‘Harlem’ Season 2 Keeps The Conversation Going On What Black Women Face In Their 30s
Season 2 of Harlem is raising the bar on issues that all women face but more specifically Black women, as the ladies of the show pick up right where they left off in the Prime Video series.
Camille (played by Meagan Good) allows herself to feel all the feelings with her ex and rekindle their love with Ian (played by Tyler Lepley) while also declaring her future as a professor in academia under the guise of Dr. Elise Pruitt (played by Whoopi Goldberg). While the rest of her tribe Tye (played by Jerrie Johnson), Angie (played by Shoniqua Shandai) and Quinn (played by Grace Byers) dive deep into some real challenges and life lessons that several Black 30-somethings might face sooner or later.
“The first season you were really getting introduced to these characters and really getting to know who they are as human beings. For season 2, you're getting to see them do life and you're getting them to do you get to see them live in ways that aren't always perfect,” Good said in an interview with BET.com. “People will really resonate with the authenticity of these characters. The fact that they don't always get it right. The fact that they are growing and getting new revelations and discovering themselves. They already were self-aware but they're becoming, even more, self-aware.”
The second season of Harlem will also bring out some familiar faces as new characters in the show with Sherri Shepherd, Lil Rel Howery, Rick Fox and Countess Vaughn. Friday (Feb. 3) kicks off the new season with two episodes premiering every week until the season finale on Feb. 24.
See what the rest of the main cast had to share about the highly-anticipated season 2 below.
BET.com: Shoniqua, fans will see Sherri Shepherd, who plays Angi’s mom in the show during S2, how was that dynamic, and what did you learn from working alongside her?
Shoniqua: Sherri is so loving and generous! Immediately it just felt like the energy was connected, there were moments that felt organic and real. She was fun and a comedic legend in her own right. She taught me how to maintain longevity in this career and how to trust my instincts, working with her and seeing her trust her own instincts and her own personal Je ne sais quoi within her. It empowered me to do the same.
BET.com: Grace, fans see Quinn come into her own sense of self and identity when it comes to love and relationships. Can you talk about what it was like for your character to develop this season?
Grace: It was really rewarding in a different way this season, to be able to explore aspects of Quinn that may have felt otherwise surprising to people. A lot of times we tend to put people into boxes when we see you know what they look like or where they come from or you know if they have money or you know all these types of things. So it was really lovely to be able to play different aspects of Quinn that may have been a little unpredictable for a character like Quinn right off the bat. Also, highlighting two different topics that we don’t readily discuss all the time especially for women of color I do hope that it inspires more conversation around these things, especially if people see themselves in these circumstances and want to feel more seen and want to feel less alone.
BET.com: Jerrie, Tye’s health as it relates to fibroids and hysterectomies still remains top of mind in S2 and the long-term effects if/when it comes to having kids, especially when it comes to Black women. Why was it important to highlight this topic?
Jerrie: Black women aren't being taken care of in the medical system, and we saw it when Serena Williams was having her baby and it's like if you're not gonna listen to Serena Williams, ‘you're not gonna listen to me.’
If the conversation gets brushed over on television, granted I have not watched everything, but it can be a true depiction of how Black women are treated in the medical field. Then to talk about fibroids and the fact that for Black women, more so than any other group, the solution is hysterectomy. There are many medical procedures that are done on Black women that are so unnecessary.
When we speak something out loud, it's a great opportunity for people to share notes and compare notes. We have to be better and more vigilant about it with the research that we're doing. There's not a lot of research just happening on all fibroids or endometriosis. It's important for us to have the conversation but also make it digestible on the screen where it is fun but also realistic.
BET.com: Tyler, what has been your favorite part about working with all of these talented Black women on set?
Tyler: Being able to see them every day. I joke with them all the time about the sisters that I've always wanted, being that I am an only child. One thing that I really get from them is a sense of family, a sense of community, everybody is close-knit and we're we truly are there for each other even off set, we're texting each other, comment on each other's pictures, but the biggest thing that I've received from them is a sense of strength. Individually, they just bring their own sense of strength to kind of make everybody feel strong and as a unit as we move forward. It’s like I'm a part of the Avengers, it feels good.
