Sarunas Jackson – Danii Gold

HBO’s new show Rap Sh!t is a bop! It’s about two women with different personalities trying to make it as respectable rappers in Miami, Florida. The show was created by actress, producer, Golden Globe nominee & Emmy nominee, NAACP winner AND Insecure creator Issa Rae. (I had to give sis her flowers).

Here are some facts about the show:

1. The City Girls Are Co-Executive Producers

Rap Sh!t is loosely based on the lives of City Girls JT and Yung Miami. Being that the show is inspired by them, they are listed as co-executive producers on it, as well as their managers.

2. Mia is an artist in real life

Mia, played by KaMillion, is a Florida rapper in real life and goes by the name KaMillion

3. Duke is a St. Louis native

Duke, played by Jonica Booth is from Da Lou, woot woot! She is also know for starring season 12 of Bad Girls Club

4. Jay Ellis directed Episode 10 “Something For the Road“

Jay Ellis, who plays Lawrence in the show Insecure directed the last episode of the first season.

5. Recurring Insecure Characters

Issa blessed us with two rememberable characters from the Insecure series, Dro and Tasha. Dro, play by Sarunas Jackson, was Mollys side dude and married friend. Tasha, played by Dominique Perry, was Lawrence’s first fling after him and Issa broke up. In Rap Sh!t, she plays Mia’s shady friend who doesn’t like Shawna at all because she’s different; she has a semi-recurring role. Sarunas only appeared in the first episode for 2 minutes.

Fun Fact, Dominique and Sarunas have a beauty baby girl together in real life!

6. Shawna READ the Industry

Shawna, played by Aida Oscan, was a conscious rapper but in order to “win” she dummied down her raps and appearance to her seen in the industry.

In episode 3, when her and Mia were talking at the bar of the Plymouth hotel, she explained that there’s a formula when you’re a female artist in the industry, which get your body done, make a song about it, then people will start caring about your music. She added that everyone looks the same and every female rapper’s success is tied to a man that wants to have sex with them. She brought up the point that Biggie made Lil Kim his side chick then tossed her; then Big Fendi did it to Nicki.

I’m hoping this gets picked up for a second season because it shows the perspective of a female artist trying to come up in the industry.

What did y’all think of the show?

Comment and let me know.

BET has done it again. They created another hit show that actually has a purpose. I loved Boomerang and can’t wait for a new season. Being Mary Jane was the shit too when it was aired regularly and Games People Play is another relatable series.

The Characters

The show stars Lauren London, who plays Vanessa; Sarunas Jackson, who plays her husband Marcus; Jackie Long, who plays Marcus’ best friend, Kareem; Parker McKenna Posey, who plays Laila, a side chick; Karen Obliom, who plays Nia, Vanessa best friend; and the Instagram funny influencer Kendall Kyndall, who plays Nia’s friend and messy coworker.

Image result for games people play episodes — bet.com

Background Information

What makes the show realistic is the fact that some professional sports players cheat, specifically in the show NBA players. In the show, Marcus cheats on a Vanessa and she catches them mid-act, and puts the paws on her. The girl somehow ends up dead and the show is at the point of figuring out if Marcus or even Vanessa had something to do with her death. Marcus cheats again, this time with Laila and she subliminally posts his body parts on Instagram. Vanessa finds out and decides to get her revenge. Nia is a celebrity blogger and her job wants her to write a story about Laila even though it may jeopardize her relationship with Vanessa. Marcus’ friend Kareem used to be as good as Marcus when it came to basketball but didn’t perfect his craft long enough so he’s kind of seen as Marcus’ sidekick or even his shadow.

No Double Standard

I like how the writers make the show realistic with Vanessa cheating back on Marcus. Yes, she cheats back y’all and AS SHE SHOULD. This man publicly cheated on her and he’s in the midst of getting back in her good grace and “saying” he’s not going to cheat again. Whether Vanessa believes it or not, she got her revenge back by cheating with an old friend. There is no double standard here. Nia, her friend, did not judge her. Marcus doesn’t know…yet but I hope he finds out so she can throw it in his face.

Image result for games people play show — bet.com

Career or Friendship

Choosing between work and friendship can be tough at time. Of course money pays the bills so you would want to pick your job but friends who support you, your decisions and lifestyle is something you don’t want to take for granted. Nia has to tread lightly when it comes to her career as a gossip writer and her friendship with Vanessa, who has a cheating husband and his business stays in the media.

Living in Friend’s Shadow

We’ve all been in a position where we’ve followed instead leaded, gone with the flow, let our friend take the shine and be great. In the last episode, they gives us some history on the start of Marcus and Kareem’s friendship. They were college roommates and both on the basketball team. Kareem was starting and Marcus was going to be riding the bench. As time went on, Kareem was slacking (for bets and money reasons) and that gave Marcus the time to shine. He went pro while Kareem…didn’t. Instead Kareem became Marcus’ alibi for everything when it came to Vanessa, plus some! In the second to last episode, Kareem realized that he was living in Marcus’ shadow and didn’t want to cover for him anymore. He noticed his worth and realized that even though he didn’t go pro, he can do other things with his talents. This is a good lesson of, if you and a friend are both experts in a craft one becomes better than the other, and makes it further in life, that doesn’t mean neither of you has to live in the other’s shadow. That just means that you can fully support one another while pursuing your path in another direction.

This show is a must-see. Not only is Lauren London in it, but Kendall Kyndall is hilarious, Karen Obliom is my fav, Sarunas is FINE and BET needs support to keep putting relevant content on their network.

What are your thoughts on the show? Comment them below and let me know!

Tag: Sarunas Jackson

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