Tyler Perry
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Watch: What It’s Like to Be a Black Woman in Hollywood
Diversity and representation are the hot-button topics in Hollywood right now. In an industry that reflects the world in which we live, black people and women—so, basically black women—are often underrepresented in Hollywood. But people like Tyler Perry are changing that. Sure, he’s a polarizing figure based on his content, but you can’t deny his…
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If You Could Be in a Black Stage Play, What Would You Call It?
If you are related to black people, there’s a better-than-100 percent chance that somebody in your family has gone to at least one chitlin circuit play (but more likely several). My parents have been to multiple Tyler Perry plays, something I’m sad to say that I’ve never had the pleasure (?) of doing myself. The…
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Madea Goes to the White House? Tyler Perry Will Play Gen. Colin Powell in Dick Cheney Movie
I am admittedly not a Tyler Perry fan. I think his movies tend to be overly preachy with a hint of misogynoir added in to make his point. Of course the overly sexual black woman catches HIV after having an affair behind her husband’s back. And let’s not ignore the fact that Perry, a black…
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Tyler Perry, Lee Daniels Built Careers on Black Women Stories but Trade in Misogynoir
Did they use us just to lose us? Recent comments from Hollywood mega producers Tyler Perry and Lee Daniels have raised eyebrows about the ways they use gender and class privilege to distance themselves from the very communities from which they come. And they do this all while leveraging patriarchal notions of economic achievement to…
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Stop Pitting Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween Against The Birth of a Nation
If one ever wants to know what the slower side of intelligentsia is thinking or, in this case, not really thinking, in 2016, you can often find the answer in a meme. To wit, after Tyler Perry’s Boo! A Madea Halloween grossed more than $28 million opening weekend, I stumbled upon an unfortunate lil’ meme that compared…
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Empire’s Tasha Smith Knows a Thing or Two About Thriving in Hollywood and Surviving Shady Ex-Husbands
Tasha Smith is that rare actress who has been holding it down in the entertainment industry for quite a while now. The NAACP Image Award nominee—perhaps best known for her portrayal of Angela in Tyler Perry’s hit television show For Better or Worse—has been working as an actress for two decades. She has appeared in films—including Daddy’s…
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3 Reasons Why Folks Tried to Take Away My Black Card and 1 Reason They’ll Never Get It
It’s usually threatened whenever there is a cultural milestone that you’ve failed to accomplish. Perhaps you’ve never seen the original Roots or have not fully memorized the entire catalog of Luther Vandross. When those around you discover this lapse in your black cultural conditioning, the threat is issued: “We’re going to revoke your black card.”…
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Why Won't Hollywood Let Black Movies Be Great?
I’ve long been of two minds about Kevin Hart. On the one hand, I appreciate that he’s a seemingly bonhomous young brother who’s built an empire for himself by selling out shows and racking up receipts at the box office. There’s little more gratifying than a black man starting from the bottom (the actual bottom, Drake) and making…
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Tyler Perry Expecting Human Baby: Written, Directed, Produced By And Starring Tyler Perry
Apparently, Tyler Perry announced at his 45th birthday party that he was expecting his first child. Naturally, I figured this meant a mini-Tyler Perry would debut in nothing less than film fashion. And because one of the stars of Tyler Perry’s films are the titles themselves, I came up with five and a possible: 1.…