There are people who clamor to be the next big reality star in hopes that the exposure will help them gain recognition. In the first few seasons of Basketball Wives, Draya Michele was a central figure who often engaged in fights, sometimes physical, with the other cast members. While her inclusion in the cast did aid in growing her popularity, Draya now criticizes the show and says that she regrets being apart of the franchise.
In a recent episode of Just the Sip for E! News, Draya shared her issues with what she claims is reality show producers thriving off of the aggression of black women. "Basketball Wives has this stereotype of these angry black women and I feel like more than just black people watch it. People who aren’t familiar with black culture take that and they think that is what we are. I feel really, really bad that I was a part of that and contributed to that."
"Black women, we’re queens. We’re so much more than arguing with each other over stupid stuff. I never want people to think that I’m this aggressive black woman because I’m not," she added. "I’m aggressive when it comes to my work and my business, but I’m not like a...try to fight you in the streets. I feel like the show gave me that. I got pushed to the limit where I had to bark back."
It's clear that reality shows will always find someone willing to sign up for screentime and even if someone acts as if they're being taken advantage of, Draya says they know what the deal is. "There’s people that are very, very, very hungry for just a shot and they sign up for it," Draya said. "If you sign up for a show like that you know what it is. They can sit there and they can say to you, ‘Sign this paper, you’re going to be on this show, we’re going to talk about your business and everything’s going to be amazing.’ But you watch the show. You know already. You know what’s up." Check out Draya venting about reality television below.