Today (April 12), “Black Girl Stuff” returned with an all-new episode! Last week’s installment featured Woody McClain and Zonnique Pullins, amongst others, and today’s show was just as jam-packed. “BGS” hosts Britt Hall, Tori Brixx, Brii Renee, guest host Jazzy McBee, and resident correspondent Kennedy Rue were joined by the likes of Chlöe Bailey, Natalie Nunn, and De’arra Taylor. The girls discussed everything from entrepreneurship and branding to relationships, and plenty more.
As always, you can catch “Black Girl Stuff” every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on the REVOLT TV channel and every Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET on the REVOLT website here, YouTube channel, and app. Get into the recap below!
1. If You Don’t Have Anything Nice to Say…
To start off today’s episode, the girls dove into a hot topic online — weight. Specifically, should you ever comment on a family member’s weight? One social media user said, “If family don’t do nothing else, they gon’ tell you, you done got fat.”
Hall was the first to offer her two cents. She said, “I don’t think it’s OK to really comment on people’s weight. I think there’s a way to do it, yes. But I know with me, I like to handle my people with care and love. So, I’m never gonna be like, ‘Oh, you’re getting big, fat over there.’ I think that’s rude. But I think I would just say to my home girl, or whoever, and be like, ‘Listen, like, are you OK?’ Because for me, it’s health — your health is the most important thing. If you’re too thin or you’re too big, that can cause problems for you. So, I feel like there’s a way to say it.”
Renee spoke about a different side of the coin. She said, “I’ve got an unpopular opinion. As somebody who has often fluctuated with my weight, I’ve been over 200 pounds most of my life, even in high school and in most of my earliest 20s. Now I’m smaller, right? I worked hard for this body. But I’d be like, ‘I wish somebody told me I was getting too d**n big.’ I remember being in college, and that’s really what prompted me to take my weight loss journey serious. I was in college… I had already gained that ‘Freshman 15.’”
The girls also discussed gaining “grown woman weight,” which Renee noted is very real.
2. Chlöe Bailey Joins the Panel
With a voice that can move mountains, Chlöe Bailey first gained recognition as half of the R&B duo Chlöe x Halle. Moreover, her role in the hit TV series “Grown-ish” propelled her to new heights. Since then, Chlöe has not only released her solo debut album, but she’s been moving forward in the acting realm as well. Her latest film, Praise This, featured her raw talent and magnetic stage presence channeled into the character of Sam.
Chlöe talked lots about her real-life inspiration when it came to taking on the role. She said, “When I first got the script to self-tape for it, I was so excited because it has my love of music, acting, and God all in one. So I was like, ‘This is the role for me.’ You know, Sam is an aspiring musician. And I feel like there was so much in Sam that Chlöe could resonate with. We all have those times where life will try us, and we have those trials and tribulations. For Sam, it was when she lost her mother and her career is not working out. She was like, ‘God, are you even hearing me when I pray to you?’ So she really kind of lost her faith. But moving down to Atlanta to be with her extended family, she finds herself again through God.”
Chlöe also talked about her experience with entering the entertainment industry. She said, “The thing that people don’t really talk about is this industry is hard. Like every single industry, we all have the negative side of it. And for me, I think it was really an internal battle. And to remove any self-doubt that I was feeling just because some people may or may not understand my type of production, or the beats I’ll do, or my vocal arrangements. And a lot of times, I’ll be like, ‘Well, does that mean I’m not good? Does that mean just because they want me to change something… does that mean I’m not talented?’ So I think those are the obstacles that I tend to put on myself a lot. And anything else from anyone, I shouldn’t give them the power to have that control over me and my thoughts.”
One of the most heartfelt topics Chlöe discussed was moving forward in music without her sister, Halle Bailey. She said, “It is definitely scary. In the beginning, I was like, ‘Can I do this without her? Do people want to hear my voice without my sister’s voice harmonizing with me?’ We both had separation anxiety as we were, like, jumping into our own journeys. But we were just talking about this the other day; God has been answering every single one of our prayers, and we get to make our dreams come true. Not only together but also separately. So then, when we do come back together for our third album and other projects, it’ll be even stronger. So I’m really, really proud of us.”
You can stream Chlöe Bailey’s latest film, Praise This, on Peacock!
3. Natalie Nunn Sits in the Hot Seat
Natalie Nunn first rose to fame as a cast member on the fourth season of “Bad Girls Club” in 2009. Known for her sharp tongue and bold personality, Nunn quickly became a fan-favorite and went on to appear in other reality TV shows, including “Love Games: Bad Girls Need Love Too” and “Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars.” In addition to her TV career, Nunn is also a successful entrepreneur, having launched her own clothing line and fitness program. Most recently, she went up against Tommie Lee in the boxing ring!
When talking about their boxing match, Nunn kept it real. She said, “So this is what I really can say, like before the TV stuff, I was really an athlete. So I already knew that boxing was really about to be a workout and was going to be intense. And I knew Tommy didn’t have that in her, like, street fighting. She might pull… chairs and pull some wigs all day, you know, but a boxing match — like one-minute rounds, two-minute rounds? I was like, ‘Girl, OK, I’ll see you any day in the ring.’ So she knew she wasn’t gonna be able to handle it. That was it, and then she showed her a** is what she did.”
When asked if she felt there was potential for a future friendship with Lee, Nunn seemed interested but slightly hesitant. She said, “I don’t have any bad blood toward Tommy. I do not appreciate, like, when it comes to the family stuff. Like, she started taking things to the internet, being messy. I’m married. I have a family. I take pride and joy in my family and my child. And maybe others don’t have that type of foundation with their family and their kids or whatever — but don’t talk about my family.”
4. De’arra Taylor Sits in the Hot Seat
De’arra Taylor got her start on YouTube as one-half of the couples channel “DK4L.” Since moving on from ex-boyfriend Ken Walker, Taylor has stepped into an entirely new world with her business. She stopped by “BGS” to talk about family, entrepreneurship, and much more.
When discussing her brand Lorvae, she stated, “Yeah, my brand is my baby. I love my brand. So much. Lorvae, my sunglass brand, which is not gonna stop there. So, yeah, stay tuned. But you know, my brand was inspired and born based off my love for fashion, my love for sunglasses, and my love for just eyewear in general. I can’t walk out the house without having glasses on. I’m like, ‘I need that.’ And it’s like a big statement when it comes to all my looks. So you know, I had to start with sunglasses, and a lot of people wouldn’t have expected it because a lot of people wanted me to do — or assumed I was gonna do — clothing, which, you know, it’s still tea, but I wanted to break outside the box, and I wanted to do something different, which is sunglasses.”
She also talked about the women in her family inspiring the brand. Taylor stated, “All of my cousins, my mom, my granny often wear glasses. I actually do not wear glasses, like, prescribed glasses. I do not wear them, but you know my family is a big part of me — I’m very family-oriented. So, my family inspired a lot because they know they pushed me to be so independent, and be different and out the box…. I’m so close to my family. I love my family so much.”
5. Affirmations After Dark
According to JAMA Pediatrics, nearly 70 percent of Black women and girls say they are physically active in their teens, but then it drops approximately 45 percent when it comes to being active in their 20s. When asked if she found it difficult to stay active as an adult, McBee’s answer was simple — it’s all about time. She said, “I feel like just our daily schedules sometimes don’t allow us to like really work out. I barely work out, which I need to do better in.”
Renee added, “My schedule be scheduling me, you know? What I did is I realized that between 7 and 8 a.m., nothing is usually going to go on during that time. So I just make that my time I set time to go ahead, get the workout in and get it out the way, and I feel so much better about my day. Like, even if I don’t do my nails, I got that workout in.”
Hall discussed the daily struggle of life getting in the way. She said, “I think, too, it is hard when you start to get older, and you start having kids, and it’s just a lot. But I think it’s important to find, like you said, some time to set aside for me… stretching and I want to take a Pilates class.”