corporation' when referring to NBC.

But NBC is not the only one to blame here. CBS, home of the mid 70's to early 80's hit, The Jeffesons, seems to have not taken a chance on a black sitcom since.


At least ABC, just a year or so ago, gave us My Wife and Kids.

Then there is UPN who last year handed over it's 'black' Monday nights over to CW11 which have since crashed 'All Of Us'. To date, I have yet to watch UPN and no word yet on any new black show to replace 'All of Us'.

So what's going on here? Are there not enough good black shows being pitched to the networks? Or are we no longer considered 'in' or funny enough for primetime on one of the three major networks. What do you think? And if there is a black show due to come out next week that I have not heard about, please enlighten me.

Boy, it's time like these that I am so grateful we have BET. NOT!

We Got To Do Better - Season Finale

Last night, I clearly was trying to get in touch with my masochistic side as I decided to sit through the entire season finale of BET's We Got To Do Better.


Trust me, it was not easy.

I just pray that was the SERIES Finale.

If you are up for a little self torture, catch the encore of the season finale on Sunday at 8:30 PM ET on BET.

L.A. Reid Son To Star In New Reality TV Show?

When your father is the famous music producer, L.A. Reid, who also runs Island/Def Jam Music and your mother is Perri "Pebbles" McKissack, who is no stranger to music as well, you can be pretty sure you will have a future in music or television.

Or in this case both.
You may recall Aaron Reid's episode of MTV's My Super Sweet 16 which aired last year. The world was able to get a small glimpse of little Reid's lavish 'life in the fab lane' as he pulled together a sweet 16 party that looked more like the BET Awards. (Hey...he's L.A. Reid's son...you can't be mad.)

Well now it seems Aaron is all grown up (should now be 17) and is ready to take on the tough job of A&R rep. The show is said to follow Aaron as he scouts for raw talent to bring back home to daddy.

Keep your ears and eyes open for this one. No details yet on show title or the network the show is to air. My guess is L.A. Reid will make sure this airs on MTV and not that other network suitable for 'black entertainment TV' shows such as this one. I'm just saying!