Amanda Seales is one of those black sheep.
so one of my best vixen friends sent me something about amanda seales.
my personal thoughts on amanda is:
She is usually right about certain things but other times,
I think she can be the common denominator in her woes too.
Unfortunately,
within the black community,
you either play the game or you get ostracized.
So many other black folks had to go to white spaces to get “accepted”.
if you remember,
or don’t,
she spoke her truth about not being invited or recognized at any major black events.
my vix-bi sent me this to continue the conversation about amanda had…
…and from a white wolf,
nonetheless.
i always like to use this example of a black celebrity for this point.
When Rihanna saw the black community wasn’t fuckin’ with her,
she infiltrated other spaces and got the love from the bigger forests.
She never talked or complained as her peers and many in the audience chose Chris Brown.
The tables certainly turned in her favor.
we did the same to tina turner and somewhat to bey during the early parts of destiny’s child.
we barely give our black legends flowers.
we want to compare them to white acts or up-and-comers without 1 single.
The point I’m trying to make is this…
amanda likes to rant about her black peers and that can burn bridges.
you gotta move on.
you’ll find where you fit.
you’ll find your tribe that will embrace.
unfortunately,
many in the black community won’t support or invite you.
they’ll support the jackals or hyenas until they eats their faces.
some of us will be looked over for the cool kids.
it’s no different than how we are treated within our own black families.
If you have money and success because you worked your ass off,
they use you for a handout while being resentful of you.
If you have an attitude about being treated like a handout,
they call you “uppity” and talk about you behind your back.
If you are the crackhead or drunk,
ghetto with absolutely no home training,
they give you chance after chance.
it was a hard lesson i’ve had to learn IRL,
within my family,
and even with the Foxhole.
some black folks will be the black sheep until they expand their circles.
it can be defeating at times but it is what it is.
so again:
Keep moving forward and stay graceful.
Sooner than later,
they’ll be kissing your ass once you’ve “made it”.
…and please keep note in how they did you “before”.
lowkey: we don’t know how amanda is behind the scenes as well.
she could be a real demon who turned people off.
essence did acknowledge her:
Amanda is no different than Mo’Nique. They get blackballed then are vindicated later. The problem is no checks until you get vindicated is a dangerous, lonely scary time. Wondering how you will make your living and not be homeless.
People don’t like her because she calls out BS and everybody else is afraid to speak up lest they fumble a bag.
There was beef with her and Sarunas Jackson(Dro on Insecure) about the Insecure cast party as she wasn’t let inside. And now look. He’s a deadbeat and abusive just like his younger brother(Keke Palmer’s baby dady).
Such is life. You either keep it cute and are liked, or keep it real and are ostracized and hated.
Idk. I like Amanda (from my screen). I could see her being a bit less than chill in some social settings, like maybe not rly great at knowing when to pick and choose battles and let some things just fly under the radar, but I also don’t think she’s gonna interrupt the tribute performance to have a debate.
I also think a part of it is that because she’s in everything from socio-political issues to pop culture to Hollywood (esp because she’s a woman willing to speak up and not just worry about looking like an IG ‘baddy’), ppl don’t like that they don’t know ‘how’ they ‘should’ look at her.
From the way she comes across at her jobs, I fux w her.
And many celebs have never been invited to awards shows (esp w/o a big project). She could easily have her publicist reach out and express interest and she’d get seats. Hell, ‘seat filler’ is a real ‘gig’ for these shows. I think her real gripe is feeling like a lot of what she does and platforms is overlooked by the community she does it for.
I really don’t understand this Amanda Seales controversy in its entirety. I remember her from the TV show “Insecure” and from being a host on “ The Real”, if I remember correctly there was issues with the cast of both shows as it relates to Amanda, so I don’t know how to call this one. It may in fact be the case that there is some inside industry blackballing going on, maybe Issa Rae has something to do with it, who’s to say.
I don’t believe people should suffer in silence and she has a right to say how she feels. We are at a time where people are exposing the hypocrisy and I’m here for it. People are starting to highlight Amanda Seales resume and it looks pretty extensive, so if she’s not being invited into the black spaces while being an advocate for those spaces, then we should be demanding some accountability on her behalf. How can we complain about our A, B,C, and D list entertainers not showing up to our events while secretly blacklisting and shadow banning others.
I actually like Amanda. I went to her Smart Funny and Black tour and her Wu-Tang tour as well. However, she does come across like she doesn’t play with others. And in this entertainment space you need your people, not the culture so much, but like you need your support system that holds up your name and reputation when you’re not in the room. I wonder about her team and her people and how they represent her to others.