Don’t you just love a good television show? They’re so hard to come by more often than not that when you find one and you find yourself so emotionally invested, the level of pisstivity you reach when it is canceled or has a finale is unparalleled.  Here are just a few shows that we loved (for the most part) that made an exit when they were still in their prime! Oh, and feel free to add the shows you thought ended before their time so we can mourn together!

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Well with an upcoming Super Bowl halftime show, you know Mrs. Carter had to do something else that would be pretty big to get the buzz going.  Well, it looks like she’s done it.

According to Alex Pariente and Luis Alberto Sadalla, both executives of the Wynn-Encore Las Vegas, Beyone will be doing an exclusive New Year’s Eve concert at the Wynn for about 700 guests. Pariente says she agreed to do it because three years ago, she did two wonderful shows in Brazil for Sadalla, his family and other friends that were amazing.

According to the video, which was totally in Portugese, these guests are invited so at this point, there’s no need to get excited about buying tickets because that doesn’t appear to be an option.  Further, Global Grind reports that she is going to be paid four million dollars for this one night only “spectacular.”

Have you ever heard the saying how you ring in the new year is the same way you’ll spend it? Well it looks like the Carters will be working hard and making money because while it looks like Bey will be in Las Vegas, her husband Jay-Z will be performing with Coldplay in Brooklyn at the Barclay’s Center.

Check the video below for confirmation (its at the 9:50 mark and if you don’t believe me, open that Google Translate and work it on out)!

Patricia Schlein/WENN.com

It seems like recording artists don’t have the best luck when it comes to their health on airplanes.

According to ESSENCE, singer/songwriter Keri Hilson fainted on her flight home from China (she was doing some performances there) last Friday. She apparently lost consciousness and when she woke up, she couldn’t hold anything down. As she explained when she took to Twitter to tell her fans:

“I fainted on my flight. then I threw up. I’m fine now, I just need real rest…haven’t had more than 3.5hrs of sleep in 48hrs #whatdreamsrmadeof”

On a moving plane with lack of sleep and likely not enough food (performers are notorious for being so focused on the work at hand that they don’t remember to eat often, if at all), its no wonder this happened to her. Anyway, Keri made it home safely and apparently able to get some rest.

But to add insult to her own injury, Keri left her purse and her gifts on the plane – probably in haste to get off the flight.  I’m pretty sure the flight crew got everything back to her.

Source: shadowandact.com

When I read “Why BET Shouldn’t Compete With VH1’s Ratchet Reality Shows,” I was puzzled by criticism of my article, “If Black Reality TV Is A Winner for VH1, Why Is BET Still Losing?”  Clutch magazine writer Britni Danielle feels that to “insinuate that [BET] lower their standards instead of raising them is a problem.” I agree.

My article pointed to “real stories of African Americans – not the sanitized or overcompensating versions” as a possible solution to BET’s failure to produce a reality show as popular as VH1’s offerings. “[These stories] have more than enough drama to keep audiences coming back for more.”

I can’t speak for the race, but the drama in my life and those around me doesn’t look like anything on Love & Hip Hop…most of the time. Some stereotypes are based on reality, but many of the stories black culture has to offer don’t play out like a Mona Scott-Young production or what’s on BET.

It’s a testament to the quality of programming geared toward African Americans that drama automatically has a negative connotation. To that I say, “all rachet-ry is drama, but not all drama is rachet.”

When I ask for drama, I want stories that are interesting. I want characters that aren’t caricatures, but real people with good and bad attributes. Kerry Washington’s Scandal character Olivia Pope is a prime example. Despite [SPOILER ALERT] sleeping with the President and a host of other quirks that kept Twitter buzzing, her character has yet to be dubbed a stereotype. Idris Elba’s Luther is another example, which I’m happy to see BET has chosen to air in syndication.

Why doesn’t BET attempt this complexity in its original programming? BET could try to change the game of reality television with a show that portrays issues African Americans are facing without relying on the stereotypes and storylines we always see. They opt to rely on tired formulas of squeaky-clean performances that lack authenticity, stereotyping that does the same, or the old standby of trotting out a celebrity.

Danielle writes:

And while BET can certainly improve the writing on some of its shows, the answer isn’t to jump into the muddy waters of negative black female stereotypes, but rather continue to improve on what they’ve already started: (re)building a network that shows us in various lights, not just through the hot prism of a modern day minstrel show.

I’m glad BET is attempting to show us in various lights. Shows like Sunday Best, Black Girls Rock!, and Real Husbands of Hollywood are signs the network is thinking outside the box. But, BET has to continue to push itself.

Whether they want to or not, BET competes with the watercooler and Twitter-friendly excitement on VH1. You can disagree with the stories VH1 tells, but you can’t deny that they keep their viewers engaged. Positivity alone doesn’t cut it; you have to tell a good story. Even Oprah had to learn that programming has to be entertaining.

I speculated that pressure to uplift the race was the issue holding BET back. Perhaps the network feels we would take anything that doesn’t pander to Black America as a slight to the race. For example, would Scandal have been received as well if it was a BET production?

We need to continue to critique the content the network produces (as well as the criticism we level against it), offering solutions rather than vague complaints, or we will never see change. What is the purpose of a channel devoted to black entertainment other than to tell the true stories of black culture with all its diversity and complications? If BET doesn’t serve its purpose, what’s the point of it?

Cortney Cleveland is a freelance writer and content strategist in New York City. You can follow her on Twitter @CleveInTheCity and visit her personal column The Red Read.

Infographic by Desire Thompson

Reality TV is something that people love in the comfort of their homes, ridicule on Twitter, and highly favor on the blogs and the tabloids. It’s something of an art (term used very loosely here) and while there are more than enough series to fill up your DVR for the entire year, it seems as though reality TV has hit a bump in the road both in terms of viewership and creativity.

Summer Bummers

It doesn’t come as a surprise that TV in general isn’t pulling in the ratings because of the summer. Most people are either working hard and sticking to DVR’ing their favorites or just soaking up the sun and staying away from the TV in general. This summer, ABC decided to join the singing contest bandwagon with “Duets” with successful judges like John Legend, Kelly Clarkson and Robin Thicke. The season opened with okay numbers (six million viewers) in May, but quickly fell to less than four million viewers for its season finale in July. Another promising series for reality TV fanatics was Bristol Palin’s show entitled “Bristol Plain: Life’s a Tripp” on Lifetime. The show was focused on her new life in her old town (yawn) with her son and everyone’s favorite political punch bag, Sarah Palin. Not even her mom could help her ratings; the show tanked with just 726,000 viewers for its first episode, and dropping to a low 426,000 on its second.

The summer premieres of scripted shows like ABC Family’s “Pretty Little Liars,” TNT’s “The Closer” and the newly renovated “Dallas” are pulling in more viewers than reality favorites like “So You Think You Can Dance,” Jersey Shore girlies’ “Snooki & JWOWW,” and  VH1’s “Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta” (although L&HH leads in the ratings for Monday Nights with almost two million viewers and is itself a hit for the network). But what’s popular among African-American viewers?

According to Reachingblackconsumers.com, last season, the top reality shows for black teens 12-17 included “Bad Girls Club,” adults 18-24, “T.I & Tiny: The Family Hustle,” and the 18-54 demographic closes the list with Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” With a combined total of over 1.19 million viewers, they haven’t raked in the largest numbers.

Black sitcoms/dramas are pulling in a lot more viewers. With just the encores of “Single Ladies,” “The Game” and “Let’s Stay Together” nearly doubling that average weekly, one would ask the question: Are we done with reality television? I wouldn’t put down the petitions just yet, but we may be getting there…

Haven’t We Seen This Before?

I sneaked a peak at the ninth (yes, ninth) season of “Bad Girls Club” during an episode that my cousin was watching the other day. Now, she absolutely loves everything drama filled and thinks it’s all “Amahhzing,” but even she was bored with the new season. “It’s more obvious that they [producers] are starting all the fights,” she finally realized.

There aren’t any secrets anymore when it comes to creating the story. We’re all able to spot out the villain, the victim, the b****, and the weakest link – and we all know the sob stories. Viewers are expecting something surprising when watching television, and even though I think we can all agree that a majority of it is scripted, it shouldn’t appear as such.

If it’s not enough that some shows are getting more and more predictable and fake, it doesn’t help that everyone is trying to do the same type of reality show. Need an example? How about the producers of “Big Brother” (CBS) who are suing the creator and producers of ABC’s new show “The Glass House.”  The shows are very similar: A bunch of randoms are stuck in a house with cameras all over to compete for money while dealing with the drama that they (or writers) create. And it doesn’t help that many of the former employees of “Big Brother” are now working for the “Glass House.”

“Duets” is like “The Voice,” and “The X Factor” is like “American Idol.” You can find a different rehab-meets-intervention show depending on what channel you choose, and we’re just waiting patiently for The Real Housewives of Alaska. And if you hadn’t also noticed, there’s a reality competition to get in damn near every occupation you want: modeling, cooking, acting, etc. and one for every hobby and job available (towing, working in pawn shops, fishing, being a hairstylist, a doctor, as well as a gypsy and a jailed mobster’s wife). We could be reaching reality TV overload.

The Bottom Line: Do We Care Anymore?

There are definitely a load of reality TV shows on now that we probably won’t see again (good luck “Duets”), but for every failure of one, there comes another to take its place. Another celeb ready to put their lives out there, another everyday Joe or Jane Schmo ready to become an overnight celebrity. Do we constantly complain and critique these people who put their lives out there for us to see? Yes. Do we have to watch these shows to live? No. At the end of the day, no one forces anyone to watch reality TV. While it may be on almost every blog and entertainment show, realize why it’s there–there is a general interest and a large audience for them. If we want to see more scripted television with smart plot lines and that give real hardworking actors jobs, the attention should be placed on Meagan Good and Laz Alonso’s new fall show, “Infamous,” Kerry Washington’s upcoming second season of “Scandal” or even Michael Jai White and Tasha Smith’s new comedy, “For Better or Worse.” Then we may see an even bigger change in the programming and the way our people are presented (since that’s what anti-reality TV folks have been calling for). But it all depends on the storylines we see. The more dull or ridiculous things get in a story, the less viewers you’ll see for scripted television and the more you’ll find for reality TV, talking over coffee in the morning about folks with names like Karlie Redd and Joseline. Why? Well, let’s keep it real. Sometimes it’s nice to see that in one hour, your life isn’t as much of a hot mess as someone else’s. So while it might have been a cruel summer for reality TV, once fall comes around, those barking about the options now will probably be circled around somebody’s computer talking about “Basketball Wives” and RHOA. So in the meantime, support what you want to see more of, and stop partaking in what you would like to see less of. Do your part and hope that the reality TV overload will die down (or die off completely) soon enough.

But don’t hold your breath…

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Photo courtesy of orijinculture.com

After another lengthy wait–I don’t even remember when episode 11 premiered, but I’m pretty sure it was a month ago–”The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl” is back! Sadly, it’s back to debut the season finale of the popular web series, which has had us rolling on the floor laughing, singing the random song, “Booty Shawts,” and coming to terms with our own awkwardness. Director/writer/editor Issa Rae’s web series has garnered a huge following, and we hope to see it back very, VERY soon (just not on television). So to celebrate the season finale premiering tonight, we wanted to take a look back at some of our favorite ABG episodes in all their awkward glory. Be sure to tell us your faves! “Drop dat beat Cece!”

You probably heard that after all these years, Janet Hubert, aka, the original “Aunt Viv” from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, still has no love for her former co-star, Will Smith. “He is still an egomaniac and has not grown up. This constant reunion thing will never ever happen in my lifetime unless there is an apology, which he doesn’t know the word.” Hubert wasn’t the only one who was a bit salty about being replaced on the uber-famous show. I, like many fans, loved the original Aunt Viv and was very disappointed when Daphne Maxwell came through the door and took over. But replacements in Hollywood aren’t anything new. From our favorite music groups to popular TV characters, many people have been on your screen one day, and then gone the next. Time to figure out if their departures were welcomed, or big ‘ol downgrades.

As a young professional still trying to get adjusted to adult bills and responsibilities, I find myself forgoing the things I used to bug my parents about getting because well, I can’t afford it. One of those things includes cable. But when I talk to a lot of people about the necessity of having cable, they usually say they can go without most channels, but they’d kill to have and keep HBO. When I was living at home and going to school I had access to HBO shows, and when I didn’t, I was watching syndicated episodes of their hit programs or streaming old episodes from online and YouTube like a fiend. And I must say, I would much rather watch the old episodes of HBO shows rather than the new…anything, that’s on television right now. So with that, here’s a list of seven of the “dopest” shows I’ve ever seen on HBO. These lists are always debatable, so feel free to add some of your own in the comment section.

Whenever you talk about a sidekick in movies and television, the individuals that get named as some of people’s favorites are always fellas. From Jazz on the “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” to Semmi in Coming to America, the lists concocted are usually pretty male-centered. But I don’t know why, cause there have been so many awesome female sidekicks that have appeared on screen. This list, as always, will probably be highly debated, but here are seven sistahs who not only were great friends but were so entertaining they nearly outshined their protagonists.